Perth Amboy is celebrating significant anniversaries this year.
Image Courtesy of John Kerry Dyke
By: John Kerry Dyke
This year there are three important anniversaries regarding Perth Amboy’s historic past.
City Hall is now 300 years old, as it was first constructed during 1714. Over the centuries the facade & roofline of our City Hall have changed along with a few additions. Initially, City Hall was the Middlesex County Court House. Therein, law cases were judged with some penalties being quite harsh. In a few matters colonial judges had the sheriff take the guilty party directly outside to the Market Square’s stocks & whipping post, where the sentence would be carried out! City Hall also functioned as New Jersey’s capitol building, where the Provincial Assembly, and later the State Assembly, voted on important issues of the day.
That brings us to another milestone, that is, the 225th anniversary of the signing of the Bill Of Rights. On November 20, 1789, the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution were ratified within City Hall. As we all know, the Bill Of Rights was the first document to guarantee our liberties & freedoms. And Perth Amboy has the honor to be the first place where it was signed!
Finally, we come to the Proprietary House, which was completed in 1764. This 250 year old structure was originally designed to be the Royal Governor’s Mansion. It was here that Royal Governor William Franklin was arrested & removed during June of 1776. It has gone by many different names since then, e.g., the Government House, the Rattoone residence, the Brighton House, the Bruen homestead, and the Westminster. In addition to all of the rich history that occurred within the Proprietary House, it remains an architectural treasure. Here Federal & Georgian styles are tastefully combined in this very unique historic building.
So, in 2014 we have anniversaries dating back 225, 250, and 300 years! Without a doubt, our amazing history is one of many things that make Perth Amboy a very special place!
