Montgomery's African American Museum Receives $5,000 COVID-19 Grant

The Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum (SSAAM) is one of 82 organizations to receive a COVID-19 response grant from the NJ Council for the Humanities with funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the federal CARES Act.

The African American museum on Hollow Road in Montgomery Township.

The museum's mission is to tell the story of African Americans who settled in the Sourland Mountain region.

“This grant will enable SSAAM to continue to provide educational programming during the COVID-19 pandemic," says John Buck, president of SSAAM’s Board of Trustees. "We will use the funds to create a short film.”

NJ Council for the Humanities Executive Director Carin Berkowitz says: “We have a longstanding history of running successful grant programs for public humanities organizations. We are honored to contribute to their recovery by administering this emergency grant program.”

In 2016, NJCH awarded a grant to the Sourland Conservancy, SSAAM’s partner organization, to support the creation of the museum’s website and exhibitions. “The Sourland Conservancy has recognized the historical significance of the Mt. Zion AME Church and aided in its restoration. We are thrilled that our initial efforts to renovate the current site has developed into a meaningful partnership between the Sourland Conservancy and the Stoutsburg Sourland African American Museum. We are honored to support SSAAM’s mission,” said the Sourland Conservancy’s Executive Director, Laurie Cleveland.

“We are very grateful to the NJ Council for the Humanities for its continued support of SSAAM from the very beginning. As an organization whose mission is centered around preserving and sharing an often painful history, we are extremely appreciative of this latest grant from NJCH, NEH and the federal CARES Act, which comes at a time when it is especially important for SSAAM to reaffirm its commitment to amplifying the narratives of black people,” said Caroline Katmann, executive director of SSAAM.

For more information, visit ssaamuseum.org.