Tinton Falls’ post office opened in 1843, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 59% of U.S. towns · #255 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 13 buildings. Most of Tinton Falls was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1991. Below: maps from 1888 on and the census since 1950.
The Tinton Falls post office opened in 1843, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Wayside (1890), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 3,783 in 19502020 census: 19,181183 years
How historic is Tinton Falls?
B
More historic than 59% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Tinton Falls post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Tinton Falls’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Tinton Falls is more historic than 59% of U.S. towns, #255 of 468 in New Jersey. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Tinton Falls’ 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 Tinton Falls’ 7.2 sits near the middle of its state (65% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 14 historic buildings outnumber those of 78% 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 (±1.0 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Tinton Falls’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area that is now known as Tinton Falls was originally settled by Europeans in the late 1600s, probably beginning with the initial land purchases from the Lenni Lenape Native Americans in 1664. Water power and iron ore were likely the incentives that encouraged settlement: shortly after [the land was purchased], a man by the name of James Grover had an ironworks built along the river. Grover was likely the founder of the community, which, in the 1600s, was named "New Shrewsbury". At this time, the waterfall was known to be about 30 feet (9.1 m) high; erosion and the destruction of the dam near the ironworks have led to its diminishment.
Passages that mention Tinton Falls, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Monmouth county, New Jersey ..1885 · page 86Read the page →
Read the text
ctiosen magistrate, 1673, laid out meadows at Sfioal Harbour, 1669, brougfit James and Henry Leonard to construct iron works at Tinton Falls, located at Tinton Falls, 1667, IMicfiolls' patentee, of Middletown, sold land to Thomas Tilton, near Rack (Wreck) Pond,
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Monmouth county, New Jersey ..1885 · page 126Read the page →
Read the text
Leonard, Elizabeth, constituent member Navesink Baptist Church, 1853, 539 Leonard, Henry, came (from New England) to construct iron works at Tinton Falls, 543 millwright, Tinton Falls, 1667, 586 Leonard. Henry, assaulted in performance of duty, 1700, 99 mentioned in 1710 road records, 375
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
Tinton Falls, 1843 to 1994
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Tinton Falls post office opened in 1843, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Tinton Falls rank for history?
Tinton Falls is more historic than 59% of U.S. towns, #255 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 Tinton Falls?
Two places: the Old Mill at Tinton Falls (listed 1973) and the Tinton Falls Historic District (1977).
How old are the homes in Tinton Falls?
2% of Tinton Falls’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.0 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1991.
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 (6), 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 US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System 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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