Museum of Early Trades & Crafts
through artifacts, archives, and displays in our latest exhibit in the Main Gallery.
Born into one of the wealthiest families in the US, Mrs. Dodge married into yet another influential industrialist family and in 1916 she and husband Marcellus Hartley Dodge purchased the estate of the late Daniel Willis James. It was here, in Madison, NJ, where she secured her place in history using her great personal fortune to support her many philanthropic endeavors.
Mrs. Dodge’s legacy since her death in 1973 include the many institutions she endowed including: St. Hubert’s Giralda, which she established on 16 acres of her estate; the Hartley Dodge Foundation which monitors the art collection as well as the architectural and historic integrity of the Hartley Dodge Memorial; and the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, which, over almost 50 years has distributed more than $500 million in grants to nonprofits in New Jersey and beyond.
Be sure to visit the poster exhibit in the windows of the Education Annex depicting historical photos of Mrs. Dodge s legacy to Madison and its residents.
This exhibit was co-curated by Claudette Stecher Lopez, METC’s Curator of Collections and Exhibits and Mallory Mortillaro, Curator for the Hartley Dodge Foundation.
FromtheDirector
Sharing the past, imagining the future
Have we told you lately how much your support means to METC? Well, it means everything to us. We are so fortunate to have a generous and invested community of donors, grantors, members and sponsors that enable our staff to focus on innovation, education and creativity. It is not always easy to consistently deliver quality educational programs, create substantive exhibits and keep our museum adequately staffed. But as a small history museum with a limited budget, we do our best to make the biggest impact we can. Just last month, a New York Times article addressed many of the challenges facing small museums, especially as technology and new educational paradigms seem to change at an alarmingly frequent rate. But with necessity being the mother of invention, smaller organizations are frequently better at recognizing that they truly can’t do it alone. It takes a profusion of collaborators from both within and outside a small institution to keep it alive and thriving.
National statistics confirm that visitor habits are changing, and foundation and donor support has decreased since the immediate post-pandemic bump. And while there is most definitely a place for the smaller, more intimate museum in our culture, each institution needs to work hard to find its own unique place and its space in the larger environment. Success is often found in partnerships, especially since it is impossible to do everything, reach everyone, and know all the needs of the communities we serve; so, putting time and resources into creating connections is where we find renewed energy and opportunities.
That is what we do best at METC, and over the last ten years, we have forged valuable partnerships which have enabled us to take some very big risks at METC. Leveraging the generous 2015 Breuhne Trust bequest with other funders and donors led to many exciting opportunities and initiatives, including the re-design of the Main level exhibit space, adding an Education Annex to the museum’s campus and of course, creating a new state-of-the-art viewable storage facility to house the museum’s collection of over 8000 artifacts and archival material. And throughout each of these projects, our long-term goal was to increase our educational impact in the New Jersey cultural community, engaging thousands of young people from schools across the state every year.
I have no doubt many of us first experienced museums as children, traveling on school buses for an exciting field trip that hopefully left a positive impression. Today, visitors can access museums in so many different ways through our smartphones, websites, on-line classes or lectures. But whatever form that visit takes, museums still inspire, teach new things and connect everyone to the shared culture and art that speaks to our humanity.
As part of our METC community, we hope you will continue to be inspired by our programs and exhibits and special events. You are the reason our small museum has thrived and grown, despite all the challenges we have encountered and the societal changes we have experienced. And whether you are connected to us a member, donor, foundation, government agency or occasional visitor, you are a valuable and trusted partner.
With sincere thanks,
Deborah Farrar Starker, METC Executive Director
SUMMER CALENDAR OF EVENTS
For more information or to register please visit www.metc.org/events
Downtown Concert Series
We have kicked off the summer of ’24 with our Downtown Concert Series. The weather has been hot, and the music has been hotter. Bring your own chair or blanket to sit and listen to these FREE, fabulous performances on METC’s lawn from 6-8pm. The Museum of Early Trades & Crafts free outdoor Downtown Concert Series is sponsored by the Madison Downtown Development Commission (DDC).
July 19 – Kings Road Band
Named after the historic New Jersey toll road between Madison and Chatham, Kings Road Band plays an appealing blend of pop and rock with harmony vocals and melodic instrumentation.
August 2 The C3 Soul Revue
This eclectic group of musicians from different musical avenues share a love of music and entertaining the masses.
July 13: Family Fun Day
August 16– South Street Live
The band has a wide repertoire of songs ranging from the 70's to today's contemporary hits that guarantees music that will get you dancing and singing along.
August 30 – What’s What
Always a spirited performance, What‘s What brings solid musicianship and fun vibes to up-tempo rock music from the 70’s and 80’s.
Our annual day of free, family fun is back on July 13 and this year, it’s a beach party! Come enjoy interactive activities and crafts for the whole family, including a bounce house and water games! Food trucks include: Bucky’s Pizza, Rose City Wurst, and Kona Ice. The day also features music & entertainment from Andy Wang. Family Fun Day is sponsored in part by Morris Animal Inn.
Workspace Wednesday
Join us for 2 new programs in the Education Annex this summer! Workspace Wednesday is collaborative environment to create, build, explore, and more! There are 2 sessions available: Caregiver and Child (ages 6 and under) and Drop Off (for ages 7-12). Dates are July 31, August 7, August 21, and August 28. See Page 5 for more information.
Viewable Storage Update: The End is in Sight!
After nearly five years of planning and construction, our new Viewable Storage Facility is almost complete. This new area in the museum is a state-of-the-art facility to house our collection of over 8,000 artifacts and archival materials, expanding the capacity to preserve the collection and strengthen conservation efforts. It also provides a renewed focus on collections management, which harnesses all the museum’s resources and knowledge, paving the way for digitization and additional public accessibility of artifacts.
This $1.4 million project also provides visual access for the public to observe the conservation and care of our collection through a large viewing area, making this space another opportunity for education.
We gratefully acknowledge the many partners who were instrumental in funding this project for METC, including the National Endowment for the Humanities, the New Jersey Historic Trust, the New Jersey Historical Commission, the Fred W. Breuhne Trust, Hyde & Watson Foundation, New Jersey Council for the Humanities, Madison Open Space, Recreation & Historic Preservation, the Charles F. Read Foundation, and the Rotary Club of Madison.
Announcing our new Curator of Collections & Exhibits
We are extremely pleased to highlight Claudette Stecher Lopez in this edition of our Claudette joined the METC staff in January 2022 as our Associate Curator and in March of 2024 was made Curator of Collections & Exhibits. Claudette has extensive experience working with heritage sites, historical societies, archives, and museums for almost twenty She also serves on the board of two historical societies, one as a co-founder. She graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in History and has a master’s in museum studies from Johns Hopkins.
A New Jersey native, Claudette has travelled all over the world and when she finds time from her busy days at METC, she enjoys reading, tennis, swimming, gardening, studying languages, visiting historic sites and museums, walking dogs, and The quintessential museum person, Claudette says that her love of history came from her mother who sold antiques at the Grange in Myersville, where I would pester her endlessly about all the old
Welcome our Curatorial Volunteers
This summer, Elisabeth, Jessica, and Josh are hard at work unwrapping and tagging
Updates from our Education Annex
Camp METC is Coming August 12-16
We are ready for a SUPER summer week during Camp METC’s Creator and Heroes! During this week, campers will dive into our Web of Community to discover how inventors, artists, and tradespeople work together to benefit us all. Learn more about these community superheroes and have fun discovering your own superpowers. Campers will also engage in drawing and creating comic book art with guest artists from Dewey’s Comic City! Water play, scavenger hunts, museum exploration, and a special Art Show for campers and family members round out this creative and fun camp week. There are still a few spots left, so visit metc.org/camp to register!
Introducing Workspace Wednesday
Workspace Wednesday is our NEW collaborative summer space to experiment, create, learn and grow. With 2 sessions on select Wednesdays, we have specific activities tailored for each age group. Our Caregiver and Child program is for children ages 6 and under and runs from 10-11:30AM. Children will build with Legos, paint, make jewelry, and more. Our Drop Off Program is for children ages 7-12 and runs from 2-4PM. Children will use our 3D printer, experiment with coding robots, create art, and more.
Workspace Wednesday runs July 31, August 7, August 21, and August 28.
Long summer days require long giraffe necks!
on Tuesday, July 30 from 3-4:15PM for children ages 7-12. Join us to create and decorate giraffe puppets.
2023-2024 School Year
• We saw almost 3000 students for school programs (both virtual and in-person)
• Most popular school programs are “A Child's Life in Early America” and “Simple Machines”
• Our most popular adult programs are “Decoding the Past” and “Narrative Threads”
• Makerspace was a huge success so we are piloting “Workspace Wednesdays” this summer for kids to enjoy our Makerspace activities
Our Educators are excited for Camp METC in August and hope you join them!
Thank You for Your Support*
New & Renewing Members and Donors to our Annual Appeal*
Joseph Balwierczak
Mr. Victor Baran & Ms. Dawn Ortell
Bernardsville Public Library
The Boles Family
Larry & Nancy Bruce
Gregory Clare
Francisco Colon
Barbara Day
Patricia Dufort
James & Janet Foster
Friends of the Clark Library
Jeffery Gertler & JoJo Starbuck
Jessie Gertz
Stephen Gray & Kathleen M. Ulrich
Stephanie A Helmer
Madison Public Library
Jennifer & Michael Markovitz
Irene Maroney
Terence McKenna
Donna McNamara
Millburn Free Public Library
Debora Montgomery
Benjamin and Edit Ostrom
Tricia Pardave
Dominique Peck-Meyer
Saddle Brook Free Public Library
Scott Stebbins
George Stevenson
Summit Free Public Library
Margie Ticknor
