Noticed these and thought perhaps some local historians may be interested. The auction house is in Bloomfield.

https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/169088860_group-of-assorted-maplewood-nj-1904-1946postcards

Very cool - not quite sure what Model Park is.

Hmm, and the Sirlyn shops

jamie said:

Hmm, and the Sirlyn shops

That's the building with the Mapleleaf, Village Wine etc. are in it.  It's small but there's a carved piece of stone along the roofline that says "The Sylrin Shops"  It's more visible on streetview that  IRL https://maps.app.goo.gl/fVS2M63iMoHECs6v5

Komarovsky said:

That's the building with the Mapleleaf, Village Wine etc. are in it.  It's small but there's a carved piece of stone along the roofline that says "The Sylrin Shops"  It's more visible on streetview that  IRL https://maps.app.goo.gl/fVS2M63iMoHECs6v5

Ah yes. And on the right is the building with Village Coffee now. 

Ah - I see it.

jamie said:

Very cool - not quite sure what Model Park is.

seems to be close to the railway lines or trolley. I’m guessing close to Springfield avenue? 

Jaytee said:

seems to be close to the railway lines or trolley. I’m guessing close to Springfield avenue? 

I found this towards the end of the collection of post cards. Looks close to the railroad, could be closer to Ridgewood? By glen Avenue? But the underpass makes it look like in town…. Memorial park? Someone has to know. Come on jersey jack!

jamie said:

Very cool - not quite sure what Model Park is.

Could it be the intersection of Courter & Oakland, right be Maplecrest park? 

Found this using a search engine 

MAPLEWOOD NEW JERSEY NJ MODEL PARK RIDEGWOOD ROAD C1910 POSTCARD

I can't figure out how to post the image of the postcard.  It may be in a format not supported by MOL.

Was it this one Joan?  I searched for your result and did a screenshot on my phone.

This one mentions the Springfield Ave Trolley line terminus.  So the intersection of Springfield and Ridgewood?

joan_crystal said:

Found this using a search engine 

MAPLEWOOD NEW JERSEY NJ MODEL PARK RIDEGWOOD ROAD C1910 POSTCARD

I can't figure out how to post the image of the postcard.  It may be in a format not supported by MOL.

On one of the old post cards I found this was noted at the bottom of model park .

The garden spot of Essex Co, terminus Springfield Ave. Trolley. garden spot of Essex Co, terminus Springfield Ave. Trolley.

Anyone knows where the garden spot was located? Close to the Springfield avenue terminus. Could it be where the loop is? Trolleys ran on Springfield, the D L & W RR was the trains.

Jaytee said:

On one of the old post cards I found this was noted at the bottom of model park .

The garden spot of Essex Co, terminus Springfield Ave. Trolley. garden spot of Essex Co, terminus Springfield Ave. Trolley.

Anyone knows where the garden spot was located? Close to the Springfield avenue terminus. Could it be where the loop is? Trolleys ran on Springfield, the D L & W RR was the trains.

The loop is on Millburn Avenue not Springfield Avenue.  Millburn Avenue intersects with Ridgewood Road but Springfield Avenue does not.  Of course, the Springfield Avenue terminus could have been on Millburn Avenue.  We refer to the 25 and 70 as being Springfield Avenue buses even though the 25 terminates at the Maplewood Loop.

joan_crystal said:

The loop is on Millburn Avenue not Springfield Avenue.  Millburn Avenue intersects with Ridgewood Road but Springfield Avenue does not.  Of course, the Springfield Avenue terminus could have been on Millburn Avenue.  We refer to the 25 and 70 as being Springfield Avenue buses even though the 25 terminates at the Maplewood Loop.

yes I know where the loop is, on one of the images in fine print at the bottom it says model park has access to the train and the trolley. I think the only trolley around was Springfield avenue and it probably ended at the “terminus” which might have been continued around millburn avenue towards the “loop”, which is somewhat closer to the Ridgewood Road railway line. 
Of course this is just me playing detective…. 

Jaytee said:

I found this towards the end of the collection of post cards. Looks close to the railroad, could be closer to Ridgewood? By glen Avenue? But the underpass makes it look like in town…. Memorial park? Someone has to know. Come on jersey jack!

Way before my time. I was born in 1942 and grew up in Millburn. That said ---

Trains D.L. & W. I recall seeing steam engines crossing the rr bridge on Main Street.

Trolly. I don't know if it was a different trolly line or a later extension of the trolly that went to the "terminus," but I do know that a trolly went on Morris Avenue in Springfield to Broad Street in Summit and possibly beyond to New Providence.

My uncles grew up in Summit and I recall them telling stories of the trolly that was on Broad Street when they were kids in the '20's.

I also remember driving on Morris Avenue in Springfield in the 60's. The trolly tracks were still in the roadway and your tires would lost traction if you were driving on them.

By. 1920, it was possible to take a trolly from Elizabeth, through Summit and Chatham and to Lake Hopatcong.

Internet search indicates that there were probably 30 trolly lines that ran out of Newark. One was the South Orange line and another was the Springfield line.

Formerlyjerseyjack said:

Way before my time. I was born in 1942 and grew up in Millburn. That said ---

Trains D.L. & W. I recall seeing steam engines crossing the rr bridge on Main Street.

Trolly. I don't know if it was a different trolly line or a later extension of the trolly that went to the "terminus," but I do know that a trolly went on Morris Avenue in Springfield to Broad Street in Summit and possibly beyond to New Providence.

My uncles grew up in Summit and I recall them telling stories of the trolly that was on Broad Street when they were kids in the '20's.

I also remember driving on Morris Avenue in Springfield in the 60's. The trolly tracks were still in the roadway and your tires would lost traction if you were driving on them.

By. 1920, it was possible to take a trolly from Elizabeth, through Summit and Chatham and to Lake Hopatcong.

Internet search indicates that there were probably 30 trolly lines that ran out of Newark. One was the South Orange line and another was the Springfield line.

there are trolley tracks under the black top on Springfield avenue. So it makes sense that the trolley ran from Newark to Morris avenue via Springfield Avenue. 
this is a screenshot I took and it shows the train ( DL&W rr ) which is above ground. And in the fine print of the photo it says Springfield Avenue terminus for the trolley….This is what is throwing me off a bit.

I found a vintage map that may help you sleuths:
https://www.vintagecitymaps.com/product/maplewood-nj-1910/

joan_crystal said:

Millburn Avenue intersects with Ridgewood Road but Springfield Avenue does not. 

Oops. My mistake. I was thinking of Prospect not Ridgewood. 

Thanks Hatsoff 

So okay I see it now. The Springfield Ave trolley line seems to turn down Millburn Ave to the loop at Valley. 

I believe there were two streetcar lines running through Maplewood.  I remember the one which came up South Orange Ave from Newark, turned left on Valley St, ran to Millburn Ave, then right on Millburn Ave for a short distance, and turned around in the loop to return the same route to Newark.  When they were replaced by number 31 buses, they were run by a company called Trackless Transit, and the tracks were removed somewhat later.  After that Trackless Transit was replaced or renamed as NJT.

I found another thing, a real estate listing from 1909:

From context I think Model Park was the name of a housing development. I do not recognize this house but I don't know that part of town well, and in any case it may not even exist any more. It refers to three trolley lines.

I also found a current real estate listing (not currently for sale) on Redfin for a house on Rosedale Ave in Millburn which lists the location as subdivision Model Park. Rosedale Ave is right near the train overpass on Ridgewood.

Did that used to be Maplewood, or was that area always Millburn?

HatsOff said:

From context I think Model Park was the name of a housing development. I do not recognize this house but I don't know that part of town well, and in any case it may not even exist any more. It refers to three trolley lines.

Thanks for doing the work, I was close, and I was also beginning to think it was an old section of maplewood close to millburn right between Glen avenue and millburn avenue bordered by ridgewood. Kind of a triangular area. Just behind the golf course. Maybe they built the model houses for prospective buyers to see. It’s just so fascinating to me, that cypress street was inside the model park. 
Thanks for sharing.

HatsOff said:

I found another thing, a real estate listing from 1909:

--- and the sale price, low $300.

My parents bought their house on Ocean Street in Millburn for $k. (1948).  We sold it in 2017 for $499k.

Formerlyjerseyjack said:

--- and the sale price, low $300.

My parents bought their house on Ocean Street in Millburn for $k. (1948).  We sold it in 2017 for $499k.

I know right! Today, low $300 thousand would be extremely low around here. Maybe a rundown shack would go for that. (And only maybe. I  am thinking even a tear down could pull $500k).

I found the house in that ad - zillow estimate is over 1 million. I first found it on the Birds Eye map I linked above (it is clearly recognizable)  and then hunted around Google street view for that corner. It looks pretty different now but clearly it is the same house. I am not linking an address or picture for the residents' privacy.

I think I am done with this game! Very entertaining to do the detective work though. I have concluded those postcards were likely real estate promos of some kind, or maybe the town printed them to attract residents. Very cool to look back and see what things looked like then.

Jaytee said:

Thanks for doing the work, I was close, and I was also beginning to think it was an old section of maplewood close to millburn right between Glen avenue and millburn avenue bordered by ridgewood. Kind of a triangular area. Just behind the golf course. Maybe they built the model houses for prospective buyers to see. It’s just so fascinating to me, that cypress street was inside the model park. 
Thanks for sharing.

If you look closely Cypress used to be called Roland Ave. I only noticed because in my newspaper searching I found an obituary from 1913 where the wake was held at a residence on Roland Ave, Model Park, Maplewood. there is currently a Roland Ave ... in South Orange, nowhere near that area. That map is a little low res but I found another similar one with a better scan and you can clearly see that the current Cypress Street used to be Roland Ave. 

HatsOff said:

I found another thing, a real estate listing from 1909:

I know the house. … I wonder if the present owners know the history of their home. Houses built in the 1920’s were already in the thousands, my neighbor in the Hilton section said his parents paid $4000 for their house back then. He bought it from his parents after he became a maplewood police officer. 
thank you for digging up the history. 

Auction is over - who outbid me?    Final price was $70. I was in for $25.

Similar collection of Montclair postcards went for $230.  Millburn for $100.  Newark for $35.

Not me.  I love looking this stuff up but don't need more  physical detritus in my house. I hope whoever bought them treats them well. Maybe donate them to the library.