Cornelius Low House

Along with visiting the New Jersey Vietnam War Memorial and Museum, my wish list included visiting the Cornelius Low House near Rutgers University, specifically to see their exhibit on mid-century life in New Jersey.

The back story is not long after cleaning out Honey Bunny and Pop-Pop's house I saw a call on H-Net (a list serv dedicated to all things historic in New Jersey) for items relating to mid-century life. The Cornelius Low House was planning an 18-month exhibit and wanted items to display. My heart fell into my stomach. I had a house-full of items they could have had.

Still I made a note I wanted to see the exhibit after it opened. 

Time flies. Unless something is put on the calendar, it often does not happen. Something like this that does not have a real date is very easy to not have happen.

The museum is free. The exhibit was well-done with lots of eye catching displays explaining the post-WWII era and how life changed for average people. 

It felt like a time capsule. I saw dishes I used growing up, and even a Pillsbury cookbook (good chance I recycled a similar one a couple of years ago).

When I could distance myself emotionally from cleaning out their house, I enjoyed the exhibit. When I couldn't I felt I needed out of there immediately. That's no fault to the museum, only how emotions can pop up when you don't expect them to.

The first floor had a complete, and rather pristine, living room set. The description said it was from the donor's parents' house and left untouched since (if my memory is right) the 1970s. At least Don's parents upgraded their living room set in 50 years and used the place. The living room was a new concept in the 1950s.

The upstairs was much sparser. There was a room talking about the popularity of drive-ins. More fully decorated 1950s rooms would have added to the exhibit. I talked to the person at the museum. She said they had lots of donations to choose from. Next up, though, they are returning to the Colonial Era of Cornelius Low. 

The exhibit runs through June 28, 2020. There is a little bit of parking (about 4 spaces), likely enough for their needs.

Our washing machine is old, but not THIS old.
Fortunately Honey Bunny's was not this old,
either.

We had these dishes growing up, as did Don's family.

Down a hill and across the street is a larger parking lot for the East Jersey Old Town Village, which is also free. That is a cute historic village that doesn't seem to break any new ground. We went a five years ago during an event, which was fun, but again nothing new.