More historic than 33% of U.S. towns · #391 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Most of East Windsor Township was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1976. Below: maps from 1888 on and the census since 1810.
Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY 3.0
Quick answers
How East Windsor Township began
When was East Windsor Township founded?
1797
East Windsor Township dates its founding to 1797 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1810.
First census: 1,747 in 18102020 census: 30,045229 years
How historic is East Windsor Township?
C
More historic than 33% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, East Windsor Township is more historic than 33% of U.S. towns, #391 of 468 in New Jersey. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of East Windsor Township’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 East Windsor Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (12% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share (±1.9 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1797.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 East Windsor Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost two-thirds of its people between 1850 and 1920, then grew more than tenfold.
22 censuses, 1810–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on East Windsor Township’s Wikipedia page.
On the map
East Windsor Township on the map, 1888 to 1995
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of East Windsor Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1888Princeton sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of East Windsor Township.
The story so far
East Windsor Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of East Windsor Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
East Windsor is a township in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Located at the cross-roads between the Delaware Valley region to the southwest and the Raritan Valley region to the northeast, the township is an outer-ring suburb of New York City in the New York Metropolitan area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, but directly borders the Philadelphia metropolitan area and is part of the Federal Communications Commission's Philadelphia Designated Market Area. Since East Windsor is situated at the confluence of several major highways that serve both the major cities of New York City and Philadelphia, and even the local commercial hubs of nearby Freehold, Princeton, a…
East Windsor Township was established in 1797. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 27,190 to 30,045 (+11%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
East Windsor Township, 1797 to 2020
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
In 1797, according to Wikidata. East Windsor Township’s post office opened in 1890, and the census of 1810 counted 1,747 people here.
How does East Windsor Township rank for history?
East Windsor Township is more historic than 33% of U.S. towns, #391 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.
How old are the homes in East Windsor Township?
4% of East Windsor Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.9 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1976.
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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
