Randolph Township dates to 1806, and 5 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 68% of U.S. towns · #195 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Most of Randolph Township was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1977. 5 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 30 buildings between them. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1810.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1825.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Randolph Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Randolph Township is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns, #195 of 468 in New Jersey. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Randolph 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 Randolph Township’s 14.3 sits above most of its state (72% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 38 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A−. The pre-1940 share (±1.7 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1806.
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 Randolph 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 1890 and 1940, then grew more than tenfold.
22 censuses, 1810–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Randolph Township’s Wikipedia page.
On the map
Randolph Township on the map, 1888 to 1981
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Randolph Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1888Lake 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 Randolph Township.
The earliest known inhabitants of what is now Randolph were the Lenni Lenape Native Americans. The earliest European settlers of what is now Randolph were Quakers and one of the pioneering landowners was Hartshorne Fitz-Randolph, who purchased 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) of what would become the township in the Mine Hill area in 1753, later becoming the namesake of the township. New Jersey's first iron mine was established in Randolph in 1713, and for hundreds of years the mines fostered the development of the township, providing the raw materials for weapons used by the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. During the war, this area was a supply point for George Washington's army during their winter encampment in nearby Jockey Hollow.
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.
In 1806, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Randolph Township’s post office opened in 1825, and the census of 1810 counted 1,271 people here.
How does Randolph Township rank for history?
Randolph Township is more historic than 68% of U.S. towns, #195 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 Randolph Township?
5 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Friends Meetinghouse (listed 1973, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Combs Hollow and the Mott Hollow, with 30 contributing buildings. 38 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Randolph Township?
4% of Randolph Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.7 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1977.
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 (5), Wikipedia, 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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