Monmouth County Historical Association

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Monmouth County Historical Association

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Over the past century, the MCHA has become a multi-faceted organization comprised of our Museum, Research Library & Archives and five Historic House Museums.
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Welcome to the Monmouth County Historical Association, an organization with a rich history dating back to its founding in 1898 when a dedicated group of county residents incorporated to “discover, procure, preserve and perpetuate whatever relates to the history of Monmouth County.” We have been continuing that important effort ever since. Our Traveling Trunk Program, lectures and special events help us to provide a variety of opportunities for people of all ages to engage in learning about and appreciating the interesting history and cultural heritage of our unique area.

10/24/2026

We certainly have a treat for you today! From now on, Saturday's "History House" will be featuring all the exciting updates of the Allen House restoration project. And things are already moving along. For those of you who might not know, this project is being funded by the New Jersey Historic Trust. Their dedication and commitment to the preservation of this state's rare surviving historic structures is outstanding. What you don't see are the years of planning, surveying, measuring, and research (with the extra "Covid year" thrown in for good measure.) Connolly & Hickey, the historic preservation architectural firm located in Cranford, NJ, is carefully guiding the entire process. And we're giving a huge shout out to Spartan Construction, Inc. of South Amboy - you can see by the photographs here that they've already made serious progress! With most of the ceilings on the third floor removed, we can now see some of the damage left by an electrical fire that swept across the roof in 1942. In the stairway hall on the second floor, we're taking a look at the framing on the east side of the building. On the first floor, the ceiling has been removed from the big tap room. We plan to leave the reconstructed bar in place. Based on New York examples, the bar was designed and installed during the 1972-1973 restoration after the Association assumed ownership of the site. The ceiling is also gone from the second floor, revealing older floor joists and later additions. Our favorite little discovery? With the second-floor ceiling removed, we can see a bit of what appears to be early plaster and fill, made from mud, horsehair, and straw! We'll be investigating that soon and promise to show you more. The scalloped shingles are also being scraped, primed, and when needed, replaced. We'll also be sharing some of the research we're doing in preparation for the new interpretation of this amazing historic site. Stay tuned!

10/23/2026

With such a small staff, sometimes we're stretched! Today, Friday the 23rd, Covenhoven House at 150 West Main Street will be closed, but our main museum at 70 Court Street will be open to welcome you from 1 to 4 p.m.! If you haven't already visited, plan to do so and enjoy our fascinating exhibition "Storm of Revolution: Monmouth at War." This exhibition continues to receive rave reviews, and for good reason. Two floors, five galleries, and the stories of Monmouth's men, women, and children during eight years of conflict await! Covenhoven House will be open tomorrow (Saturday the 24th) from 1 to 4 p.m.

10/22/2026

Veterans Day is November 11th, but we can’t wait…we have something very special to share with you now :) 🇺🇸

One of the world’s last surviving WWII nurses, 107 year-old Freehold resident Evelyn Buchman Tutunjian, was recently honored with the Living Legend award from the Military Women’s Memorial! We are proud of Evelyn and grateful for her selfless service abroad during this dangerous and transformative time in our nation’s history.

To Brian Trionfo, business manager of Carousel of Home Care, Evelyn had become family. Knowing her story should not go unnoticed, he was finally able to convince her to sit down with us for an oral history interview. Ever humble and certain she had nothing special to say, Evelyn recently shared her story with us. We were honored to have met her.

Read about it on our website at https://www.monmouthhistory.org/post/the-past-is-still-present, where you can also scroll to the bottom to hear her interview.

You still have a few weeks leading up to Veterans Day, November 11th, to think about how to honor and celebrate our local veterans! More interviews will be forthcoming as MCHA launches the next phase of its oral history collection.

10/21/2026

Gee, we don't have any of those in the collection! On August 25, 1905, Long Branch residents Charles Curtis Miller (1851-1906) and his wife Sarah Lavan Miller (b. 1870) posed with their gleaming collection of automobiles for a Pach Studios photographer. Charles Miller retired a wealthy man after investing in the Westinghouse Air Brake Company and the Peerless Rubber Company. Westinghouse invented and developed special brakes for railroad cars, while Peerless offered rubber products ranging from garden and fire engine hoses to bicycle and automobile tires. Miller married Sarah Lavan in 1895, and the couple settled permanently in Long Branch. They were familiar sights, tootling down Long Branch streets in their gleaming vehicles. Charles even had one of his automobiles fitted up with a special heating unit so he could drive even in cold weather. Miller left the bulk of his estate to Sarah, including the Long Branch residence, all the automobiles, and the specially built garage designed to hold them all. It appears that the Miller collection included at least two Pierce Arrows, a White Model M Steamer, and a Baker Electric. Look carefully at the details - we see an elegant horse-drawn carriage in the background at left, and two four-legged canine passengers on the seat next to Mr. Miller himself.

10/19/2026

An artistic streak sometimes finds its way down a family tree. And in the Gulick family of Middletown, that certainly held true for Henry Thomas Gulick (1872-1964) and his daughter Julia Wikoff Gulick Dodd (1912-2011). Julia's father Henry took up painting after retiring from active farming at the age of 74. Before his death in 1964, Gulick's works of local historic houses and farm landscapes were widely celebrated. While Henry worked in acrylic and oil, Julia favored watercolors. She, too, focused on the scenes most familiar to her, particularly in and around Middletown. After graduating from Middletown High School and then Douglas College in New Brunswick, Julia taught elementary school in Middletown for twenty years. She married Edward Dodd in 1939, and the couple had two children. The four works here include the little blacksmith shop, still standing along Kings Highway; a snowy scene of the Bennett family's barns; houses set along the curving roadways of Kings Highway and Red Hill Road; and the Association's own Marlpit Hall. Visit our eMuseum website and enjoy more of the Gulick family's artistic legacy!

10/17/2026

If you've driven past the corner of Route 35 and Sycamore Avenue in Shrewsbury any time in the past few days, you might have noticed that the long-awaited Allen House restoration project has actively begun! Years of planning are now being put into action, and we are so excited to get this preservation started. Over the coming months, we'll be providing pictures, updates, and much else. We'll also be adding updates on our website under the "Allen House Restoration" section. The New Jersey Historic Trust has generously funded the project, and we couldn't be more grateful. It's a one-to-one match, meaning that for every dollar the Trust grants us, the Association has to raise a dollar. Generous donors include Stillwell-Hanson, Saker Shopright, Circle Auto Group, Circle BMW, and the County of Monmmouth. The Allen House, built in 1710, has stood on this corner for 316 years. We hope you'll help us preserve this rare survivor for another three hundred years - simply visit the home page on our website and click "Donate." Then stay tuned for every exciting step - we can't wait to share everything we discover!

10/16/2026

Early autumn's chilly evenings have us thinking of warm and stylish fashions! This walking suit was owned and worn by lifelong Freehold resident Lillian Brown Anderson. Lillian was born in 1867. In 1892, she married attorney Frederick E. Anderson. Although Anderson maintained his law office on Broadway in New York City, the couple raised their two children, daughter Lillian and son Edward, in their East Main Street residence. Lillie was active in both New York and Freehold society events. The Andersons also traveled extensively, their trips noted in the local papers. Frederick Anderson died in 1937, her daughter Lillian in 1954. Lillie Brown Anderson died at the age of 99 in 1965. Although this walking suit is not marked, it is quite possible that owner Lillie Brown Anderson had the garment made in New York City, where her husband maintained his law offices. The suit, while appearing relatively simple, is elegantly fitted and constructed. The subtle details, including panels of brown velvet alternating with panels of metallic fabric woven in muted shades of brown, tan, green, and pink, are expertly incorporated into the jacket's overall design. Extensive brown soutache trim flows in freeform coils, from the front of the dress to the back. The construction, details, and sophistication of the suit all point to an expert dressmaking establishment within a large city center.

10/14/2026

Sometime around 1860 or so, sisters Elizabeth and Ellen Enright sat for their photograph. Elizabeth, about sixteen, and Ellen, about thirteen, wore gowns made from the same fabric, with crisp white collars around their necks. The photographer highlighted their oval brooches with gold, echoing the bright gilt frame around the ambrotype image. There's a lot behind this sisterly image - famine, sorrow, hope, and success are all rolled into this small glass rectangle no bigger than the palm of a hand. Margaret Geary (1820-1886) and her husband John Enright (1819-1889) welcomed their second child and first daughter Elizabeth in 1845 - the same year that a mysterious blight spread over the Irish farm fields. Between 1845 and 1852, more than a million Irish men, women, and children died of starvation. Two million others - including the Enright family - emigrated to America. Margaret and John, with their children James and Elizabeth, landed in Baltimore, Maryland, in February of 1849. In December of that year, the Enright family welcomed their first American-born child, daughter Ellen. The couple welcomed four more children, including son John (1852-1926), who would go on to become New Jersey Commissioner of Education. John Enright supported his wife and seven children successfully as a farmer in the Colts Neck area. Enright was so respected by his friends and neighbors that the local businesses all closed on the day of his funeral out of respect. His obituary, which appeared in the Monmouth Democrat, noted that Enright was "a man well informed on current topics, both at home and abroad."

10/12/2026

Columbus Day has us thinking of sailing ships! Although the name of this scrimshaw artist is unknown, he produced a relatively sophisticated and elaborate scene on this s***m whale's tooth. The addition of small areas of red pigmented highlights elevates this scene, providing contrast. While some sailors parlayed their artistic talents into full-time scrimshaw artistry, most sailors etched their scenes on whale teeth, bones, walrus and narwhal tusks, and other marine ivory simply as a way to pass the time during extended sea voyages. Pieces such as this one were often made for loved ones at home as souvenirs. The use of the American shield identifies the piece as being made by a sailor aboard an American vessel. The donor, Josephine Mabel Brown, was born in Keyport, Monmouth County, on 13 August 1858, a daughter of Cornelius H. Brown (1830 - 1905) and Emaline F. Strong (1829 - 1888). Her father was the leading builder and contractor in Keyport, erecting many of the churches and commercial buildings that still stand today. Miss Brown lived all her life in the house where she was born at 162 Broadway. After graduating from the Keyport Graded School, she taught for several years before working in the law offices of George W. Brown and Henry E. Ackerson. For many years she served as librarian at the Keyport Free Public Library. Josie, as she was called, was an avid student of genealogy and local history. . Miss Brown was a member of the Historical Association for more than fifty years, and a generous donor to its museum and library collections. She died on 23 August 1951, having just turned ninety-three. Interment took place in the family plot at Green Grove Cemetery in Keyport. Her niece, Miss J. Mabel Brown (1885 - 1980), who made her home with her aunt, served as a trustee of the Association from 1944 to 1972, and as President from 1948 to 1950. Given Keyport's long-standing history as a bustling marine town, it is possible that Miss Brown acquired the scrimshaw tooth from a local resident or collector.

10/09/2026

We love the rarities in our historic clothing collection! And this royal blue padded silk winter bonnet is certainly one of them. Made in the mid 1820s, the bonnet was owned and worn by a member of the Lott family in Monmouth County. The unknown, yet stylish, wearer would have welcomed the soft wool batting nestled between the layers of silk, satin, and stiffened buckram. Extra-wide ivory satin ribbons formed a lovely face-framing bow beneath her chin. Be sure to visit our eMuseum website to enjoy more than 170 additional women's fashions!

Address

70 Court St
Freehold, NJ
07728

Website

http://www.monmouthhistory.org/

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