ELIZABETH, NJ – The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the Union County Civil War Sesquicentennial Committee announce the opening of an exhibit to commemorate Union County’s role in the Civil War of 1861-65. The exhibit is scheduled to open on Thursday, Feb. 9, at 2 p.m. in the Union County Courthouse, 2 Broad Street in historic midtown Elizabeth.
“This exhibit of Civil War artifacts and photographs will focus on the unique contributions of Union County citizens to the war effort,” said Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi, chairman of the Civil War Sesquicentennial Committee. “We’ll place special emphasis on the experiences of Union County residents in the areas of the home front, the military, and the economic and political life of the County.”
Speakers at the opening event will include Karen Cassidy, Assignment Judge, Superior Court New Jersey; Union County Freeholder Chairman Alexander Mirabella; the Rev. Robert Higgs, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Elizabeth; and Union County Clerk Joanne Rajoppi. There will be entertainment and refreshments. The public is invited to the opening of the exhibit, but you are asked to call Ms. Rajoppi’s office at 908-527-4787 to reserve a seat.
The Civil War commemorative exhibit will be on display until 2015 and the displays will change from time to time. Anyone wishing to loan historical artifacts from the Civil War era for the exhibit can contact committee member Katherine Craig at 908-282-7617. All objects will be secured, locked and acknowledged.
The Civil War monument in Fairview Cemetery in Westfield was “Erected by the citizens of Westfield and Vicinity to commemorate the services of the soldiers and sailors of Union County who served in the war for the Union,” its inscription reads. A series of photographs featuring Civil War monuments throughout Union County will be part of the exhibit that opens at the Union County Courthouse in Elizabeth on Thursday, February. 9, at 2:00 p.m. The public is invited to the opening of the exhibit, but you are asked to call 908-527-4787 to reserve a seat. (Photo by Jim Lowney/County of Union).
For more information on any Union County press release, please contact Sebastian D’Elia, Communications Director for the County of Union, or a designee listed at the top of this press release. Please join the County of Union online at www.ucnj.org, on Facebook at www.ucnj.org/facebook, and on Twitter athttp://twitter.com/countyofunionnj .