Wander on winding paths through a dazzling winter wonderland surrounded by the glow of a million colorful lights that has been called one of the “most ‘Instagrammable’ spots.”

December Enchanted Evenings, on weeknights December 2 through December 30 at Peddler’s Village, give visitors the chance to enjoy after-dark entertainment on select evenings and the opportunity to take photos and stroll the village when it is less crowded than it often is on holiday weekends.

Enjoy 60-plus small shops and boutiques with one-of-a-kind gifts, tasty food and beverages, and music played throughout the village. See a stunning display of 100 gingerbread creations, and the Tunnel of Lights.

Shops are open until 9 p.m. Restaurants are open for dinner, and the lights will remain on until 10 p.m. Parking and admission are free. more

“The Westminster Abbey of the United States”

By Laurie Pellichero | Photography by Jeffrey E. Tryon.

Referred to as “the Westminster Abbey of the United States” by John F. Hageman in his 1878 history of Princeton, Princeton Cemetery sits on almost 19 acres near the center of town and is the final resting place of a plethora of famous figures along with many members of the Princeton community. The cemetery, owned by Nassau Presbyterian Church, was established in 1757 and is still an active burial ground.

When first entering the non-denominational cemetery, one immediately notices the many different styles of headstones and monuments, the oldest of which is for Aaron Burr Sr., the second president of the College of New Jersey, now Princeton University. Burr died in 1757. Right in front of that is the grave for his son, U.S. Vice President Aaron Burr Jr. (1756-1836), even better known for his duel with Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton. According to Linda Gilmore, business administrator at Nassau Presbyterian Church and Princeton Cemetery, who also leads tours of the cemetery, it has become a very popular site since the debut of the Broadway show Hamilton. There is even a person who has sent flowers a few times to be placed at the grave with the message “Death doesn’t discriminate between the sinners and saints, it takes and it takes and it takes. Love, Alex.” more

A Princeton Treasure

By Laurie Pellichero |  Photography by Charles R. Plohn

Andrew Carnegie portrait by Howard Russell Butler. (Andrew Carnegie Birthplace Museum, Scotland)

It all began with a portrait. In 1902, steel magnate and noted philanthropist Andrew Carnegie was posing for painter Howard Russell Butler, Princeton University Class of 1876, when Carnegie brought up the many lochs he had built in his native Scotland. Butler, a former member of the University rowing team, took the opportunity to inform Carnegie of the cramped rowing conditions along the Delaware and Raritan Canal, where the team practiced but also had to deal with freight traffic traveling between New York and Philadelphia. This had forced the rowing program to disband in 1886.

Butler suggested a building a dam at the confluence of the Millstone River and Stony Brook, which would flood the swamps around the Washington Road Bridge, creating a reservoir that would be a much better option for the University’s team. According to Princetoniana, it was an idea that Carnegie quickly embraced. more