A Lifetime on the Lake

Stanhope — It was the place to be every summer. A meeting place where friends gathered for fun and lifelong memories were made. It was Lake Musconetcong during the long summers of the 1950s and ‘60s. Jack Denmead of Stanhope remembers the lake in all its glory. The lake, dug out to provide water for the Morris Canal in the 1820s, straddles Stanhope and Netcong. The views from Ledgewood Road (Route 181) remain — the dam, the old stone church, the Palace Theater (now the home of The Growing Stage), but the swimming, sunbathing, high diving boards, and swim classes ended years ago. Jack Denmead grew up on the lake along with his five brothers and recalls with bright eyes and vivid memories some of the best years of his life. “My mother rang a big bell when she wanted us home,” he said. “We would be out on the lake and hear that bell ringing and knew it was time for lunch or dinner.” According to Denmead, the lake was a the place to be during the warm weather months. A popular watering hole was a tavern conveniently situated on the shore as well as snack shacks and picnic areas. “It was the greatest place to be. You’d meet the whole gang there. There was always something going on in addition to the swimming, such as picnics, games, bands in the evening, carnivals, boating, classes…it was a busy place,” said the 85-year-old Denmead. The lake didn’t shut down in winter. It’s shallow depth made for long months of ice during those cold years. That ice was crowded with skaters. Iceboats whizzed by, and small groups of ice fishermen hunkered down by their holes waiting and taking an occasional pull on a bottle of amber liquid. Hockey was a sport for the young and not-so-young. Denmead played until he was 62, including a stint on a semi-pro team. Denmead took advantage of the lakes’ steady stream of sun seekers. “A boat place was closing down, so I bought ten canoes from the owner and rented them out on a daily basis,” he laughs, recalling his entrepreneurial spirit. Lifeguarding was a natural job for the good-looking and outgoing young man. A natural athlete, he took advantage of his love of the water and enrolled in a two-week course in New York to emerge a certified lifeguard, swim instructor and qualified National Red Cross First Aid instructor. His certifications brought him back to his hometown and Lake Musconetcong, and he spent his teenage summers enjoying some of the best times of his life on that lake. “It was a very big deal back then to go away for a couple of weeks to New York. I loved every minute of it though. Soon I was teaching other people how to swim and become lifeguards. My classes were very popular and a lot of fun for everyone,” recalls Denmead. Eventually he began working and teaching on the many surrounding area lakes such as Lake Hopatcong, Iliff, Lackawanna, Cranbury, Budd, and Panther lakes. He was an instrumental member of the Lake Musconetcong swim team, competing against the many area lake teams. Denmead’s full-time jobs included being an airplane mechanic, a salesman for Bird’s Eye frozen food, and eventually becoming head custodian for the school system, the career he retired from decades later. But despite his gainful employment, Denmead’s favorite job required no tools or briefcase. The required uniform was a bathing suit. Back at Lake Musconetcong, he remained the director of water safety and first aid for 30 years. During those early years as a lifeguard, he dated a classmate named Patricia. The two soon married and Patricia shared her husband’s love of the lake, becoming a lifeguard and swim instructor as well as a mother of three. They bought a home in Stanhope for a whopping $2,500 and raised their children with the same love for the water and fond memories of Lake Musconecong as they had growing up. While serving in the U.S. Army Air Force during World War II, Denmead was saved from doing a tour in Burma by his swim team background and water certifications. “I knew it was just a matter of time before I was shipped out,” he said. “In the meantime I was competing on an Army Air Force swim team. When they learned that I was certified to teach swimming and first aid, my name was taken off the list and I became an official swim and first aid instructor for the Army Air Force.” Throughout the decades, Denmead’s water résumé includes some sprinkles of celebrity encounters. He and an Air Force swim team buddy,, Jack Yeager, double-dated with a young actress named Shirley Temple. He once gave Babe Ruth a boat ride on the lake, and had a friendship with Olympic swimmer and movie star Buster Crabbe. However, when asked about his best memories, Denmead replied, “Teaching all those classes was the best…I especially enjoyed all the thank you notes I received. It was a special time, being with all our friends and family on Lake Musconetcong. Most of us stayed right here and raised our own families.” Denmead does not remember a tragedy on Lake Musconetcong, not on his watch anyway. He believes the rules for safety were respected back then. Denmead’s worst memory? “When the swimming came to an end. That was a sad time,” said Denmead. “I love looking through the scrapbooks with all the pictures and newspaper clippings. It brings back great memories.”