NEWS AT THE ARDEN CRAFT SHOP MUSEUM

In accordance with the state mandated guidelines for museums and libraries, it has been necessary to make a few changes in our visitor-ship practices.
We will continue to be open our regular hours – Sundays from 1-3PM and Wednesday evenings from 7:30 – 9 PM. 
  • Please send an email to ardencraftshopmuseum@gmail.com at least 24 hours before your visit.  That way we can keep track of the number of visitors.
  • We will only be able to receive up to 9 visitors at a time.
  • We will be sanitizing all touch surfaces before and after visits.
  • All visitors and staff must sanitize their hands before entering the Museum and wear a face mask while inside.
  • We have hand sanitizer already inside the door and we look forward to welcoming you.
 
Our current exhibition 15 Years – 15 Treasures is still on display and well worth a visit.
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You are welcome hither!
Welcome to the Arden Craft Shop Museum. Have a look around and make sure to visit our blog page, where we will post updates on what we're doing at the museum, announce upcoming exhibitions, and much more. Please feel free to contact us via email at ardencraftshopmuseum@gmail.com. You can also follow us on Facebook. Thanks for visiting!
If you plan to shop on Amazon.com, your purchases can now benefit the Arden Craft Shop Museum! Click on the button below before you shop, and part of your purchase will be donated to the ACSM at no additional cost thanks to the AmazonSmile program. Every bit counts!

Mission of the Arden Craft Shop Museum

The mission of the Arden Craft Shop Museum is to collect and exhibit materials and artifacts related to the Ardens, which include the villages of Arden, Ardentown, and Ardencroft. The Arden Craft Shop Museum seeks to educate the community on the Ardens’ history as single-tax communities in addition to how the roles of theater, craftsmanship, art, and other aspects of life have affected the development of the Ardens as a close-knit community.

About the Ardens

The three Ardens, consisting of Arden, Ardentown, and Ardencroft, are Single Tax and Arts and Crafts communities. “Single Tax” is an economic theory originally proposed by Henry George, an American economist and philosopher in the late nineteenth-century. George felt that a land value tax was the most fair and equitable tax and felt that any income tax was unfair by nature. The Ardens were also founded on the ideals of William Morris, as an “Arts and Crafts” community. The Arts and Crafts movement was a reaction against the industrial revolution and valued hand-crafted goods and the incorporation of individualistic design.

Arden, the first community, was founded in 1900 by sculptor Frank Stephens and architect Will Price after an unsuccessful campaign to have all of Delaware switch to the Single Tax. Ardentown was founded in 1922, and Ardencroft in 1950. Each village operates as its own municipality, but all three continue to use the Single Tax. These communities stil attract artists and craftspeople today and have many examples of American Arts and Crafts architecture.

For more information about the three villages, visit Arden, Ardentown, and Ardencroft.* For information about life in the three Ardens, see the Arden Club.     *Websites coming soon

This website is maintained by the Arden Craft Shop Museum Curator & Archivist, Abby Harting.  She can be reached at ardencraftshopmuseum@gmail.com.