History

History

Allen House
c/o MCHA
70 Court St.
Freehold, NJ 07728
Location: 400 Sycamore Ave.
Shrewsbury, NJ 07702
(732) 462-1466
(732) 462-8346
Fax: (732) 462-8346
Internet address: http://www.monmouth.com/ßmcha
Hours: May-September, Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday, 1-4 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Open to the public.
Admission: Members, free; adults, $2; seniors (62 and over), $1.50; children 6 to 18, $1; children under 6, free.
From the 1750s to the 1770s, the Allen House served the community and travelers as the Blue Ball Tavern. Today it is interpreted to reflect tavern life of that period.
The Art Museum
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ 08544-1018
(609) 258-3788
Fax: (609) 258-5949
E-Mail: [email protected]
Internet address: http://www.princeton.edu
Hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday, 1-5 p.m.
Open to the public.
Admission: Free, donations accepted
The Art Museum, Princeton University, houses collections ranging from ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman to impressionist, post-impressionist, and contemporary art. Among the greatest strengths in the museum are the collections of Chinese art, which includes bronzes and tomb figures, pre-Columbian art, with remarkable works by the Mayans, and photography. African tribal art and Northwest Coast Indian art are also represented. Located throughout the campus is the John B. Putnam Jr. Memorial Collection of 20th century sculpture, which includes works by such masters as Louise Nevelson, David Smith, and Pablo Picasso. Call (609) 258-3788 for listings of special exhibitions.
Blackwells Mills Canal House
Location: 598 Canal Rd.
Somerset, NJ 08873
(732) 873-2133
Hours: Every second Saturday
Admission: Free, donations accepted
The Blackwells Mills Canal House was built in 1835 to house the Bridgetender, who operates the swingbridge to allow canal traffic to pass through. The Canal House operated actively until the 1930s. Today the Blackwells Mills Canal House welcomes visitors and invites them to experience a sense of the bygone canal era. The Blackwells Mills Canal House Association presents programs of local and historical interest the second Saturday of every month. Open House every New Year’s Day, 1-4 p.m.
Cornelius Low House/
Middlesex County Museum
703 Jersey Ave.
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
(732) 745-4177
(732) 745-3888 (TTY)
Location: 1225 River Rd.
Piscataway, NJ
Fax: (732) 745-4507
Internet address: www.cultureheritage.org
Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 1-4 p.m.; Sunday, 1-4 p.m.; Groups by appointment
Free admission.
Built in 1741 by a wealthy merchant of Dutch ancestry, this classic Georgian manor house is now the Middlesex County Museum, offering award-winning exhibitions and programs about New Jersey history. On display through July, 2000, "Somebody to Cheer For: Black Professional Baseball and African American Community Life in New Jersey, 1860 to 1950," about the great Negro League teams and the New Jersey cities where they played.
Covenhoven House
c/o MCHA
70 Court St.
Freehold, NJ 07728
Location: 150 W. Main St.
Freehold, NJ
(732) 462-1466
Fax: (732) 462-8346
Internet address: http://www.monmouth.com/mcha
Hours: May-September, Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday, 1-4 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Open to the public.
Admission: Members, free; adults, $2; seniors (62 and over), $1.50; children 6 to 8, $1; children under 6, free.
Built by William and Elizabeth Covenhoven in 1752-3, this grand house served as British General Henry Clinton’s Headquarters just prior to the Battle of Monmouth in 1778.
Cranbury History Center
6 S. Main St.
Cranbury, NJ 08512
(609) 860-1889
Hours: Monday and Thursday, 9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., or by appointment.
Admission: Donations accepted
A renovated gristmiller’s house, the Cranbury History Center contains society’s files on the history of Cranbury through vertical files, genealogical records, house research, a large collection of photographs and maps, textile collection, and a collection of books. Cranbury Press issues are indexed from 1900-1987 by subject, name and event.
Drumthwacket
354 Stockton St.
Princeton, NJ 08540
(609) 683-0057
Fax: (609) 924-4563
Hours: Wednesday, noon-2 p.m. (Groups of 15 or more are accommodated 10 a.m.-noon and an appointment is required).
Admission: Free
Drumthwacket was built by Gov. Charles Smith Olden in 1835 and enlarged by Moses Taylor Pyne. It is now the official residence of the governor of New Jersey. The house was restored and furnished by the Drumthwacket Foundation. Furnishing are Federal period with an emphasis on New Jersey pieces.
Ellarslie —Trenton
City Museum
319 E. State St.
Trenton, NJ 08608
Location: Parkside and Stuyvesant avenues
(609) 989-3632
Fax: (609) 989-3624
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.; Sunday, 2-4 p.m.; Closed Monday and holidays.
Admission: Free, donations accepted
Ellarslie is a fine example of an Italianate revival style villa designed by noted architect, John Norman. Located in the middle of Cadwalader Park, designed by Frederick Law Olmstead, Ellarslie was built for Henry McCall Sr. of Philadelphia as a summer residence in 1848. The Museum, included in the National Register of Historic Places, opened in 1978.
Gateway National Recreation Area
Sandy Hook Unit
PO Box 530
Fort Hancock, NJ 07732
(732) 872-5970
Fax: (732) 872-5915
Hours: Visitor center daily 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; museum on weekends, (daily July and August), 1-5 p.m.
Open to the public.
Admission: Summer beach parking fee, $8 weekdays, $10 weekends and holidays, $60 season pass
Attractions include the Sandy Hook visitor center, U.S. LifeSaving Service exhibit, Natural History exhibit, book store, Fort Hancock Museum and History House. Exhibits, dioramas highlight U.S. Army/military life at Fort Hancock. Ranger-led tours on various subjects occur during the year. Tours of the Sandy Hook Lighthouse are conducted by the New Jersey Lighthouse Society on weekends in April through November. Call the park for further information.
Hazlet Train Stop
Lionel Train Museum
25 Brailley Lane
Hazlet, NJ 07730
(732) 264-7429
Fax: (732) 888-7750
Hours: Call for hours.
Open to the public.
Admission: $3 per person 10 and older
The museum was started in 1944. The trains date from 1916 to the present. The 525 square foot operating, landscaped layout will take you back to your childhood.
Historic Allaire Village
P.O. Box 220
Allaire, NJ 07727
Location: Allaire State Park, 4265 Atlantic Ave.
Route 524, Allaire, NJ
(908) 938-2253
Fax: (908) 938-3302
E-mail: [email protected]
Office hours: Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., (except for holidays and Fridays before special events).
Site hours: Weekends, May-October, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Call for summer weekday hours.
Admission: Free for general touring; fees vary for organized group tours, workshops, and for admission to fund-raising special events.
The original site, including 12 original structures, of James P. Allaire’s Howell Iron Works Company village in the 1830s, Historic Allaire Village is an outdoor, "living history" museum of 19th century industrial community life. Authentically costumed museum interpreters and craft demonstrators, including blacksmiths and carpenters, bring this once deserted village to life.
Historical Society Of Princeton
158 Nassau St.
Princeton, NJ 08542
(609) 921-6748
Fax: (609) 921-6939
Hours: Tuesday through Sunday, noon- 4 p.m.; weekends only in January and February.
Open to the public.
Admission: Free
Historical Society of Princeton’s headquarters, Bainbridge House, serves as a museum with changing exhibitions, a research library and photo archive, and a museum shop. Built in 1766 by Job Stockton, a wealthy tanner, the property remained in the Stockton family for more than 100 years. Commodore William Bainbridge, a hero of the War of 1812, was born in the house on May 7, 1774. The Society offers two-hour guided walking tours of the town every Sunday at 2 p.m. The cost is $5 per person and there are discounts for senior citizens and children.
Holmes-Hendrickson House
c/o MCHA
70 Court St.
Freehold, NJ 07728
Location: 62 Longstreet Road
Holmdel, NJ
(732) 462-1466
Fax: (732) 462-8346
Internet address: http://www.monmouth.com/mcha
Hours: May-Sepember, Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday, 1-4 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Open to the public.
Admission: Members, free; adults, $2; seniors 62 and over, $1.50; children 6 to 18, $1; children under 6, free.
Local Dutch traditions are illustrated in this farmhouse that was built around 1754 by William Holmes and later owned by his cousin Garret Hendrickson. Spinning and weaving demonstrations are periodically held at the house.
Howell Living History Farm
101 Hunter Road
Titusville, NJ 08560
(609) 737-3299
Fax: (609) 737-6524
Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday; noon-4 p.m. Sunday, noon-4 p.m., April through November
Admission/Parking: Free, donations accepted
Inez Howell donated 126 acres of land in memory of her husband, Congressman Charles Howell, and asked the Mercer County Park Commission to develop these acres as a living history farm. Special Saturday programs such as ice harvesting, maple sugar harvesting, sheep shearing, spring gardening demonstrations, horsedrawn planting, and hayrides for children are scehduled at appropriate times throughout the season.
Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Location: 71 Hamilton Street
(732) 932-7237
Fax: (732) 932-8201
Hours: Tuesday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; weekends, noon to 5 p.m.
Admission: Adults, $3; 18 and under, free; students with ID, free; alumni, free.
The museum’s collections total more than 50,000 works in a wide range of media. With the addition of more than 10,000 works of art from the Dodge Collection of Nonconformist Art from the Soviet Union, along with the Riabov Collection of Russian Art, the museum houses the largest collection of Russian and Soviet art outside of Russia. Special collections include graphic arts (particularly French turn-of-the-century prints, posters, rare books and ephemera, and Belgian turn-of-the-century Art Nouveau posters), 29th century American prints from the Rutgers Archives for Printmaking Studios, Japonisme (Western art infuenced by Japan), as well as illustrations from the Rutgers Collection of Children’s Literature.
John Abbott II House
Location: 2200 Kuser Rd.
Hamiton, NJ
Mailing address: PO Box 1776
Yardville, NJ 08620
(609) 585-1686
Hours: noon to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday
Johnson Ferry House
Washington Crossing State Park
355 Washington Crossing-Pennington Rd.
Titusville, NJ 08560
(609) 737-2515
Hours: Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sunday, 1-4 p.m.
Admission: Free
Built in 1740 by Rutger Jansen, later anglicized to Johnson, the house is best known for the Christmas night crossing of the Delaware River by Gen. George Washington and the Continental Army preceding the Battle of Trenton. Today it is furnished with local period pieces appropriate to the keeping room, bed chamber and textile room when the Johnson family lived there from 1740-1770. The taproom is furnished and interpreted with the American Revolution in view. The site also includes an 18th century kitchen garden and out buildings. Monthly special events include military encampments and demonstrations, foodways, textiles, woodworking and other domestic and farmstead activities.
Kuser Farm Mansion
Mailing address: 2090 Greenwood Ave.
CN00150
Hamilton, NJ 08650-0150
Location: 390 Newkirk Ave.
(609) 890-3630
Fax: (609) 890-3632
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet address: http://hamtwp.net
Hours: Saturday and Sunday, February to April, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., last full tour at 2 p.m.; same hours Th., Fri., Sat., and Sun., May-November.
Admission: Free
This 1892 summer country home of Fred Kuser and his family can be enjoyed during a guided tour of two furnished floors. Visitors will see magnificent wood paneling and heavily carved fireplaces. The 45-foot dining room contains an 18-foot carved CinemaScope movie screen and there is a separate Projection Room. Next to the butler’s pantry is a large country kitchen with a mammoth coal/wood stove. The second floor rooms give a glimpse back into the past of this prominent business family. One of the halls contains Mercer Motor car memorabilia. The mansion has 32 "free" educational lectures, video evenings and programs a year in addition to it’s magnificent Holiday House. Tours of two floors decorated for a turn-of-the-century Christmas with more than 30 trees, antiques, dolls and toys. Each year a wonderous display of lights and events complete our four-day holiday event called, "Winter Wonderland." The Jersey Valley Model railroad is housed in the cellar of the mansion for its annual holiday open house featuring our unique and exciting H.O. railroad display. Telephone for schedules and information.
Lakeview, The Buckelew Mansion
203 Buckelew Ave.
Jamesburg, NJ 08831
(732) 521-2040
Hours: By appointment
Admission: Free, donations accepted
Lakeview, the Buckelew Mansion, was built in the 1600s and was acquired by James Buckelew in the 1800s. On display in the conservatory is the coach used by Abraham Lincoln to travel from the Trenton railroad station to the statehouse. The site features a restored blacksmith shop. The mansion is listed in the State and National Registers of Historic Sites. Lakeview schedules yearly events and is available for school tours.
Longstreet Farm
805 Newman Springs Road
Lincroft, NJ 07738
Location: Longstreet Road
Holmdel, NJ
(732) 946-3758
Fax: (732) 946-0750
Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m., seven days a week (extends to 9 a.m.-5 p.m. summers). House museum: weekends and holidays, noon-3:30 p.m.
Open to the public.
1890s living history farm owned and operated by the Monmouth County Park System. Farm animals, demonstrations of 1890s agriculture and rural life skills, restored 18th- and 19th-century barns, house museum.
Marlpit Hall
c/o MCHA
70 Court St.
Freehold, NJ 07728
Location: 137 Kings Highway
Middletown, NJ
(732) 462-1466
Fax: (732) 462-8346
Internet address: http://www.monmouth.com/mcha
Presently closed for restoration.
Marlpit Hall or the Grover-Taylor House, circa 1756, was the residence of two of Middletown’s leading Loyalist families.
Monmouth Battlefield State Park
347 Freehold Road
Manalapan, NJ 07726
(732) 462-9616
Fax: (732) 577-8816
E-mail: [email protected]
Hours: 8 a.m.-dusk
Open to the public.
Monmouth Battlefield State Park is the site of one of the largest battles of the American Revolution. The park offers visitors the chance to tour the battlefield as well as the opportunity to see several displays in the Visitor Center. Also located in the park is the Craig House, a restored 18th-century house open seasonally from noon to 4 p.m. on Sundays.
Monmouth County Historical Association
Museum And Library
70 Court St.
Freehold, NJ 07728
(732) 462-1466
Fax: (732) 462-8346
Internet address: http://www.monmouth.com/mcha
Hours: May-September, museum, Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sunday, 1-4 p.m.; Library, Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.Open to the public.
Admission: Members, free; adults, $2; seniors 62 and over, $1.50; children 6 to 18, $1; children under 6, free.
Founded in 1898, the Monmouth County Historical Association is headquartered in Freehold at its museum and library building, which was constructed in 1931. The museum features changing exhibitions from the Association’s outstanding collections of decorative arts, fine arts, and historical objects, much of which was owned or made in New Jersey.
The Monmouth Museum
PO Box 359
Lincroft, NJ 07738
Location: Newman Springs Road
on the campus of Brookdale Community College
(732) 747-2266
Fax: (732) 747-8592
Hours: Call the musuem for public hours.
Admission: $4; children under 2 and members free.
The Monmouth Museum founded in 1963 offers changing exhibitions on art, science, nature and cultural history. The Becker Children’s Wing currently features "Buried Treasure: The Search for the Missing Tomb." Hands-on activites suitable to school age children liven the experience. The new WonderWing is a place for innovative play and learning opportunities for children six and under.
The Morris Museum
6 Normandy Heights Road
Morristown, NJ 07960
(973) 538-0454
Fax: (973) 538-0154
Internet address: www.morrismuseum.org
Hours: Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m. Closed on major holidays.
Admission: Members, free. Children, students, seniors: $3. Adults, $5.
The Morris Museum, the third largest general museum in New Jersey and professionally accredited by the American Association of Museums, is recognized by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts as a "Major Arts Institution." The Museum offers a diverse selection of permanent and changing exhibitions, performing arts presentations in its 312-seat John H. Bickford Theatre and on-site and outreach education programs for children and adults. Exhibitions from The Museum’s permanent collection include fine and decorative arts, Native American objects , antique dolls and toys, rocks and minerals, dinosaurs, fossils and natural science, including a mini-zoo. In 1998, Mexican masks, works by Henri Matisse and more. The Morris Museum Shop offers exhibition-related items.
Morven
55 Stockton St.
Princeton, NJ 08542
(609) 683-4495
Fax: (609) 497-6390
Hours: Call for information about open hours and tours.
Admission: Free
Morven is the former home of N.J. governors. Built in 1758 by Richard Stockton, signer of the Declaration of Independence, and his wife, Annis Boudinet Stockton, an early American poet.
Mule Tenders Barracks Museum
4 Griggstown Causeway
Griggstown, NJ 08542
(908) 873-3050
E-mail: [email protected]
Hours: Saturday, Sunday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; weekdays during summer, staffing permitting
Admission: Free, donations accepted.
Sponsored by the Griggstown Historical Society, the Mule Tenders Barracks Museum contains D & R Canal models (two swingbridges and a canal boat), artifacts and historic photographs. Bikers and walkers are invited to sit down, relax, and talk at the round table provided for them. A fireplace is lit during the winter. A 30-minute video on the history of the canal may be viewed in the video room. Canoe rental is available nearby.
New Jersey State House
125 West State Street
Tour Office
P.O. Box 068
Trenton, NJ 08625
(609) 633-2709
Internet address: http://www.njleg.state.nj.us
Hours: Tours: Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.; Saturday, noon-3 p.m.. Groups over 10 require advanced reservation.
Admission: Free
The seat of State government since 1792, the New Jersey State House is the second oldest state capitol in continuous use in the United States.
Old Barracks Museum
Barrack Street
Trenton, NJ 08608
(609) 396-1776
Fax: (609) 777-4000
E-mail: [email protected]
Internet address: http://www.voicenet.com/barracks
Hours: Open daily, except Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Years Day and Easter.
Admission: Adults, $6; students, children under 13 and senior citizens, $3.
Built in 1758 to house British troops during the French and Indian War, and now registered as a State and National Historic Landmark, the Trenton Barracks is one of the oldest public buildings in the country. Actively used during the American Revolution, the Old Barracks housed soldiers at the time of the Battle of Trenton and later served as a military hospital.
Old Dutch Parsonage
Wallace House
71 Somerset Street
Somerville, NJ 08876
(908) 725-1015
Hours: Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-noon; 1-4 p.m.; Sunday, 1-4 p.m.
Admission: Free
Groups of 10 or more need reservations.
Wallace House, the home of wealthy retired merchant John Wallace, served as Washington’s headquarters during the winter of 1778-1779. The Old Dutch Parsonage was the home of the Rev. Mr. Jacob Hardenbergh, the founder of Queen’s College (now Rutgers University) from 1756-1781.
Old Millstone Forge
Blacksmith Museum
c/o W.L. Bryan
611 Canal Road
Somerset, NJ 08873
Location: On North River Street, Millstone, NJ
(908) 873-2803
Hours: Sundays, (first Sunday in April through last Sunday in June, third Sunday in September through last Sunday in November), 1-4 p.m.
Admission: Free, donations accepted
A 1768 newspaper advertisement may constitute the first mention of the present forge. Deeds date back to 1839. It probably operated during the Revolutionary War, and continuously from 1839 until the death of the last blacksmith, Mr. Edward Wyckoff, in 1959. Today, Old Millstone Forge features several amateur blacksmiths who take turns demonstrating the art of the anvil. There are numerous tools and implements, many handmade. Especially interesting are the two ancient Dutch anvils dating to the late 1600s.
Princeton University Museum
Of Natural History
Guyot Hall
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ 08544
(609) 258-4102
Fax: (609) 258-1334
Hours: Daily, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
Admission: Free
A wide variety of exhibits includes: an Allosaurus skeleton; mammalian and reptilian skeletons; a giant globe; birds, plant and animal fossils, and geology, biology and anthropology displays.
Rockingham
Route 518, RD 4
Rocky Hill, NJ 08553
(609) 921-8835
Hours: Wednesday-Saturday,. 10 a.m.-noon, 1-4 p.m.; Sunday, 1-4 p.m.
Admission: Free
Rockingham, where Washington wrote his farewell orders to the armies, served as the site of his last wartime headquarters from Aug. 23 to Nov. 10, 1783.
Rutgers University
Geology Museum
Geology Hall C.A.C.
85 Somerset Street
New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1281
Location: Corner of George and Somerset streets
(732) 932-7243
Fax: (732) 932-1268
Hours: Monday, 1-4 p.m.; Tuesday to Friday, 9 a.m.-noon. Call for additional hours.
Admission: Free
The Singleton-Latham -Large House
Location: Route 528, Chesterfield Township
Box 86
Crosswicks, NJ 08515
Chesterfield Township Historical Society
(609) 291-5001
Early records show that this house and property was purchased in 1686 by Thomas Singleton, a Shipmaster from London. Ownership passed to Joseph Latham, husband of Jane Singleton, and later to the Large family. Daniel Borocz and his heirs owned the property from 1928 to 1976, when it was then purchased by a group of preservationists to prevent it from being demolished.
The Singleton-Latham-Large house and property was placed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places on March 7, 1979. The house and property was conveyed to the Chesterfield Township Historical Society in 1985 by the late Miss Gertrude N. Brick. The restoration work proceeds slowly due to an urgent need for funds. In 1996 a violent storm removed the roof which was replaced in 1997 and 1998. When the restoration is complete, the building will house a meeting room, museum, caretaker’s apartment and gift shop.
Thomas Clarke House
Princeton Battlefield State Park
500 Mercer Rd.
Princeton, NJ 08540
(609) 921-0074
Fax: (609) 921-0074
E-mail: [email protected]
Hours: Park open daily, dawn to dusk; Clarke House open Wednesday-Saturday, 10 a.m. to noon and 1-4 p.m.; Sunday, 1-4 p.m.
Admission: Free
Site of the Jan. 3, 1777 Battle of Princeton where American forces under Gen. George Washington defeated British soldiers. Gen. Hugh Mercer, of the American Army, died in the farmhouse of Thomas Clarke nine days after the battle. The Clarke House is furnished in the period of the Revolution and includes exhibits of weapons and artifacts.
United States Army
Communications-Electronics Museum
Building 275
Kaplan Hall
Fort Monmouth, NJ 07703-5103
(908) 532-4390
Fax: (908) 532-3788
Hours: Monday to Friday, noon-4 p.m.
Open to the public.
Admission: Free
The U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Museum tells the history of Fort Monmouth from 1917 to the present. Many photos and artifacts including heliographs, WWI air-to-ground equipment and rare vacuum tubes. Outdoor exhibits include a tank, satellite dishes, and radar sets. Also on display are hero pigeons, and battlefield sensors.