The Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders and the Office of Culture and Heritage have announced $55,500 in grants awarded to local history organizations.
The 2017 History Grants Program supports local organizations seeking to offer history programs and exhibitions, conduct oral histories, conserve and digitize historic documents, and provide staff for local history organizations, according to a statement prepared by the Middlesex County Office of Culture and Heritage.
In the category of Programs/Publications/Exhibitions, $14,350 total was awarded to Alborada Spanish Dance Theatre, Middlesex County 4H Indian Langoor Club, NAACP – Metuchen-Edison Branch, New Brunswick African American Heritage Committee and Woodbridge Township Historical Preservation Commission.
In the Oral Histories category, a total of $5,100 was provided to the Indian American Club of Rossmoor and the Kearny Cottage Historical Association.
In the Digitization/Conservation of Historic Documents category, $17,380 in total grant funds were offered to the Carteret Historical Committee, Highland Park Historical Society, Metuchen Public Library, New Brunswick Free Public Library, Sayreville Public Library and the South Brunswick Public Library.
In the category of Staffing for Local Historical Organizations, a total grant amount of $18,670 was divided among the East Brunswick Museum, Fellowship for the Metlar House, Jewish Historical Society of Central Jersey, Madison Township Historical Society, Proprietary House Association, Raices Cultural Center, South River Historical & Preservation Society and the Woodbridge Township Cultural Arts Commission/Barron Arts Center.
“The Board of Chosen Freeholders is committed to enhancing history programing in the County,” said Middlesex County Freeholder Director Ronald G. Rios. “The History Grants awarded in 2016 brought entertaining and education programming to an audience of over 500,000 people. That is quite an accomplishment.”
“These grants are a great way for us to support all types of programming throughout the County,” said Freeholder Kenneth Armwood, chair of the Business Development and Education Committee. “Each grantee provides such unique and special history programming and education that help us reach so many of our residents.”
The 2017 History Grants Program is made possible by the Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders and a county History Partnership Program Grant from the N.J. Historical Commission/Department of State.