WHODP Events

We welcome Paul Soltis as the new Interpretive Specialist, New Jersey State Park Service, for the Wallace House & Old Dutch Parsonage state historic sites. Paul is a graduate of William & Mary College where he studied English literature and American history, right in Colonial Williamsburg's backyard. In addition, Paul studied in Bath, England and worked in the National Assembly for Wales. He comes to the Wallace House and Old Dutch Parsonage having served as an historic educator at Rockingham, George Washington's other Somerset County headquarters.

We invite you to stop by and welcome Paul to Somerville and Somerset County on Sunday, April 7th or to visit the historic sites Wednesday - Saturday, 10 am - noon, 1 pm - 4pm and Sunday 1 pm - 4 pm.

Wallace House & Old Dutch Parsonage
Open House
Sunday, April 7, 2019
1:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Michelle Fitzgerald, noted historian and specialist in southern furniture currently at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, will discuss Chippendale-style furniture of colonial Annapolis.

Learn about the modes and manners of the 18th century, try on costumes based on clothes worn in the 1770's, and make your own hat to bring home. Program is for families with children ages 8-12.

Second Story Somerville Walking Tour will feature the beautiful architecture above Somerville's Historic Main Street storefronts, along with stories of the people and businesses that made Downtown Somerville THE place to be.

Sunday, February 25, 2018
2:00 p.m.
Corner of Division and W. Main Streets, Somerville, NJ
Free

Join Heritage Trail Association on their annual tour of the Revolutionary War Headquarters of George Washington and his generals during the Middlebrook Catonment of 1778-79.

Saturday, January 20, 2018 at 7:30 pm
Usher the new year in and celebrate like it’s 1778!

Join balladeer Linda Russell as she explores the tunes and traditions of the 18th century. Playing the hammered and mountain dulcimers, penny whistle and guitar, Linda sings and plays the songs, dance tunes and drinking songs of the past, interspersed with poems, recipes and stories of the season.

Saturday, October 14 & Sunday October 15, 2017
Sunday, October 15, 2017, Noon - 4 pm

Join balladeer Linda Russell as she sings songs of harvest-time. Playing the hammered and mountain dulcimers, penny whistle and guitar, Linda sings and plays ballads, love songs, dance tunes, and working songs written in early America and brought over from the Old World.

Saturday, September 30, 2017
1:30 pm
Old Dutch Parsonage
71 Somerset Street
Somerville, NJ 08876

Join balladeer Linda Russell as she performs music celebrating nature’s harmonies. Playing the hammered and mountain dulcimers, penny whistle and guitar, Linda sings and plays ballads, love songs, dance tunes, and working songs written in early America and brought over from the Old World.

Songs of Nature

featuring

Linda Russell

18th century balladeer & musician
Sunday, July 23, 2017

1:30 pm

Celebrate the songs of the American colonies! When colonists first set foot in the New World, they found a rich, raw landscape that appeared untamed. Colonists saw nature as beautiful and yet a source of danger, a savage wilderness. Join balladeer Linda Russell as she performs music celebrating nature’s harmonies with poetic depictions of birds and flowers, but also human struggles with nature’s perils. Playing the hammered and mountain dulcimers, penny whistle and guitar, Linda sings and plays ballads, love songs, dance tunes, and working songs written in early America and brought over from the Old World. Old Dutch Parsonage

$10 per person suggested donation

Advance registration is required for this program as seating is limited. Call 908-725-1015 or email whouse3@verizon.net to register.

The Association supports events at the sites, and through its contacts with other local historic groups also supports multi-site events and programs that contribute to the understanding of the sites in the larger context of the history of their period.

Land, Faith & Slaves: Shared Heritage of the Hardenbergh family,
Rutgers University, and the Dutch Reformed Church

Saturday, June 17, 2017
2:30 pm
Old Dutch Parsonage

Join us for a fascinating discussion on the connections between the Rev. Hardenbergh (principal founder of Rutgers University) family and great African American abolitionist leader Sojourner Truth, at one time their slave, plus stories of other early slave-holding leaders of Rutgers College.

Speakers include:
John Coakley, Feakes Professor of Church History, Emeritus, at New Brunswick Theological Seminary Thomas J Frusciano, Rutgers Library faculty and Vice President of the Rutgers Living History Society Helene Van Rossum, Public Services and Outreach Archivist at Rutgers Libraries Special Collections

There is a suggested five dollar donation to attend this program. Advance registration is advised. Call 908-725-1015 or email whouse3@verizon.net to register. Please register early, as seating is limited.

Twelfth Night celebration with balladeer Linda Russell

Historian Mark Nonesteid's presentation on "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about Tombstones and Cemeteries (But were Afraid to Ask)" was fascinating to all in attendance. His book can be purchased at: http://rutgersuniversitypress.org/search-list?contributor=mark-nonestied

"Revolutionary Spirit" Night at the Somerset Patriots Ballpark

On Flag Day, June 14, 2016, the Wallace House and Old Dutch Parsonage Association participated in "Revolutionary Spirit" Night at the Somerset Patriots Ballpark in Bridgewater, New Jersey. This Revolutionary War-themed extravaganza created by Crossroads of the American Revolution and the minor league baseball team was an excellent opportunity to raise awareness of the sites...and pose for pictures with George Washington!

The Wallace House and Old Dutch Parsonage Association

Songs of Nature

Linda Russell