The dwindling collection of Westfield homes that stood during the time of the Revolutionary War will be the topic of a presentation by Robert Wendel at the next meeting of the Historical Society of Scotch Plains and Fanwood on Tuesday evening March 22nd. Although there were no major battles in current day Westfield, there were several significant battles throughout what was once the greater West Fields of Elizabethtown, notably in present day Fanwood and Scotch Plains. Skirmishes often took place outside some of the homesteads that will be discussed at the March 22nd meeting. Mr. Wendel will discuss the history of these homes, their role during the Revolution and the importance of standing up for their preservation. Westfield, Fanwood, and Scotch Plains have seen the destruction of many of our Revolutionary homes in the past 30 years. Our historic fabric is unraveling with their demise as we lose the architectural and cultural history of our past.
Robert Wendel served for over 25 years in the insurance industry in a variety of positions ranging from Home Office Segmentation and Technology Enterprise Resource manager. He additionally worked at D & B as an information sales manager and subsequently in the Predictive Modeling Division of Deloitte Consulting as senior manager in Insurance Predictive Modeling Consultation. Since leaving the corporate world, Wendel is now the Chief Operation Officer of his family’s Financial Advising firm with clients worldwide. However, he also makes significant time for his love of history which started in college when he served as assistant manager for the Pabst Mansion, the beer baron’s home in Milwaukee.
Since moving to Westfield in 1991, Wendel has been integrally involved with the Westfield Historical Society as VP of Membership as well as past Curator of the Historical Society Archives and continues to serve on the Historical Society Board currently as the Society’s Archivist at the Miller Cory House Museum Board. He is a past member of the Historic Preservation Commission for the Town of Westfield and former Town Historian.
This upcoming meeting of the Historical Society of Scotch Plains and Fanwood is free and all are welcome. It will begin at 7:30p.m. on Tuesday, March 22nd, at the Shady Rest Country Club, 820 Jerusalem Road (at the corner of Plainfield Avenue) in Scotch Plains. Refreshments and fellowship will follow the presentation. For further information, please contact Connie Klock at 908-232-9489.
