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CHistory
History · Mount Olive Township

Mount Olive Township dates to 1871, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 35% of U.S. towns · #381 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

Most of Mount Olive Township was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1880.

1871founded
2on the National Register
5%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Mount Olive Township began

When was Mount Olive Township founded?

1871

Mount Olive Township dates its founding to 1871 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 1,982 in 18802020 census: 28,886155 years

How historic is Mount Olive Township?

C

More historic than 35% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1822.
History grade

What drives Mount Olive Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Mount Olive Township is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns, #381 of 468 in New Jersey. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Mount Olive Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1871, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19405.3% of homes (±1.4) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register2 listings, 4 historic buildings, 1.4 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 35%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 19%

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 Olive Township’s 1.4 sits near the middle of its state (37% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 4 historic buildings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to C+. The pre-1940 share (±1.4 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1871.

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 Olive Township’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 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost half of its people between 1880 and 1920, then grew more than tenfold.Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Mount Olive Township, and 5 old place names are still on the map.On the map since 18887 editions of the USGS map, 1888 to 1981. Watch Mount Olive Township change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Mount Olive Township’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Mount Olive Township’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Mount Olive Township, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,000188019001920194019601980200020201,982 in 1880Low: 1,008

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

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Places that used to be

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

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

Flanders
1822–today
Budd Lake
1856–today
Mount Olive
1872–1916
Bartleyville
1874–1886
Bartley
1886–1954
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BartleyBudd LakeFlandersMount OliveSutton Park
Gone or out of use
Fla-Net Airportairport
1cemetery inside Mount Olive Township
Stanhope Union

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

The story so far

Mount Olive Township, in brief

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

Mount Olive Township is a township in western Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 28,886, its highest decennial census count ever and an increase of 769 (+2.7%) from the 2010 census count of 28,117, which in turn reflected an increase of 3,924 (+16.2%) from the 24,193 counted in the 2000 census. The Township of Mount Olive was formed by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 22, 1871, from portions of Roxbury Township. Netcong was formed from portions of the township on October 23, 1894. The township was named for Benjamin Olive, a colonial-era Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey who donated land for the sit…

Mount Olive Township was established in 1871. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 28,117 to 28,886 (+3%).

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

Timeline

Mount Olive Township, 1822 to 2020

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1822Post officeThe Flanders post office opens
  3. 1846Born hereJoshua S. Salmon is born here
  4. 1850Born hereDaniel Elmer Salmon is born here
  5. 1856Post officeThe Budd Lake post office opens
  6. 1871
    FoundingMount Olive Township is established
  7. 1872Post officeThe Mount Olive post office opens
  8. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 20th century
  10. 1916Post officeThe Mount Olive post office closes
  11. 21st century
  12. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 28,886
By decade

Mount Olive Township, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
Census Bureau map of Mount Olive Township, New JerseyDate?Census Bureau map of Mount Olive Township, New JerseyMap
Today9 recent
Township of Mount Olive, NJ Municipal Complex, Jan. 20262026Township of Mount Olive, NJ Municipal Complex, Jan. 2…Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easter in Mount Olive, NJ 062026Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easte…Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easter in Mount Olive, NJ 052026Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easte…Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easter in Mount Olive, NJ 042026Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easte…Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easter in Mount Olive, NJ 032026Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easte…Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easter in Mount Olive, NJ 022026Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easte…Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easter in Mount Olive, NJ 012026Early snowfall as part of the February 2026 Nor'easte…Canada wildfire smoke on June 7, 2023, on Pleasant Hill Road in Flanders, NJ2023Canada wildfire smoke on June 7, 2023, on Pleasant Hi…Mount Olive Township, Morris County, New Jersey2007Mount Olive Township, Morris County, New Jersey
On the map

Mount Olive Township on the map, 1888 to 1981

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

Mount Olive Township on the 1888 USGS mapMount Olive Township on the 1894 USGS mapMount Olive Township on the 1905 USGS mapMount Olive Township on the 1943 USGS mapMount Olive Township on the 1954 USGS mapMount Olive Township on the 1970 USGS mapMount Olive Township on the 1981 USGS map1888Lake Hopatcong 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 Mount Olive Township.

On the National Register

2 historic places in Mount Olive Township

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

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
4
each building in a district counts
first listed
2013
Seward House
Seward HouseMount Olive Village Historic District
BuildingsDistricts
Seward HouseBuilding
Mount Olive Village Historic DistrictDistrict

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Mount Olive Township

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

See all →
Daniel Elmer SalmonAmerican veterinarian · b. 1850
Joshua S. SalmonAmerican politician · b. 1846
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Byram Township1 historic placeA−Hackettstown3 historic placesA−Allamuchy Township1 historic placeB−Washington Township13 historic placesA−Stanhope1 historic placeB+Byram CenterIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townNetcong2 historic placesB+FlandersIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townRoxbury Township8 historic placesASuccasunnaIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Mount Olive Township’s history

What year was Mount Olive Township founded?

In 1871, according to Wikidata. Mount Olive Township’s post office opened in 1822, and the census of 1880 counted 1,982 people here.

How does Mount Olive Township rank for history?

Mount Olive Township is more historic than 35% of U.S. towns, #381 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 Olive Township?

Two places: the Seward House (listed 2013) and the Mount Olive Village Historic District (2015).

How old are the homes in Mount Olive Township?

5% of Mount Olive Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.4 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1978.

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 (10), Wikidata (3), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.