Tours of St. Stephen’s Church’s historic cemetery

MILLBURN, NJ — In cooperation with the Millburn-Short Hills Historical Society, St. Stephen’s Church in Millburn will hold tours of its historic cemetery on Sunday, Oct. 16. Tours will leave the cemetery gate at 451 Millburn Ave. — across from Millburn High School — at intervals, approximately 15 minutes apart, between 2 and 4 p.m. The public is invited, and there is no admission charge.

Tours will visit 11 gravesites in the cemetery and make one stop in the Chapels at Short Hills, the mausoleum located in the cemetery. At each site, an impersonator will speak for the person buried there. A former Millburn resident with Scottish roots going back to Robert the Bruce will tell his story; a township founding father will hold forth; the Depression-era Episcopal bishop of Newark will tell about the issues that he confronted; and a woman who was in the first group to enlist during World War II in the Women’s Army Corps will talk. One of the tour highlights will be a performance by famous Broadway actress Annie Russell in an excerpt from a play written by Bret Harte; Russell has appeared in previous tours, but not in this role.

St. Stephen’s cemetery was consecrated in 1858, and the graves of many persons who played significant roles in the development of Millburn and New Jersey generally are located there. The Rev. Sheelagh Clarke, rector of St. Stephen’s Church, notes that the church is pleased to sponsor an event that provides a window into local and state history. St. Stephen’s Church has offered cemetery tours in 2008, 2011 and 2014, and the current tour will include a mixture of gravesites not previously visited and sites from earlier tours.

The rain date for this event is Oct. 23. Questions about the tour may be directed to Felder Dorn at [email protected] or at 973-467-9847.

  Millburn-Short Hills Historical Society, St. Stephen’s Church