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Genealogical History Of Hudson And Bergen Counties New Jersey
INTRODUCTION OF TOWNSHIP GOVERNMENTS

Originally published in 1900
Cornelius Burnham Harvey, Editor


Edited by GET NJ, COPYRIGHT 2003

The first division of the counties into townships was made pursuant to two acts of the colonial assembly, one approved in September, 1692, and the other in October, 1693. The reasons for this division were set forth in the preamble to the second of the above mentioned acts, as follows:
WHEREAS, several things is to be done by the inhabitants of towns, hamlets, tribes, or divisions within each county, as chusing of deputies, constables &c., taxing and collecting of several rates for publick uses and the making orders amongst themselves respectively about swine, fences &c.

WHEREAS, a great many settlements are not reckoned within any such town or division, nor the bounds of the reputed towns ascertained, by means thereof the respective constables know not their districts, and many other inconveniences arising from them, and forasmuch as the act made in Sept 1692, for dividing the several counties and townships, the time for the returns of the said divisions, being too short and the method of dividing by county meetings inconvenient. Therefore be it enacted, . . .

Under the above acts Bergen County (then including the present Bergen and Hudson Counties) was divided into three townships Hackensack, New Barbadoes, and Bergen. Of these, Hackensack comprised "all the land betwixt the Hackensack River and Hudson's River, that extends from the corporation town bounds of Bergen to the partition line of the Province." New Barbadoes comprised "all the land on Passaic River, above the third river, and from the mouth of the said third river northwest to the partition line of the Province, including also all the land in New Barbadoes neck, betwixt Hackensack and Passaic rivers, and thence to the partition line of the Province." Bergen comprised what is now that part of Hudson County east of the Hackensack River. (See Map 2.)

The following table shows the names of the several townships erected in Bergen County to date, the dates of their erection, and the names of the townships or municipalities from which they were erected:

Number Name Of Township Date Of Erection Names Of Townships From Which Taken
1 Hackensack October, 1693 Original
2 New Barbadoes October, 1693 Original
3 Saddle River 1737 New Barbadoes
4 Franklin 1767 New Barbadoes
5 Harrington June 22, 1775 Hackensack and New Barbadoes
6 Pompton February 8, 1797 Saddle River and Franklin
7 Lodi December 1, 1825 New Barbadoes
8 Washington January 30, 1840 Harrington
9 Hohokus February 5, 1849 Franklin
10 Union February 19, 1852 Harrison in Hudson County
11 Midland March 7, 1871 New Barbadoes
12 Palisades March 22, 1871 Hackensack
13 Englewood March 22, 1871 Hackensack
14 Ridgefield March 22, 1871 Hackensack
15 Ridgewood March 30, 1876 Franklin
16 Boiling Springs April 17, 1879 Union
17 Orvil April 20, 1885 Hohokus and Washington
18 Bergen February 22, 1893 Lodi
19 Teaneck February 19, 1895 Englewood and Ridgefield
20 Overpeck March 23, 1897 Ridgefield
21 Hillsdale March 25, 1898 Washington

There is no record of the erection of Saddle River and Franklin. They are first mentioned as townships in deeds and other recorded instruments in 1737 and 1767 respectively. Prior to that they are called "Precincts." Franklin is first mentioned in the county freeholders' book May 17, 1772,

The following table shows the names of the several townships and municipalities erected in Hudson County to date, the dates of their erection, and the names of the townships and other municipalities from which they were erected:

Number Name Of Township Date Of Erection Names Of Townships From Which Taken
1 Bergen (Tp) October, 1693 Original
2 Jersey (City) January 28, 1820 Bergen
3 Harrison (Tp) February 22, 1840 Lodi, Bergen County
4 Van Vorst (Tp) March 11, 1841 Bergen
5 North Bergen (Tp) February 10, 1843 Bergen
6 Hoboken (Tp) March 1, 1841 North Bergen
7 Hudson (Tp) March 4, 1852 Bergen
8 Hoboken (City) March 28, 1855 North Bergen
9 Weehawken (Tp) March 15, 1859 Hoboken
10 Bayonne (Tp) February 16, 1861 Bergen
11 Union (Tp) February 28, 1861 Bergen
12 West Hoboken (Town) February 28, 1861 Bergen
13 Greenville (Tp) March 18, 1863 Bergen
14 Town of Union March 29, 1864 Union
15 Kearney (Town) March 14, 1867 Harrison
16 Bayonne (City) March 10, 1869 Bayonne
17 Guttenberg (Tp) April 1, 1878 Union
18 West New York (Town) March 21, 1898 Union
19 East Newark (Town) –, 1898 Harrison
20 Secaucus (Bor) March 12, 1900 North Bergen

Of the above, all of Pompton and a large part of Franklin and Saddle River in Bergen County became part of Passaic County by act of February 7, 1837. (See Map 4.) Union in Bergen County was taken from Harrison in Hudson County, February 19, 1852, and Harrison in Hudson was taken from Lodi in Bergen County, February 22, 1840. Part of Lodi in Bergen was annexed to New Barbadoes in 1896. Van Vorst, Hoboken, Greenville, Hudson, and Bayonne Townships in Hudson County have been absorbed by the remaining municipalities in the county. Kearney was made a "Town" March 23, 1898. West New York absorbed the whole of Union.

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