History · Newark

Newark dates to 1666, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 98% of U.S. towns · #18 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

73 places in town are on the National Register, among them 2 National Historic Landmarks and nine historic districts with 2,475 buildings between them. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1892 on, and the census since 1810.

1666founded

73on the National Register

24%homes built before 1940

2old photos & papers

36famous people

Add an old photo Share a memory

From Newark’s archive · credits on each photo

Quick answers

How Newark began

When was Newark founded?

1666

Newark dates its founding to 1666 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1810.

First census: 8,008 in 18102020 census: 311,549360 years

How historic is Newark?

A⁺

More historic than 98% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓

Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1776.The full story ↓

History grade

What drives Newark’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Newark is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns, #18 of 468 in New Jersey. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.

A⁺

HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Newark’s overall grade.

Founding era1666, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA⁺Homes built before 194023.7% of homes (±1.2) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%A⁻National Register73 listings, 2,562 historic buildings, 82.6 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4A

All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 98%

NewerOlder

New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 96%

Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Newark ranks #29 on History.

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 Newark’s 82.6 sits above most of its state (84% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 2,562 historic buildings outnumber those of 100% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share (±1.2 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1666.

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 Newark’s past

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

A National Historic Landmark73 places on the National Register, 2 of them National Historic Landmarks.A historic districtThe Forest Hill Historic District takes in 948 historic buildings.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Older than the countryEstablished in 1666, 110 years before the Declaration of Independence.

★ What stands out · On the National Register

73 listings protect 2,562 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. 2 are National Historic Landmarks, the highest tier. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.

places listed

National Historic Landmarks

Grace Church

historic buildings protected

2,562

each building in a district counts

first listed

1970

Sydenham House

BuildingsDistrictsSitesObjects★ landmark

★ Landmark

Grace ChurchBuilding

★ Landmark

John Ballantine HouseBuilding

Sydenham HouseBuilding

Pan American C.M.A. ChurchBuilding

North Reformed ChurchBuilding

St. Barnabas' Episcopal ChurchBuilding

St. James' A. M. E. ChurchBuilding

Catedral Evangelica ReformadaBuilding

All 75 listings

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

Help out

Start Newark’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

Retake an old viewFire mark for American Insurance Compan…: stand where they stood+15 Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

The story

How Newark came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Newark.

Read it all →

Newark was settled in 1666 by Connecticut Puritans led by Robert Treat from the New Haven Colony. It was conceived as a theocratic assembly of the faithful, though this did not last for long as new settlers came with different ideas. On October 31, 1693, it was organized as a New Jersey township based on the Newark Tract, which was first purchased on July 11, 1667. Newark was granted a royal charter on April 27, 1713. It was incorporated on February 21, 1798, by the New Jersey Legislature's Township Act of 1798, as one of New Jersey's initial group of 104 townships. During its time as a township, portions were taken to form Springfield Township (April 14, 1794), Caldwell Township (February 16, 1798; now known as Fairfield Township), Orange Township (November 27, 1806), Bloomfield Township (March 23, 1812) and Clinton Township (April 14, 1834, remainder reabsorbed by Newark on March 5, 1…

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Newark, 1878–1913

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

In 1885 Newark's summer schools, the first in the United States, were started. In 1912 Newark ranked fifth in evening school attendance in the United States. Newark had kindergarten classes in its German-English schools as early as 1861. (See the chapters on the Germans in Newark for other facts ab… — **A history of the city of Newark, New Jersey**1913 · page 753Read the page →
Read the text
In 1885 Newark's summer schools, the first in the United States, were started. In 1912 Newark ranked fifth in evening school attendance in the United States. Newark had kindergarten classes in its German-English schools as early as 1861. (See the chapters on the Germans in Newark for other facts about the schools of Newark.) Newark was one of the first American cities to supply free text-books.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

The nearest settlement of any size was New York — a Dutch settlement, and beyond the reach of the town of Newark, except by water — though prejudice and nationality precluded the thought of assistance. Elizabethtown, settled one year before Newark, the only English settlement west of the Hudson Riv… — **A history of the city of Newark, New Jersey**1913 · page 1037Read the page →
Read the text
The nearest settlement of any size was New York — a Dutch settlement, and beyond the reach of the town of Newark, except by water — though prejudice and nationality precluded the thought of assistance. Elizabethtown, settled one year before Newark, the only English settlement west of the Hudson River, had but little to offer, and the small villages scattered from Bergen Point up the Passaic valley and the lower Hackensack were all the settlements from which help could have been obtained. But there is no record that they did so, nor, in fact, that there was any help except their
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

" Whereas, in the original deed of sale made by the Indians to the inhabitants of the town of Newark, bearing date the eleventh day of July, 1667, it is said, to the foot of the Great Mountain, called Watchung, alias Atchunk, wee, Winocksop and Shenocktor, Indians and owners of the said Great Mount… — **The history of Newark, New Jersey**1878 · page 15Read the page →
Read the text
" Whereas, in the original deed of sale made by the Indians to the inhabitants of the town of Newark, bearing date the eleventh day of July, 1667, it is said, to the foot of the Great Mountain, called Watchung, alias Atchunk, wee, Winocksop and Shenocktor, Indians and owners of the said Great Mountaine, for and in consideration of two Guns, three Coates, and thirteen horns of Rum, to us in hand paid, the receipt whereof wee doo hereby acknowledge, doo covenant and declare to and with John Ward and Mr. Thomas Johnson, Justices of the peace of the said town of Newark, before the Right Hon'ble Philip Carteret, Esq., Governor of the Province of New Jersey, and the other witnesses here under-written, that it is meane,
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

town," (which dates its regular settlement some twenty months prior to that of Newark,) is a matter fairly open to question. The one fact established is that a meeting was held somewhere at or near Newark on the date given by the first settlers, and that gives reasonable cause to put faith in the t… — **The history of Newark, New Jersey**1878 · page 8Read the page →
Read the text
town," (which dates its regular settlement some twenty months prior to that of Newark,) is a matter fairly open to question. The one fact established is that a meeting was held somewhere at or near Newark on the date given by the first settlers, and that gives reasonable cause to put faith in the tradition that Newark, so to speak, was probably born on or about the 17th.
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

Newark, 1666 to 1987

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

17th century
1666
FoundingNewark is established
18th century
1776Post officeThe Newark post office opens
19th century
1808BuiltSymington House is built
1846BuiltSt. Patrick's Pro Cathedral is built
1846In the archiveFire mark for American Insurance Company in
1853In the archiveNewark, N.J. from the residence of T.V. Johnson, Esqr
1874Post officeThe Vailsburg post office opens
20th century
1902Post officeThe Vailsburg post office closes
1925BuiltSalaam Temple is built
1926Born hereAllen Ginsberg is born here
1926Born hereJerry Lewis is born here
1930CensusPopulation peaks at 442,337
1933Born herePhilip Roth is born here
1947On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
1954BuiltCathedral of the Sacred Heart is built
1963Born hereWhitney Houston is born here
1985LandmarkJohn Ballantine House named a National Historic Landmark
1987LandmarkGrace Church named a National Historic Landmark

By decade

Newark, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1840s to the 1850s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1840s–1850s2 items

1846Fire mark for American Insurance Company in

1853Newark, N.J. from the residence of T.V. Johnson, Esqr

On the map

Newark on the map, 1947 to 1995

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

1947Elizabeth 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 Newark.

Every building

Newark, building by building, 1892–1909

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.

Newark fire insurance map, 1892, sheet 2

1892Sheet 2 of 78

Edition

Sheets

+77 more at the Library of Congress

BrickWoodStone

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

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 viewFire mark for American Insurance Company in, 1846

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

Retake this view · +15

People over time

Newark, census by census

Peaked at 442,337 in 1930; 311,549 people lived here in 2020.

22 censuses, 1810–2020.

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

Famous people

36 famous people were born in Newark

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

See all →

Whitney HoustonAmerican singer, actress, and film producer · b. 1963

Allen GinsbergAmerican poet and writer · b. 1926

Philip RothAmerican novelist · b. 1933

Jerry LewisAmerican comedian, actor and film director · b. 1926

Shaquille O'NealAmerican basketball player · b. 1972

Paul AusterAmerican novelist, poet, essayist, screenwriter · b. 1947

Places that used to be

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

Newark’s post office has been open since 1776. Another post office, Vailsburg, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Newark

1776–today

Vailsburg

1874–1902

17701900today

Hamlets and corners on the map

Christopher Columbus HomesOak Island JunctionRoseville

Gone or out of use

Blessed Sacrament SchoolschoolNewark Army Air FieldmilitaryNewark DockairportNewark Orphan AsylumbuildingOur Lady of Good Counsel High SchoolschoolPhilemon ChurchchurchRuppert StadiumparkUnited Hospitals Medical Centerhospital

10cemeteries and burying grounds inside Newark

B'nai IsraelBeth ElEvergreenFairmountGomel ChesedHebrewHoly SepulchreMount OlivetMount PleasantWoodland

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). 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.

Irvington TownshipIts storyC⁺Belleville Township1 historic placeA⁻Silver LakeIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town Elizabeth10 historic placesA⁺South Orange Village Township8 historic placesA⁺Kearny3 historic placesB⁺Maplewood Township4 historic placesA⁻East Orange6 historic placesB⁺Harrison1 historic placeB⁺Ampere NorthIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Newark’s history

What year was Newark founded?

In 1666, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Newark’s post office opened in 1776, and the census of 1810 counted 8,008 people here.

How does Newark rank for history?

Newark is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns, #18 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 Newark?

73 listings, 2 of them National Historic Landmarks: 62 buildings, among them the Grace Church (a National Historic Landmark since 1987) and the Sydenham House (listed 1970, the first), 9 historic districts with 2,475 contributing buildings, 1 site, and 3 objects. 2,562 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Newark?

24% of Newark’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.2 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1966.

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 (2), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (75), 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.

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