Explore New Jersey’s Black Heritage
Explore New Jersey’s black heritage. Explore some of the noteworthy museums and historic sites across the state to learn about the Black community members that helped shape the history of New Jersey, the country, and the world through their accomplishments and dedication to freedom, justice, and equality.
To access more details about each historic site, be sure to click the links throughout to learn more.
Day 1
Head to Lawnside, located eight miles north of Camden. It is the only historically African American incorporated municipality in the northern United States. Tour the 1845 Peter Mott House, the oldest house in Lawnside, once owned by a free Black farmer and pastor who operated an Underground Railroad station in the home.
Then head to Burlington County, known as the “Cradle of Emancipation.” The county possesses an outstanding number of sites with ties to Black heritage, including the Dr. James Still Historic Office and Education Center. Known as the Black Doctor of the Pines, Dr. Still was born to former enslaved Africans from the state of Maryland. Despite being a self-educated man born into poverty, Dr. Still became one of the wealthiest men of his time in Burlington County.
Day 2
Start the day at the Shady Rest Country Club, the oldest African American golf clubhouse in the United States. In the early twentieth century, a group of Black investors from the Progressive Realty Company acquired the property and established the Shady Rest Golf and Country Club which stood as the center for African American society at the time. Tour the property to learn about the rich history of Shady Rest through memorabilia, photographs, and artifacts dating back to the eighteenth century and play a round of golf or mini golf!
Head to Hinchliffe Stadium, built at the height of the Great Depression. It's one of the last remaining Negro League stadiums in the country. It played a major role in baseball history as one of the few stadiums where African American athletes could showcase their skills during an era of segregation. Serving as the home field for the New York Black Yankees, New York Cubans, and the Newark Eagles, over 20 Hall of Famers graced the hallowed grounds of Hinchliffe. Restored and re-opened in 2023, the stadium is now home to The Charles J. Muth Museum of Hinchliffe Stadium, which offers educational programs, guided tours, and special events for visitors of all ages.
THERE'S MORE TO SEE AND DO: EXTEND YOUR STAY AND ADD THESE STOPS
Visit the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center in Red Bank dedicated to preserving the home and legacy of T. Thomas Fortune, a civil rights advocate and leading African American journalist of the 19th and early 20th centuries. Born into slavery, Thomas Fortune was freed by the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863. He went on to establish the African American League which became today’s National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and helped grow The New York Globe into the nation’s most influential Black paper used to protest discrimination, mob violence, and disenfranchisement.
Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum in Skillman is central New Jersey's first Black history museum telling the story of African Americans from the time of the trans-Atlantic slave trade to present day. Located at the historic Mt. Zion AME Church and True Farmstead, SSAAM shares the unique history and contributions of African Americans in New Jersey's Sourland Mountain region through tours, exhibits, and special events.
DISCOVER NJ
New Jersey history is everywhere, hidden away on quiet back roads, right out in plain sight, in urban areas, country towns and villages, and along the Jersey shore. Historic sites across the state tell intriguing stories of New Jersey’s diverse, inventive, creative, and revolutionary people. History is alive and waiting for you. View Additional Resources