Ringwood State Park: Skylands Manor

On By nationalparkswithtIn New Jersey

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Welcome back to National Parks and other public lands with T! 

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Skylands, in Ringwood State Park in northern New Jersey consists of the historic Skylands Manor and the New Jersey Botanical Garden. The estate was built in the 1920s by a wealthy business man from New York.

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In 1966, the State of New Jersey purchased the estate to form its State Botanical Gardens. The Manor is available as a venue for weddings and offers tours on Sundays from March to November. I visited Skylands Manor for their Holiday Open House before Covid shutdowns.

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That year’s theme was ‘Fantasy.’ Various groups decorated several of the mansion’s 44 rooms in keeping with the theme.

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Throughout the home there is elaborately carved woodwork and stained glass imported from older European castles. The exterior stonework was quarried locally, but then weathered to make it appear hundreds of years old. The builder wanted Skylands to look like an old estate.

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Location: 2 Morris Rd, Ringwood, NJ 07456

Designation: State Park, NRHP

Date designated or established: 1966

Date of my visit: December 6, 2019

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Merry Christmas!

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