ROSELLE PARK — On Sunday, March 29, Roselle Park Borough engaged local dignitaries and the public in a dual-location celebration commemorating the day, March 22, 1901, when the community officially became an independent borough. The festivities started at 11 a.m. in true birthday fashion – complete with cake, speeches and a proclamation commemorating the 125th anniversary – at the Casano Community Center. The party then traveled to the newly opened Fernmoor Mi-Place at First Radio luxury apartment complex, which is located on the site of the former lab and factory complex of the Marconi Wireless Telegraphy Company of America, built in 1916. Among other milestone achievements, the building was home to New Jersey’s first radio broadcast in 1921 and one of the first radio stations licensed in the country. The factory also produced much of the commercial wireless equipment used in the United States, as well as equipment used by the U.S. Navy during World War I. Central to this celebration was the unveiling of a plaque installed on the exterior of Mi-Place at First Radio and commemorating the location’s historical significance in driving progress and innovation in regional and national communications.
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Celebrants gathered at the location at 450 West Westfield Avenue and enjoyed inspiring remarks from dignitaries including: Roselle Park Mayor Joseph Signorello Jr., council members Jay Robaina and Joe Petrosky, and Jeffrey Fernbach, president of Fernmoor. Council members Jorge Casalins, Rosanna Lyons and Khanjan Patel were also in attendance. The final remarks came in the form of moving storytelling by Ed Leonard, a long-time Roselle Park resident who fondly remembers experiencing exciting activities happening at the Marconi Wireless Building. Leonard advocated for the installation of the plaque replicating the original by the Roselle Park Bicentennial and Anniversary Committee in 1976 that he helped install. After their remarks, the VIPs joined in unveiling the plaque that commemorates the landmark’s impact on the evolution of both radio and American society. At the conclusion of the ceremonies, people were invited to return to Mi-Place at First Radio this summer, when it will become the new home of the Roselle Park Museum…