Oral Histories of Hurricane Sandy

Like most museums dedicated to history, the Hoboken Historical Museum generally waits until a memorable event feels somewhat distant before inviting the public to revisit it. Not so with “Hoboken: One Year After Sandy, Lessons Learned About Preparedness, Resiliency and Community,” an exhibition scheduled to open this weekend.

The show, collected oral histories of the local havoc caused by Hurricane Sandy, as well as photographs, video, a lecture series and community outreach efforts, “is our way of letting people know that the past is the present,” said Robert Foster, the museum’s executive director.

That concept is illustrated in part through 19th-century documents and photographs of plans to build pumping stations in Hoboken. “Pumping stations are a hot topic locally now, and they were a hot topic in the 1870s,” said Mr. Foster, 59, of Hoboken. “They never really followed through in the 1870s,” Mr. Foster added, “and here we are facing the same decisions again.”...