The prestigious New Jersey Historical Society was founded in 1845 in Trenton, New Jersey. The founders were Joseph C. Hornblower, Robert Gibbon Johnson, Peter D. Vroom, and William Whitehead. A year later, the Historical Society moved to Newark, New Jersey. It is still located in this city. The present location is 52 Park Place--the former Essex Club. Besides the Society's offices, a museum, gift shop, and lecture hall can be found. The New Jersey Historical Society continues to publish an academic journal--NEW JERSEY HISTORY. Back on February 6, 1933, the first person having a connection with South Brunswick Township joined the state's Historical Society. This was Aaron Dean, a direct descendant of the first Aaron Dean to settle in the area that became known as Deans. This Aaron Dean was the son of Aaron and Ruth Britton Dean. He was born in Deans, but he did not stick around for long. He spent more than forty years of his life in Rahway, New Jersey. This Aaron Dean was an engineer for the Union Switch and Signal Company in New York. He was recognized as an expert railroad signal engineer and contributed to the development of better signals for the rail lines in the twentieth century. He was married to Malvena Dean. They had one son, Dion K. Dean of Rahway. Dion was the last Dean to own land in South Brunswick Township. His father must have started his interest in Jersey history when he was a lad growing up in Deans. He kept up this interest by becoming a member of the Historical Society. He never contributed an article to NEW JERSEY HISTORY, but he must have inspired others to delve into various aspects of New Jersey history. He was involved in the Society right up to the time he suffered a fatal heart attack at the age of seventy-four at his retirement home in Sea Girt, New Jersey. It may be a stretch, but one may consider this Aaron Dean the Township's first "Dean of History"--after all, he was a Dean!
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