Burlington dates to 1677, and 41% of its homes were built before 1940
Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns · #11 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
8 places in town are on the National Register, among them the New St. Mary's Episcopal Church, a National Historic Landmark, and two historic districts with 82 buildings between them. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1797.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Burlington’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Burlington is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #11 of 468 in New Jersey. All 3 inputs put Burlington near the top nationally; its age ranks highest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Burlington’s overall grade.
New Jersey towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical New Jersey town has 3.7 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Burlington’s 91.1 sits above most of its state (85% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 91 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.9 points). Two sources give 1677.
Founding year: Wikipedia (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Burlington’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.
The council of West Jersey Proprietors purchased roughly 30 miles (48 km) of riverfront land in 1676 from the Lenape Native Americans. Burlington was founded on part of that land by English settlers (primarily Quakers) in 1677. It served as the capital of the province until 1702, when West Jersey and East Jersey were combined into a single Crown Colony.
Burlington takes its name (including the county name) from the town of Bridlington, England of which Burlington was a district. It is now amalgamated into the larger Bridlington town.
Passages that mention Burlington, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The history of Burlington, New Jersey, from the early European arrivals in the Delaware to the quarter millennial anniversary, in 1927, of the settlement by English Quakers in 16771927 · page 310Read the page →
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Pearl Streets, was built by David Mitchell for a wholesale shoe factory, the first of its kind of any consequence in Burlington. About the year 1832 Aaron Hutchins, a New Yorker, came to Burlington and established himself in the business, and about 1835 William Garwood, a native of Burlington, began to manufacture. 1 When the railroad was completed in 1836 great changes began to come in Burlington. New life was put into every-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Burlington and Mercer Counties, New Jersey1883 · page 490Read the page →
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lature of New Jersey was approved incorporating the borough of Bordentown, with bounds as follows : " That all that part of the township of Chesterfield, in the county of Burlington, and all that part of the township of Nottingham, in the county of Mercer, which is included in the limits and boundaries hereinafter mentioned, that is to say: Beginning at a small bridge, commonly called 'Savage's Bridge,' in
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The history of Burlington, New Jersey, from the early European arrivals in the Delaware to the quarter millennial anniversary, in 1927, of the settlement by English Quakers in 16771927 · page 323Read the page →
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The board also wanted assurance that the phraseology of the Act of 1682, giving the island ‘“‘to and for the use of the town of Burlington and to others concerned therein, within the first and second tenths,’ might not be construed as including other schools in the territory adjacent to the town of Burlington. A committee was appointed to make an inspection of the law. An explanation of the meaning of the designation, “‘tenth,”’ is required here. When the
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History of Burlington and Mercer Counties, New Jersey1883 · page 516Read the page →
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Jersey, That the township of Willingborough, in the county of Burlington, shall be and the same is hereby divided into two townships in the following manner, that is to say, all that part of the said township south of the southerly line of the Burlington and Bridgeborough turnpike road shall constitute and be known as the township of Willingborough ; all that part lying north of the southerly side of said turnpike road shall constitute aud be known as the township of Beverly.
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Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
Burlington, decade by decade
2 decades in the archive, from the 1850s to the 1970s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Burlington. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1947Bristol sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Burlington.
Every building
Burlington, building by building, 1885–1915
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
In 1677, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Burlington’s post office opened in 1797, and the census of 1850 counted 4,536 people here.
How does Burlington rank for history?
Burlington is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #11 of 468 in New Jersey. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Burlington?
8 listings: 6 buildings, among them the New St. Mary's Episcopal Church (a National Historic Landmark since 1986), and 2 historic districts, the Burlington Historic District and the High Street Historic District, with 82 contributing buildings. 91 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Burlington?
41% of Burlington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.9 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1950.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (10), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (8), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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