Photo courtesy of Morven Museum & Garden
(PRINCETON, NJ ) -- From joyful holiday music and making festive decor to inspiring discussions on legacy, food, and history, Morven Museum & Garden's November/December programs invite visitors of all ages to learn, connect, and create.
Many winter programs include admission to Morven's annual holiday display in the galleries, Festival of Trees, opening November 19. Whether coming together with family and friends, or taking a cozy moment for yourself, there are opportunities for everyone to celebrate the season.
Wednesday, November 19, 2025 from 5:00pm-7:30pm | How Princeton Remembers: Rethinking Memorials and Meaning - Explore how history, memory, and place intersect in the stories we choose to remember. This free program includes admission to Morven's new exhibition Northern Family, Southern Ties before a discussion on Princeton's monuments and memorials and a hands-on workshop where you can design your own memorial to a person, place, or story, contributing to a shared display at Morven. Light refreshments will be served. All ages welcome. In partnership with the Historical Society of Princeton. Location: Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540. Tickets: Free (registration required) - reserve online.
Sunday, November 30, 2025 from 3:00pm-4:00pm | Victorian Christmas Concert. Anne and Ridley Enslow bring the charm of a Victorian Christmas to life with their lively performance of 19th-century and earlier music. Performing in period clothing, they offer a rich blend of well-known and lesser known Christmas music. Admission to Morven's Festival of Trees before the event (2-3 pm) and light refreshments are included. Recommended for ages 6 and up. Location: Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540. Tickets: $30 General Admission, $20 Morven Members, $10 student (with valid ID), $10 ages 6-10. Tickets are available for purchase online.
Wednesday, December 3rd & Thursday, December 4th; choose an afternoon session (1-3 pm) or evening session (6-8 pm).| Holiday Wreath Making Workshops. Enjoy light refreshments as you create a unique holiday wreath for your home with your choice of 'seasonal bling' and natural accents from Morven's historic gardens. No experience necessary! Morven's horticulturalists will be on hand to guide participants. Includes admission to Festival of Trees on the day of the workshop! Most suitable for ages 12+. Location: Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540. Tickets: $60 General Admission, $50 Morven Members. Tickets are available for purchase online.
Wednesday, December 10, 2025 from 4:30pm-6:30pm | Gingerbread House Decorating and Family Night. Enjoy festive treats and holiday music while you create your own delicious gingerbread house, complete with four gingerbread people to personalize with candy and icing! Make a holiday memory without worrying about the mess! Your creation will have a base for easy transport home. Includes admission to Morven's annual holiday display Festival of Trees before the event! Location: Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540. Tickets: $35 General Admission (gingerbread house and registration for four), $30 Morven Members (gingerbread house and registration for four), $8 General Admission Individual (does not include gingerbread house), $6 Member Individual (does not include gingerbread house). Tickets are available for purchase online.
Friday, December 12, 2025 from 6:00pm-9:00pm | Caroling with the Choirs. Don't miss Westrick Music Academy's festive musical stroll! The evening begins with special after-hours admission to Morven's annual holiday exhibit, Festival of Trees, with a choral performance amidst the decorations, and continues across the street at the Present Day Club for a joyous musical gathering and optional VIP experience "Around the Baby Grand piano" that includes festive music, open bar, and appetizers. Location: Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540. Tickets: $40 General Admission (access to the festive performance at the Festival of Trees and the Present Day Club), $100 VIP Experience (ages 15+). Tickets are available for purchase online.
Sunday, December 14, 2025 from 11:00am-12:00pm | Author Talk: The Gilded Age Christmas Cookbook with Becky Diamond. Spend a cozy morning enjoying tea and cookies while author and historian Becky Diamond leads an illustrated talk exploring her newest book, The Gilded Age Christmas Cookbook: Cookies and Treats from America's Golden Era, which features authentic recipes from sugar plums to jelly doughnuts, and holiday traditions dating back to the nineteenth century. In partnership with the Princeton Public Library. Books available for purchase from Labyrinth Books. Location: Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540. Tickets: $5, $20 (includes admission to Morven's Festival of Trees—limited availability), $40 (includes signed book and admission to Morven's Festival of Trees—limited availability) - tickets are available for purchase online.
Opened November 6, 2025; on view through 2028 | Northern Family, Southern Ties. Morven Museum & Garden's new exhibition gallery opens with Northern Family, Southern Ties, which reveals the overlooked connections between families straddling the Mason-Dixon Line. Learn how a marriage between a son of Princeton's most powerful family and a wealthy planter's daughter from Charleston changed the landscape of New Jersey. Discover how the fate of the people they enslaved was on the line as the debate over slavery unfolded on the national political stage. Open Wednesday-Sunday from 10 am-4 pm. Closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Year's Day, and Easter Day. Location: Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540. Tickets: $12 for adults; $10 for seniors (ages 60+), youth ages 7-18, students with ID, and active military or veterans with ID. Free for Members and ages 6 & younger. Reserve tickets online.
November 19, 2025 through January 11, 2026 | Festival of Trees. Morven Museum & Garden's uplifting annual Festival of Trees returns for its 20th Anniversary, transforming the historic mansion's galleries with an abundance of creative trees and mantels, each uniquely decorated by 17 community partners, representing local non-profits, schools, garden clubs, and artists. Open Wednesday-Sunday from 10:00am-4:00pm. Closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day. Location: Morven Museum & Garden, 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ 08540. Tickets: Included with museum admission: $12 for adults; $10 for seniors (ages 60+), youth ages 7-18, students with ID, and active military or veterans with ID. Free for Members and ages 6 & younger. Reserve tickets online.
Most historic sites celebrate a single notable resident—Morven is different. Built in the 1750s by Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, Morven was the home to five generations of the Stockton family; the innovative industrialist and humanitarian Robert Wood Johnson, Jr.; and later became New Jersey's first Governor's Mansion. Over nearly 300 years, its walls have witnessed the lives of governors, political leaders, celebrities, and everyday families alike.
Today, Morven Museum & Garden welcomes visitors to explore this layered history through exhibitions, programs, and historic gardens. The museum, located at 55 Stockton Street in Princeton, NJ, is open Wednesday through Sunday from 10:00am to 4:00pm.
