Perkins Center for the Arts is a regional arts center serving southern New Jersey and beyond since 1977. Perkins operates from a 1910 historic Tudor home and carriage building in

Moorestown, New Jersey Moorestown is a Township (New Jersey), township in Burlington County, New Jersey, Burlington County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is an eastern suburb of Philadelphia and geographically part of the South Jersey region of the state. As of ...

(

Burlington County Burlington County is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The county is the largest by area in New Jersey. Its county seat is Mount Holly.

), as well as a former printing press in

Collingswood, New Jersey Collingswood is a borough in Camden County, New Jersey, located east of Center City Philadelphia. As of the 2010 U.S. census, the borough's population was 13,926,Camden County). Recognized by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts as a Major Presenting Organization and receiving a Citation of Excellence, Perkins Center offers arts programs that promote participation, understanding, and communication among diverse audiences.

History

Moorestown location

In 1815, the triangular piece of property that now includes Perkins Center for the Arts in “Western Moorestown” was established by Joseph French and John Perkins as the Fairview Nurseries. It later became known as Tan Yard Farm and then Pinehurst Farm. The property was utilized as a nursery specializing in ornamental trees. Some of the specimen trees on the property today are believed to be from this time. The home on the former nursery property was built in 1910 by Herbert C. Wise, a noted

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

architect, as a wedding gift to Dudley and Alice Perkins. The home, named by the family as ''Evergreen Lawn'', is built in the Tudor Revival style inspired by English manor homes of the 15th and 16th centuries. The front porch tie beam is inscribed "D&AP 1910", for Dudley and Alice Perkins and the date the house was built. At or around 1930, the carriage house was built in the

Craftsman style American Craftsman is an American domestic architectural style, inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, which included interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts, beginning in the last years of the 19th century. Its ...

, the lower level served as a garage and the upper level an apartment. The same year, the second level porch at the original home was enclosed into a sleeping porch. Dudley died in 1918 of

influenza Influenza, commonly known as "the flu", is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These symptoms ...

during the

epidemic An epidemic (from Ancient Greek, Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of patients among a given population within an area in a short period of time. Epidemics ...

that occurred soon after the Great War (

WWI World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

). The couple had one son, Thomas Haines Dudley Jr. Soon after T.H. Dudley Sr.’s death, Alice Perkins invited her sister, Mable (Sullivan) and husband Francis D’Olier to live with her at Evergreen Lawn. After Alice’s and Frank’s death and the death of Dudley, Jr. at the age of 48, Mabel (Sullivan) D’Olier was the sole occupant in the home. Mable purchased the home from Dudley Jr’s estate. Upon her death, the property and home were bequeathed to the Township of Moorestown to be used in perpetuity as a park or other suitable township purpose, Mable stipulated that the point of property between the house and where Kings Highway meets Camden Avenue be maintained as open space for the community and no buildings or structures should be placed on it, she stated that it be referred to as the Perkins Lawn. In the early 1970s, the township was contemplating the sale or demolition of the historic building. Responding to this situation, a group of concerned Moorestown citizens including Sally Harrall, Jean Gaasch, Frank Keenan and Louis Matlack fought to save Evergreen Lawn and had the buildings listed on the National and State Registers of Historic Places in 1975. Thanks to community involvement and support, the township’s Recreational Advisory Committee recommended that the building be retained for use as a self-sustaining cultural arts center. Perkins Center for the Arts was created and was officially incorporated in 1977 as a non-profit community arts center serving the residents of Moorestown and the entire southern New Jersey region. Around this time, the remainder of the property was also designated as Open Space and in 1981, the 5.5 acre property was designated as an

Arboretum An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...

. Perkins Center is currently operating under its second 25-year lease with the Township of Moorestown. The maintenance and upkeep of this historic site has traditionally been dependent on public support and tax deductible donations. In 2022, Perkins Center for the Arts received grants from the New Jersey Council of the Arts for general operations and for a project focusing on folk and traditional art.

Collingswood location

In 2002, Perkins expanded to a second facility in Collingswood, NJ, reaching new audiences, expanding their programs in Camden County, and supporting a multi year arts initiative in Camden. Plans are underway to fully renovate the building to include quality art studios, classrooms and exhibition spaces within an environmentally sensitive "green building."

Programs at Perkins

The Center’s programs include: * Studio Classes in the visual and performing arts for all ages * An Exhibition Series which promotes and supports emerging and established artists * A Conservatory of Music with individual and group music lessons * A Performance Series including classical Family Concerts and folk/contemporary Concerts * An ARTS (Art Reaching The Students) Residency Program which matches professional artists with schools for extended residencies in their respective disciplines * A Summer Arts Camp bringing urban and suburban youth together in a creative arts environment * An Out-of-School program for at-risk youth * A Mural/Community Gardens Initiative in

Camden, NJ Camden is a city in and the county seat of Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Camden is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan area and is located directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the 2020 U. ...

* A Folklife Center to document and engage ethnic groups and communities in the tri-county area (

Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, no ...

, Camden &

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

References

External links

* {{coord, 39.95972, -74.95832, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-NJ, display=title Arts centers in New Jersey Moorestown, New Jersey Buildings and structures in Burlington County, New Jersey Buildings and structures in Camden County, New Jersey Tourist attractions in Burlington County, New Jersey Tourist attractions in Camden County, New Jersey Collingswood, New Jersey