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B+History
History · Netcong

Netcong’s post office opened in 1889, and 29% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 67% of U.S. towns · #201 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Palace Theatre and the Church in the Glen, The. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1900.

1889first post office
2on the National Register
29%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Netcong’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Netcong began

When was Netcong founded?

1889

The Netcong post office opened in 1889, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1894.

First census: 941 in 19002020 census: 3,375137 years

How historic is Netcong?

B+

More historic than 67% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

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

What drives Netcong’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Netcong is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #201 of 468 in New Jersey. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Netcong’s overall grade.
Founding era1889, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194029.4% of homes (±11.7) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register2 listings, 5.5 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 67%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 57%

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 Netcong’s 5.5 sits near the middle of its state (58% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±11.7 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 Netcong’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.On the map since 18888 editions of the USGS map, 1888 to 1995. Watch Netcong change.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1896 to 1920, drew every building in Netcong.Old housesHalf of Netcong’s homes were built before 1954.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Netcong’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old view54149.BB#001--Land to be leased to Thom…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Netcong on the map, 1888 to 1995

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

Netcong on the 1888 USGS mapNetcong on the 1894 USGS mapNetcong on the 1905 USGS mapNetcong on the 1943 USGS mapNetcong on the 1954 USGS mapNetcong on the 1970 USGS mapNetcong on the 1981 USGS mapNetcong on the 1995 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 Netcong.

Every building

Netcong, building by building, 1896–1920

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 year, then a sheet.

Netcong fire insurance map, 1896, sheet 11896Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

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

The story

How Netcong came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Netcong.

Read it all →

Netcong received its name from the Musconetcong River, named by the Lenape Native Americans and meaning "grass creek", "swamp stream", "rapid stream" or "clear stream place". Along with the river, the proximity of the old Morris and Sussex Turnpike, which passed through the region shortly after 1801, and the coming of the Morris Canal, in 1831, made the site a favorable one for development.

After becoming a borough, the residents had to elect the first governing body. The first mayor was Abraham J. Drake, elected November 14, 1894. A census of Netcong taken July 1895 showed a population of 877 people.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Netcong in 1914

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

Budd Lake and south of and adjoining the Large tract. The Morris and Essex railroad traverses the northern border of the township ; the High Bridge branch of the Central Railroad of New Jersey crosses the southern part. The borough of Netcong is situated on the Morris and Essex; Flanders, Drakestow…
A history of Morris County, New Jersey1914 · page 191Read the page →
Read the text

Budd Lake and south of and adjoining the Large tract. The Morris and Essex railroad traverses the northern border of the township ; the High Bridge branch of the Central Railroad of New Jersey crosses the southern part. The borough of Netcong is situated on the Morris and Essex; Flanders, Drakestown and Bartley on the High Bridge branch. Samuel Heaton and three brothers came to Mount Olive before 1753 from Wrentham, Massachusetts, to establish iron works. The mountain range is rich in iron ore, and the ore has been worked at intervals ever

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

Netcong, 1888 to 1930

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  3. 1889Post officeThe Netcong post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1907Born hereHugh Allen Meade is born here
  6. 1915In the archive54149.BB#001--Land to be leased to Thomas Allen--Netcong, NJ [1915.07.26]
  7. 1920BuiltChurch in the Glen, The is built
  8. 1930Born hereJohn Giannantonio is born here
By decade

Netcong, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1910s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s1 item
54149.BB#001--Land to be leased to Thomas Allen--Netcong, NJ [1915.07.26]191554149.BB#001--Land to be leased to Thomas Allen--Netc…
1920s–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
Today10 recent
Palace Theatre, Netcong, NJ, March 20252025Palace Theatre, Netcong, NJ, March 2025Netcong, NJ post office, March 20252025Netcong, NJ post office, March 2025Netcong, NJ Municipal Building, March 20252025Netcong, NJ Municipal Building, March 2025Netcong, NJ Main Street welcome sign, March 20252025Netcong, NJ Main Street welcome sign, March 2025Netcong, NJ Fire Company, March 20252025Netcong, NJ Fire Company, March 20252022-09-09 17 19 34 UTC minus 4 Aerial view of Netcong (lower left), Stanhope (left), Hopatcong (upper left), Mount Arl…20222022-09-09 17 19 34 UTC minus 4 Aerial view of Netcon…Comune di Cesa (Caserta), Pannello gemellaggi con Borough Netcong (Usa) e San Cesario di Lecce2020Comune di Cesa (Caserta), Pannello gemellaggi con Bor…Pact of Sister Cities between Cesa in honor of St. Cesario, Netcong July 20 ,20192019Pact of Sister Cities between Cesa in honor of St. Ce…Netcong, il Vescovo Arthur Joseph Serratelli benedice la nuova icona di S. Cesario2017Netcong, il Vescovo Arthur Joseph Serratelli benedice…Netcong, Morris County, New Jersey2007Netcong, Morris County, New Jersey
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.

54149.BB#001--Land to be leased to Thomas Allen--Netcong, NJ [1915.07.26]
Retake this view54149.BB#001--Land to be leased to Thomas Allen--Netcong, NJ [1915.07.26], 1915

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

2 historic places in Netcong

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

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
each building in a district counts
first listed
1996
Palace Theatre
Palace TheatreChurch in the Glen, The, built 1920
Buildings
Palace TheatreBuilding
Church in the Glen, TheBuilt 1920

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

People over time

Netcong, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 3,557

Between 941 and 3,557 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Netcong

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

See all →
H
Hugh Allen MeadeAmerican politician · b. 1907
J
John GiannantonioAmerican football player · b. 1930
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Stanhope1 historic placeB+Mount Olive Township2 historic placesCRoxbury Township8 historic placesAPort MorrisIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Netcong’s history

What year was Netcong founded?

The Netcong post office opened in 1889, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1894.

How does Netcong rank for history?

Netcong is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #201 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 Netcong?

Two places: the Palace Theatre (listed 1996) and the Church in the Glen, The (2013).

How old are the homes in Netcong?

29% of Netcong’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±11.7 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1954.

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 (11), Wikidata (1), 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), 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.