10/16/2026
The Union County Board of County Commissioners invites residents and visitors to explore the people, places and stories that shaped our communities during Four Centuries in a Weekend on Saturday, October 17, and Sunday, October 18, 2026.
This popular annual tradition brings history to life at sites throughout Union County through guided tours, reenactments, exhibits, demonstrations and family activities. In celebration of America’s 250th anniversary, this year’s programs offer special opportunities to discover local connections to the American Revolution and the generations who helped shape our nation.
“Four Centuries in a Weekend gives residents a chance to step inside a historic home, hear a story they may never have known and see their community in a new way,” said Union County Commissioner Chairman Joseph C. Bodek. “As we celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary, we invite families to spend the weekend discovering the history right here in Union County.”
At the Deserted Village of Feltville in Berkeley Heights, visitors can take guided or self-guided tours, ride a hay wagon, press apple c***r, roast marshmallows and meet figures from the Village’s past, including Revolutionary War soldier John Willcocks.
New to the event this year, the UCNJ Union College of Union County NJ (UCNJ) Historic Tree Grove in Cranford connects science and history through trees grown from seeds or cuttings of trees associated with significant people and events in American history. Located near the Sperry Observatory on UCNJ’s Cranford campus, the grove offers a living connection to the past during the nation’s 250th anniversary.
In Westfield, the Atlas Pythagoras Lodge #10 will host a presentation of a 26-foot oil-on-canvas mural depicting the Battle of Spanktown in Rahway. Painted by artist Lloyd Garrison in 1988, the work portrays American militia and Continental forces facing British troops during a 12-hour engagement in 1777, part of the American Revolution’s “Forage War.”
The Drake House Museum in Plainfield will display the rarely shown Tree of Life quilt, reportedly made by the daughter of Declaration of Independence signer John Hart.
The Frazee House in Scotch Plains will host The March to Yorktown on Sunday, featuring portrayals of Generals George Washington and Rochambeau, along with music by the New Jersey Fife & Drums Corps.
At Springfield’s Cannon Ball House, visitors can add their names to a replica Declaration of Independence, which will be preserved as a keepsake of the nation’s Semiquincentennial.
The Union County Performing Arts Center in Rahway will offer a Sunday presentation on American history, a student reading of the Declaration of Independence and guided tours of its historic theater.
Twin Maples in Summit will present a Sunday lecture exploring the important roles women played during the American Revolution.
All participating sites will offer a free Union County History Passport, which visitors can have stamped at each stop. Several locations within the Crossroads of the American Revolution National Heritage Area will also offer a special stamp for the Passport to Your National Parks book.
Visitors can also collect Union County History Trading Cards featuring notable people, places and events. With more than 80 cards to collect, the series offers another way for families to discover local history as they travel from site to site.
Participating Sites
• Berkeley Heights: Deserted Village of Feltville/Glenside Park; Littell-Lord Farmstead.
• Clark: Dr. William Robinson Plantation Museum.
• Cranford: Crane-Phillips House; Union College of Union County NJ (UCNJ) Historic Tree Grove; William Miller Sperry Observatory.
• Elizabeth: Belcher-Ogden Mansion and Bonnell Homestead; Siloam-Hope First Presbyterian Church and Snyder Academy; Boxwood Hall State Historic Site; Elizabeth Public Library.
• Fanwood: Historic Fanwood Train Station Museum.
• Hillside: Woodruff House, Eaton Store Museum and Phil Rizzuto All Sports Exhibit; Evergreen Cemetery.
• Kenilworth: Oswald J. Nitschke House.
• Mountainside: Deacon Andrew Hetfield House.
• New Providence: Salt Box Museum, plus special Saturday archive and graveyard programs.
• Plainfield: Drake House Museum; Plainfield Friends Quaker Meeting House.
• Rahway: African American History and Heritage Learning Center; Merchants and Drovers Tavern Museum; Union County Performing Arts Center.
• Roselle: Abraham Clark House.
• Scotch Plains: Frazee House; Osborn Cannonball House Museum; Shady Rest Country Club.
• Springfield: Cannon Ball House.
• Summit: Carter House; Reeves-Reed Arboretum; Twin Maples.
• Union: Caldwell Parsonage; Donald M. Payne Vauxhall Meeting Center; Connecticut Farms Church; Liberty Hall Museum.
• Westfield: Burial Grounds of the Presbyterian Church; Miller-Cory House Museum; Reeve History and Cultural Resource Center; Battle of Spanktown mural presentation at Atlas Pythagoras Lodge #10.
“Four Centuries is a tradition that residents look forward to every year, and our historic sites continue to give them new reasons to return,” said Union County Commissioner Vice Chair Rebecca L. Williams, liaison to the Cultural and Heritage Programs Advisory Board. “This year’s anniversary celebrations have brought so many opportunities to explore our past. This weekend builds on that excitement, with programs that share familiar stories alongside the contributions of people whose place in history deserves greater attention.”
Hours vary by location, and some sites are open on Saturday or Sunday only. Visitors should review the complete event schedule before planning their route.
This event is funded in part through a grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission, a division of the New Jersey Department of State. The program is organized by the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs.
For more information about Four Centuries in a Weekend, contact the Union County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs at 908-436-2912 or email [email protected].
