WESTFIELD — For its First Wednesday Luncheon series program on March 5, the Westfield Historical Society invites members and guests to a presentation by author Kevin Olsen, who will discuss “Maritime History of the Passaic & Hackensack Rivers & Newark Bay.” The luncheon, beginning at 11:45 a.m., will take place on the second floor of Ferraro’s Restaurant, located at 14 Elm Street, Westfield.

Surrounded by water on three sides, New Jersey boasts a rich seafaring history. Yet the ships that sailed from its local seaports seldom ventured more than a few hundred miles up or down the coast or farther than the West Indies. Now these small ships are all but forgotten, but they provided a valuable link to the outside world. Wherever the road networks met the rivers, a landing grew up where farm products and raw materials went to the growing cities and manufactured goods were returned.

Even after the Industrial Revolution and the growth of the railroads, cities like Passaic, Newark and Hackensack continued to rely on water transportation for bulk cargoes. When the rural hinterlands of the Hackensack Valley began growing suburbs instead of vegetables and grains, the local people found a new use for the river as a place to recreate.

The most recent chapter of the story has been one of environmental remediation and renewal where rivers like the Passaic and Hackensack became symbols of a new environmental consciousness and a treasured part of the landscape.

Mr. Olsen is the instrumentation specialist on the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department’s support staff at Montclair State University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Plymouth State University in Plymouth, N.H., and a master’s degree in chemistry from Montclair State University. He completed his Environmental Management Ph.D. at Montclair State in the spring of 2014.

Before coming to Montclair State, Mr. Olsen worked in the environmental, instrumentation and pharmaceutical industries. He became active in environmental history as an outgrowth of his Ph.D. research in contaminated estuarine and lake sediments. Mr. Olsen has published multiple papers related to chemical history and New Jersey’s maritime history. His work has been included in such publications as The American Neptune, “Encyclopedia of New Jersey” and The Journal of Long Island History. He is the author of two books: “A Great Conveniency: A Maritime History of the Passaic River, Hackensack River, and Newark Bay” and “Rails to Sterling Forest.” His papers on chemical history have appeared in the Bulletin for the History of Chemistry and The Indicator, the news magazine of the North Jersey Section of theAmerican Chemical Society.

Those wishing to attend the luncheon may make a reservation by email to westfieldhistoricalsociety@gmail.com, or by calling (908) 654-1794, before Thursday, February 27. They also should advise if there are special dietary needs. The luncheon fee of $40 for Westfield Historical Society members or $45 for non-members includes a three-course meal, coffee/tea and gratuity. The luncheon fee should be paid in advance (check payable to Westfield Historical Society) by mailing it to Westfield Historical Society, 314 MountainAvenue, Westfield, N.J. 07090; by Venmo to @Westfield-HistoricalSociety; or online at https:/ /www.westfieldhistoricalsociety.org/ registration. Registration and payments should be received by Thursday prior to the luncheon.