Burlington County Commissioners Approve Funding for Local History Groups, Projects

MOUNT HOLLY – Burlington County continues to provide financial support to assist groups preserving and promoting the county’s rich history and historic sites.

The Burlington County Commissioners approved the distribution of $58,711 to nine local organizations to assist with their operations and advance their historic preservation projects.

The County plans to open a second round of local history grants later this year.

“Bulington County is home to history spanning hundreds of years from the first indigenous peoples and early Colonials through the Industrial Revolution and fight for Civil Rights,” said Commissioner Director Felicia Hopson. “Preserving this history is critically important and these grants will support programs and projects that not only preserve local history but also help residents and visitors understand its importance.”

The grants are awarded as part of the New Jersey Historical Commission’s County History Partnership Program to assist existing and emerging local history organizations and other nonprofits that undertake history projects.

Burlington County’s nine grant recipients were recommended by a peer panel. The awards will be used for a variety of purposes, including general operations, development of museum exhibits and support for specific historic projects.

The approved first round 2024 grant recipients and projects are:

Armed Forces Heritage Museum, Burlington City: $10,000 to produce a video series “Right to Fight” chronicling the struggle of Black men and women to gain equal opportunity to serve in the military. The short videos will be made available on social media.

Chesterfield Historical Society, Chesterfield: $5,000 to support a project to boost accessibility to the society’s museum, including an exterior interpretive panel and a professionally narrated video of exhibits.

Delanco Historical Society, Delanco: $5,629 to support the society’s interpretive sign project and the purchase of collections management materials and hiring an intern for historic deed research and data input.

Edgewater Park Township, Edgewater Park: $10,000 to support the Township’s 100^th Anniversary Celebration and related projects, including a history mural project, 100 Objects from Edgewater Park History project, historical photograph display, time capsule and QR Code Marker project detailing five important historic locations in town.

Evesham Township Historical Society, Evesham: $7,241 to support updating the society’s website and the ongoing cataloguing materials acquired from the Edna Worth Collection.

Mount Holly Historical Society, Mount Holly: $1,920 to support public programming and at the Shinn-Curtis Log Cabin, including Colonial-themed crafting demonstrations.

Riverside Historical Society, Riverside: $6,500 to help fund the restoration of the grandfather clock from the former Zurbrugg Memorial Hospital and to support a local history project with Riverside Schools.

Tabernacle Historical Society, Tabernacle: $7,421 to support conversion of local historical newspapers into digital formats and research biographies of Revolutionary War and Civil War veterans buried in Tabernacle Cemetery for a future exhibit.

Timbuctoo Historical Society, Westampton: $5,000 to support web hosting and maintenance, brochure and map printing, and other activities, including outdoor educational programs adjacent to Timbuctoo Cemetery.

The County plans to make additional funding available to more organizations through a second round of local history grants later this year. Organizations that received funding through the first round of grants will not be eligible to apply.

“These grants aid local organizations actively working to preserve and share Burlington County’s rich history,” said Commissioner Allison Eckel, the liaison to the Department of Resource Conservation. “That alone makes the investment worthwhile, but we know that historic sites and museums also help attract visitors and produce economic benefits for our county and communities. It’s a win for everyone, so we want to encourage more groups to apply.”