Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1883.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives North Wildwood’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, North Wildwood is more historic than 54% of U.S. towns, #284 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 North Wildwood’s overall grade.
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 North Wildwood’s 5.6 sits near the middle of its state (59% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1885.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.7 points).
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 North Wildwood’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
What is now North Wildwood City was originally incorporated as the borough of Anglesea on June 13, 1885, from portions of Middle Township, based on the results of a referendum held 11 days earlier. The borough was reincorporated on March 6, 1896, and again on May 4, 1897. On May 16, 1906, the Borough of North Wildwood was incorporated, replacing Anglesea Borough.
Legislation passed in April 1908 established a potential consolidation of North Wildwood and Holly Beach City into Wildwood, subject to approval of referendums in each of the three municipalities, though this merger never took effect.
In 1885, according to Wikidata. North Wildwood’s post office opened in 1883, and the census of 1890 counted 161 people here.
How does North Wildwood rank for history?
North Wildwood is more historic than 54% of U.S. towns, #284 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 North Wildwood?
Two places: the Hereford Lighthouse (listed 1977) and the Chateau Bleu Motel (2004).
How old are the homes in North Wildwood?
15% of North Wildwood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.7 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1973.
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 (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.
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