Garret Mountain Is One Site Again, and Its Fall Calendar Is About Victorian Mourning

Three Paterson landmarks went through restorations that together cost close to $17 million. This fall is the first season all three are open at once. Lambert Castle reopened at the end of February after a restoration that cost more than $13 million. Lambert Tower followed on June 30 after a $2.4 million restoration paid for by the county, the Friends of Passaic County Parks and state grants. Down in the valley, a $1.5 million footbridge over the Great Falls opened in February. It was built with federal, county and city money and replaces the span that shut in August 2021.

You could treat that as three separate reopenings. The county's October and November events tie them together. Most of the fall programming at Passaic County's historic sites deals with how families in the 1800s marked death, memory and the dark months of the year. That is the world Catholina Lambert built his castle in.

The castle and the tower work as one visit again

Lambert finished his castle on Garret Mountain in 1892. Four years later he added the tower, a 70-foot stone observatory meant to look like the castles of his native England. During World War II, the U.S. Armed Forces used it as a military lookout. In its June release, the county says the tower's reopening "reconnects the two structures as a unified historic site accessible to the public."

The schedules now line up. Both buildings are open Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., by guided tour.

According to the county's June release, the tower will feature a new exhibit on how Passaic County was formed, the geology of Garret Mountain, and how the reservation became a public park. On the castle side, the restoration brought back the ornate moldings and plasterwork. Crews also restored more than 100 paint colors to match Lambert's original design. The building now has upgraded climate control, so historic silk garments and archival documents are no longer at risk on display. It is also fully ADA compliant, and new historic lighting has been installed.

Some practical details from the county's visitor page:

• Every castle tour is guided.
• You'll wear shoe covers to protect the original floors.
• Photos and filming are not allowed inside. Photography on the grounds requires a permit, arranged by calling (973) 706-6640.
• Pets can't come on tours. Certified service animals as defined under the ADA are the exception.
• Lambert Castle is a Blue Star Museum. Veterans, active-duty service members and their families get in free, but you need to call ahead to arrange tickets.

The reservation itself is open daily from sunrise to sunset. It has scenic overlooks, walking paths, picnic areas and birdwatching, so the grounds still work after the last 4 p.m. tour lets out.

Why mourning makes sense for this house

Catholina Lambert built his fortune in Paterson silk. In 1916 he auctioned his well-known art collection. He remained in the castle until 1923. His son Walter sold the property to the City of Paterson in 1925. The city ran it as a tuberculosis hospital for several years. In 1928 it became part of the 575-acre Garret Mountain Reservation.

The castle's two big fall events grow out of that era.

October 17: tea and a talk on mourning. The See Passaic County listing calls it the Lambert Castle High Tea and Lecture. The Friends of Passaic County Parks ticket page calls it the Afternoon Tea and Talk. There are three seatings: 10 a.m. to noon, 1 to 3 p.m., and 4 to 6 p.m. Tickets are $35 and include tea and scones. Historian Karen Bachmann will speak on Victorian mourning practices, mourning jewelry and hairwork.

November 1: the hands-on version. The Victorian Hairwork Workshop runs 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Lambert Castle Carriage House. Participants use copper wire and horsehair to make decorative pieces they can frame or wear. The county listing does not give a price, so check the ticket page before you plan around it.

Taken in order, the two events work as a lesson and then a practice session. On October 17 you hear why Victorian families wove hair into keepsakes. Fifteen days later you make one yourself, a few steps from the house where people once wore them.

The same theme runs across the county

The other historic houses on the county calendar follow the same thread.

At the Dey Mansion, 199 Totowa Road in Wayne, the Dey After Dark lantern tours run on Thursdays in October. The tour goes through the house where General George Washington once stood. Then a lantern-lit walk leads to the Dey Family Cemetery, with fall bites and cider and a turnip hunt along the way. Three dates remain: October 15, 22 and 29. Each night has two time slots, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. and 7:30 to 9 p.m. The cemetery is a quarter mile from the house, so wear comfortable shoes.

In November the same house hosts Dinner with the Washingtons and Warrens. It runs Thursday, November 12 and Friday, November 13, with two seatings each evening. Tickets are $75.

Up in Ringwood, the Passaic County Archaeology Center has a November 20 program called "You Are What You Eat." It looks at what bones, shells and household trash reveal about historic diets. Reservations are required.

"Lambert Tower is a landmark that belongs to every resident of this county and today we are giving it back to them."

That's County Commissioner Rodney DeVore, speaking at the tower ribbon-cutting, in the Passaic County release on the reopening. The same release presents the tower as one of several investments the county has made in its historic sites ahead of the nation's 250th anniversary. This fall's calendar is the first full season to come out of that work.

The fall calendar in one place

The Arts Center is at 675 Goffle Road in Hawthorne. For the Paint and Sip, registration is required and guests may bring their own drinks.

A Saturday that uses both cliffs

Paterson's two big 2026 projects sit at opposite ends of the same drop. The castle and tower are up on the mountain, and the Great Falls footbridge crosses the 77-foot chasm below. The new bridge connects the two sides of the national park again. Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh told NJ.com the span "connects the past to the future." October 24 is a good day to do both:

1. Start the morning at Paterson Great Falls and cross the new footbridge for the view up close.
2. Drive up to 3 Valley Road for an early-afternoon castle tour. The last one starts at 4 p.m.
3. Join a free guided tour of Lambert Tower, then walk the reservation's overlooks before sunset.
4. If you'd rather finish with art, the Arts Center exhibit opening is the same day in Hawthorne. RSVP first.

Some of these listings don't answer every question. Before you go, confirm the hairwork workshop price and the current castle hours on the county's Lambert Castle page. Check the tower tour schedule through Passaic County.

The castle restoration ran to more than 100 paint colors, matched one by one to the original design. Owners of older homes in Passaic County know that kind of detail affects value. If you own one and want to know what its original features are worth in today's market, Justin Torres and the Just Sells team can walk through it with you. Get a Free Home Valuation.