Wantage Township dates to 1754, and 10% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 82% of U.S. towns · #107 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Its Register listings are the Elias Van Bunschooten House and the First Presbyterian Church of Wantage. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1906 on, and the census since 1810.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wantage Township is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #107 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 Wantage 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 Wantage Township’s 5.5 sits near the middle of its state (58% of New Jersey towns have fewer) while its 6 historic buildings outnumber those of 72% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1754.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. 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 Wantage Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost half of its people between 1830 and 1920, then grew 5-fold.
22 censuses, 1810–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Wantage Township’s Wikipedia page.
The story so far
Wantage Township, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Wantage Township yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Wantage Township (pronounced WHAN-tij) is a township in Sussex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 10,811, a decrease of 547 (−4.8%) from the 2010 census count of 11,358, which in turn reflected an increase of 971 (+9.3%) from the 10,387 counted in the 2000 census. Wantage Township was formed as a precinct on May 30, 1754, from portions of Newton Township. It was incorporated as a township on February 21, 1798, as part of the state's initial group of 104 townships. Boundary exchanges were made with Frankford Township in both 1826 and 1834. Portions of the township were taken on October 14, 1891, to form the Borough of D…
Wantage Township was established in 1754. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 11,358 to 10,811 (-5%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Wantage Township, 1754 to 2010
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Wantage Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1906Port Jervis 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 Wantage Township.
Then & now
Stand where they stood
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Retake this viewTitsworth House, State Highway 32
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Wantage Township’s page.
In 1754, according to Wikidata. Wantage Township’s post office opened in 1792, and the census of 1810 counted 2,969 people here.
How does Wantage Township rank for history?
Wantage Township is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns, #107 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 Wantage Township?
Two places: the Elias Van Bunschooten House (listed 1974) and the First Presbyterian Church of Wantage (1982).
How old are the homes in Wantage Township?
10% of Wantage Township’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 1978.
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 Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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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