8 towns in NJ that are actually older than America
We’re lucky in New Jersey to be surrounded by historic battlefields and historic towns. New Jersey played an important part in our fight for independence from the British. Because of that and many natural resources here, we have at least eight towns that are older than the United States itself.
Compared to other countries around the world, we are still very young. But some of the oldest towns in the country are right here in our state. There is so much rich and colorful history in this state, that you could dedicate a lifetime studying all of it. Here are the eight towns that were settled before we became a country.
Hillsborough Township quickly took its place in history as the path General George Washington and his troops traveled from the Battle of Princeton to winter quarters in Morristown.
The name Alloway is a derivative of Allowas, a local Native American chief.
It was initially incorporated as Upper Alloways Creek Township.
It is the site of the first European settlement in Northwest New Jersey. The name "Hanover" was taken from the House of Hanover in Germany. This namesake was given to the Township of Hanover on December 7, 1720, as a sign of respect to King George I of Great Britain who was of the House of Hanover and who ruled over the American colonies in the 18th century.
When settled in 1683, the new city was dubbed "New Perth" in honor of James Drummond, Earl of Perth, one of the 12 associates of a company of Scottish proprietors; Drummond has been honored with a statue located outside of city hall. Amboy comes from a corruption of the Algonquin word for flat land, ompoge and became pronounced ambo and later Amboy.
Its original name was New Barbadoes Township, after the English Colony of Barbados. The current name of the township came from the Saddle River, a tributary of the Passaic River, which in turn was named for a stream and valley in Saddell in Argyll, Scotland.
Its original name was also part of New Barbadoes Township. The current name either comes from an Algonquin word meaning, "hook mouth" for a bend in the river or possibly from an old inn there named "Hock and Sack."
The area was settled in 1666 by Connecticut Puritans led by Robert Treat from the New Haven Colony. It was started as a theocratic assembly of the faithful, though this did not last long as new settlers came with different ideas. On October 31, 1693, it was organized as a New Jersey township based on the Newark Tract, which was first purchased on July 11, 1667.
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Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Dennis Malloy only.
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