- Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday 10:00am-4:00pm
- First and third Saturday each month 12:00pm-4:00pm
- Second and fourth Sunday each month 12:00pm-4:00pm
- Open for special events and by appointment
- Closed for holidays and on Tuesday in July-August
- Staffing is limited so call in advance for unplanned closures
- Special events include cemetery tours every October, Union County's annual "4 Centuries in a Weekend" program featuring historic foodways demonstrations, Tavern Nights with live music each year in September, December, and March, a literary reading event in February, and various member-only events and fundraisers
- Check the website for additional special events
- Call in advance for group tours of the museum and cemetery
- ADA accessible ground floor and restroom
- video walk through of upper floors with advance notice
- parking
- bus parking available
- Free
Merchants and Drovers Tavern Museum
1632 St. Georges Avenue, Rahway, NJ 07065
None
The Merchants and Drovers Tavern was built in 1795 and currently operates as a house museum. The building served as a hotel and tavern from the 1790s to the 1920s, and at various times saw use as a stagecoach stop, worker housing, and a purveyor of illegal liquor during Prohibition. It served as a Girl Scouts headquarters from 1933-1969. The museum currently features an exhibit on the Early American tavern/stagecoach period.
The site is also located adjacent to the Rahway Cemetery, which dates to the early eighteenth century and holds a number of notable interments, including a signer of the Declaration of Independence, veterans of the Continental Army, Civil War veterans, an enslaved woman, and other individuals of local and national significance.
WHAT TO SEE AND DO
- Learn about the storied history of the building and its inhabitants
- Attend a special program or event throughout the year
- Learn about the early American tavern and stagecoach period by visiting the second-floor exhibit
Journey through Jersey strives to have the most up-to-date information, but always check with the site itself before planning a visit.
