Gov. Sherrill plans to move into Drumthwacket

Gov. Mikie Sherrill and her family will move into Drumthwacket, the governor’s mansion in Princeton, this summer, the New Jersey Globe has confirmed.

Sherrill will become the first governor to live there full-time in over 20 years and the second to do so since it became the governor’s official residence in 1981.

After Tom Kean was elected in 1981, he and his wife, Debby, chose to remain in their Livingston home rather than live in Drumthwacket.  Jim Florio became the first governor to live in the official residence after he took office in 1990.

Four years later, when Florio lost his bid for re-election, Drumthwacket lost its residents when Christine Todd Whitman opted to live at Pontefract, her 237-acre farm in Tewksbury.  Whitman resigned in 2001 to join George W. Bush’s cabinet; the new governor, Donald DiFrancesco, stayed at his home in Scotch Plains.

Jim McGreevey was elected governor in 2001, and after taking office, he moved from his Woodbridge townhouse to Drumthwacket.  The mansion became vacant again when Richard Codey remained at his West Orange home after becoming governor in 2004.

Jon Corzine lived in Hoboken during his four years as governor, and Chris Christie spent his eight years with his family in Mendham.  During Phil Murphy’s two terms, he remained a resident of Middletown.

New Jersey governors used Drumthwacket sporadically, sometimes for private and political meetings, for dinner parties, and social events.  Occasionally, they would stay overnight.

New Jersey governors also have access to an ocean house at Island Beach State Park and a bay house across the street

Before her inauguration in January, Sherrill indicated she would remain in Montclair.

It’s not immediately clear if Sherrill will sell her Montclair home.  If she does, she might need to change her voter registration to Princeton; state law does permit voters to have multiple homes, but only one domicile.

If Sherril declares her residency as Princeton, it means she’ll vote in New Jersey’s 12th district in November, and not in the 11th that she represented in Congress for seven years.  She will replace Joe DiVincenzo as her county executive with Dan Benson, and her state senator will be Andrew Zwicker (D-South Brunswick) and not John McKeon (D-West Orange).

The Drumthwacket story

The state purchased the 18-room mansion in 1966, and it took fifteen years to raise the money and make improvements.  Drumthwacket was built by Charles Smith Olden, who served as the state’s 19th governor from 1860 to 1863.  Olden had served as a state senator from Mercer County.

Drumthwacket replaced Morven, which was built by Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence; his grandson, Robert Stockton, a former U.S. Senator from New Jersey, also lived there.  Walter Edge purchased Morven from the Stockton family in 1944 and deeded it to the state as the governor’s mansion.  Alfred Driscoll, Robert Meyner, Richard Hughes, William Cahill, and Brendan Byrne lived there.  It is now a state museum.

First Lady Betty Hughes was pregnant with their tenth child when they moved into Morven in 1962.  The state added a dormitory-style room to the home to accommodate the Hughes’ blended family of eight boys and two girls.

The brief residency of John Bennett

DiFrancesco did not seek re-election to the Senate in 2001, and he left office one week before McGreevey was sworn in.  Democrats and Republicans each won 20 seats in the 2001 general election, and the new co-Senate Presidents, Codey and John O. Bennett III (R-Little Silver), opted to split the week, with each serving as acting governor for 3 ½ days.

The 84-hour Bennett administration was full of hoopla and fanfare.

He moved into Drumthwacket, used printed letterhead, and had pens made that read “John O. Bennett III, Acting Governor” to use when he signed official documents.  He delivered the State of the State address to the Legislature, hosted an engagement party for his daughter at the governor’s mansion, and issued daily schedules for himself and his wife, the Acting First Lady.

He even pardoned an old friend and campaign contributor.

The definitive historical account of the Bennett governorship was written by the New York Times’ David Kocieniewski, who said Bennett carried himself “with the measured exuberance of a high school yearbook advisor” and said that John and Peggy Bennett “toured New Jersey like a conquering Caesar visiting the provinces.”

On Friday morning, Sherrill and First Gentlemen Jason Hedberg issued the following statement:

“We are excited to let our fellow New Jerseyans know that we are moving our family to Drumthwacket this summer.

“From Day One this administration has committed to getting to work in Trenton to deliver on our commitments. We’re thrilled to further strengthen that commitment by living full-time in the Governor’s official residence and being much closer to the Capital City and the State House.

“Drumthwacket is the people’s house, and we look also forward to continuing to bring it to life for New Jersey residents and highlight all the incredible history it offers.

“Our family looks forward to this exciting next chapter, and we thank the dedicated New Jersey state staff and the team at the Drumthwacket Foundation for all their work to truly make the residence a home.”

This story was updated at 7:04 AM with comment from Sherrill.