Visit to Macculloch Hall - Morristown, NJ

  I had a fascinating visit today to Macculloch Hall in Morristown, NJ.   We'll be filming an episode there this summer for Season 2 so I wanted to visit beforehand.  Executive Director, Kathleen Bartlett gave me a wonderful tour inside and outside this beautiful Georgian mansion.  
  Macculloch Hall has tons of history which was almost lost as the home fell into disrepair before being saved in the 20th century.  There is a beautiful historic garden which is free and open to the public daily.  The garden includes some of the first wisteria in the US given by Commodore Perry in 1857 and also the second oldest sassafras tree in NJ.  Jersey tomato fans should note that the first recorded tomato was grown here!
  The museum has an impressive collection of artwork including work by Charles Wilson Peale (the founder of my alma mater - the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts).  They also house a collection of work by political cartoonist, Thomas Nast (1840-1902) who lived across the street from Macculloch Hall.  Amongst his political cartoons, Nast is responsible for the donkey and elephant political party mascot depictions.  And impressively, Nast created the modern depiction of Santa Clause (which may have been modeled after his own jovial likeness); Nast conjured up the North Pole, the Naughty or Nice list and other iconic Santa-related ideas.
  I had also planned to do some painting in their garden today, but it was raining so I'll have to wait until our return.  If you're in this area of NJ, then I definitely encourage you to visit Macculloch Hall to take a tour and experience this history for yourself!