23% of Hackettstown’s homes were built before 1940
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns · #97 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Its Register listings are the Centenary Collegiate Institute, the Jacob C. Allen House and the Stephens Homestead. Its Register listings are the Centenary Collegiate Institute, the Jacob C. Allen House and the Stephens Homestead. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1860.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hackettstown is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #97 of 468 in New Jersey. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hackettstown’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 Hackettstown’s 5.9 sits near the middle of its state (60% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.9 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Hackettstown’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Hackettstown. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1888Hackettstown 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 Hackettstown.
Every building
Hackettstown, building by building, 1884–1914
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.
William Johnson (1817–1891) was a prime contributor to the incorporation of the town in 1853. He and his brother George (1815–1889) were successful merchants in the town beginning in 1839 when they began operating the W.L. & G.W Johnson dry good store. The two men were very active in community affairs. George was a member of First Presbyterian Church, a director of the Hackettstown National Bank, and a member of the Hackettstown Water Board. Both men were involved in the establishment of the Union Cemetery.
Passages that mention Hackettstown, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History and directory of Warren County, New Jersey1929 · page 35Read the page →
Read the text
Beginning in 1815, with Jacob Day’s factory, the carriage industry of Hackettstown was for many years one of the foremost in the county. Hackettstown was for years known as the carriage town. A blast furnace was started in the seventies, but was never successfully operated and was finally taken over by Joseph Wharton. It has now been out of blast for over half a century.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History and directory of Warren County, New Jersey1929 · page 9Read the page →
Read the text
The Episcopal Church was organized in 1872, as a mission of the Hackettstown Church. ‘The church was erected on Broad Street in 1886. The Baptists erected their Church in 1886, and a few months ago received a bequest of $30,000.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Hackettstown, 1794 to 1981
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
Hackettstown is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #97 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 Hackettstown?
Three places: the Centenary Collegiate Institute (listed 1997), the Jacob C. Allen House (2005) and the Stephens Homestead (2013).
How old are the homes in Hackettstown?
23% of Hackettstown’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.9 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1967.
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 (4), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.
1880
