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C+History
History · Neptune City

Neptune City dates to 1881, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 40% of U.S. towns · #354 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1900.

1881founded
0on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
15famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY 4.0
Quick answers

How Neptune City began

When was Neptune City founded?

1881

Neptune City dates its founding to 1881 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1900.

First census: 1,009 in 19002020 census: 4,626145 years

How historic is Neptune City?

C+

More historic than 40% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata.
History grade

What drives Neptune City’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Neptune City is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #354 of 468 in New Jersey. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Neptune City’s overall grade.
Founding era1881, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194023.6% of homes (±8.8) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%A−National RegisterNo listings counted · typical NJ town 3.7 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 40%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 24%

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 Neptune City’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (12% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.8 points). Two sources give 1881.

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 Neptune City’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 1900 and 1910, then grew 9-fold.On the map since 18888 editions of the USGS map, 1888 to 1995. Watch Neptune City change.Famous sons and daughtersJack Nicholson, Ajeé Wilson and 13 more were born here.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Neptune City’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Neptune City’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

Neptune City, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,00019001920194019601980200020201,009 in 1900Low: 488

Lost half of its people between 1900 and 1910, then grew 9-fold.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

On the map

Neptune City on the map, 1888 to 1995

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

Neptune City on the 1888 USGS mapNeptune City on the 1893 USGS mapNeptune City on the 1901 USGS mapNeptune City on the 1943 USGS mapNeptune City on the 1954 USGS mapNeptune City on the 1970 USGS mapNeptune City on the 1981 USGS mapNeptune City on the 1995 USGS map1888Asbury Park 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 Neptune City.

The story so far

Neptune City, in brief

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

Neptune City is a borough in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 4,626, a decrease of 244 (−5.0%) from the 2010 census count of 4,869, which in turn reflected a decline of 349 (−6.7%) from the 5,218 counted in the 2000 census. The Borough of Neptune City was incorporated on October 4, 1881, based on a referendum held on March 19, 1881. The boundaries included all of present-day Neptune City, along with what is now Avon-by-the-Sea and the southern portion of Bradley Beach. On March 23, 1900, a bill approved in the New Jersey Legislature created the Borough of Avon-by-the-Sea. On March 13, 1907, the eastern portio…

Neptune City was established in 1881. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 4,869 to 4,626 (-5%).

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

Timeline

Neptune City, 1881 to 1994

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1881
    FoundingNeptune City is established
  3. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  4. 20th century
  5. 1937Born hereJack Nicholson is born here
  6. 1948Born hereKate Bornstein is born here
  7. 1970CensusPopulation peaks at 5,502
  8. 1972Born hereAlex Skuby is born here
  9. 1994Born hereAjeé Wilson is born here
By decade

Neptune City, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
Census Bureau map of Neptune City, New JerseyDate?Census Bureau map of Neptune City, New JerseyMap
Today8 recent
Industrial Photo Service, circa 1950s - Postcard2025Industrial Photo Service, circa 1950s - PostcardPostcardWilson School, Neptune City, NJ, Dec. 20242024Wilson School, Neptune City, NJ, Dec. 2024New Bethel Church, Neptune City, NJ, Dec. 20242024New Bethel Church, Neptune City, NJ, Dec. 2024Neptune City, NJ municipal building, Dec. 20242024Neptune City, NJ municipal building, Dec. 2024Neptune City, NJ 9-11 memorial, Dec. 20242024Neptune City, NJ 9-11 memorial, Dec. 2024Musquash Brook downtream from East End Avenue, Dec. 20242024Musquash Brook downtream from East End Avenue, Dec. 2…Memorial Park, Neptune City, NJ, Dec. 20242024Memorial Park, Neptune City, NJ, Dec. 2024Byock Schumin headstone -032013Byock Schumin headstone -03
Famous people

15 famous people were born in Neptune City

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

See all →
Jack NicholsonAmerican actor and filmmaker · b. 1937
Ajeé WilsonAmerican middle-distance runner · b. 1994
Kate BornsteinAmerican author, playwright, performance artist… · b. 1948
A
Alex SkubyAmerican actor · b. 1972
L
Lando VannataAmerican mixed martial arts fighter · b. 1992
Karl RobersonAmerican kickboxer and mixed martial arts (MMA)… · b. 1990
Places that used to be

Places now gone

Gone or out of use
Roosevelt Schoolschool

Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Neptune Township1 historic placeA−Shark River HillsIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townAvon-by-the-SeaIts storyB−

Questions about Neptune City’s history

What year was Neptune City founded?

In 1881, according to Wikidata. the census of 1900 counted 1,009 people here.

How does Neptune City rank for history?

Neptune City is more historic than 40% of U.S. towns, #354 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.

How old are the homes in Neptune City?

24% of Neptune City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.8 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1959.

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 (9), Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.