Pequannock Township dates to 1740, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 76% of U.S. towns · #142 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Most of Pequannock Township was built recently: 8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1966. Its Register listings are the Martin Berry House, the Pompton Plains Railroad Station and the First Reformed Church of Pompton Plains. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1810.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1831.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Pequannock Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Pequannock Township is more historic than 76% of U.S. towns, #142 of 468 in New Jersey. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Pequannock Township’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 Pequannock Township’s 3.2 sits near the middle of its state (46% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 5 historic buildings outnumber those of 70% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1740.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A−. The pre-1940 share (±2.8 points) is firm at this size.
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 Pequannock Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost two-thirds of its people between 1860 and 1870, then grew more than tenfold.
22 censuses, 1810–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Pequannock Township’s Wikipedia page.
On the map
Pequannock Township on the map, 1888 to 1995
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pequannock Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1888Morristown 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 Pequannock Township.
The name for the area goes back at least as far as March 1, 1720, when it was referred to as "Poquanick", a precinct in Hunterdon County. Formed as "Poquanock Township" on March 25, 1740, as the county's largest township, what is now a 7.1-square-mile (18 km2) bedroom community with Pompton Plains in its northern portion and old Pequannock in its southern was once a vast 176-square-mile (460 km2) region of rural farmland settled by the Dutch after its purchase by Arent Schuyler and associates in 1695 and 1696. The township was incorporated by the New Jersey Legislature's Township Act of 1798 as one of New Jersey's initial group of 104 townships on February 21, 1798.
In 1740, according to Wikidata. Pequannock Township’s post office opened in 1831, and the census of 1810 counted 3,853 people here.
How does Pequannock Township rank for history?
Pequannock Township is more historic than 76% of U.S. towns, #142 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 Pequannock Township?
Three places: the Martin Berry House (listed 1973), the Pompton Plains Railroad Station (2008) and the First Reformed Church of Pompton Plains (2012).
How old are the homes in Pequannock Township?
8% of Pequannock Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.8 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1966.
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 (15), the Library of Congress (2), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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) 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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