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James and Ann Whitall House, Red Bank Battlefield, National Park, NJPhoto: Zeete · CC BY-SA 4.0
AHistory
History · National Park

National Park dates to 1621, and 40% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 90% of U.S. towns · #59 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

2 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Red Bank Battlefield, a National Historic Landmark. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1891 on, and the census since 1910.

1621founded
2on the National Register
40%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From National Park’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How National Park began

When was National Park founded?

1621

National Park dates its founding to 1621 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 325 in 19102020 census: 3,026405 years

How historic is National Park?

A

More historic than 90% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1898.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives National Park’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, National Park is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns, #59 of 468 in New Jersey. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.

A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of National Park’s overall grade.
Founding eraThe records don’t settle when National Park was founded, so age is left out of this grade–Homes built before 194040.4% of homes (±7.7) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register2 listings, 6.6 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 90%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 88%

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 National Park’s 6.6 sits near the middle of its state (62% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1621.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.7 points).

Founding year: Wikipedia (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 National Park’s past

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

Older than the countryEstablished in 1621, 155 years before the Declaration of Independence.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 18917 editions of the USGS map, 1891 to 1995. Watch National Park change.A National Historic Landmark2 places on the National Register, including Red Bank Battlefield, a National Historic Landmark.
★ What stands out · Timeline

National Park, 1621 to 1972

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

  1. 17th century
  2. 1621
    FoundingNational Park is established
  3. 18th century
  4. 1766BuiltJames Whitall Jr. House is built
  5. 19th century
  6. 1850In the archive1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Gloucester County - ED 8-29,…
  7. 1891On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1898Post officeThe National Park post office opens
  9. 20th century
  10. 1923Born hereEleanor Vadala is born here
  11. 1972LandmarkRed Bank Battlefield named a National Historic Landmark
Help out

Start National Park’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how National Park’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 photo3 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District Descri…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

National Park on the map, 1891 to 1995

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

National Park on the 1891 USGS mapNational Park on the 1920 USGS mapNational Park on the 1949 USGS mapNational Park on the 1951 USGS mapNational Park on the 1967 USGS mapNational Park on the 1986 USGS mapNational Park on the 1995 USGS map1891Philadelphia 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 National Park.

The story

How National Park came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of National Park.

Read it all →

The community was historically known as Red Bank, for the color of the soil. It was established c. 1621–1622 by the Whitall family and others. The county court met here in 1686.

In 1777, during the American Revolutionary War, the Continental Army under command of George Washington constructed two forts on the Delaware River to block the approach to Philadelphia: Fort Mifflin on the Pennsylvania side and Fort Mercer on the New Jersey side. The fort was named in honor of Brigadier General Hugh Mercer, who died earlier that year in the Battle of Princeton. A park, monument, and museum commemorate Fort Mifflin on its original site.

ChaptersAmerican Revolutionary War19th century20th century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

National Park, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1850s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1850s1 item
1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Gloucester County - ED 8-29, ED 8-30, ED 8-31, ED 8-32, ED…18501940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New J…
Date unknown3 to date
Census Bureau map ofDate?Census Bureau map ofMapJames Whitall Jr. HouseDate?James Whitall Jr. HouseWhitall House, Delaware River & Hessian AvenueDate?Whitall House, Delaware River & Hessian Avenue
Today5 recent
National Park, NJ post office, July 20262026National Park, NJ post office, July 2026National Park, NJ Municipal Offices, July 20262026National Park, NJ Municipal Offices, July 2026National Park, NJ Elementary School, July 20262026National Park, NJ Elementary School, July 2026National Park, NJ municipal complex, May 20222022National Park, NJ municipal complex, May 2022Map of Gloucester County highlighting National Park Borough2004Map of Gloucester County highlighting National Park B…Map
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.

1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Gloucester County - ED 8-29, ED 8-30, ED 8-31, ED 8-32, ED…
Retake this view1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - New Jersey - Gloucester County - ED 8-29, ED 8-30, ED 8-31, ED 8-32, ED…, 1850

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 historic places in National Park

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmark
1
Red Bank Battlefield
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1972
Red Bank Battlefield
James Whitall Jr. House, built 1766Red Bank Battlefield★
BuildingsSites★ landmark
★ Landmark
Red Bank BattlefieldSite
James Whitall Jr. HouseBuilt 1766

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

People over time

National Park, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,000192019401960198020002020Peak: 3,730

Between 325 and 3,730 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

West Deptford Township2 historic placesCThorofareIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about National Park’s history

What year was National Park founded?

In 1621, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. National Park’s post office opened in 1898, and the census of 1910 counted 325 people here.

How does National Park rank for history?

National Park is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns, #59 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 National Park?

Two places: the Red Bank Battlefield (listed 1972) and the James Whitall Jr. House (1973).

How old are the homes in National Park?

40% of National Park’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.7 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1953.

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 (7), the Library of Congress (2), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.