Museum of Early Trades and Crafts Housed in a 1900
Richardsonian-Romanesque Revival James Library building listed
on the National Register of Historic places, the Museum of Early
Trades & Crafts explores 18th- and 19th-century American
history, with a focus on New Jersey. Drawing on its collection
of over 8,000 hand tools and their products, METC uses material
culture to interpret the lives and technologies of people who
lived and worked before the rise of large-scale
industrialization in this country. The Museum offers visitors of
all ages a broad range of changing exhibits, and related
programs that address many facets of early American history,
craftsmanship, and the diversity of trades performed by men and
women. It all started with Madison residents, Edgar and Agnes
Land who shared a passion for collecting 18th and 19th century
objects that were made and used by ordinary people in New
Jersey. Their collection had grown to almost four thousand items
when they approached the Borough of Madison and requeste