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C+History
History · Little Ferry

Little Ferry’s post office opened in 1873, and 14% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 43% of U.S. towns · #347 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Gethsemane Cemetery. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1880.

1873first post office
1on the National Register
14%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Little Ferry’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Little Ferry began

When was Little Ferry founded?

1873

The Little Ferry post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1894.

First census: 58 in 18802020 census: 10,987153 years

How historic is Little Ferry?

C+

More historic than 43% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Little Ferry post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1894.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Little Ferry’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Little Ferry is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #347 of 468 in New Jersey. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Little Ferry’s overall grade.
Founding era1873, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194014.3% of homes (±4.6) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register1 listing, 0.9 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 43%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 26%

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 Little Ferry’s 0.9 sits below most of its state (31% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1894 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.

Founding year: the first post office (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 Little Ferry’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18888 editions of the USGS map, 1888 to 1995. Watch Little Ferry change.Old housesHalf of Little Ferry’s homes were built before 1964.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Little Ferry’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Little Ferry’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old view361 Main Street following the Fox vault…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Little Ferry on the map, 1888 to 1995

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

Little Ferry on the 1888 USGS mapLittle Ferry on the 1892 USGS mapLittle Ferry on the 1900 USGS mapLittle Ferry on the 1935 USGS mapLittle Ferry on the 1955 USGS mapLittle Ferry on the 1967 USGS mapLittle Ferry on the 1981 USGS mapLittle Ferry on the 1995 USGS map1888Paterson 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 Little Ferry.

The story

How Little Ferry came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Little Ferry.

Read it all →

Little Ferry was formed by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on September 18, 1894, from portions of Lodi Township and New Barbadoes Township, based on the results of a referendum held two days earlier. The borough was formed during the "Boroughitis" phenomenon then sweeping through Bergen County, in which 26 boroughs were formed in the county in 1894 alone.

During the colonial era, the borough was the site of an important ferry crossing between the region's towns at Bergen and Hackensack, which was operated by rope on the site starting in 1659, continuing until 1826 when it was replaced by a bridge on the Bergen Turnpike.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Little Ferry in 1900

Passages that mention Little Ferry, cut from the printed page as they were published.

The village of Little Ferry occupies the northeastern portion of the old township of Lodi. It has always been an isolated part of that township, aside from its legislative restrictions and naturally sought independence through the formation of a borough. Brickmaking is the only industry and the fac…
History of Bergen county, New Jersey1900 · page 359Read the page →
Read the text

The village of Little Ferry occupies the northeastern portion of the old township of Lodi. It has always been an isolated part of that township, aside from its legislative restrictions and naturally sought independence through the formation of a borough. Brickmaking is the only industry and the facilities for the shipping of this product by water are excellent. The borough has a population of about fifteen hundred people. Its official vote for November 1898 was one hundred and fifty.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
1641 he had a plantation, purchased of the Indians, extending from Achter Kull, or Newark Bay, far up the valley of the Hackensack. It is said that he selected for his town site the beautiful situation on the Hackensack now known as Little Ferry, and that, in consequence of the introduction of stro…
History of Bergen county, New Jersey1900 · page 28Read the page →
Read the text

1641 he had a plantation, purchased of the Indians, extending from Achter Kull, or Newark Bay, far up the valley of the Hackensack. It is said that he selected for his town site the beautiful situation on the Hackensack now known as Little Ferry, and that, in consequence of the introduction of strong drink among the Indians, he and his settlement were doomed to destruction. The house of Van der Horst was burned on the night of September 17, 1643, and his plantation made desolate. This story is not wholly traditional ; there are enough historical facts to war-

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

Little Ferry, 1873 to 1964

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1873Post officeThe Little Ferry post office opens
  3. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 20th century
  5. 1922Born hereMargherita Marchione is born here
  6. 1937In the archive361 Main Street following the Fox vault fire
  7. 1964Born herePete Michels is born here
By decade

Little Ferry, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s3 items
361 Main Street following the Fox vault fire1937361 Main Street following the Fox vault fireDiagram of the 1937 Fox vault fire1937Diagram of the 1937 Fox vault fireLittle Ferry facility after fire1937Little Ferry facility after fire
1940s–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
Date unknown1 to date
Little Ferry, N.J., Nov. 20, 2012 -- When Hurricane Sandy roared through Bergen County, Oct. 29, 2012, she damaged many…Date?Little Ferry, N.J., Nov. 20, 2012 -- When Hurricane S…
Today4 recent
New cookie cutter housing stock, Little Ferry, NJ, Jan. 20252025New cookie cutter housing stock, Little Ferry, NJ, Ja…Little Ferry, NJ library, Oct. 20242024Little Ferry, NJ library, Oct. 2024Little Ferry, NJ borough hall, Oct. 20242024Little Ferry, NJ borough hall, Oct. 2024Census Bureau map of2008Census Bureau map ofMap
Every building

Little Ferry, building by building, 1925

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 sheet.

Little Ferry fire insurance map, 1925, sheet 11925Sheet 1 of 7
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

361 Main Street following the Fox vault fire
Retake this view361 Main Street following the Fox vault fire, 1937

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Little Ferry’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Little Ferry

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1994
Gethsemane Cemetery
Gethsemane Cemetery
Sites
Gethsemane CemeterySite

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

People over time

Little Ferry, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,0001880190019201940196019802000202010,987

Grew from 58 people in 1880 to 10,987 in 2020, more than tenfold.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Little Ferry

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
P
Pete MichelsAnimation director · b. 1964
M
Margherita MarchioneAmerican Roman Catholic nun, teacher and writer · b. 1922
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

MoonachieIts storyDSouth Hackensack TownshipIts storyC−Ridgefield1 historic placeBRidgefield Park1 historic placeA

Questions about Little Ferry’s history

What year was Little Ferry founded?

The Little Ferry post office opened in 1873, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1894.

How does Little Ferry rank for history?

Little Ferry is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #347 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 Little Ferry?

One place: the Gethsemane Cemetery (listed 1994).

How old are the homes in Little Ferry?

14% of Little Ferry’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.6 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1964.

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 (8), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.