Predictions of a wet and windy Saturday has pushed the township’s first walking tour of Middletown Village to Saturday, June 10th. The May 13th tour is canceled due to the expected inclement weather.
Tourists should meet at 10 am on Saturday, June 10th at the Middletown Arts Center located at 36 Church Street. Remember to wear comfortable shoes. A colonial-garbed guide will take walkers on a 45-minute tour along Kings Highway located in the heart of the Middletown Village Historic District. The village is among the oldest permanent English settlements in New Jersey with the first land being purchased by settlers in 1664 from Popomora, an Indian chief. The historic district contains 99 properties, 12 of which have origins in the early 18th century. It’s also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The district includes Marlpit Hall which has sections that date back 1686; Old First Church, a Baptist congregation founded in 1688; the Hendrickson Cemetery where the oldest stone dates back to 1798; and a circa 1825 blacksmith shop that’s considered one of the oldest and best surviving shops in Monmouth County.
The Middletown Village Historic District Tour will be available on the second Saturday of each month through September. All tours meet at the Middletown Arts Center at 10:00 am. Tourists are also encouraged to stop by the Middletown Farmers and Makers Market when it opens next month. The market will be held at Middletown Arts Center on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month from June through September.
The Middletown Village Heritage Tour is funded in part by the Discover NJ History, License Plate Fund Heritage Tourism Grant. For more information about the tour, send an email to townclerk@middletownnj.org or call the Township Clerk’s Office at 732-615-2015.