Mary Crane Hone (1904-1990) was the last member of the Crane-Hone family to live at Acorn Hall. In her early years, she was an actress. Throughout her life she was politically active in New York City, Washington, DC, and Morris County.

Mary was unafraid to express her opinions. Outraged by plans to build Route 287 through Morristown, she wrote letters of protest. But her involvement didn’t end there. In a dramatic move, when construction began on the Morristown section, Mary and her friend Elizabeth Cooke went to the site and sat on a steamroller to demonstrate their opposition.

An only child, Mary inherited Acorn Hall from her mother. She became devoted to the house and was determined to save it because “this house is a treasure and must be preserved.” To accomplish that, she donated it to the Morris County Historical Society in 1971.

The Artist: Majorie Flack

Marjorie Flack was an artist and writer of children's picture books. Flack was born in Greenport, Long Island, New York in 1897. She was best known for The Story about Ping, wiritten in 1933 and popularized by Captain Kangaroo, and for her stories of an insatiably curious Scottish terrier named Angus. Her first marriage was to artist Karl Larsson; she later married poet William Rose Benet. Flack was given a Caldecott Honor in 1947 for her book The Boats on the River, which was illustrated by Jay Hyde Barnum. Flack died in 1958.