The New Jersey Digital Highway will feature a large collection of materials, all accessible from one common search interface.
The materials shared by our many cultural heritage institution partners will cover a broad range of New Jersey history, from
audio and video, to photographs, diaries, and more.
Collections for NJDH are selected by the NJDH Content Workgroup, based on the
NJDH collection development policy and the survey of collections in New Jersey Cultural Heritage Institutions.
NJDH's inaugural collection is:
The Changing Face of New Jersey - The Immigration Experience from Earliest Times to the Present
Since large-scale immigration to the United States began in 1830, New Jersey has been one of the states with the highest
proportion of residents born outside the country. The history of immigration in New Jersey reflects the important role that
immigration has played in the development of America. Located at the doorstep of Ellis Island, New Jersey served as a
regrouping and staging area for the nation's immigrants.
The immigrant experience is documented in New Jersey's labor history, urban history, local history, and documents
collections. Collections in New Jersey libraries, museums and archives include photographs, artifacts, audio and video oral
histories, naturalization petitions dating to 1741, photographs, scrapbooks, and more than two hundred years worth of
diaries, household items and manufacturing implements and goods from almost every county or city in New Jersey. Almost all
historical and cultural artifacts in New Jersey have ties to one or more immigrant populations.
This initial collection includes:
- audio and video oral histories
- photographs
- household and industrial implements
- sheepskin deeds
- diaries
- annual reports of ethnic organizations
- and other resources totaling approximately 10,000 items
- ...And much, much more!
