Runyon House used to stand at 175 Possumtown Road. Benjamin Runyon built it sometime between 1755 and 1780, and in 1978 it was moved to 1050 River Road in Johnson Park. Most of East Jersey Old Town Village came together the same way. Houses, a tavern and a blacksmith shop were taken down from roads in Piscataway, New Brunswick and Somerset County and put back up beside the Raritan. On two weekends this month, Oct. 16–18 and Oct. 23–25, those buildings open with living-history staff inside for the Fall Harvest Festival. Interpreters work at the Village from April through October, and the Village is closed on Saturday, Oct. 31. That makes the festival weekends the last weekends this year when someone can explain these rooms while you stand in them.
Your Daily Commute, Reassembled on River Road
Middlesex County describes the Village as a collection of 16 buildings relocated to Johnson Park. If you live in Piscataway, Highland Park or New Brunswick, many of the original sites are places you already pass.
| Building | Where it originally stood | Arrived at the Village |
|---|---|---|
| Runyon House | 175 Possumtown Road, Piscataway | 1978 |
| Jeremiah Dunn House | Stelton Road, North Stelton, Piscataway | 1973 or 1974, by differing accounts |
| Pound–FitzRandolph House | Randolphville, Piscataway | 1976 |
| Indian Queen Tavern | Albany Street near the Raritan, New Brunswick | 1976 |
| Farley Blacksmith Shop | Burnet Street, New Brunswick | 1961 to Johnson Park, 1976 to the Village |
| Williamson Wheelwright Shop | Brunswick–Princeton Road near Six Mile Run, today's Franklin Park | 1977 |
| Six Mile Run House | Near the Six Mile Run church | 1979 |
| Vanderveer House | Near the North Branch of the Raritan, Somerset County | 1975 |
| Smalley Town Schoolhouse | Warren Township, Somerset County | 1977 |
Two buildings were never moved at all. The Church of the Three Mile Run is a replica of an early 18th-century Dutch Reformed church that stood near where today's Route 27 crosses Three Mile Run. The original is believed to have been destroyed in 1777. The New Brunswick Barracks is a replica too. It stands in for a colonial barracks on George Street that burned in 1796. The historical sources describe the rest differently. Some call certain structures originals, and others say parts of them were reconstructed. The Indian Queen Tavern, for example, began as a house, later became a tavern, and was reassembled at the Village in 1976.
Some buildings show more than one era under the same roof. The rear and front sections of the Six Mile Run House were restored to represent different periods. Questions about that kind of thing are easiest to answer when interpreters are on site.
Six Days, Extended Hours, and a Musket Schedule
On a normal week the County lists the Village's hours as Wednesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. During the festival it runs 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day. That gives you three extra hours on each of the four weekend dates. Both Fridays, Oct. 16 and Oct. 23, are festival days, which helps if you want a quieter visit before the Saturday crowds. Admission is free.
According to the official festival listing, the historic buildings will be open with exhibits, programming and living-history staff. Other details from the listing:
- Musket demonstrations at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Use these to plan your day.
- Accessible wagon rides out to the Village field, where you can pick a pumpkin and take photos.
- Live music from the Sawmill Run Old Time String Band.
- Food from Beastro, which will also sell its Signature Drippings.
- A product tent with pies, sauces, spreads, cider doughnuts, pickles, salsa and preserves. The County says this year's selection is expanded.
- Rutgers Cooperative Extension Master Gardeners, who will give gardening advice and share information on farm markets around Middlesex County.
Families with kids should know the two weekends are not identical. Kath Yarkosky teaches printmaking basics only Oct. 16–18. Stark Press prints harvest-themed tote bags only Oct. 23–25. Tracy Coon's 3D paper pumpkins and an autumn watercolor craft run both weekends, and so do the nature prints made from fallen leaves, grasses and seed pods.
Parking is in a free lot with accessible spaces at the main entrance. On large event days, park rangers may send overflow cars onto the grass. The listing doesn't give a rain policy. The Village can be reached at 732-745-3030 if the forecast looks bad. The weather has already cost the Village one event this season. The Roaring 20s Jazz Party planned for Sept. 27 was canceled because of rain and wind.
Park Once, Visit a Second House on the Same Afternoon
During the festival, RIDE, the County's shuttle service, offers free, accessible, on-demand rides between the Village and the Cornelius Low House. Comparing the two makes sense. The Low House is a County historic site at its own location, while nearly everything at the Village was carried in from somewhere else.
The Low House is also part of the late-fall calendar. The County's Tavern Talks program on Nov. 29 is described as a 10 a.m. guided tour at the Cornelius Low House, followed by talks with historical reenactors at noon at Harvest Moon Brewery & Cafe, 392 George Street in New Brunswick. The event's time and location field gives a different meeting point than its description, so confirm with the organizers on the event page before you go.
If you're coming from the Highland Park side of the river, Penstock Coffee Roasters is at 13 South 3rd Avenue, Suite C, and opens daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. That covers a festival day from start to finish.
After October, the Village Gets Quiet but Stays Open
Interpreter season runs through October, so the weekdays of Oct. 28–30 come after the festival but are still inside it. From November until spring, visits are without interpreters. The Village stays free and open year-round. Self-guided visits are available, and one regional guide lists the Indian Queen Tavern, Runyon House, Dunn House and Farley Blacksmith Shop as stops on a self-guided tour. No current source confirms which doors are open on any given off-season day, and Piscataway Township lists guided tours among the Village's activities without a winter schedule. A quick call before a winter visit will save you a wasted trip.
The County has posted these closures for the rest of the season:
- Saturday, Oct. 31
- Saturday, Nov. 14
- Saturday, Nov. 21
- Sunday, Nov. 29
The Village is closed on Halloween, and no Halloween event was found on its calendar. The County's own page and its culture site also list different weekend hours. The County says noon to 4 p.m., and the culture-site venue profile says 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The County's noon start is the safer one to plan around.
Two programs are on the calendar after the festival. On Sunday, Nov. 8, at 1 p.m., the New Brunswick Chamber Orchestra String Quartet performs "Sisterhood Soundscape," a free program of works by Jessie Montgomery, Reena Esmail, Florence Price and Caroline Shaw. On Saturday, Dec. 5, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the free Seasonal Traditions Holiday Program brings wagon rides, children's crafts, Victorian music, readings of A Christmas Carol and It's a Wonderful Life, and carols by Piscataway Girl Scouts. The carols are sung in the church, the reconstructed Three Mile Run. The current venue calendar shows nothing else at the Village through March 2027, though more events could still be added.
Johnson Park itself has one more fall event. H.I.P.H.O.P.'s 27th Annual 5K Fun Run/Walk takes place there on Sunday, Nov. 15, and the in-person race starts at 9:30 a.m.
If you still remember Johnson Park for its animals, the Animal Haven is no longer an option for a fall afternoon. Middlesex County announced it would close the Johnson Park zoo after more than 70 years because the site sits in the Raritan's flood zone. In July 2024 a County official told NJ.com that "no animals remain at any animal havens." The Village's biggest program of the fall starts Friday at 10 a.m.
Some homes around Johnson Park are much newer than the Runyon House, and some are old enough to have their own stories. Either way, the DeVizio Home Selling Alliance team knows the streets these buildings came from and what nearby homes are selling for right now. If you're curious about your own place on Possumtown Road, Stelton Road or anywhere else in Piscataway, ask us: What's My Home Worth?
