REV250 Grant Award Recipients Announced

NJ State Library Announces Recipients of REV 250 Grants to Support Public Library Celebrations of America’s 250th Anniversary

Published on June 9, 2025

As the nation prepares to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 2026, the NJ State Library, an affiliate of Thomas Edison State University, is proud to announce the awardees of its REV 250: Examining the Semiquincentennial through a Jersey Lens grant program. Through this grant initiative, the State Library is supporting selected public libraries across the state as they engage their communities in honoring New Jersey’s central role in the American Revolution.

Grant-funded projects span a wide range of initiatives, including digitization of historic newspapers, interactive exhibits, oral history archives, educational programming, and more. These efforts aim to ensure that New Jersey’s Semiquincentennial celebration is inclusive, inspiring, and representative of the diverse communities that have shaped the state’s identity.

The following public libraries were selected for funding based on the creativity, relevance, and community impact of their proposals. Click here to read full descriptions of each project.

Selected Projects:

• Alfred H. Baumann Free Public Library – Historic Woodland Park: A Trolley Tour Through Time
• Bloomfield Public Library – Local History Revitalization Project
• Cherry Hill Public Library – U.S. at 250: South Jersey and the Revolution
• Collingswood Public Library – Retrospect Local Newspaper Digitization Project
• Elizabeth Public Library – The 313+ Ancestors Speak Project Archive
• Gloucester County Library System – Where We Live: Gloucester County’s Pivotal Role in America’s Fight for Freedom
• Johnson Public Library – Accessing History with the Bergen County Historical News Archive
• Lambertville Free Public Library – Bringing the 250th to Life in Lambertville, NJ
• Little Falls Public Library – LFPL NJ History Channel Project
• Maplewood Memorial Library – Digitization and Web Hosting of Scrapbooks; Book Scanner Purchase; Publicity
• Monmouth County Library System – From Allentown to Manalapan to Shrewsbury, every corner of the county fought for independence.
• Moorestown Library – Moorestown News Chronicle Digitization Project
• Newark Public Library – A Lens on Jersey’s Latino History
• Ocean County Library – Digitizing the Ocean County Leader Newspaper
• Princeton Public Library – Listening for History: Resources for Engagement with the Voices of Princeton Initiative
• Rahway Public Library – Rahway History Room Digitization Project – 1910 and beyond
• Ridgewood Public Library – Digitizing NJ History
• Roxbury Public Library – Let Freedom Ring: Celebrating 250 Years of Liberty 
• Springfield Free Public Library – Through a Revolutionary Lens: The Battle of Springfield (June 23, 1780)
• Sussex County Library System – Opening Windows to the Past: Local History Digital Newspaper Project
• Woodbury Public Library – Historical Enhancement of Special New Jersey Collection