The Van Vleck House and Gardens, a privately owned estate by the Van Vleck family is a nonprofit located in Montclair, New Jersey.

Three generations of Van Vlecks, many of whom were architects, built this suburban Italianate villa and gardens over the years. In 1884 the property was attained and by 1916 the main house was built by Joseph Van Vleck Jr. 

The Garden Conservancy refers to the style of the main house as "classic architectural style of a Mediterranean villa".

Around 1939, Howard Van Vleck planted a Chinese wisteria that still exists today. He also began to work on hybrids of rhododendrons. The Garden Conservancy notes that several of these are registered and named for members of the Van Vleck Family.

In 1933, the Van Vleck heirs donated their home and gardens to the Montclair Foundation and it became the nonprofit center it is today. Four years later it was established as part of the Garden Conservancy. In 2003, a Garden Conservancy fellow, Sonia Uyterhoeven, renovated the formal gardens and documented the history of the gardens. In a violent storm in 2006, some damage was done to the northeast corner of the garden, but restoration was completed in 2008.

I decided to drive to Montclair to visit the gardens which are free and open from dawn till dusk.

Check out the photos from my visit:

Visiting the Van Vleck House and Gardens

One of the top candy stores in the United States is right here in New Jersey. See below to check it out!

One of the Top 50 Candy stores in the US is right here in Jersey

Black River Candy Shoppe in Chester New Jersey was selected in Food Network Magazine's “America’s 50 Best Candy Stores” a couple of years back and the story went viral online earlier this year.

I decided to take a trip down there for myself to see what they had to offer. Right, when you walk in you feel like you are Charlie about to take over the chocolate factory. Black River Candy Shoppe is a cute little candy shop offering hundreds of different types of candy.

They have old-school childhood candy as well as an incredible selection of newer candy varieties. Candy is displayed in old whiskey barrels, and a lot of their candy is sold in bulk by the pound. It is located in downtown Chester right off of Main Street. Check out the photos from my recent visit:

Cape May, NJ: 15 wonderful places to visit

More From New Jersey 101.5 FM