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B+History
History · Weehawken Township

Weehawken Township dates to 1859, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 71% of U.S. towns · #173 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it

Its Register listing is the Hackensack Water Company Complex. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1888 on, and the census since 1860.

1859founded
1on the National Register
38%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
19famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Weehawken Township began

When was Weehawken Township founded?

1859

Weehawken Township dates its founding to 1859 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1860.

First census: 280 in 18602020 census: 17,197167 years

How historic is Weehawken Township?

B+

More historic than 71% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1861.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Weehawken Township’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Weehawken Township is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns, #173 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 Weehawken Township’s overall grade.
Founding era1859, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194037.9% of homes (±3.9) · typical NJ town 14.7% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register1 listing, 5 historic buildings, 2.9 per 10,000 residents · typical NJ town 3.7 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 71%
NewerOlder
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 63%

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 Weehawken Township’s 2.9 sits near the middle of its state (45% 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 1859.
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 (±3.9 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 Weehawken Township’s past

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

On the map since 18888 editions of the USGS map, 1888 to 1995. Watch Weehawken Township change.Famous sons and daughtersWilbur L. Ross Jr., Edward Feigenbaum and 17 more were born here.
★ What stands out · On the map

Weehawken Township on the map, 1888 to 1995

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

Weehawken Township on the 1888 USGS mapWeehawken Township on the 1892 USGS mapWeehawken Township on the 1900 USGS mapWeehawken Township on the 1935 USGS mapWeehawken Township on the 1955 USGS mapWeehawken Township on the 1967 USGS mapWeehawken Township on the 1981 USGS mapWeehawken Township on the 1995 USGS map1888Paterson 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 Weehawken Township.

Famous people

19 famous people were born in Weehawken Township

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

See all →
Wilbur L. Ross Jr.United States 39th Secretary of Commerce · b. 1937
Edward FeigenbaumAmerican computer scientist · b. 1936
F
Frank TashlinAmerican film director · b. 1913
Kate PiersonAmerican singer, lyricist, multi-instrumentalist · b. 1948
F
Francis BitterAmerican physicist · b. 1902
Gerard SchwarzAmerican conductor and trumpeter · b. 1947
The story

How Weehawken Township came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Weehawken Township.

Read it all →

The name Weehawken is generally considered to have evolved from the Algonquian language Lenape spoken by the Hackensack and Tappan. It has variously been interpreted as "maize land", "place of gulls", "rocks that look like trees", which would refer to the Palisades, atop which most of the town sits, or "at the end", among other suggested translations.

ChaptersNameFoundingRevolutionary War19th century20th century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Weehawken Township, 1778 to 1948

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1778In the archiveSketch of the road from Paulus Hook and Hobocken to New Bridge
  3. 19th century
  4. 1811In the archiveNew York City and Harbor from Weehawken
  5. 1828In the archiveWeehawken
  6. 1859
    FoundingWeehawken Township is established
  7. 1861Post officeThe Wehawken post office opens
  8. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  9. 20th century
  10. 1913Born hereFrank Tashlin is born here
  11. 1925Post officeThe Wehawken post office closes
  12. 1936Born hereEdward Feigenbaum is born here
  13. 1937Born hereWilbur L. Ross Jr. is born here
  14. 1948Born hereKate Pierson is born here
By decade

Weehawken Township, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1770s to the 1820s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1770s1 item
Sketch of the road from Paulus Hook and Hobocken to New Bridge1778Sketch of the road from Paulus Hook and Hobocken to N…Document
1810s–1820s5 items
New York City and Harbor from Weehawkenc. 1811New York City and Harbor from WeehawkenDocumentThe Monument to Alexander Hamilton at Weehawkenc. 1811The Monument to Alexander Hamilton at WeehawkenDocumentThe Monument to Alexander Hamilton at Weehawkenc. 1811The Monument to Alexander Hamilton at WeehawkenDocumentWeehawkenc. 1828WeehawkenDocumentWeehawkenc. 1828WeehawkenDocument
On the National Register

1 historic place in Weehawken Township

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
5
each building in a district counts
first listed
1980
Hackensack Water Company Complex
Hackensack Water Company Complex
Buildings
Hackensack Water Company ComplexBuilding

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

People over time

Weehawken Township, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018,00019001950200017,197

Grew from 280 people in 1860 to 17,197 in 2020, more than tenfold.

17 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and old corners

Another post office, Wehawken, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Weehawken

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Finish Weehawken Township’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

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
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Hoboken22 historic placesAUnion City1 historic placeB+West New York2 historic placesB−

Questions about Weehawken Township’s history

What year was Weehawken Township founded?

In 1859, according to Wikidata. Weehawken Township’s post office opened in 1861, and the census of 1860 counted 280 people here.

How does Weehawken Township rank for history?

Weehawken Township is more historic than 71% of U.S. towns, #173 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 Weehawken Township?

One place: the Hackensack Water Company Complex (listed 1980).

How old are the homes in Weehawken Township?

38% of Weehawken Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.9 points), against a typical 15% for a New Jersey town; the median home was built in 1965.

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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.