The Building of A Town

This picture depicts the Birch Mansion and its courtyard before the remodel

The Havemeyer and Birch families heavily impacted the Mahwah area in a variety of different ways.  One way in particular is the construction, maintenance and renovation of several important buildings within Mahwah.  The Havemeyer and Birch families financed a number of buildings, majority of which they used for personal reasons .  Most of which are currently own by Ramapo College of New Jersey and are used by the school for different reasons.  Some were used by the town and became an important part of the town.  These buildings are the Birch Mansion, The Havemeyer House, The McBride House, the Carriage House and the Darlington Schoolhouse. Theodore Havemeyer even had a great impact on the development of Ramapo Valley Road having rocks and trees removed in order to form a path empty enough for a road. The families impact on the community is still felt to this day and will continue to be felt for decades to come.