Location and hours

The Ukrainian History and Education Center is located on the campus of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA Metropolia Center at 135 Davidson Avenue in Somerset, New Jersey. It is easily accessible from the New York and Philadelphia metro areas by car or mass transit.

Currently running exhibitions at the Library Gallery are generally open 9-12pm and 1-5pm Monday through Friday, with closures for holidays. Limited special weekend hours are offered. Groups are welcome by appointment.

Scheduled Library Gallery Closures

The UHEC Archives are open to the public by appointment. Please contact archives@UkrHEC.org to discuss your research needs and to make arrangements.

Finding your way around

Map of the Metropolia Center with the locations of facilities used by the UHEC

Most UHEC programming takes place in either the Library and its associated gallery or in the Ukrainian Cultural Center.

The Cultural Center is the large building with the large parking lot on your left as you enter from Davidson Avenue. There is a handicapped entranced at the rear of the building that is open by arrangement.

The Library and Library Gallery are more confusing: they are located through the door labeled as "Entrance" (in big red letters) on the map below. After you make the turn onto the campus from Davidson Avenue, proceed past the large parking lot and the Cultural Center, and turn into the small parking lot on the right just beyond all of the buildings. The main building entrance is at the far end of that small parking lot. There is a ground-level handicapped entrance that can be accessed by arrangement - please contact us.

The new museum building remains under construction and is not open to the public.

Driving directions

Most GPS navigation apps will do an adequate job of giving you directions to our location (135 Davidson Avenue, Somerset NJ 08873) with two major exceptions:

  1. Google Maps incorrectly labels the entrance as "Executive Drive". The entrance road is actually unnamed. Executive Drive is the next street at the traffic light, but there is no access to the UHEC from the "real" Executive Drive.
  2. Advice for visitors traveling by car via southbound Interstate 287: After getting off the highway at Exit 10, your GPS will probably tell you to get into the left lane and make a U-turn onto northbound Easton Avenue. This is feasible if traffic is light. However, if traffic is moderate or heavy, this maneuver can be hair-raising or downright impossible. In that situation, ignore the GPS and continue in the right lane, make the next right onto Worlds Fair Drive, proceed to the end and make a right onto Pierce Street, and finally another right at the traffic light onto Davidson Avenue. The Center will be on your left after the traffic light for Executive Drive.

View Larger Map

Mass transit directions

The Center is located 1.7 miles from the Bound Brook station on the NJ Transit Raritan Valley Line, which provides service to Newark NJ and connecting trains to Penn Station in Manhattan (except for midday and late evening trains, which run directly to New York Penn Station without the need to transfer in Newark).

It is also located approximately 5 miles from the New Brunswick station on the NJ Transit Northeast Corridor Line, which provides direct service to New York Penn Station and Trenton NJ, and connecting service via SEPTA to Philadelphia and via the River Line light rail to Camden NJ.

Taxi/Uber/Lyft service is available at both Bound Brook and New Brunswick, and it is possible to walk safely from the Bound Brook station (if you do, please contact us for information on a shortcut that avoids the pedestrian-unfriendly intersection of Easton and Davidson Avenues).

Connections from Amtrak service can be made at Newark Penn Station or New York Penn Station for travelers from points north, and at Trenton or Metropark from points south. Connections from LIRR trains to Long Island are also available at New York Penn Station.

Gallery guidelines

Visitors are encouraged to explore the gallery, participate in events, and engage with Center staff.

For the safety of each other and the collection, all visitors must observe the following general guidelines while visiting the Center:

  • Refrain from touching any art or artifacts on display.
  • Eat and drink only in designated areas. Food and drink is not allowed in the gallery.
  • Non-commercial photography is permitted, except where indicated. Flash, tripods, and selfie sticks are not allowed.
  • Sketching with graphite pencil is allowed in the gallery. No ink, paint, or pastels allowed.
  • Walk. Do not run.
  • Children must not be left unattended in any area of the Center.
  • All backpacks, bulky coats, and umbrellas must be left outside of the gallery.
  • Skateboards, roller skates, and rollerblades are not permitted indoors. They must be removed and left a designated location.
  • Our galleries are stroller friendly!
  • We love your pets, but only service animals are permitted inside the buildings.

If you have any questions about Center guidelines, please email us at info@ukrhec.org or speak to a staff member during your visit.

Visitor Photography/Videography Policy

We welcome visitors to photograph in the UHEC gallery and at events under the following conditions:

  • Photography is allowed in the Library Gallery. It may be restricted during events or when a “No Photography” symbol appears near any artwork or artifact. If a visitor has questions about a particular space, they can ask a UHEC staff member.
  • Filming and professional videography is not permitted anywhere in the UHEC, unless signed permission has received from UHEC staff.
  • Visitors may use handheld cameras or cell phones and existing lighting only. Flash photography is not permitted. Additional equipment such as camera bags, tripods, extension cords, and extending devices such as “selfie sticks” are prohibited.
  • Visitors taking photos may not interfere with the Center's operations, disrupt other visitors, or limit access to entrances/exits. A distance of at least three feet from all artworks and artifacts must be maintained. Stepping onto platforms with artwork is not permitted.
  • Only visitors or staff members that have consented to participate may be photographed.
  • Photography is allowed for noncommercial, educational, and personal use only, or for “fair use” as authorized in the United States copyright laws. Selling or otherwise commercially exploiting photos taken at the UHEC is prohibited without the consent of the Center. The UHEC makes no warranties or representations and assumes no responsibility for any claims, royalties or fees claimed by an artist, on his or her behalf, or by any other person claiming a copyright or other interest in the work being reproduced.

Please contact the UHEC (info@UkrHEC.org) to obtain and/or reproduce high quality photographs of collection objects for lecture, study, and publication or for copyright information related to works in the Center's collection, as well as for information regarding commercial film and photo shoots and other inquiries.

Non-compliance with UHEC policy will result in being escorted off the premises