Upcoming Events
An Award-Winning Program for Excellence in History & Education Somerset County Cultural & Heritage Commission.
The Friends of Abraham Staats House and South Bound Brook Historic Preservation Advisory Commission are delighted to bring back the live “Tory Jack Day” program at the Abraham Staats House.
This annual event, held each February in honor of Black History Month, celebrates the contribution and sacrifices of Afro-Americans in the foundation of our nation. The featured presenter is Mr. Joseph Becton, retired National Park Service Interpretive Park Ranger. Mr. Becton has set a standard of excellence in connecting Americans to historic sites and national parks through his inspiring narrative and music.
This year the program, “USCT US Colored Troops & Juneteenth,” offers Joe’s unique presentation on the United States Colored Troops ~ Civil War to Reconstruction.
Seating limited; house opens 10:30AM, program begins at 11AM. After, tour the historic Abraham Staats House until 1:30PM. Light refreshments. This year’s program will also offer the option to view the program remotely via Zoom.
Admission is $15; Children 12 & under are free. ***To guarantee seating, advance reservations are encouraged.*** To Register for in-person or Zoom attendance, click on “Tickets.”
Please allow two-week notice for accessibility and assistive services requests.
Click here for the Tory Jack flyer.
Special video: “The Old Kitchen at the Abraham Staats House: A Window into Slavery in New Jersey,” gives a glimpse into the reality of slavery in New Jersey and the lives of the enslaved people who were part of the living history of the Staats’ homestead during the 18th and 19th century. Click here to view this video.
New this year: Option for REMOTE ATTENDANCE (via Zoom) for Tory Jack Day 2022
An Award-Winning Program for Excellence in History & Education Somerset County Cultural & Heritage Commission.
The Friends of Abraham Staats House and South Bound Brook Historic Preservation Advisory Commission are delighted to bring back the live “Tory Jack Day” program at the Abraham Staats House.
This annual event, held each February in honor of Black History Month, celebrates the contribution and sacrifices of Afro-Americans in the foundation of our nation. The featured presenter is Mr. Joseph Becton, retired National Park Service Interpretive Park Ranger. Mr. Becton has set a standard of excellence in connecting Americans to historic sites and national parks through his inspiring narrative and music.
This year the program, “USCT US Colored Troops & Juneteenth,” offers Joe’s unique presentation on the United States Colored Troops ~ Civil War to Reconstruction.
For Zoom attendees: Please see more detailed, technical information below.* We will begin admission to the Zoom “wait room” at 10:30AM, program begins at 11AM. The lecture portion of the program will be “one-way” (attendees muted, can view/listen). During the lecture, you can type any question that you have in Zoom Chat to the host. Your question will be relayed to Mr. Becton during the Q&A period. Following the Q&A, the Zoom program will end.
Admission is $15; Children 12 & under are free. To Register for in-person or Zoom attendance, click on “Tickets.”
Click here for the Tory Jack flyer.
Special video: “The Old Kitchen at the Abraham Staats House: A Window into Slavery in New Jersey,” gives a glimpse into the reality of slavery in New Jersey and the lives of the enslaved people who were part of the living history of the Staats’ homestead during the 18th and 19th century. Click here to view this video.
*ZOOM NOTES: To participate via Zoom, you will need either a desktop or laptop computer, tablet, mobile phone, or another appropriate device with webcam and microphone set-up and internet connectivity.
As an attendee on Zoom, (like in an in-person meeting) you will at times be visible to others attending the Zoom, something to consider in the setting you will viewed in. General guidelines for Zoom participants can be found on the zoom.us website.
You can pretest your equipment and connection by accessing the test facility on the Zoom website (www.zoom.us/test ). (The Friends of Abraham Staats House do not provide technical support for joining via Zoom.)
Confirmation and Zoom meeting link/instructions will be provided to those who register thru EventBrite, in an email prior to the event. If you do not receive that information, please contact us at info@staatshouse.org by 5PM Friday, Feb. 11 so that we may respond.
IF you purchase multiple tickets to attend via Zoom, we will need to identify your ticketholders as a safeguard, before admitting them to the program. Please provide your guests with the Zoom meeting link and ID that you will receive in email, and ask them to use the name you used at the ticket purchase with the word “Guest” as their identification if they are joining the Zoom meeting separately from you.
The Abraham Staats House is one of the finest surviving buildings from the Dutch Settlement of the Raritan Valley in the 18th century. It began life as a two-room structure housing the first owners, the Staats family, who remained at the homestead for nearly two centuries. Over the centuries the house has been expanded several times and now includes a fine late, Federal/Greek Revival two-story addition.
ADMISSION: FREE
The two-day event features 18th-century street battles, military drills and camp life, portrayed by living history reenactors as American and British troops, camp followers, sutlers (merchants selling goods) and others of that period.
Whether you are looking for a family-fun experience, a history buff, a visitor to the area or searching for a new, interesting event to attend, each year’s living history weekend at the Battle of Bound Brook is unique, fun and exciting. Learn about and experience this important period in New Jersey and American history.
Historic House Tours & Lecture by Robert Mayers with the purchase of the Weekend Pass
Adults: $5; 12 year and under: free
Grounds and Street Battles: FREE
For more information about the event, please go to our Battle of Bound Brook page: www.staatshouse.org/events/battle-of-bound-brook/
The two-day event features 18th-century street battles, military drills and camp life, portrayed by living history reenactors as American and British troops, camp followers, sutlers (merchants selling goods) and others of that period.
Whether you are looking for a family-fun experience, a history buff, a visitor to the area or searching for a new, interesting event to attend, each year’s living history weekend at the Battle of Bound Brook is unique, fun and exciting. Learn about and experience this important period in New Jersey and American history.
Historic House Tours & Lecture by Robert Mayers with the purchase of the Weekend Pass
Adults: $5; 12 year and under: free
Grounds and Street Battles: FREE
For more information about the event, please go to our Battle of Bound Brook page: www.staatshouse.org/events/battle-of-bound-brook/
View our complete list of upcoming Events.