Burrowes Mansion Museum
The Burrowes Mansion featured prominently in the history of Matawan. It was purchased in 1769 by “Corn King” John Burrowes, Sr. it was the site of a skirmish during the Revolutionary War when a company of new Jersey Royal Volunteers, also called Skinners Greens, attempted to capture Major John Burrowes, Jr., the son of “corn king” Burrowes. Major Burrowes escaped, but his father was taken captive in his place. Major Burrowes was related by marriage to Philip Freneau, the Poet of the Revolution and another resident of Middletown Point (Matawan).
About 1850, the building was the Steamboat Hotel and in 1854 became the home of a dentist for about forty years. From 1935 to 1938, it was the Colonial Tea Room. Benjamin F.S. Brown, owner and publisher of the Matwan Journal newspaper, purchased the house in 1904. The building remained in the Brown family until 1974 when the borough of Matawan purchased it for the people of Matawan for use as a museum.
The Mansion Today
The Burrowes Mansion Museum is a local history museum operated by the Matawan Historical Society. The museum contains period rooms, antiques – including eighteenth and nineteenth century furniture – and local memorabilia. Special mini-displays and exhibits highlighting a collection of historical events are on display from time to time.
The museum is open to the public on the first and third Sundays of the month from March through December from 2 pm to 4 pm. Special tours for groups or school classes are possible by making advance arrangements.
For more information about Burrowes Mansion Museum, please visit the official Burrowes website. Stay up to date on Mansion events and openings on the Burrowes Facebook page.