"Your memberships and donations support much-needed repairs and maintenance to our property; this year the roof on the Hopper-Goetschius House needs replacing." That line from the Upper Saddle River Historical Society sits a few sentences below its invitation to the annual Harvest Festival in the borough's September/October 2026 bulletin. The cider and the roof come from the same organization in the same season.
October around Saddle River follows that pattern. The stone houses of the valley, some built when the river roads were still farm lanes, open their doors on single afternoons run by historical societies and volunteers. Most are closed on an ordinary Saturday. This month their calendars line up across consecutive weekends, and the borough sits near the middle of them.
Three Houses, Three Centuries of Upkeep
Their ages explain why these days come with a donation jar.
- Zabriskie House, Wyckoff. Wyckoff Township says it was built around 1730 and believes it is the township's oldest building, a reminder of the area's early Dutch heritage.
- Hopper-Goetschius House, Upper Saddle River. The Hopper family house dates to 1739, and the Historical Society calls it the oldest house still standing in Upper Saddle River.
- The Hermitage, Ho-Ho-Kus. Its core is a stone house probably built by the Lane family around 1760. Elijah Rosencrantz II hired architect William H. Ranlett to remodel it in the Gothic Revival style in 1846 and 1847.
Each building carries close to three centuries of weather on stone walls and roof framing. Keeping one open to the public runs on memberships, admissions and volunteer hours, and October is when the volunteers can count on visitors.
The Hermitage Opens the Gates Wide on October 10
The Hermitage sits at 335 North Franklin Turnpike in Ho-Ho-Kus, and of the three it keeps the most regular hours. The grounds are free and open every day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Guided house tours run at 1:15, 2:15 and 3:15 p.m., though the site's own pages disagree on the days; the tours page lists Thursday through Sunday and the visitor page lists Friday through Sunday, so a Thursday visit is worth confirming first. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children and free for children under five. The regular tours pause on special-event days.
October 10 is one of those days. The Hermitage Fall Festival starts at noon that Saturday with food trucks, music, a beer garden and children's activities, including a petting zoo and pumpkin painting. The listing gives no end time or ticket price, so the tour rates above may not apply that afternoon.
The house's own history adds weight to the visit. James Marcus Prevost bought the property in 1767. Aaron Burr married Theodosia Prevost there in July 1782, after a series of visits to the house. The Rosencrantz family then lived at the Hermitage for four generations, from 1807 to 1970, and the last family resident left the house and grounds to the State of New Jersey. The site describes itself as a National Historic Landmark. Because it passed from a family estate to public ownership, the pumpkin painting takes place on a lawn that has been open to the public for only about half a century.
October 17 at the Corner of Lake Street
A week later, the Upper Saddle River Historical Society holds its annual Harvest Festival at the Hopper-Goetschius House on October 17. The bulletin promises fresh-pressed apple cider, traditional treats and live music alongside the Society's exhibits. The museum stands at 363 East Saddle River Road, at the corner of Lake Street.
Times and admission for 2026 have not been posted. The Society's own events page still shows last year's festival, held October 25, 2025, from 1 to 4 p.m. Check the Society's website closer to the day before setting out.
The grounds tell a story of their own. Besides the house itself, the complex includes an out kitchen and a New World Dutch barn that was taken down and rebuilt on the site. The Ramsey-Sayer house was moved here as well and serves as the schoolhouse. Much of the property was gathered from elsewhere and rebuilt by hand, so the festival is also a showing of years of volunteer restoration. This year's roof is the newest item on that list.
The Rest of the Month, in Order
The two Saddle River-adjacent festivals sit inside a longer run of one-day programs at historic sites across northwest Bergen County. In date order:
- Saturday, October 3. The Zabriskie House at 421 Franklin Avenue in Wyckoff opens from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with blacksmithing, docents in period costume, a century-old car and the Wyckoff Fire Department. Admission is free and donations are welcome.
- Saturday, October 10. The Hermitage Fall Festival begins at noon in Ho-Ho-Kus.
- Thursday, October 15. The Mahwah Museum hosts "Revolutionary Roads of Ramapo" with Joe Carey from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Tickets are $5 for members and $10 for nonmembers.
- Saturday, October 17. The Harvest Festival takes place at the Hopper-Goetschius House. That evening, the Ridgewood Historical Society leads a lantern-lit storytelling walk at Valleau Cemetery, followed by cider and doughnuts at the museum. Tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for children and $40 for a family of four.
- Sunday, October 25. The Bergen County Historical Society holds the Baron's Oktoberfest & Harvest Homecoming at Historic New Bridge Landing, with local beer, food, free pumpkin picking and decorating, and Revolutionary War reenactors. The event page lists the hours as noon to 5 p.m. in one place and 1 to 5 p.m. in another, so arriving at one is the safer choice.
- Wednesday, October 28. The Northwest Bergen History Coalition luncheon meets at Ramsey Golf & Country Club, 105 Lakeside Drive. Todd Braisted presents "The Mud Rounds: The British Invasion & the Great Retreat Across the Jerseys." Tickets are $70 per person. The Upper Saddle River bulletin describes the talk as following Washington's retreat from Fort Lee into Pennsylvania with the British close behind.
New Bridge Landing shows how rare these openings are. The Bergen County Historical Society describes it as a Jersey-Dutch site of antique dwellings and sandstone architecture. It also says the historic buildings open only during its volunteer-run events. Whether the houses themselves will be open during the October 25 festival is not confirmed on the event page. Even so, the pattern matches the rest of the list. A volunteer group schedules the day, and that day is the opening.
What Saddle River Keeps for Itself
The borough of Saddle River has posted no fall program of its own this season. The Saddle River Arts Council's calendar lists only a May 17, 2026 opening reception for a sculpture exhibition at the historic Bishop House. The Bishop House is the borough's own landmark in this tradition, and its next public date has not been announced.
From Saddle River, then, October's historic calendar runs mostly in neighboring towns. It moves south to Ho-Ho-Kus on the 10th, to the corner of Lake Street and East Saddle River Road on the 17th, and east to Ramsey for a late-month lecture on the 28th. Each of these days depends on a volunteer group that sets its own schedule and keeps its own roof in repair.
Old houses tell the clearest stories in the season they were built to get through. Elizabeth Broderick and the team at Tuxedo Hudson Realty follow the stewardship of Bergen County's historic houses as closely as the properties we represent. If you care for a home with its own long history, we would be glad to talk with you about it over a cup of October cider.
