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Department of State

New Jersey State Museum

The Hon. Tahesha Way, Lt. Governor and Secretary of State
Museum Updates:

NOTICE: The Museum Shop will be closed on July 2 for inventory and will re-open July 3.
The Museum will be closed on Thursday, July 4 for the holiday and will re-open regular hours on Friday, July 5.

Galaxy

Events At The Museum

Events Calendar

Touch the Stars
June 22-23 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Star
June 29 2024

Science Under the Stars: What We Can Learn From Images of Black Holes

4:15 PM

Speaker: Zachary Gelles, Princeton University

Reserve your seat

fossil
June 29 2024

Fossil collecting with the New Jersey State Museum

10 AM – 12 PM

Join Dr. Dana Ehret, Curator of Natural History, as he leads fossil collecting trips to Big Brook Preserve Space for each date is limited. Tickets are $15 per person. For additional information and to buy tickets use this link.

Touch the Stars
June 29-30 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
July 2, 3, 5 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
July 5 2024

Docent tours

12 – 2 PM

Written in the Rocks

Star
July 6 2024

Civil War Flag Unveiling

10:00 AM - 12:00 PM

In the American Civil War, flags guided troops into battle and served as patriotic emblems of honor and pride. Join flag historian Dr. David Martin of the New Jersey Civil War Heritage Association and NJSM Curator of Cultural History Nicholas Ciotola for a gallery walk about the history of five new flags to be unveiled in the State Museum’s exhibition, The Civil War Flag Collection of New Jersey. The one-hour tour will be followed by a reception hosted by Hunterdon 300th in the museum’s Riverview Court.

Touch the Stars
July 6-7 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
July 9-12 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
July 9 2024

Activity cart

12 – 2 PM

A Much Moved People, Trade in Colonial New Jersey

Touch the Stars
July 10 2024

Make & take - Imagination Studio

1 – 3 PM

Make a birch bark box and decorate with Anishinaabe inspired symbols. Get inspiration for your project when you visit the exhibition Bark! Indigenous Cultural Expressions.

Touch the Stars
July 11 2024

Story time - Discovery Den

10 AM and 11 AM

Powwow Day. This book explores the Native tradition of a powwow through the experience of a young girl and its importance to culture and community. Be sure to visit A Much Moved People to see regalia on display.

Touch the Stars
July 12 2024

Docent tours

10 AM and 11 AM

New Jersey’s Original People

Touch the Stars
July 13-14 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
July 16-19 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
July 16 2024

Activity cart

12 – 2 PM

Pretty Big Things, Textiles in New Jersey

Touch the Stars
July 17 2024

Make & take - Imagination Studio

1 – 3 PM

3D DNA Strand. Learn about the building blocks of life and make one to take home. Visit the exhibition Written in the Rocks to learn more about life on Earth.

Touch the Stars
July 18 2024

Story time - Discovery Den

10 AM and 11 AM

Up in the Garden, Down in the Dirt. This book takes you above and below ground to learn all about a garden ecosystem. Be sure to visit the Museum’s Pollinator Garden located outside the Planetarium entrance.

Touch the Stars
July 19 2024

Docent tours

12 – 2 PM

Written in the Rocks

fossil
July 20 2024

Fossil collecting with the New Jersey State Museum

10 AM – 12 PM

Join Dr. Dana Ehret, Curator of Natural History, as he leads fossil collecting trips to Big Brook Preserve Space for each date is limited. Tickets are $15 per person. For additional information and to buy tickets use this link.

Touch the Stars
July 20-21 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
July 23-26 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
July 23 2024

Activity cart

12 – 2 PM

American Perspectives, Colors

Touch the Stars
July 24 2024

Make & take - Imagination Studio

1 – 3 PM

Ocean Sensory Tubes. Learn about New Jersey sea life and make a calming ocean-themed sensory tube. Visit Written in the Rocks to discovery primordial seas and ancient sea monsters!

Touch the Stars
July 25 2024

Story time - Discovery Den

10 AM and 11 AM

Who’s in the Forest? It’s spring and all the forest creatures are coming out of hibernation. This interactive story introduces forest animals in a fun and playful way. Visit Written in the Rocks to learn more about New Jersey forest animals.

Touch the Stars
July 26 2024

Docent tours

12 – 2 PM

Pretty Big Things

Touch the Stars
July 27 2024

Spanish Language Planetarium Show

Touch the Stars
July 27-28 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
July 30-31 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
July 30 2024

Activity cart

12 – 2 PM

Planetarium Lobby, Astronomy in the Palm of Your Hand

Touch the Stars
July 31 2024

Make & take - Imagination Studio

1 – 3 PM

Make a bark cloth Tapa. You can choose to make note cards or turn it into home décor while you explore Pacific Island tapa symbols. Get inspiration for your project when you visit Bark! Indigenous Cultural Expressions.

Touch the Stars
August 1-2 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
August 1 2024

Story time - Discovery Den

10 AM and 11 AM

This week is art-making! We will read a story about art and then make some. Be sure to visit American Perspectives to get inspired.

Touch the Stars
August 2 2024

Docent tours

12 – 2 PM

American Perspectives

Touch the Stars
August 3-4 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
August 6-9 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
August 6 2024

Activity cart

12 – 2 PM

Written in the Rocks, Ice Age Animals

Touch the Stars
August 7 2024

Make & take - Imagination Studio

1 – 3 PM

Making Mammoths. Learn the difference between a Mastodon and a Mammoth and make a furry friend to take home. See real mammoth fossils in Written in the Rocks.

Touch the Stars
August 8 2024

Story time - Discovery Den

10 AM and 11 AM

This week we will explore ice age animals and read a story about prehistoric life on earth. Visit Written in the Rocks to learn more about New Jersey during the last Ice age.

Touch the Stars
August 9 2024

Docent tours

12 – 2 PM

Written in the Rocks

Touch the Stars
August 10-11 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
August 13-16 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
August 13 2024

Activity cart

12 – 2 PM

American Perspectives, Portraits

Touch the Stars
August 14 2024

Make & take - Imagination Studio

1 – 3 PM

Amate Bark Art. This indigenous art from Mexico is colorful and fun to create. Visit Bark! Indigenous Cultural Expressions to see more bark cloth from South America

Touch the Stars
August 15 2024

Story time - Discovery Den

10 AM and 11 AM

This week is art-making! We will read a story about art and then make some. Be sure to visit American Perspectives to get inspired.

Touch the Stars
August 16 2024

Docent tours

12 – 2 PM

Pretty Big Things

fossil
August 17 2024

Fossil collecting with the New Jersey State Museum

10 AM – 12 PM

Join Dr. Dana Ehret, Curator of Natural History, as he leads fossil collecting trips to Big Brook Preserve Space for each date is limited. Tickets are $15 per person. For additional information and to buy tickets use this link.

Touch the Stars
August 17-18 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
August 20-23 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
August 20 2024

Activity cart

12 – 2 PM

Written in the Rocks, Teeth!

Touch the Stars
August 21 2024

Make & take - Imagination Studio

1 – 3 PM

Pointillism & Pixels. Combine art and science into a masterpiece to take home! Pointillism uses the science of optics to create colors from many small dots placed so close to each other that they blur into an image to the eye. This is how pixels on computers work today.

Touch the Stars
August 22 2024

Story time - Discovery Den

10 AM and 11 AM

Hello Lighthouse! This Caldecott Award winning story introduces lighthouses to young readers. Learn more about New Jersey shore history in Pretty Big Things.

Touch the Stars
August 23 2024

Docent tours

12 – 2 PM

A Much Moved People

Touch the Stars
August 24 2024

Spanish Language Planetarium Show

Touch the Stars
August 24-25 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
August 27-30 2024

Weekday Planetarium Program

Touch the Stars
August 27 2024

Activity cart

12 – 2 PM

A Much Moved People, Lenape Games

Touch the Stars
August 28 2024

Make & take - Imagination Studio

1 – 3 PM

Aurora Art. Recreate an aurora in the sky and learn more about the interaction of solar wind and the Earth's magnetic field. Visit the Planetarium to see our newest show, Worlds Beyond Earth. (Fee for Planetarium show)

Touch the Stars
August 29 2024

Story time - Discovery Den

10 AM and 11 AM

What’s in the sky? Explore space through story and craft. Don’t forget to visit the Planetarium at 11:30 (fee for Planetarium) for the show One World, One Sky, perfect for small explorers.

Touch the Stars
August 30 2024

Docent tours

12 – 2 PM

American Perspectives

Touch the Stars
August 31 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Touch the Stars
September 1 2024

Planetarium Shows - Weekend Schedule

Upcoming Events

Science Under the Stars: What We Can Learn From Images of Black Holes

Science Under the Stars

June 29, 4:15 PM

Speaker: Zachary Gelles, Princeton University
In 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope released the first ever image of a black hole, opening up a wealth of new opportunities to learn about the fundamental nature of gravity. In this talk, we will discuss what a black hole is, where we expect to find them, and how we can take pictures of them up close. Zach will explain how black holes actually bend light, giving them a distinct appearance that can teach us about how gravity behaves when it is particularly strong. Finally, he will discuss what astrophysicists hope to do in the future to continue learning from these mysterious objects.

Reserve your seat

Go Fossil Collecting with Us!

Fossil

Join Dr. Dana Ehret, Curator of Natural History, as he leads fossil collecting trips to Big Brook Preserve on June 29, July 20 and August 17, 2024.

Dr. Ehret and participants will collect and learn about prehistoric marine life, including fossil sharks! Learn the techniques of fossil collecting and Dr. Ehret will help you identify your discoveries. Big Brook Fossil Preserve is known by fossil collectors along the East Coast as a hotspot for fossils from the Age of Dinosaurs.

Families are welcome and encouraged to attend, but all attendees must have a ticket, including parents/guardians and children.

Space for each date is limited. Tickets are $15 per person. For additional information and to buy tickets use this link. Members receive 50% discount, email Melissa.Mantz@njsmfoundation.org to confirm membership status and get discount code.

Free Summer Activities

Summer Activities

July 5 – August 30

Drop by the Museum and enjoy a free activity all summer-long! Use this link for a complete list of programs by date, or visit the Calendar page.

Tuesdays – 12:00 to 2:00 PM
Every Tuesday a Museum volunteer with an activity cart will be set up in one of our galleries. Explore art, history and science with interactive games, touchable objects and simple arts and crafts. All ages.

Wednesdays – 1:00 to 3:00 PM
Every Wednesday visit the Imagination Studio to make and take a craft. Stop by for a fun, free family activity or a stress relief moment for yourself! All ages.

Thursdays - 10:00 AM and 11:00 AM
Every Thursday morning we have story time in the Discovery Den for our smallest visitors. Join us for a story followed by a simple craft.

Fridays – 12:00 – 2:00 PM
Every Friday interact with a Museum Docent to learn more about our galleries. Tours are informal and you can catch up anytime. Great for a lunchtime break. Each week is different so you can make sure to enjoy them all!

Civil War Flag Unveiling & Reception.

Summer Activities

July 6, 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM

In the American Civil War, flags guided troops into battle and served as patriotic emblems of honor and pride. Join flag historian Dr. David Martin of the New Jersey Civil War Heritage Association and NJSM Curator of Cultural History Nicholas Ciotola for a gallery walk about the history of five new flags to be unveiled in the State Museum’s exhibition, The Civil War Flag Collection of New Jersey. One-hour-long tour followed by a reception hosted by Hunterdon 300th in the museum’s Riverview Court.

Small Explorers Series

Small Explorers Series

Local families are welcome to register for the Small Explorers program, taking place in the Discovery Den on the second Saturday of the month. This playgroup is an opportunity for you to explore the Museum with your child and connect with other families for support. Families are encouraged to sign up for a full year of sessions to build knowledge, skills and relationships. The program is 45 minutes long and begins promptly. Sessions take place in-person at 9:45, 11:00 and 12:15 PM in the Discovery Den, The program is FREE, but space is limited; advance registration is required. Contact Susan.Kozak-Buckley@sos.nj.gov to learn more and register.

Small Explorers is supported by a grant from PNC Grow Up Great.

NOTE: Registration requests must be received by 10:00 am the Friday before the event in order to allow time for staff to confirm space availability.

Visit the Events/Calendar page for monthly program details and to register.

Event Rentals

The New Jersey State Museum is a wonderful setting for your special event with changing exhibits that can provide a unique backdrop for any occasion. The Museum is ideally located in the State Capital Complex in Trenton, and offers a one-of-a-kind venue with incredible architecture and beautiful views of the Delaware River. For rates and availability, please view our rental information or email Rentals.NJSM@sos.nj.gov.

Available Rental spaces:

First Floor West Gallery
Riverview Court

This exceptional space is an ideal setting for buffet receptions, intimate sit-down dinners, business seminars and more. Available evenings and weekends only.

Auditorium
Auditorium

The 384-seat Auditorium is available for a wide variety of lectures, conferences, movie premieres, theater performances and more.

Additional rental spaces

 

 

 


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