After A Trip To The New Jersey State Museum, Get Outside And Explore Washington Crossing State Park
By Rachel Raimondi|Published July 20, 2022
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Rachel Raimondi
Author
Writer some days, editor other days, nerd all days. Love to travel to lesser-known spots and give them the love they deserve. Independently owned motor inns, Mom and Pop restaurants, uncrowded National Parks and trails.
In between these, spend my free time virtually adventuring through point-and-click games. Native New Yorker but can frequently be found roaming other parts of the United States.
If you’ve never visited New Jersey, you might not associate it with museums and outdoor recreation. What with 130 miles of shoreline, the bright lights of Atlantic City, and tons of fine dining, you might not realize that there are over 200 museums and 31 state parks. Or that within just nine miles of each other, you can visit both the New Jersey State Museum and Washington Crossing State Park, both located along the 301-mile-long Delaware River.
Trenton’s New Jersey State Museum was established way back in 1895, and after several relocations, found its home here in 1964. Within, you’ll find more than two million objects that relate to American and New Jersey history from the 17th century up until the present.
New Jersey State Museum, 205 W State St, Trenton, NJ 08608, USA
It was the first-ever museum in the US to have education as its main priority.
Scattered throughout its four floors, you'll find several collections, including those relating to cultural history, natural history, archaeology, and paleontology.
There is also an on-site auditorium and planetarium where you can take in exhibits and shows.
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Notable collections include the Civil War Flag Collection, Fossil Tales of New Jersey, and Pretty Big Things, a collection of less known yet important stories and artifacts of the Garden State.
Now that you have toured one of New Jersey’s best indoor places for education, you’ll head down NJ-20 South to the 3,575-acre Washington Crossing State Park. This National Historic Landmark connects to Washington Crossing Historic Park in Pennsylvania.
It was here that in late 1776, George Washington and his Continental Army troops landed after crossing the Delaware River from Pennsylvania. You can even visit the site of the crossing at the river.
There are several different restored historic buildings, such as the Johnson Ferry House, where you might come across a living-history reenactment, as well as the 1850 Nelson House.
There is also a museum full of displays and exhibits in reference to the “Ten Crucial Days” and other military and Revolutionary War items that will delight and educate the young and the old.
