Manual Training and Industrial
School Museum
Where: 803 Smithville Rd.
Eastampton, NJ
Who: Worker's House Museum All Ages
School Museum Tweens and Up
On the grounds of Historic Smithville Park in addition to Smithville Mansion
and The Underground Railroad Museum which we discussed in our previous
posts, Where-To-Go Wednesday - Smithville Mansion and Where-To-Go Wednesday - The Underground Railroad Museum of Burlington
County, there are also a couple of other smaller museums. The first is the
Worker's House Museum and Gallery. The other is the New Jersey Manual
Training Industrial School Museum.
The Worker's House Museum and Gallery was at one time literally the home of
the factory workers of Hezekiah Smith. Mr. Smith was the industrialist,
inventor, and congressman who created Smithville and owned and lived in the
Smithville Mansion. Currently, this museum houses a variety of items that show
what life was like during the time that Mr. Smith owned the village and his
workers lived there as well as a series of rotating art exhibits. Recent
exhibits have included an exhibit of bird-related art and a quilting
exhibit.
This museum is small and not overly full so it does not take a lot of time to
go through. There is no fee for visiting this museum and no reservations are
required. However, mask-wearing is required and your temperature may be taken
upon entry.
The other museum is the Manual Training and Industrial School Museum. It
is devoted to the school of the same name. The school was also known by
several other names including The Manual Training and Industrial School for
Colored Youth, The State of New Jersey Manual Training School, and The
Bordentown School. This school for African American children was located
in nearby Bordentown and was open from the early 1900s through the mid-1950s.
Although the intention is to eventually open a whole larger museum dedicated
to the school, perhaps on the grounds where the school actually existed,
currently the entire museum consists of an exhibit in a room in The
Underground Railroad Museum of Burlington County.
Despite its size, the current exhibit is quite overflowing with pictures and
other memorabilia. With numerous items stacked on top of each other, it is
quite impossible to go through on your own, but only if someone is around to
walk you through the exhibit. As a former student at the school, the museum
guide, who may or may not be the curator of the exhibit, is quite
knowledgeable about the subject and can talk quite a lot so be prepared for a
long stay. Accordingly, we would not recommend visiting this museum with young
children or others with short attention spans. For anyone interested in
learning about this school, however, a visit to this museum is definitely
worthwhile.
For more about Smithville Park and its museums, visit www.co.burlington.nj.us/948/Historic-Smithville-Park
Tune in tomorrow for Theater Thursday.
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