Published: October 07, 2008 04:15 am         

Fleischmanns First to have `First Floors'

Historic homes will be open to tour in "Fleischmanns First Floors Historic House & Garden Tour" on Sunday.

Fleischmanns First has organized numerous events including a vintage baseball game with the Mountain Athletic Club, a quilt show and pie sale at the Fleischmanns Community Church, a children's activity tent and hay-bale maze and ballpark food, including bratwurst, in Fleischmanns' historic Wagner Avenue Village Park.

"As our entrancing' name suggests, this house tour is the ground floor launch of an event that we will step up' each year," noted one of the house tour organizers, Mariano Vega Jr. "This year we're inviting folks to see the first floors of some of Fleischmanns' grandest and most interesting homes. We plan to grow this event in seasons to come, and we won't stop until we reach the attics."

During the tour, participants can peek inside a "haunted house" perched high atop a hill, see how much architectural beauty one could build for just $500 in 1899, and learn which faded Wagner Avenue grande dame was designed by the famed architect Stanford White.

While some homes have been restored for modern use, others retain their original infrastructure, such as steam heat pumped into cast iron radiators.

Children can also participate in the historical fun, with a challenging "scavenger hunt" designed to spark their curiosity about all the architectural details half-hidden on the exteriors of these old-time houses.

The weekend will also be the season's final weekend for Fleischmanns' Museum of Memories (behind the Skene Memorial Library on Main Street) and the final game of the Mountain Athletic Club vintage baseball season, a matchup with the Newark Eurekas. The children's activity tent has hands-on fun designed just for them, including face painting and a hay-bale maze. Back on Main Street, a quilt show will be at the Fleischmanns Community Church, with a pie and baked goodies sale and a worship service at 9:15 that morning.

The event will be at 11 a.m. through 3 p.m., with the ballgame at 1 p.m. House tour tickets are $10 and available at the Wagner Avenue ball park or in advance by calling The MARK Group at (845) 586-3500. All other events are free, but donations will be appreciated.

For more information, e-mail peg@markproject.org. The day's events are funded in part by the Kenneth Pasternak Family Foundation and the O'Connor Foundation.