Victoria Shop

Proceeds will aid restoration of Crane Phillips House.

The Cranford Historical Society have opened The Victoria Shop. Located in the historic Crane Phillips House at 124 North Union Ave., the shop will sell gifts and home accessories. All proceeds will support the restoration of the Crane Phillips House, headquarters of the Cranford Historical Society.

The Victoria Shop, under the management of Jennifer Dengel, will feature Charlotte Moss scented candles, gifts, decorative accessories, porcelains, jewelry and a children's corner. Gift certificates will be available.

Staffed by volunteers, the shop will be open 1-4 p.m. Thursday- Saturday.

Through efforts such as the Victoria Shop, the Cranford Historical Society hopes to move forward with the restoration and preservation of the Crane-Phillips House into a living history museum.

The Crane Phillips House was entered onto the National Register of Historical Places by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. on Aug. 14, 1997. Historical architect and preservation planner Herbert Githens was able to determine that the building was an example of a mid-19th century rural gothic cottage. This architectural style known as "Downingesque" took its name from Andrew Jackson Downing, an author who lived 1815-1852. A description of the Crane Phillips House can be found in his book, Victorian Cottage Residences.

Cranford Historical Society chairpersons Loretta Widdows and Addie Vogel are coordinating a fund raising program for the preservation of this structure with the long-term goal that the house will serve as a living museum.

In honor of this new beginning, Mayor Robert Hoeffler declared November 1, 1997 Victoria Day in Cranford.

Tours of the historic house led by docents are available 2-4 p.m. Sundays from mid-September to mid-June. Each Sunday offers a different program of early American life. Admission to the house is free but donations are appreciated.

For more information about The Victoria House, call 272-3307 during shop hours.

To volunteer at the Crane Phillips House, call 276-0082.