Research and archival consultant Sharece Blakney is pictured giving a tour of the exhibition.
(PRINCETON, NJ) -- Morven Museum & Garden announced the reopening of its permanent history exhibition, Historic Morven: A Window into America's Past, with research updates in three of the museum's galleries.
Research and archival consultant Sharece Blakney uncovered new information that sheds light on the lives of individuals enslaved by the Stockton family and those who were manumitted. The exhibit documents these lives through records from the Somerset County Clerk's office, Princeton Theological Seminary, the New Jersey State Archives, and the National Archives.
The individuals featured in the exhibit include Marcus Marsh, who Richard and Annis Stockton enslaved and later lived as a free man in Philadelphia; Sampson, who self-emancipated from Richard Stockton, the Duke; and Cate, whose birth and manumission are recorded in New Jersey’s historical archives. One significant discovery in the exhibition is the names of 108 previously unidentified individuals enslaved by Commodore Robert Field Stockton on his plantation in Glynn County, Georgia.
“This updated exhibition is the culmination of three years of work, and we are very pleased to present a fuller picture of the lives of people like Kate and Anthony, who were born into slavery at Morven,” said Elizabeth Allan, Deputy Director & Curator at Morven Museum. “We look forward to continuing research into these lives previously left out of the historical record.”
The incorporation of new research into Morven's permanent exhibition was made possible, in part, by Fulton Bank and the Mercer County Cultural & Heritage Commission, through funding from the Mercer County Board of Commissioners and the New Jersey Historical Commission.
Morven Museum & Garden is located at 55 Stockton Street in Princeton, New Jersey. It is open Wednesday through Sunday from 10:00am to 4:00pm. The gardens are open daily until dusk.
Most historic sites celebrate one notable resident. Morven Museum & Garden is unique in that it was home to many remarkable people. Built during 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 celebrated 20 years as a Museum in 2024.
