Historic Happenings Blog

Festival of Trees Festival of Trees is an annual highlight of the holiday season showcasing a juried collection of  trees and mantles displayed throughout the museum’s galleries, upstairs and down. This year’s theme invites visitors to enjoy the newly reimagined first and second floor galleries, featuring trees inspired by 18th through 20th century decor. Area designers, artists, garden clubs, businesses, and non-profit organizations will adorn all of the Museum’s galleries, including the second floor, with exquisite and whimsical holiday decorations. Docents will be available to answer questions, no formal tours are given during the Festival. Festival of Trees is open to the public during regular museum hours. No reservations are required. Museum ticket must be purchased to enter museum.  Please note: During  Festival of Trees , no formal tours of the museum are given, but docents are available to answer any questions. We are excited to announce the 2018 Festiv...

Saturdays, December 7, 14 & 28 Don't miss our 46th Annual  Christmas Candlelight House Tours! Saturdays, Dec. 7, 14 & 28, 2019  5:30pm to 8:30pm Experience the high point of Cape May’s holiday season during these self-guided walking tours, which feature: ​Homes, inns, hotels & churches specially decorated for the holidays ·       Christmas caroling and strolling musicians ·      Hospitality centers with warm beverages & home-baked goodies ·      Admission to the Emlen Physick Estate, Cape May’s only Victorian house museum, and to “An Old-fashioned Christmas: Holiday Traditions through the Years” exhibit in the Carroll Gallery ·      Limited trolley shuttle service provided Tickets: Adults $40, Children (3-12) $20 Tickets are selling quickly, so ho-ho hurrrrrry up and reserve yours today! Click here to buy tickets!  https://www.capemaymac.org/christmas-candleligh...

Hogmanay 2019 Saturday, December 28, 2019 1:00 PM Enjoy the FREE Annual  Celebration of Hogmanay  at The  Trent House on  Saturday, December 28, at 1 pm  Hogmanay at the Trent House is held during Trenton’s Patriot’s Week. This year, it is scheduled between the two battle re-enactments, so you can make it an all day affair! It is a free event for the whole family.  Make a wish for the New year with us as we celebrate William Trent’s Scottish heritage at the House he built 300 years ago! Enjoy the Open House decorated for the season by the Trenton Garden Club  Hear bagpipers and 18th century Scottish songs with, “Liberty Tree” (Stacy Roth and Bob Dupre), and our esteemed Councilwoman Marge Caldwell-Wilson reminisces about Hogmanay in her childhood home of Scotland.  Enjoy hot mulled cider, eggnog and Scottish snacks and holiday sweets

Come join the Asbury Park Historical Society for a  Holiday Party on Thursday, Dec. 19 , complete with a sing-along, refreshments, and lots of holiday cheer. “We have a wonderful piano and a great kitchen to prepare food so we invite everyone to join us- members and nonmembers alike,” APHS President Don Stine said. Singer Dan "Diamond" Huff will lead a holiday sing-along and Trustee Teddy Chomko will prepare some of his wonderful culinary delights. There will be a brief APHS meeting beginning at 7 pm and the festivities will probably begin around 7:30 pm. “But please feel free to attend our meeting- the last of the year,” Stine said. The party will be held at the Stephen Crane House at 508 Fourth Avenue. Feel free to dress up for the holidays! “And please make sure to see our many newly-renovated rooms,” Stine said.

Sunday, December 15  - Montclair, Essex County Come See the Holiday Decorations! T he Crane House and Historic YWCA and Shultz House will be open for self-guided tours on Sunday from 1:00 - 4:00 pm. See the Crane House & Historic YWCA (110 Orange Road, Montclair, NJ) decorated by the Garden Club of Montclair. Move forward in history to the Shultz House (30 N Mountain Avenue, Montclair, NJ) featuring Molly Shultz’s own collection on Christmas decorations, mantle decorations from Bartlett's Greenhouses & Florist of Clifton and children’s book exhibit. As a gift to our visitors this holiday season, we will be waiving our normal fee of $6. If you are in the giving spirit, donations are always welcome at any of our museums.  For more information, call 973-744-1796 or visit  www.montclairhistorical.org .

Sunday, November 24 – Sussex County November 24; Sunday,  2-4pm ; FAH: Members Wine & Cheese Event November 30, December 1, 7, 8, 14, 15 – Saturdays and Sundays,  1-4pm: Old-Fashioned Holiday Weekends at the  Foster Armstrong House .  Holiday themes for this year include, “A Military Holiday”, “Walt Disney”, “Christmas Stockings Over the Years” and of course, our traditional operating Model Train Display! The Foster-Armstrong House, circa 1790, a two-story Dutch colonial, with a circa 1820 kitchen addition is located on SC521/ 320 River Road, Montague, NJ, about 1 mile north of the Milford/Montague Bridge. It is listed on the State Historic Register of NJ and is a National Historic Register Site. The Nelden-Roberts Stonehouse, circa 1820, a two-story original schoolhouse, is located at 501 Route 206 North, Montague, NJ about 1 mile south of the Milford/Montague Bridge. It is listed on the State Historic Register on New Jersey. Both museums are located w...

Friday - Saturday, December 13 - 14  - Parsippany, Morris County Holidays in the Log House: Candlelight Tours On two nights only, explore early 20th-century holiday traditions and Gustav Stickley's own ideas about the season. Join us for these special after-hours guided Candlelight Tours of the decorated Log House at 6:00 pm on Friday and Saturday. A perennial favorite, these tours fill up quickly. Reserve your spot by buying your tickets today! $5 member; $12 nonmember. Advance reservations required; space is limited.  Purchase tickets here . Craftsman Farms is located at  2352 Route 10 West, Morris Plains, NJ. For more information, call  973-540-0311, e mail  info@stickleymuseum.org , or visit  www. stickleymuseum.org .n

Saturday, December 14 – Burlington County 2:00PM - 4:00PM    Paulsdale is open to the public for a Holiday Open House from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm. Paulsdale is the birthplace of Quaker suffragist Alice Paul. The home will be decorated in Quaker fashion by the Mount Laurel Garden Club and guests can  view the  Alice Paul: In Pursuit of Ordinary Equality  exhibit, enjoy refreshments, shop for holiday gifts in our gift shop, and view the Quaker influenced natural holiday decorations. Learn about Alice Paul's life and work and the site's present-day use as a girl's leadership center. Admission is free but donations are welcome. Paulsdale is located at 128 Hooton Road, Mt. Laurel. For information about group tours or future tour dates, contact the Alice Paul Institute at 856-231-1885, e-mail  info@alicepaul.org , or visit  www.alicepaul.org .

Saturday, December 14 – Hunterdon County Support the Lebanon Museum as well as local artists while enjoying original watercolors by the Musconetcong Watercolor Group (the show has been extended by popular demand!) at our Holiday Shop Open House on Saturday, December 14th from 12-4pm.  57 Musconetcong River Road, Hampton Not sure what to get the bus driver? How about a Lebanon Township mug with a gift card to a local coffee shop? Welcome the new neighbor with a set of unique local ornaments. Books, notecards, magnets, pottery, canvas bags and more are all for sale! Free hot cocoa and cookies will be served while we listen to holiday music on the Museum's Victrola.  Antique ornaments from the Museum's permanent collection are also on display.     We are always accepting donations for Veterans Haven North. Requests include: Men's socks XL only (fits shoe size 12-14) Men's flip flops sizes L, XL Laundry detergent pods Art supplies (easels, paints, canvases, paint br...

Saturday, December 14 – Cape May County Come Home for Christmas     CAPE MAY COURT HOUSE –  In the grand tradition of coming home for Christmas, The Museum of Cape May County will once again celebrate the holiday season by opening its doors on December 14 th  for a holiday open house.     Young and old alike are invited to experience this year’s holiday extravaganza from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.   Be sure to be on hand when Santa makes his annual appearance at noon to visit with children and share holiday sweets.  Visitors will be able to take a leisurely stroll throughout the house and enjoy magnificently decorated rooms as well as the museum’s beautiful campus – including a visit to the 1780 Smith Barn that houses Cape May County’s crown jewel, the 1859 original first-order lighthouse lens that sat atop the Cape May Lighthouse.     Come enjoy the museum this holiday season. Be awed by the rooms, each expertly...

Thursday, December 12 – Morris County Candlelight Open House at Macculloch Hall Historical Museum 4:00-8:00 pm    Take a break from holiday shopping to step back in time. FREE with museum admission and for members. RSVP:  ppongracz@maccullochhall.org

Sunday, December 8 -- Monmouth County Holiday Open House, 1pm – 4pm, at the Parker Homestead National Historic Site, 235 Rumson Road, Little Silver The Parker Homestead is working to preserve the unique 330-year history of the Parker Family through the restoration and maintenance of the Homestead lands and buildings and promote their use for educational, historical and cultural exhibits and events dedicated to enriching and increasing our knowledge and appreciation of local heritage.

Sunday, December 8 – Bergen County Bergen County Historical Society Sinterklaas Day, 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm OPEN HOUSE THIS EVENT  - No admission charge Enjoy Jersey Dutch holiday treats, refreshments and a visit with Sinter Klaas in the restored tavern in Campbell-Christie House, 1201 Main Street, River Edge, NJ 07661 from 1 to 4:00 P.M. on Sunday, December 8, 2019. See open-hearth cooking in authentic Jersey Dutch Out Kitchen. All three Jersey-Dutch sandstone houses are open for tours. For that special holiday gift, browse unique historical gift shop. We have a children's pine cone bird feeder and ornament workshop throughout the afternoon. Reservations for the 36th Annual Colonial Christmas Concerts, featuring Linda Russell & Companie, will also be on sale. PayPal link to follow. Our gift shop will be open. Experience History in one of the storied places where it was made! For further info on membership in the Bergen County Historical Society, a non-profit volunteer association, ...

Saturday-Sunday, December 7-8 – Morris County The Jefferson Township Museum will be open for the  “ Christmas in the Village ”  celebration. Opening hours for the Museum for the weekend are  10 to 4 on Saturday, December 7,  and  1 to 4 on Sunday, December 8 . “Christmas Carols ” is the theme of this year’s decorations. The museum is decorated by members of the Museum Garden Club and the Jefferson Township Historical Society under the direction of Roberta Shaw, Gardener One.  Each room of the museum will interpret favorite Christmas songs. Docents dressed in period costumes will be on hand under the direction of Carol Keppel, Museum Director. Hot mulled cider will be served outside by the pot-bellied stove on the banks of the brook on Saturday under the direction of Greg Brown. Mrs. Santa Claus will be making an appearance. Take advantage of photo ops on the Museum’s antique sleigh. Admission to the museum is free. The Jefferson Township...