This year, in honor of America’s Semiquincentennial, a 250th Exhibition Premiere and Founding Feast will take the place at Morven Museum and Garden in place of the traditional Morven in May.
The fundraiser takes place Saturday, May 2 from 6 to 9 p.m., and includes a preview of Morven’s major new exhibition, “Five Independent Souls: The Signers from New Jersey,” which opens to the public on May 3.
The exhibition explores the lives and legacies of the state’s five signers of the Declaration of Independence. Dinner is served following the exhibition premiere, inspired by New Jersey’s agricultural heritage. Special guests at the event include former Gov. Thomas Kean and Annis and Richard Stockton. Proceeds benefit Morven Museum & Garden. Reserve seats online at morven.org.
The exhibition focuses on John Hart, John Witherspoon, Abraham Clark, Francis Hopkinson and Richard Stockton, who were sent to Philadelphia in June 1776 with instructions to support independence from Great Britain. Representing a range of professions — including farming, law, surveying and ministry — the men were all family heads who collectively fathered 50 children and risked charges of treason with their vote.
Drawing on more than 100 historic artifacts, the exhibition examines the signers’ lives before, during and after the founding of the United States. Items on display include manuscripts, paintings, furniture and personal objects on loan from institutions such as the American Antiquarian Society, the American Philosophical Society and the National Gallery of Art, among others.
Alongside its exploration of the Revolutionary era, the exhibition also aims to addresse the contradiction between the ideals of liberty and the reality of slavery. Visitors will learn about the enslaved men, women and children connected to the signers’ households, offering a broader view of the era’s complexities.
The exhibition opens as part of the lead-up to the nation’s 250th anniversary, inviting reflection on the meaning and legacy of the Declaration of Independence.
Morven, the former home of Stockton and the only remaining residence of a New Jersey signer open to the public, will host the exhibition through Jan. 17, 2027.
