This Day in History: 1894-06-11
The funeral of ex-Governor Price was held at the Ramapo Reformed Church. He had been born on November 5, 1816. In the funeral oration it was recalled that he had served on the flagship of Commodor Sloat and personally persuaded him to raise the flag over Monterey and claim California for the United States when the Mexican War broke out. He was a delegate to the first California Constitutional Convention in August 1849. He was elected to the 32nd Congress in Bergen and surrounding counties. He was particularly interested in education. When he was elected Governor of New Jersey in 1854 he founded the Normal School and has been called the “father of the public school system of New Jersey”. He helped create the first Life Saving Station in New Jersey. Attending the funeral were Governor Werts and ex-Governor Abbett. A relative of General Fremont placed a withered fern on the casket that Ex-Governor Price had placed on Fremont’s casket.