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BHistory
History · Jefferson Township

Jefferson Township dates to 1804, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 64% of U.S. towns · #223 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

Most of Jefferson Township was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1970. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 5 buildings. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1810.

1804founded
2on the National Register
8%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Jefferson Township began

When was Jefferson Township founded?

1804

Jefferson Township dates its founding to 1804 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1810.

First census: 1,281 in 18102020 census: 20,538222 years

How historic is Jefferson Township?

B

More historic than 64% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1816.
History grade

What drives Jefferson Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Jefferson Township is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns, #223 of 468 in New Jersey. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Jefferson Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1804, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19408.2% of homes (±3.5) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register2 listings, 6 historic buildings, 2.9 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 64%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 52%

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 Jefferson Township’s 2.9 sits near the middle of its state (45% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1804.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.5 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 Jefferson Township’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages6 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Jefferson Township, and 15 old place names are still on the map.Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1880 and 1920, then grew more than tenfold.On the map since 18885 editions of the USGS map, 1888 to 1971. Watch Jefferson Township change.Deep rootsEstablished in 1804: 222 years of Jefferson Township.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Six other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Berkshire Valley
1816–1881
Milton
1820–1908
Hurdtown
1851–1872
Woodport
1854–1905
Lake Hopatcong
1886–today
Nolans Point
1886–1887
Weldon
1891–1898
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Berkshire ValleyBrady ParkHollandHurdtownLake HopatcongLower LongwoodMiltonPetersburgProspect PointRussiaTierneys CornerUpper LongwoodWeldonWoodportWoodstock
Gone or out of use
Star of the Sea Churchchurch
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Jefferson Township
HollandHurdtown

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

People over time

Jefferson Township, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00018501900195020001,792 in 1880Low: 1,226

Lost a third of its people between 1880 and 1920, then grew more than tenfold.

22 censuses, 1810–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Jefferson Township’s Wikipedia page.

On the map

Jefferson Township on the map, 1888 to 1971

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Jefferson Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Jefferson Township on the 1888 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1894 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1903 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1954 USGS mapJefferson Township on the 1971 USGS map1888Franklin 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 Jefferson Township.

The story so far

Jefferson Township, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Jefferson Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

Jefferson Township is the northernmost township in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 20,538, a decrease of 776 (−3.6%) from the 2010 census count of 21,314, which in turn reflected an increase of 1,597 (+8.1%) from the 19,717 counted in the 2000 census. Jefferson Township was formed as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 11, 1804, from portions of Pequannock Township and Roxbury. The township was named after Thomas Jefferson, the President of the United States at the time the Township was created. The township is situated in the northernmost part of Morris County bordering both Passai…

Jefferson Township was established in 1804. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 21,314 to 20,538 (-4%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

Timeline

Jefferson Township, 1804 to 2010

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1804
    FoundingJefferson Township is established
  3. 1816Post officeThe Berkshire Valley post office opens
  4. 1820Post officeThe Milton post office opens
  5. 1851Post officeThe Hurdtown post office opens
  6. 1872Post officeThe Hurdtown post office closes
  7. 1881Post officeThe Berkshire Valley post office closes
  8. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 20th century
  10. 1908Post officeThe Milton post office closes
  11. 1917In the archiveSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1…
  12. 21st century
  13. 2010CensusPopulation peaks at 21,314
By decade

Jefferson Township, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s6 items
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00091917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00101917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00111917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00121917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00131917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morris And Sussex Counties, New Jersey, 1917, Plate 00141917Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Lake Hopatcong, Morri…Map
1920s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
On the National Register

2 historic places in Jefferson Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
6
each building in a district counts
first listed
1976
Ringling, Alfred T., Manor
George Chamberlain HouseRingling, Alfred T., Manor
BuildingsDistricts
George Chamberlain HouseBuilding
All 2 listings
Ringling, Alfred T., ManorDistrict · listed 1976

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Help out

Finish Jefferson Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

West Milford Township2 historic placesB+Oak Ridge2 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townLake HopatcongIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townNewfoundlandIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townHopatcongIts storyC−Roxbury Township8 historic placesARockaway Township4 historic placesC+Mount Arlington1 historic placeB−Sparta Township1 historic placeA−Hardyston Township3 historic placesA−

Questions about Jefferson Township’s history

What year was Jefferson Township founded?

In 1804, according to Wikidata. Jefferson Township’s post office opened in 1816, and the census of 1810 counted 1,281 people here.

How does Jefferson Township rank for history?

Jefferson Township is more historic than 64% of U.S. towns, #223 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 Jefferson Township?

Two places: the George Chamberlain House (listed 2009) and the Ringling, Alfred T., Manor (1976).

How old are the homes in Jefferson Township?

8% of Jefferson Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.5 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1970.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.