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Community Corner

From Revolutionary War Soldiers to Sunken Ships: Warren Library Hosts History Programs

Sign up for New Jersey Revolutionary War Tails on at 7 p.m. July 13 and New Jersey Shipwreck History at 7 p.m. July 19

From the Revolutionary War to shipwrecks off the New Jersey coast, history buffs have much to enjoy at two upcoming programs at the .

On July 13, from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m., award-winning journalist and author Mark Di Ionno will discuss his second book, "A Guide to New Jersey's Revolutionary Road Trail: for Families and History Buffs," the most complete collection of the state's 350 war sites ever assembled.

And on July 19, 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., veteran scuba diver Gary Szabo will focus on three different wrecks off the Jersey coast with underwater video and photos.

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Both programs require registration, which can be done online or by calling the library at 908-754-5554 ext 64.

Di Ionno, a Star Ledger columnist and author of three books, did his historical digging on land. While writing features for the newspaper, his interest in the state's crucial role in the War for Independence grew. However, he was disappointed by the lack of a comprehensive guide and decided to create one.

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He has a list of his 15 favorite lesser-known sites—even to those familiar with New Jersey's Revolutionary past—but he is most interested in the Watchung mountains.

"(George) Washington was in those mountains four years of an eight-year war," said Di Ionno, who grew up in Summit and now lives in Mountain Lakes. "They are pretty critical to the war and are really overlooked."

The ideals of this time period also have a special appeal for Di Ionno.

"The aspects of optimism on which this country was founded—optimism and human integrity," he said. "I think the sanctity of the individual was stronger at that time than any other time in history, including now. We seem to have lost some of that."

Although his fourth book will be set in New Jersey, it will be a departure from his earlier New Jersey history guide books. Due next spring, "The Last Newspaperman" is a novel where a 1930s New York tabloid journalist is being interviewed by a modern-day journalist in 1999.

For Gary Szabo, of Hamilton Township, history's allure is found under water. In the past 30 years, he has dived famous wrecks such as the Andrea Doria and lesser-known ones found in New Jersey. He even sifted the ocean's floor recently off the Carolina coast to find Megalodon teeth.

"Each wreck holds its own story," said the Trenton firefighter, who always tries to learn a wreck's history when he dives.

One of his favorite shipwrecks is the R.P. Resor. Sunk by a German U-boat in February 1942, the burning ship sank 30 miles east of Barnegat Light. Because of the war, Szabo said, civilian ships had deck guns and the Resor's can still be seen. He said he also enjoys diving the wreck because it has a lot of marine life and is great for taking photographs, some of which he'll show on July 19.

"I want to kind of show people what really happened out there, what the underwater world of New Jersey  is all about," said Szabo, who freelances as a cameraman for WZBN-TV News and has worked on several underwater productions.

New Jersey's proximity to New York, a major destination for ships, has literally littered the area with ships that sank due to weather, collisions or attacks. Szabo said he has logged the coordinates of more than 400 wrecks off the Garden State's coastline and estimates that thousands more exist.

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