History and Heritage: A cow — in Montclair?

“History & Heritage” is a series on Montclair history, written by representatives of the Montclair History Center and the Montclair Public Library. Molly Hone is head of adult

services at the Montclair Public Library.

This photo, taken some time in the 1880s, is of Carrie the Cow. Carrie belonged to Colonel Ezra DeForest, a Brooklynite who had a summer home in Montclair.

According to the inscription on the back of this photograph, Carrie the Cow walked all the way to Montclair (as the scribe put it: “a country village” at the time) from Brooklyn in the early summer every year for several years, and then walked back in the fall. While Carrie was a mainstay at the DeForests’ Montclair summer home, the DeForests also kept a cow and chickens at their Brooklyn home.

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READ: HISTORY AND HERITAGE; BOOK DELIVERY FROM MPL

READ: HISTORY AND HERITAGE; SPRING FLOWERS AT THE IRIS GARDENS ARE A TRADITION

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While it is unclear if Colonel DeForest took this photograph, the inscription notes that DeForest was “one of the excellent early amateur photographers.”

To see more historic photographs (including more images of cows than you might think!), visit digifind-it.com/montclair/home.php and search the photo collection. In partnership with the Montclair History Center, we offer over 10,000 digitized photographs, plus city directories, and more for your enjoyment. If you want to see more archival material, contact the library to make a local history appointment at reference@montclair.bccls.org or 973-744-0500 x2235. Visit the library website at montclairlibrary.org for more information.