hoboken historical museum

We were pleasantly surprised at the work the curator has done to make this museum so comprehensive in its presentation of the history of Hoboken, early immigration, and the impact of the European wars on both. As another reviewer opined, I too was hoping to learn more about Hoboken culture, but was gratified to see there were autobiographical stories of the locals' upbringing and experiences as residents of this charming town. I bought a couple of easy readers on the lives of various residents. They are a definite buy on your next trip. That said, the space is really small, and as such, disappoints because of its inability to paint a larger story line. But, it's worth your time to make a [quick] visit.

Residents of the once gritty "Mile Square City" are fortunate to have this little gem of a museum to relate aspects of the city's history. Housed in what once was Bethlehem Steel's machine shop, the current exhibit on Ellis Island and the immigrant experience provides a wealth of information about Ellis Island with a special focus on Hoboken's population explosion during the peak immigration years. While parking is always a concern, free parking for up to three hours is available nearby.

It's a very nice museum with lots of history but it very very small. I does give you lots of perspective on the history of the town the factories the immigrants

The staff was so friendly here and made some new locals feel welcome. Lots of interesting info about the area and immigration to the area. Was a nice way to end our Hoboken walking tour (even though we were supposed to start there)

I spent two hours looking at video and listening to audio recordings of locals who experienced Hurricane Sandy. It was of particular interest to me since I live in a hurricane targeted state. The museum has done an admirable job in capturing their resident's reactions to living through this recent serious hurricane/flood. Employees of the museum took time to give me an orientation and to answer my questions throughout my visit. Upstairs was a small and charming exhibit by two artists who have created art with found objects. Very whimsical and so clever! When. I visiting the area you will enjoy spending time at the Historical Museum.

We were meeting our son in Hoboken and looked around for something to do before he arrived. We looked on the Hoboken website and saw they had a Historical Museum and they were open on a Sunday! We read that you could park at the Littleman parking garage for free, for 3 hours. What a great deal. We found the museum quite easily. It was a bit smaller than we expected. The cost is $2 each to get in. The bottom floor was an exhibit about super storm sandy. The personal stories were interesting. Upstairs were some old photographs and an art exhibit. They also have maps for self guided walking tours. One is a historical walk and the other is a Frank Sinatra walk. We did part of the historical walk. Both of the gentleman working at the museum were very friendly and helpful. If you're in the area you should check out. Don't forget to get your parking ticket validated so you get 3 hours free. You will be charged if you go over 3 hours.

We liked the catalogs of old photographs, the website with details of Hurricane Sandy, and the original art from local artists. The museum host was most engaging and informative, which made our visit feel very personalized.

On a cold NJ day my daughter and I were looking for something to do before visiting the nearby beer hall Pilsenerhaus. A Trip Advisor search found the museum and we noticed that the normally expensive parking was free for three hours.As it turned out the museum was very interesting featuring a display on hurricane Sandy and it's effect on the area. There was also interesting art on display from a local artist as well as many books featuring old photos of the area. We learned that prior to WWI the area had a large German population and there was ships from Hoboken to Hamburg. Well worth the visit and don't' forget to have the parking ticket validated!

Very nice history of Hoboken - wish they would have a lot more pictures and maps of the actual Hoboken area. Would give five star rating, but it seems they focused more on Hudson county as a whole.

The museum is not that big so don't expect to spend the whole day there. It is a cute little museum that will give you some background on Hoboken. The pictures of the city back in the day are pretty fantastic.

I just moved to Hoboken and find this is a great place to go for the weekends with kids, they could learn a lot about the history of the little and fantastic town where was the origin of baseball. I just figured it our after I moved to this small town.

I've lived in Hoboken for 14 years and have walked through the breezeway what must be thousands of times. You could easily pass an hour just looking through the photos and other materials they have outside the museum. Finally though when they had a map exhibit we had to go in. It's a small space but crammed with great stuff, and the curator was very informative and knowledgeable. We even ended up buying a drawing from the upstairs gallery (of Onieals, one of the best hangouts in town). I'm not sure we're too interested in the Sandy exhibit since we lived through it here, but we'll definitely be back in the future!

If you are going to spend anytime in Hoboken, take the time to stop by the museum. It's only a couple of bucks. It is not very big, but the exhibit was interesting. They also have maps and self guided tours of the area. The staff was very knowledgeable and helpful.

I really love this museum; it is small but extremely vital. They will usually have a major historical exhibit that will be on for about 6 months, and a smaller exhibition of a local artist that changes every 2-3 months. At the time of this writing, their main exhibit covers the mapping of the Hoboken and demographic/cartographic shifts that have taken place over the past 200 years. The museum co-sponsors many events throughout the year, usually 1-2 per month, that add to the richness of the cultural landscape that makes Hoboken such a great place to live (Garden Tours, Home Tours, Garlic & Tomato Festivals, etc.). Not only that, but they are always advertising for many other organizations that contribute similarly to the community, so a quick walk by their door will inform you of all the different events happening that month. They're also the go-to place for any Hoboken merchandise: shirts, books of all sorts, mugs, magnets -- you name it, they've got it. If you live in Hoboken, you're not a true resident until you've paid a visit; if you're just passing through it's definitely worth your time -- and then you can grab a drink or a bite at any of the nearby bars and restaurants.

When we moved to Hoboken, we lived only 1 block away from the museum. We loved dropping in or attending the many events they have, mostly on the weekend. We became members and learned so much about the history of the area, from the exhibit on the building of the Lincoln and Holland tunnels and the talk about the Pulaski Highway. The Annual Garden Tour as well as the Home Tour are great. The staff were always friendly and so helpful, especially Bob and Bill. We recently moved back to California, and we are going to miss this gem of a museum and all it has to offer.