Page 26 - 2023 Southern NJ Vacationer

SAY “MUSEUM” TO THE KIDS – and sometimes to the hubby – and eyes roll, sighs are loud, and the complaints begin. They picture a day of don’t touch, looking at paintings from a distance and being bored, totally disinterested and downright cranky.
But not all museums have four walls, artifacts displayed in glass cases, and velvet ropes to restrict entry. Some museums have fighter planes the kids can sit in or even set sail aboard a Tall Ship. We bet those choices will get their attention and they’ll be out the door before you say, “Let’s go.”
Visit Historic Cold Spring Village and you will soon find yourself back in the 1800s. The early American open-air history museum is the largest in New Jersey. Learn about the way of life in the 1800s – basket weaving, pottery, tin smithing, woodworking blacksmithing and more. 720 Route 9, Lower Township; 609-898-2300; www.hcsv.org
Millville Army Airfield Museum
commemorates the site of America’s First Defense Airport in the United States during World War II. No other airport in the country boasts as many original WWII buildings as Millville. 1 Leddon St., Millville Airport, Millville; 856-327-2347; www.p47millville.org
Atlantic County Veterans Museum is in the historic Daniel Estell House that dates to 1832. Home to Rebecca Estell Bourgeois
Winston, the first mayor of Estell Manor and the first female mayor in New Jersey, the house was built by her grandfather and later remodeled in the 1920s in the Colonial Revival style. Military uniforms, medals, artifacts, and memorabilia from the Revolutionary War through present-day conflicts are on display. 189 Route 50 S., Mays Landing; 609-909-7305; www.aclink.org/vetsmuseum
Tour the historic oyster shipping sheds at the Delaware Bay Museum and Folklife Center – better yet climb aboard the A. J. Meerwald, a restored schooner that once dredged oysters in the bay. The 115-foot,
1928 Delaware Bay Schooner teaches visitors about the rich maritime history and fragile ecosystem of the estuary. 856-785-2060; www.bayshorecenter.org
The Cape May County Historical Museum in the John Holmes House, one of the oldest structures in the county, c. 1755, displays furnishings, costumes, tools as well as decorative and practical objects from the 17th to 20th centuries. 540 Route 9, Cape May Court House; 609-465-3535; www.cmcmuseum.org
Cape May is practically one big museum filled with history at every turn. Visit the Emlen Physick Estate on the grounds of Cape May MAC (Museums+Arts+Culture) to see how a wealthy Victorian household lived and entertained in their luxurious mansion. 609-884-5404; www.capemaymac.org
Naval Air Station Wildwood was commissioned as a training facility for dive bomber squadrons in 1943. A step through the doors of Hangar #1 is a step back in time.
The Museum’s aircraft and interactive exhibits are housed entirely inside the 92,000 square foot Hangar #1, listed on the State & National Register of Historic Places, along with aircraft ranging from the early WWII-era Boeing Stearman bi-plane and Hellcat carrier-based fighter to modern jets including the F-14 Tomcat and F-16 Fighting Falcon. Each type of aircraft in the museum’s collection has a unique purpose and story.
NAS Wildwood Aviation Museum is open daily from April to November with limited hours December to March. 500 Forrestal Road, Cape May County Airport; 609-886-8787; www.usnasw.org G
Historic Cold Spring Village
Millville Army Airfield Museum
MUSEUMS
The past is the future
24 SOUTHERN NEW JERSEY VACATIONER