Experience New Jersey history through a recently discovered archive of photographic negatives that once belonged to a prolific, but long-forgotten, local photographer.

“Discovering Grant Castner” celebrates one New Jerseyan’s passion for photography - from the 1890s through the 1910s, and is curated from the State Museum’s extensive collection of the photographer’s original negatives.

In 2019, the New Jersey State Museum received a donation of more than 1,200 glass plate negatives. The plates preserve pinpoint moments of everyday life in New Jersey at the turn of the 20th century, snapshots of our collective past. They belonged to Grant Castner (1863-1941), an amateur photographer born in Belvidere (Warren County) who later lived and worked here in Trenton.

The 200 images featured in the exhibition reflect Caster’s artistic talent and illustrate numerous aspects of New Jersey history, from close-up portraits of family and friends to the marvels of turn-of-the-century transportation, to the flurry of excitement and activity at the famed Inter-state fair in Hamilton Township.

Further subjects include:

• The faces of New Jersey

• Railroads and canals

• Down the Shore

• Leisure and recreation

• New Jerseyans at work

• Children and schools

• Famous landmarks

• Floods, fires and other disasters

• New Jersey nature

Visit this exhibition to discover more about the life and works of Grant Castner and experience the full breadth of his talent as it transports you back in time to the New Jersey of our ancestors.