Mount Holly Township dates to 1688, and 30% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 97% of U.S. towns · #21 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
3 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Burlington County Prison, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district with 39 buildings. Below: 13 old photos and papers, maps from 1981 on, and the census since 1800.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1800.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Mount Holly Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Mount Holly Township is more historic than 97% of U.S. towns, #21 of 468 in New Jersey. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Mount Holly 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 Mount Holly Township’s 39.8 sits above most of its state (79% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 40 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1688.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.6 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 Mount Holly Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first European settlement in what is now Mount Holly began in 1677 when Walter Reeves colonized the land from the Lenape (Delaware) Native Americans living in the area. He constructed a dam on Rancocas Creek to channel water through a raceway to power a gristmill and sawmill. Edward Gaskill and his sons dug the mill race on their property between 1720 and 1723. After the mills were established, more settlers were attracted to the area and built houses and commercial buildings on High, Church, White, Mill, and Pine streets, including the Shinn Curtis Log House (1712). By 1800, over 250 dwellings had been built.
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.
The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Mount Holly Township.
1981Mount Holly sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Mount Holly Township.
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.
Retake this viewFriends Meeting House, 1896
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Mount Holly Township’s page.
In 1688, according to Wikidata. Mount Holly Township’s post office opened in 1800, and the census of 1800 counted 3,559 people here.
How does Mount Holly Township rank for history?
Mount Holly Township is more historic than 97% of U.S. towns, #21 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 Mount Holly Township?
Three places: the Burlington County Prison (listed 1986), the Mount Holly Historic District (1973) and the Old Schoolhouse (2008).
How old are the homes in Mount Holly Township?
30% of Mount Holly Township’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 1956.
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 the Library of Congress (15), Wikidata (3), 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) 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.
★ Landmark
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2017
2017
