HISTORIC SHOVELFUL • A pound of dirt is removed from Morven in Princeton yesterday in preparation for next month’s Annapolis Convention in Maryland where a tree will be planted in soil from New Jersey and four other states represented at the convention in 1786. Doing the hard labor is N.J. Secretary of State Jane Burgio. Helping out (from left) are Mark Freda, Alvin Felzenberg, Leah Sloshberg and Barbara Sigmund. Moren, built by Richard Stockton, also has served as home to many state governors.

9 September, 1986

New Jersey Honors Historic Morven

PRINCETON — Morven, the former New Jersey governor’s residence that was built by a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was praised yesterday in state ceremony honoring its past and dedicating its future.

Built around 1755, the mansion served as the governor’s residence from 1957 to 1982 and is now a part of the New Jersey State Museum.

Secretary of State Jane Borgio took part in the ceremony honoring the mansion.

The Department of State recently assumed administrative responsibility for the property and grounds, taking over control from the New Jersey Historical Society. The department will operate the site as a museum of 18th and 19th century American decorative art.

Richard Stockton. Morven’s first owner and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. was instrumental in bringing the Rev. John Witherspoon to America to serve as the first president of the College of New Jersey, which is now Princeton.