Harding Township dates to 1922, and 28% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 69% of U.S. towns · #184 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 104 buildings between them. Below: maps from 1888 on and the census since 1930.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1808.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Harding Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Harding Township is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #184 of 468 in New Jersey. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Harding 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 Harding Township’s 305 sits above most of its state (93% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 119 historic buildings outnumber those of 90% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1922.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.3 points).
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 Harding Township’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 Harding Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1888Plainfield 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 Harding Township.
On the National Register
4 listings protect 119 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
After the retreat of the Wisconsin Glacier, a mighty glacial lake called Glacial Lake Passaic formed in this area that, about 15,000 to 11,000 years ago, extended for 30 miles (48 km) in length and was 10 miles (16 km) wide. The lake finally drained when a blockage of the Passaic River reopened. The Great Swamp is the remnant of the lake bottom and portions of the swamp lay in what now is the township. Once the lake drained, higher areas became a wooded area that was used for hunting, fishing, and farming by Native Americans. At the time of colonization by the Dutch it belonged to the Lenape tribes, but British colonists did their best to displace them westward.
In 1922, according to Wikidata. Harding Township’s post office opened in 1808, and the census of 1930 counted 1,206 people here.
How does Harding Township rank for history?
Harding Township is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #184 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 Harding Township?
4 listings: 2 buildings, among them the Peter Kemble House (listed 1980, the first), and 2 historic districts, the New Vernon Historic District and the Silver Lake Historic District, with 104 contributing buildings. 119 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Harding Township?
28% of Harding Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.3 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 (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (4), Wikipedia, 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.
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