(PRINCETON, NJ) -- Morven Museum & Garden is set to host its annual Fourth of July Jubilee on Thursday, July 4, 2024 from 12:00pm to 3:00pm at 55 Stockton Street in Princeton. This year's focus is Civic Season, a national program of activities connecting Juneteenth and July 4th to better understand the past and shape the future.
This free community event includes family-friendly interactive activities and crafts inspired by history, civics, and service themes. Attendees are invited to enjoy tours of Morven’s gardens; live music with Vintage Vibe Tribe; Oink & Moo BBQ, The Empanada Guy, and Kona Ice food trucks; face painting with Maya B. the Facepaint Fairy, and a unique opportunity to “sign” the Declaration of Independence.
In 1783, Morven hosted Congressional delegates, marking Independence Day. Now more than 241 years later, the museum continues this tradition, utilizing its role as the home of a signer of the Declaration of Independence (and New Jersey’s first Governor’s mansion) to engage the public in activities that explore history and what it means to be an engaged citizen.
Community partner organizations include the Historical Society of Princeton, Paul Robeson House of Princeton, People & Stories/Gente y Cuentos, Princeton Academy of Art, Princeton Public Library, Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum, YWCA Princeton, Witherspoon-Jackson Historical and Cultural Society.
Half-price tickets will be available for the museum. The current exhibition, Morven Revealed: Untold Stories from New Jersey’s Most Historic Home, explores the lesser-known stories of Morven and its residents. The museum’s second-floor galleries take a thematic look at subjects recognizable to many American families: childhood, hosting guests, pets, fashion, and more.
The 2024 Fourth of July Festival is sponsored by Baxter Construction, Blue Sky Green Earth, and Fulton Bank.
This is a good weather event only. If rain is forecast, please visit morven.org for event updates.
Most historic sites celebrate one notable resident. Morven is unique in that it was home to many remarkable people. Built in the 1750s and home to one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, Richard Stockton, Morven was home to five generations of Stocktons, then Robert Wood Johnson, Jr. before becoming New Jersey’s first Governor’s Mansion and home to five New Jersey governors, their families, and staffs, witnessing nearly 300 years of history. Morven is located at 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ, and is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday from 10:00am to 4:00pm. The gardens are open daily until dusk. For more information, including exhibitions and events, visit morven.org.
Civic Season, the flagship program of Made By Us, is a national series of activities co-created by Gen Z and cultural institutions. Civic Season connects the holidays of Juneteenth and July 4th in an effort to better understand our past and shape our future.
