Share Your History

History is happening now, and we are all a part of that story.
To capture the past, not just 100 years ago, but more recently, The New Jersey Historical Society is particularly interested in documenting the state’s 20th- and 21st-century history. As we collect the objects and histories of our recent past, we are able to build a group of materials that help to document the diverse stories of the people of New Jersey.

The many items collected—clothing, diaries, photographs, toys, written narratives, oral histories and much more—become a part of the Historical Society’s collections. They are there for visitors to examine and research through our museum and library collections. Over time these items might be displayed in an exhibition, shown in an education program, highlighted on a web page, illustrated in a publication, or examined by a researcher. As a part of the Historical Society’s collections, these items are a part of the public recording of our past.

In recent collecting projects we have received such items as a calabash gourd handbag made by a Jamaican artist, a football team championship jacket from West New York, booths from the Salem Diner, and a Charlie Keller baseball mitt.

To become a part of the New Jersey’s history, please share your past. Do you have an object or a story that tells about life in the state? We’d like to hear from you!

We are particularly interested in stories and objects related to these projects:

Changed Lives: Understanding New Jersey in the Aftermath of September 11th
A statewide project created to record and preserve New Jersey response to the events of September 11, 2001.

The Summers of the Sixties-Sixes
The riots/civil disorders that tore through Newark and other American cities in the 1960s