The thrill is in the chase. One of the great pleasures of pursuing local history is choosing a destination -- say, the location of Carteret Academy, circa 1912 -- finding old maps and the Essex County atlas, packing a snack, and setting out on foot or in the car. Now, at 2011's end, and with long winter days ahead, I'd like to offer a few destinations of local interest. The links offer more details, including contact information and directions.

By car: 

Kip's Castle, while in Verona, is of considerable local interest. Built by a cousin of Village President Ira Kip, the castle was built in the same period as our own Kip-Riker Mansion. The castle is modeled on a Norman manor house, and its grounds offer a winter-time view of Manhattan that can't be beat. At this time of year, the home is closed, but the grounds are the real draw, and they're open to the public.

Thomas Edison's home is in Llewellyn Park, West Orange. The house is stunning, but so is the entire community, and a visit to Glenmont is a way to get beyond the gates. Drive or walk slowly to savor the remarkable architecture in a surprisingly rustic setting.

The lab where Thomas Edison invented light bulbs and power naps is open again to the public. It's a great trip for all ages, and is far more accessible than in past years. What impressed me about this place in fourth grade and still awes me is how the lab truly is a factory, not simply for products but for ideas. Besides, Thomas Edison spent time in South Orange; it's time for us to return the visit.

The Old Burying Ground in Orange is the final stop for many of the earliest settlers in our area, including Jemima Cundict. The grave markers are very moving; some reflect English birthplaces, while others show a lifespan measured in years, months, and even days. Particularly interesting to me are the graves that reflect both the Julian and Gregorian calendars in use at that period; this is unusual, and well worth a look. 

One of my favorite rides is South Orange Avenue from end to end. Our major thoroughfare has seen Native Americans, traders, soldiers and settlers in its long history. No wonder; it leads to and from the Hudson, which has been important even before Peter Stuyvesant came calling. I also like the literary resonance; Philip Roth's "Goodbye Columbus" has Neil, the main character, traveling through the night from Newark to Short Hills, probably by way of South Orange Avenue.

On foot:

I recommend a visit to the flagpole at the center of town. It memorializes our World War I veterans with quotations from Lincoln and the Bible. From there, it's a short walk to the Duck Pond, where veterans of other wars are similarly memorialized.

Walking the course is simply fun. Meadowbrook Park was once the nine-hole Lone Oak Golf Course. Imagining where the holes and hazards once lay is a good incentive to walk the long way around the park, from train tracks to Ridgewood Road, spanning Meadowbrook Road to the west and South Orange Avenue to the east. 

Luddington Brook  is my favorite walk in town, especially as it leads past Linden Lawn, a house that reminds me of Mary Poppins. This private road is open to walkers; it has no sidewalks, however, and demands good walking shoes.

To see how our community has changed, it's interesting to type an address into a historic map site.Walking around Montrose with such a map is a way to peel back the layers of time; many streets simply didn't exist. Near my own neighborhood, old maps suggest that Melrose Place was once West Montrose Avenue, running into Franklin at the top of the hill. That seemed improbable until I took a walk and realized that the old names made geographic sense.

Orange Lawn Tennis Club's long curving driveway is a fine walk for imagining the age of Gatsby. The word ambulomancy, new to me, means "divination by walking." The Tennis Club is ideal for ambulomancy, for imagining tennis greats dressed in white against the green of springtime grass.

History surrounds us in South Orange, where we are fortunate to have both a remarkable past and a future that looks evermore promising. Here's to a historic 2012.