Old garage has new life as a renovated barn BY PATRICIA A. MILLER Staff Writer Members of the Brick Township Historical Society celebrated their 10th anniversary recently by dedicating their renovated barn recently. ERIC SUCAR staff Brick Township Historical Society member Eugene Donatiello discusses the history of the newly renovated barn on the Havens Homestead Museum property on Saturday. "Until we took it over, it had a dirt floor and was used to store the farm equipment," said longtime society Eugene Donatiello. The building is actually about 60 years old and was previously used as a two-car garage, he said. Now it's home to a 1948 red Farmall tractor that belonged to Elmer Havens. The Havens family donated the farmhouse, buildings and grounds to the historical society back in 1993, with the understanding it would be used as a museum. It took society members five years to renovate the farmhouse. The garage took two years. Donatiello and society member Gregory Reissner did the bulk of the work. Tony Capuano, who doubles as Santa Claus at Christmas, rewired the entire building and replaced the outlets, Donatiello said. The men covered the old beams and two-by-fours with a rough pine that looks like barn siding, he said. "Now it has inside walls," Donatiello said. The loft was left in its original state to use as storage. In addition to the tractor, the building houses a 100-year-old cider press and a "dog power" machine. "It's a treadmill," he said. "A dog or goat would walk on it to provide power for a washing machine or butter churner." Old New Jersey license plates, including a black and silver one from 1919, line one wall. The other wall features antique carpentry implements. But visitors can only walk 3 feet inside the building, because the society could not afford to meet modern building codes, Donatiello said. "We have a fence up," he said. "Visitors can go in that far and view things, but they can't go walking around." Roughly 40 people attended the dedication ceremony, including Township Councilman Michael Thulen. The society's next event, a Spring Festival Country Fair, will run from 10 a. m. to 4 p.m. onApril 26. It will feature crafts, historical society publications and homemade desserts. The nearby Cultural Arts Center will host an arts show and house plant display. Tours of the museum will be conducted from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The rain date is April 27. The museum is located at 521 Herbertsville Road. For more information, contact the Brick Township Historical Society at (732) 785-2500. The museum and grounds are open from April through October. Hours are 10 a.m. to noon on Saturdays and noon to 2 p.m. on Sundays. Admission is free.