Public Programs
The Heritage Commission presents programs, workshops, and roundtables on a variety of history-and museum-related subjects throughout the year.
Please check our Facebook pages for other organizations' events occurring around Morris County and New Jersey.
2026 Morris County History Lecture Series
Morris County Historical Society and Morris County Heritage Commission are pleased to present a Revolutionary Lecture Series to celebrate the rich and vast history that makes Morris County so special. Join us for a series of 12 lectures that will cover topics from our area’s role in the American Revolution to the early engineering marvels that forever changed the landscape to the local figures that made national history.
Speaker Series is at 6pm and held at Morris County Library, 30 E Hanover Ave, Whippany, NJ 07981. (unless noted) Zoom option is available. Space is limited; pre-registration is required at https://morriscountyhistory.org/event
April 15: History of Humans and the Great Swamp
Speaker- Pat Wells
Supporting ten thousand years of human occupation, the Great Swamp’s complex relationship with local inhabitants has evolved both for good and for bad over the millennia. Join Great Swamp historian and advocate Pat Wells to learn more about the area’s evolution from the cradle of human life to a preserved wilderness home to hundreds of species of wildlife, plants, and trees.
May 20: Community on Tap: Morris County Watering Holes
Speaker- Anne Motto
In between pints, local establishments across the area and across the centuries were tapped as community centers, shaping the history of our county in unexpected ways. Knock back some history with Anne Motto, F.M. Kirby Curator of Collections at Morris County Historical Society, to explore famous taverns, inns, hotels, speakeasies, restaurants, and social clubs that served not only as gathering places, but also as military headquarters, way stations for travelers, courtrooms, stops on the Underground Railroad and so much more.
June 24: Before the Constitution: The Federalist Papers ZOOM ONLY
Speaker- Dr. Jude Pfister
A collection of 85 essays authored by several founding fathers, The Federalist Papers were designed to persuade New York voters to ratify the US Constitution. Today, they are well recognized as foundational in the development of American political thought. Join Dr. Jude Pfister, constitutional historian and former Chief of Cultural Resources at Morristown National Historical Park, to learn how the Federalist Papers offer key insight into the intentions and principles of our government.
July 15: Remembering Picatinny Arsenal’s 1926 Explosion
Speaker- Jason Huggan, Chief Environmental Affairs Division, and Jeff Ranu, M.E. Mortars Division of Picatinny Arsenal
Morris County was forever changed on a hot July evening in 1926 when lightning from a thunderstorm struck a storehouse of surplus WWI explosives in what is now considered one of the worst man-made explosions in US history. Join Jason Huggan, Chief Environmental Affairs Division, and Jeff Ranu, M.E. Mortars Division, of Picatinny Arsenal to walk through the lead-up to the explosion, recently discovered footage of the carnage, and the sweeping changes that resulted from the disaster.
August 19: Lake Hopatcong’s Rise as a Great Resort
Speaker- Marty Kane
Once a premier resort destination home to luxury hotels frequented by the wealthy and famous, Lake Hopatcong drew summer visitors from all over the northeast. Join Marty Kane, president of the Lake Hopatcong Historical Museum, to look back at the lasting legacy of the lake’s resort past through the historic photographs and archives that survive today.
September 16: A Grave Discussion, Indeed: Exploring Morris County’s Cemeteries
Speaker- Jan Williams
From incredibly old to supremely quirky, Morris County is home to a surprising array of cemeteries that document the residents, industry, and growth over the centuries. Join Jan Williams, Cultural and Historic Resources Specialist with the Morris County Office of Planning and Preservation as she walks us through some of Morris County’s most unique final resting places that have richly added to the area’s history.
October 21: Iron Mining & Iron Making in New Jersey Highlands
Speaker- Joe Macasek
Morris County was once home to a prolific iron industry that included furnaces, railways, and over 500 mines. Bolstered by the Morris Canal, it spanned hundreds of years and left an undeniable impact on New Jersey and the Northeast. Towns like Dover and Rockaway grew from small villages to industrial towns, and it is estimated that more than 55 million tons of ore were extracted from mines in Morris County. Join Joe Macasek, president of the Canal Society of NJ, to learn more about how the iron industry forever changed the local landscape as well as the lives of residents past and present.
November 18: Thomas Nast’s Historical Icons
Speaker- Ryan Hyman
From the Democratic Donkey and Republican Elephant to Santa Claus, some of the most familiar images we have today were influenced and popularized by 19th-century political cartoonist and Morristown resident, Thomas Nast. Join Ryan Hyman, F.M. Kirby Curator of Collections at Macculloch Hall Historical Museum, for a brief history of Macculloch Hall, today home to the largest collection of original works by Nast, and explore some of Nast’s most famous cartoons, as well as a few interesting but lesser-known images.
December 16: Morristown’s First Winter Encampment, 1777
Speaker- Pat Sanftner
Defined by smallpox inoculations, construction of Fort Nonsense, and General Washington’s stay at Arnold Tavern, the winter encampment of 1777 was a time of “rest and recovery” for the Continental Army directly following their victories at Trenton and Princeton. Join Pat Sanftner, America 250 State Chair for the NJ Society Daughters of the American Revolution, as she lends insight into the legacy of the lesser known of Washington’s two encampments at Morristown.