Take a trip through history without leaving the Garden State.
Founded in 1895 for collections of natural, archeological and industrial history, the New Jersey State Museum opened in its four-level building in Trenton in 1965. Today, the museum holds more than two million artifacts focusing on “exploration of science, history and the arts.” More than 150,000 people visit annually.
“Here’s this gem that’s been around for a very long time, that has world-class collections, world class research and world-class programs right in their back yard,” said Margaret O’Reilly, executive director of the museum.
The museum has two exhibits to mark America’s Semiquincentennial. “The Power to Change: Revolutionary Stories from the New Jersey State Archives” features a collection of rare state and federal documents from the Revolutionary War era. For something more recent, the “Spirit of ’76: The Bicentennial” exhibit features artifacts from America’s 200th birthday celebration.
“The whole state, in fact the whole country, is celebrating America’s 250th anniversary,” O’Reilly said. “We have some wonderful exhibitions that talk about what happened during the Revolution.”
O’Reilly noted that these special exhibits are a fraction of what the New Jersey State Museum offers. Experts lead tours, lectures and hands-on activities. The museum also is home to a state-of-the-art planetarium and a collection of dinosaur fossils.
“Folks don’t realize that this was one of the places that dinosaurs were discovered in the early part of excavation,” O’Reilly said. “The Haddonfield dinosaur was discovered in South Jersey.”
Admission is free admission, though there is a charge for the planetarium. The museum is open 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.
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