Campus Tours
Historic Sites and Tours
Nature Sites
Historic Homes
Trenton Sites and Tours
To the East, Hamilton
By the Delaware
To the North
A Drive to the South
Especially for Children
Corrections or additions?
internet/docs/travel/sites.txt
Sites and Tours
For day-to-day listings of sightseeing opportunities in Princeton,
turn to www.princetoninfo.com/us1events.html and search on
such categories as "For Families" "Art" "Fairs" and "History."
Princeton University,
web.princeton.edu/sites/chapel/worship.htm
609-258-3603. Nassau Hall, built in 1756, was the site of an important
Revolutionary War battle and the temporary home of the Continental
Congress. Call to confirm, but the oldest university building is
usually open weekdays and Sunday afternoons until 5 p.m., plus all day
Saturdays. Guidebooks are available at Maclean House or the University
Store. For the University
Chapel (open daily to 11 p.m., Saturday to 8 p.m.) free pamphlets are
available on site (www.princetoninfo.com/chapel.html.
Orange Key Tours, www.princeton.edu/orangekey
609-258-4554. One-hour tours of the
Princeton University campus leave daily at 10, 11, 1:30 and 3:30
(Sundays in afternoon only) from Frist Campus Center, off of
Washington Road. The tour includes Nassau Hall's historic Faculty
Room.
The Art Museum, www.princetonartmuseum.org
McCormick Hall, Princeton University,
609-258-3787. Picasso's "Head of a Woman" out front, and a collection
ranging from East Asian treasures to French impressionist paintings.
Open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 to 5, Sunday 1 to 5 p.m., free.
Self-guided walking tours of the Putnam
outdoor sculpture collection. Tours available by appointment. Museum
shop.
Firestone Library, libweb.princeton.edu
Corner of Nassau Street and Washington
Road, 609-258-1470. The home of more than 4 million books, Firestone
is the central research library for Princeton University. Three
galleries -- the Milberg Gallery, the Rare Book Room, and the
Cotsen Children's Library -- are open to
the public, as is a replica of the College of New Jersey library
Cotsen Children's Library,
www.princeton.edu/~cotsen/ Firestone Library, Princeton
University, 609-258-2597. At this mini-museum children can explore
fantastic sites of three favorite authors (C.S. Lewis, Lewis Carroll,
and E.B. White). An excellent family destination, open weekdays from 9
to 5 p.m., and on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m, but closed
on holidays. (www.princetoninfo.com/cotsen.html).
Bainbridge House, 158 Nassau Street, 609-921-6748.
Commodore William "Old Ironsides" Bainbridge was born in this Georgian
house built in 1766, now home of the Princeton Historical Society.
On view, an exhibit on Princeton history. Open Tuesday through Sunday,
noon to 4 p.m., weekends only in January and February. Two-hour,
two-mile tours
start Sundays at 2 p.m.
Drumthwacket, www.drumthwacket.org Route 206,
609-683-0591. Built in 1835 by
Charles Olden, a Civil War governor, it has been restored and
furnished by the New Jersey Historical Society and is now the official
residence of the governor. Weekly tours Wednesdays, noon
to 2 p.m.
Morven, www.historicmorven.org 55 Stockton
Street, 609-683-4495. Originally built for Declaration of Independence
signer Richard Stockton, this mansion reportedly served as
headquarters for British General Cornwallis in 1777, later as the
residence of Robert Wood Johnson (the founder of Johnson & Johnson),
and from 1953 to 1981 the official residence of New Jersey governors.
Currently under renovation, tours will be available again shortly.
Rockingham, www.rockingham.net General
Washington's headquarters, Route 518 and River Road, Rocky Hill,
609-921-8835. Built in 1710, Rockingham is one site where George
Washington really did sleep. He and wife Martha lived here in 1783,
while Congress was convened five miles away in Nassau Hall. In the
Blue Room on the second floor he composed his "Farewell Address to the
Armies." Currently under renovation, tours will be available again
shortly.
Thomas Clark House, 500 Mercer Street, in the 85-acre
Princeton Battlefield State Park, 609-921-0074. Usually open
Wednesdays to Sundays. After the Battle of Princeton, General Hugh
Mercer died here; it is furnished as a Quaker farmhouse during the
Revolutionary War. The expansive lawns by the Mercer Oak or by the
Greek columns marking the common grave are open to picnickers
(www.princetoninfo.com/morris.html).
Society of Friends, Princeton Pike and Quakerbridge Road,
609-924-5674. The Quaker meeting house sheltered many of the wounded
in 1777. On the porch find a supply of historical leaflets. The
building dates from 1760 and many prominent local Friends, including
Richard Stockton, were buried in the adjacent graveyard.
Princeton Cemetery, 609-924-1369. Leaflets can be picked
up from the superintendent's house on Greenview Avenue, off Wiggins
Street, at the entrance to the cemetery. Called the "Westminster Abbey
of the United States," it has the graves of Grover Cleveland, Paul
Tulane, Henry Van Dyke, Aaron Burr (father and son), John Witherspoon,
and Jonathan Edwards.
New Jersey Audubon Society's Plainsboro Preserve, 80
Scotts Corner Road, Cranbury 08512, 609-897-9400 (www.njaudubon.org).
Minutes from Princeton, this preserve is home to a number of
interesting plants and animals. Walk on the five miles of trails, talk
with a naturalist at the large nature center and gift store, or just
sit on the deck and enjoy the view of the 55-acre lake. Hours vary
according to season.
Albert Einstein's house, 112 Mercer Street, a white frame
two-story house with large front porch in Greek revival style where
the physicist lived from the time he was ousted from his job by the
Nazis and joined the Institute for Advanced Study in 1933 until his
death in 1955. Not open to the public.
www.princetoninfo.com/einstein.html
Woodrow Wilson houses at 72 and 82 Library Place and 25
Cleveland Lane, not open to the public. As university president he
lived in Prospect House on campus. He was elected to be governor of
New Jersey, then in 1912 to the presidency of the United States.
Grover Cleveland's house Westland, 15 Hodge Road, not open
to the public. "Westland" had built for Caroline Stockton Dod in 1854
and Cleveland lived there from 1896 until his death in 1908.
Paul Robeson's House , 110 Witherspoon Street, at the
corner of Green Street, not open to the public. He left Princeton at
age eight, graduated from Rutgers and Columbia Law School, and was a
singer, actor, athlete, and activist
(www.princetoninfo.com/199804/80408p02.html)
Springdale, 86 Mercer Street, built in 1846 by the
Stocktons and now occupied by the president of Princeton Theological
Seminary, Dr. and Mrs. Iain R. Torrance.
Hopewell Museum, 28 East Broad Street, 609-466-0103:
Located in a Victorian house, the museum has antique clothing,
furniture, weapons and a particularly strong collection of Native
American artifacts. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday, 2 to 5 p.m. 2
week reservation needed.
Trenton Convention and Visitors Bureau, Lafayette and
Barracks Street, 609-777-1770. Open seven days. E-mail:
trentcvb@voicenet.com, URL: www.trentonnj.com
Walk This Way, guided walking tours on Sundays at 1 p.m.
from April through October, at other times by reservation. Leaving
from the Visitors Bureau at Lafayette and Barracks Streets. $7 at
609-396-9419 or E-mail at crowcate@aol.com. Also see
www.princetoninfo.com/webster.html
New Jersey State Museum, www.state.nj.us 205
West State Street, Trenton.
609-292-6464. Tuesday to Saturday, 9 to 4:45 p.m., Sunday, noon to 5
p.m. Everything from American Indian artifacts and antique furniture
to fine arts and a planetarium. Lectures, kids shows, a concert
series.
Old Barracks Museum, www.barracks.org Capitol
Complex, Trenton.
609-396-1776. Historical interpreters in period dress explore life in
colonial and revolutionary New Jersey. Built in 1758, it housed
British soldiers during the French and Indian war, and three Hessian
regiments succumbed to George Washington's troops on December 26,
1776. Wonderful for children. E-mail: barracks@voicenet.com
New Jersey State Police Museum, 609-882-2000, extension
2557. See evidence from the Lindbergh case as well as trooper
uniforms, weapons, and other exhibits, Monday through Saturday, 10
a.m. to 4 p.m. Take Interstate 95 south to Exit 1. Drive south on
Route 29 to the first light. Turn left on Upper Ferry Road and left
again on River Road.
New Jersey State House, State Street, Trenton,
609-633-2709. The nation's second oldest state capitol in continuous
operation offers free guided tours of the restored building on
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 2 p.m.,
and 3 p.m., and on Saturdays from noon to 3 p.m.
www.njleg.state.nj.us/Default.asp.
Ellarslie, the Trenton City Museum, Cadwalader Park,
Trenton. 609-989-1191. Open Tuesday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 3
p.m., Sunday 2 to 4, Free.
www.ellarslie.org
William Trent House, 15 Market Street, 609-989-3027. A
Georgian brick manor house built as a summer home in 1719 by Trenton's
namesake, a wealthy Philadelphia merchant, this mansion has an
excellent collection of early colonial furniture. The Financial Times
of London called it the finest William and Mary site in America. Open
daily from 12:30 to 4 p.m., and for group tours by reservation from 9
a.m. to noon.
www.williamtrenthouse.org
Douglass House, Mill Hill Park, Front and Montgomery
Streets. General Washington called a council of war here on January 2,
1777, and decided to attack the British in Princeton.
Civil War and Native American Museum, 2202 Kuser Road,
Hamilton, 609-585-8900. Sponsored by the Camp Olden Round
Table, the museum is open Saturday and Sundays, noon
to 5 p.m., and weekdays for school groups by appointment.
Grounds for Sculpture, 18 Fairgrounds Road, Hamilton,
609-586-0616. A 22-acre landscaped sculpture park on the former state
fairgrounds site, with indoor exhibitions in the glass-walled, 10,000
square foot museum, and the newly-renovated Domestic Arts Building.
The elegant restaurant Rat's is here.
Howell Living History Farm, Valley Road, off Route 29,
Titusville, 609-737-3299. Website:
www.howellfarm.org.
Experience 19th-century agricultural life on this working and teaching
farm. Open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; closed Mondays. Free.
Washington Crossing Park, Pennsylvania, 215-493-4076. A
visitors center has a film and reproductions of long boats used to
ferry the Revolutionary soldiers across the river. Five tours daily
show period buildings holding artifacts representing everyday life in
the 18th and 19th centuries, $4. Also find nature trails in the
northern section of the park.
More 18th and early 19th century buildings of historic interest are
found near the river in Washington Crossing State Park, New Jersey
609-737-0609. Further into the park are a visitors' center, nature
trails, picnic and play grounds, and the outdoor amphitheater (see
Drama listings).
Coryell's Ferry Historic Sightseeing Boat Rides leave the
river landing behind Gerenser's ice cream store at 22 South Main
Street in New Hope; winter hours are variable. Get your tickets ($5
adults, $3 kids; phone 215-862-2050) at the shop.
The General George Washington, a 40-foot paddlewheel boat,
goes a mile and a half north of the ice cream shop on the river, then
turns around and comes back. See the natural beauty of New Jersey to
the east, and the backs of New Hope's lovely houses along the river to
the west. Upon request, your captain will offer a brief narrative
on the historic significance of New Hope in the events leading up
to the Battle of Trenton in 1776. $5. 215-862-2050.
New Hope Mule Barge Company, 215-862-2842, barges, drawn
by real live mules, ply the waters of the Delaware Canal, a
Pennsylvania State Park and National Historic Landmark. At its peak,
the Delaware Canal from Bristol to Easton (opened 1832) floated 3,000
barge trips per year. Today, the last remaining barge leaves from
New Street, one block up from Main off of Mechanic Street. The
two-mile 50-minute trip is $6.95 for adults, $4.25 for children under
12.
Where else can you learn about the history of the Delaware Canal and
the importance of barge traffic in the 19th century while being
serenaded by a guitar player in the presence of beasts of
burden? The barge operates at 11:30 a.m., 1, 2, 3, and 4:30 p.m.
New Hope and Ivyland Railroad,
www.newhoperailroad.com 215-862-2332, 32 West Bridge
Street and Stockton Street in New Hope. Pretty countryside is the
prime offering of this railroad, as it will be impossible to detrain
in Lahaska, but movie buffs will consider the trip worthwhile for the
chance to see where "The Perils of Pauline" was filmed. The
70-year-old Baldwin locomotive leaves hourly (11 to 4) on its
50-minute round-trip. $7.95 adults, $3.95 kids 2 to 11. Dining car
dinners on Fridays at 7:30 p.m.
Black River & Western Steam Railroad,
www.brwrr.com 908-782-9600. Lambertville Station to
Flemington, at 1, 2:30, and
4 p.m. ($10.50 adults, $5.25 kids round-trip). You can get off the
train in Flemington, a destination worth seeing for the Hunterdon
Courthouse and the Union Hotel, principal sites of the Hauptmann trial
(also known for its factory outlet stores), then take a later train
back to Lambertville.
New Jersey Museum of Agriculture, College Farm Road and
Route 1, North Brunswick, 732-249-2077.
Permanent exhibits of equipment, technology, and handicrafts of New
Jersey farm life. Open Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.;
Adults $4; seniors $3; children 4 through 12
$2.
www.agriculturemuseum.org
Liberty Science Center, Liberty State Park, Jersey City,
201-200-1000. Website: www.lsc.org. A three-story
adventure palace for all ages, the Liberty Science Center features
permanent and changing hands-on exhibits, movies, and a lunchroom with
a view of Manhattan. Open Tuesday through Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to
5:30 p.m. Admission to the exhibits is $9.50 for adults; $7.50 for
children ages 2 to 18, and seniors. Combination tickets include the
IMAX movie and 3-D Theater. Parking $5.
American Indian Museum, Powhatan Renape Nation Rankokus
Indian Reservation, Rancocas Road, Burlington County.
609-261-4747. Events are staged throughout the year with authentic
dancing, music, crafts, storytelling, and cuisine.
www.powhatan.org.
Longwood Gardens, Route 1, Kennett Square, Pennsylvania,
610-388-1000.
www.longwoodgardens.org. Admission $12 adults.
Extensive gardens, fountains, and a myriad of special events. Open
daily, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Open Tuesday, Thursday, and
Saturday evenings through September 4.
www.princetoninfo.com/199909/90901p01.html
New Jersey State Aquarium, Camden, 856-365-3300.
www.njaquarium.org. The 760,000-gallon Open Ocean Tank
is one of the largest in the country. Interactivity
is a part of each Aquarium exhibit, drawing in children and adults
alike. The entry rotunda is adorned by a massive seven-foot-high open
jaw of a Megalodon shark, extinct for 10,000 years; it leads to the
Shark Zone, where other shark jaws are mounted in display cases around
the Touch-a-Shark tank, its rim crowded by children.
www.princetoninfo.com/199911/91124p04.html
Corrections or additions?
This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com
-- the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.