(PRINCETON, NJ) -- Morven Museum & Garden announced the return of the beloved annual Festival of Trees. Beginning Wednesday, November 20, through Sunday, January 5, 2025, Morven's museum galleries will feature displays of creativity from local nonprofits, artists, schools, garden clubs, community groups, and more.

The Festival of Trees is a juried selection of groups and individuals who submitted applications to decorate trees and mantels throughout the museum galleries. The list of 2024 decorators includes American Repertory Ballet/Princeton Ballet School, Arts Council of Princeton/Princeton Nursery School, Contemporary Garden Club of Princeton, Adam Fenstersheim, The Garden Club of Princeton, Historical Society of Princeton, Lawrenceville Main Street Landscape Committee, Katelyn Liepins, Mount Laurel Garden Club, Nottingham Garden Club of Hamilton, Princeton Garden Theatre, Princeton Ski and Sail Club, Stony Brook Garden Club of Princeton, Toobydoo Princeton, The West Trenton Garden Club, Westrick Music Academy: Princeton Girlchoir and Princeton Boychoir, and West Windsor Arts.

“The level of detail and ingenuity in this year’s applicant pool was very impressive,” said Rhonda DiMascio, Morven’s Executive Director. “While selecting the right mix of exhibitors can be challenging, with the breadth of decorators the committee selected, the Festival of Trees 2024 will be a season highlight for long-time and new visitors alike.”

The 2024 theme, Traditions & Celebrations, is inspired by Morven’s history and the stories of its residents from the exhibition currently on view, Morven Revealed: Untold Stories from New Jersey’s Most Historic Home (through March 2, 2025), which includes former New Jersey Governor Richard Hughes and his wife, Betty Hughes: “Nothing makes a house a home more than holiday traditions. A particularly special one began on Christmas Eve 1950 in Trenton.  Richard Hughes, who was not yet governor, had suddenly lost his first wife, Miriam, weeks earlier. Hughes did his best to pull Christmas together for his four small children, but nothing seemed right. When his Jewish friends got word of his situation, they arrived on Christmas Eve ready to decorate the tree. The interdenominational Christmas Eve visit became a tradition that continued after Hughes married Betty. She christened the event “Deck the Halls with Matzo Balls!”

For Festival of Trees tickets, visit morven.org.

Morven will celebrate the Festival of Trees with an indoor/outdoor Winter Garden Party on Thursday, December 5, from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. Ticket holders are invited to enjoy seasonal food and drink offerings indoors and outdoors under a heated tent; Festival of Trees display of trees and mantels, family holiday stories shared by Honey Hughes, daughter of Richard Hughes, 10% discount in the museum gift shop and exclusive access to a special exhibit, 20 Years of Exhibits, on view in the Stockton Education Center. Tickets are available at morven.org or by contacting Megan Shackney, Morven's Chief Development Officer, at mshackney@morven.org.

Corporate Sponsors include Baxter Construction, Ronica A. Bregenzer, Architect LLC, Capital Health, Glenmede, Honda of Princeton & The Lopez Group Real Estate Group/Keller Williams Princeton.

Morven has a robust lineup of programs and events to complement the Festival of Trees: wreath-making workshops on December 2-3, holiday teas on December 8, an after-hours tour with museum curators on December 11, family night with gingerbread house decorating on December 18, and A Night Out at the Museum with choral singers on December 20. Online registration is open at morven.org.

“Our programming and events schedule for December is a mix of Morven history, music, artmaking, and holiday celebration,” said Greer Luce, Morven Curator of Education & Public Programs. “December is certainly a special time at Morven.”

Most historic sites celebrate one notable resident. Morven is unique in that it was home to many remarkable people. Built during the 1750s and home to one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, Richard Stockton, Morven was home to five generations of Stocktons, then Robert Wood Johnson, Jr. before becoming New Jersey’s first Governor’s Mansion and home to five New Jersey governors, their families, and staffs, witnessing nearly 300 years of history. Celebrating 20 years as a Museum in 2024, Morven is located at 55 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ, and is open to the public Wednesday through Sunday from 10:00am to 4:00pm. The gardens are open daily until dusk.