The Historical Society’s collections are the physical witnesses to Burlington County and the region’s rich past. They are the storytellers. They offer us a way to touch and explore our shared past. Highlights from the collection include a beautiful marble mantle that once graced Joseph Bonaparte’s estate in Bordentown, a chair crafted by William Penn’s son John, a rickshaw from the Birch carriage company, 19th-century photographs of veterans of the American Revolution, the beautiful and expansive Lippincott family tree, a touching collection of Civil War letters written by a young soldier to his sister, tall case clocks crafted here in the 18th-century, and the door handle of the print shop that employed a young Benjamin Franklin.
The Burlington County Historical Society collections include a wide variety of diverse materials.
Museum collections include:
- Decorative Arts (Quilts, samplers, decoys and paintings)
- Furniture
- Tools
- Household Artifacts (The Aline Wolcott Collection)
- Architectural artifacts
- Transportation artifacts (Birch Rickshaw)
- Costumes
- Toys and recreational artifacts
- Military artifacts
- And much, much more!
Archive and library collections include:
- Prints and Photos
- Maps
- Manuscripts (Letters, business records, manumission papers)
- Deeds
- Genealogical sources (Family albums, marriage certificates, family files)
- Business Records
- Rare books
- And much, much more!
The collections are displayed in exhibits throughout the historical society campus, used by researchers exploring their local and family history and preserved for future generations to enjoy.