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B+History
History · Pennington

Pennington was first counted by the census in 1880, and 37% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 73% of U.S. towns · #162 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Pennington Railroad Station and the First Presbyterian Church of Pennington. Below: maps from 1890 on and the census since 1880.

1880first census
2on the National Register
37%homes built before 1940
6famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Pennington began

When was Pennington founded?

1880

Pennington first appears in the census in 1880.

First census: 723 in 18802020 census: 2,802146 years

How historic is Pennington?

B+

More historic than 73% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first census.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Pennington’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pennington is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns, #162 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 Pennington’s overall grade.
Founding era1880, from the first census: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194036.5% of homes (±5.7) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register2 listings, 7.1 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 73%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 66%

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 Pennington’s 7.1 sits near the middle of its state (64% 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 (±5.7 points).

Founding year: the first census (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 Pennington’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Pennington are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1890 to 1911, drew every building in Pennington.Old housesHalf of Pennington’s homes were built before 1953.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Pennington’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Every building

Pennington, building by building, 1890–1911

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.

Pennington fire insurance map, 1890, sheet 11890Sheet 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 Pennington came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Pennington.

Read it all →

According to an 1883 history, "the first name of the village was Queenstown, which was given it in honor of Queen Anne. Later it was by some, in derision of its comparative insignificance, Pennytown, and as early as 1747 it began to be called Pennington." The name "Penington" was already known in the area, as Edward Penington (1667–1701), son of the British Quaker leader Isaac Penington, was appointed by his kinsman William Penn as Surveyor General of Pennsylvania. His father-in-law was a longtime leader, including as governor, of the province of West Jersey, where Edward married. Henry Gannett attributes the borough's name to colonial governors from the Pennington family.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Pennington, 1875 to 1996

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1875BuiltFirst Presbyterian Church of Pennington is built
  3. 20th century
  4. 1927Born hereTony DeNicola is born here
  5. 1954On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1984Born hereGrant Billmeier is born here
  7. 1996Born hereCassidy Hutchinson is born here
By decade

Pennington, decade by decade

Today11 recent
Pennington, New Jersey2014Pennington, New JerseyPennington, New Jersey2014Pennington, New JerseyPennington, New Jersey2014Pennington, New JerseyPennington Station2011Pennington StationWoodpile at sunup2010Woodpile at sunupWe're ready2010We're readySialia sialis female2010Sialia sialis femaleNathan's house. Arrived yesterday2010Nathan's house. Arrived yesterdayToll Gate Grammar School2009Toll Gate Grammar SchoolCensus Bureau map of2008Census Bureau map ofMapSavoy Brown (featuring Kim Simmonds), Pennington, NJ, 20052005Savoy Brown (featuring Kim Simmonds), Pennington, NJ,…
On the map

Pennington on the map, 1954 to 1995

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

Pennington on the 1954 USGS mapPennington on the 1970 USGS mapPennington on the 1981 USGS mapPennington on the 1995 USGS map1954Pennington 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 Pennington.

On the National Register

2 historic places in Pennington

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
1974
Pennington Railroad Station
Pennington Railroad StationFirst Presbyterian Church of Pennington, built 1875
Buildings
Pennington Railroad StationBuilding
First Presbyterian Church of PenningtonBuilt 1875

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

People over time

Pennington, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,000188019001920194019601980200020202,802

Grew from 723 people in 1880 to 2,802 in 2020, 3 times over.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

6 famous people were born in Pennington

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

See all →
Cassidy HutchinsonAmerican political staffer · b. 1996
G
Grant BillmeierAmerican basketball player and coach · b. 1984
T
Tony DeNicolaAmerican jazz drummer and music educator · b. 1927
K
Kelly PajalaAmerican politician
N
Nicole BaxterAmerican soccer player · b. 1994
F
Frank BaldwinAmerican naval officer · b. 1880
Places that used to be

Places now gone

Gone or out of use
Central High Schoolschool

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

Questions about Pennington’s history

What year was Pennington founded?

The Pennington post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Pennington rank for history?

Pennington is more historic than 73% of U.S. towns, #162 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 Pennington?

Two places: the Pennington Railroad Station (listed 1974) and the First Presbyterian Church of Pennington (2011).

How old are the homes in Pennington?

37% of Pennington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.7 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 (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 USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.