Meet Me at the Farmstead

Families looking to celebrate our nation’s history this Fourth of July weekend may enjoy a visit to the Historical Society of Princeton's Updike Farmstead at 354 Quaker Road in Princeton.

On Saturday, the historical site will host a “Meet Me at the Farmstead” event from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Included in the festivities will be live entertainment by local music groups, old-time summer music and Fourth of July and bug crafts for children.Pam Newitt will run a “Bug Safari” from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. that will include an insect hunt for kids.

Paintings by artist Brett Weaver will be on display in the farmhouse.  In the exhibit are oil paintings by Weaver of the farmstead and the Delaware and Raritan Canal.

During the Bug Safari, children will learn more about insects and their importance, and will be given nets and jars to trap insects. (The insects will be set free later in the event.) There will also be several insects on hand for children to view.

During another scavenger hunt, children will be challenged to search for various plants, flowers, trees and bugs.

Families and visitors are encouraged to picnic on the bucolic site’s extensive grounds at Saturday’s event, said Eileen Morales, curator of collections at The Historical Society of Princeton, which owns Princeton Township’s Updike Farmstead and is hosting Saturday’s event. There are several picnic tables on the property. “It just a nice place to be on a summer Saturday,” Morales said.

Purchased by the Historical Society of Princeton in 2004, the Updike Homestead includes an early 19th-century farmhouse, a barn, chicken coops, a windmill and other outbuildings on 6 acres of land in Princeton Township’s Battlefield Preservation District. The homestead is in both State and Federal Historical Districts. The site was first established by Benjamin Clarke II in the late 17th century. The farm was on the route continental troops used in 1777 as they prepared to fight and defeat British soldiers at Princeton Battlefield during the Revolutionary War.

Admission to the event is $5 per person ages 3 and up, $8 for two people, $10 for three people and $15 for four people. Admission is free for Historical Society of Princeton members.

The next “Meet Me at the Farmstead” event will be on Wednesday, July 20, from 10 to 4 p.m. On that date, a new exhibition, entitled, “Caring Kids in the Community,” will go on view in the farmhouse and will feature photos, video and artwork depicting local student volunteers.