Then and Now of Iselin - Volume 1 and Volume 2

Mr. John T. Miele of Iselin, with the books he co-authored

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to meet with Mr. John T. Miele.

Mr. Miele is a long time resident of Iselin - in fact, he was born here many years ago, and he still lives here. If you are interested in the old days of Iselin, you want to get the book that he wrote, "Then and Now of Iselin," because it is full of great old photos and stories about the old days. (You can find the books on Amazon.) 

Mr. Miele loves Iselin. When I asked him why, he shrugged a little. "Nobody bothers you here," he replied. In the book's introduction, Mr. Miele states "I still think Iselin is a great place, not a small town anymore. It is busy with people coming and going, new buildings, many interlaced cultures, and, yet friendly."

Mr. Miele raised a family here in Iselin, and he worked in construction; in fact, he may have built the house I grew up in! He had a big part in the construction of Iselin schools and other buildings, founding Miele Excavating and Grading Co.

I asked Mr. Miele what led him to write a book. "My mother saved everything, and she had hundreds of pictures taken with a little box camera," he told me. With all of these wonderful old photos, he realized that he had enough material to make a book. "No use wasting them," he said. "So I started putting it (the book) together. And I still have more - probably enough for another book." The book was co-authored by June Polanski Onder, Mr. Miele's niece.

Then and Now if Iselin, Volume 1, is more about the old days, with many pictures of the old Iselin.  On the other hand, Volume 2 is more about the contrast of the old time Iselin and today.  I enjoyed both books a great deal, and so did my family.  I highly recommend that you support Mr. Miele's efforts, and buy your copies today!  You can find them on Amazon, HERE!