Pequannock Township (pronounced pa-QUAN-nick) is a township in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. , the township's population was 15,571, The primary community in the township is the census-designated place of Pompton Plains.

The name "Pequannock", as used in the name of the township and of the Pequannock River, is thought to have been derived from the Lenni Lenape Native American word Paquettahhnuake, meaning "cleared land ready or being readied for cultivation". The name "Pompton" has been cited by some sources to mean "a place where they catch soft fish".

New Jersey Monthly ranked Pequannock Township as the "Best Bang for the Buck" in New Jersey and 9th overall in its 2011 edition of "Best Places to Live" in New Jersey. It was then ranked 14th overall in the 2013 edition of "Best Places to Live". In the 2015 edition of "Best Places to Live" in New Jersey, Pequannock ranked 4th overall.

History

The name for the area goes back at least as far as March 1, 1720, when it was referred to as "Poquanick", a precinct in Hunterdon County. Formed as "Poquanock Township" on March 25, 1740, as the county's largest township, what is now a bedroom community with Pompton Plains in its northern portion and old Pequannock in its southern was once a vast region of rural farmland settled by the Dutch after its purchase by Arent Schuyler and associates in 1695 and 1696. The township was incorporated by the New Jersey Legislature's Township Act of 1798 as one of New Jersey's initial group of 104 townships on February 21, 1798.

Over time, several municipalities were split off from the township: Jefferson Township on February 11, 1804; Rockaway Township on April 8, 1844; Boonton Township on April 11, 1867; Montville Township on April 11, 1867; Butler Borough on March 13, 1901; Kinnelon Borough on March 21, 1922; Lincoln Park Borough on April 25, 1922; and Riverdale Borough on April 17, 1923.

During the American Revolutionary War, both Comte de Rochambeau and George Washington's troops camped on what is now the site of the Pequannock Valley Middle School. While Washington stayed at the Schuyler-Colfax House in nearby Pompton, unproven oral history states that he attended church services in the First Reformed Church located in Pompton Plains, also known as the Pompton Meeting House, which had been constructed in 1771. The Mandeville Inn, located on the site of where the soldiers had camped during the war, was built in 1788 and was once owned by Garret Hobart, later Vice President of the United States. The stone with the engraved date is now located inside the Pequannock Valley Middle School when the Inn was demolished and replaced with the school in 1950.

During the Civil War, Pequannock was a stop on the Underground Railroad. The Giles Mandeville House (also built in 1788), a field and quarry-stone structure located at 515 Newark-Pompton Turnpike, which is believed to have served as a waypoint for many runaway slaves, still stands today, and has been in use as the Manse of the adjacent First Reformed Church since 1953.

Historic sites

Historic sites located in Pequannock Township include:

  • Ackerson Mead Clark House, a Greek revival mansion constructed in the 1870s.
  • Bank Barn
  • Giles Mandeville House
  • Mandeville Inn
  • Martin Berry House, a Dutch home constructed in 1720, making it Pequannock's second-oldest.
  • Paul DeBow House
  • Paul Barney DeBow House
  • Pequannoc Spillway
  • Pompton dam, constructed in 1837 to provide water for the Morris Canal.
  • Pompton Plains Railroad Station was built in 1872 and offered regular passenger train service until 1966. Added to the National Register of Historic Places on March 5, 2008, the station serves as the Pequannock Township Museum.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 7.11 square miles (18.41&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>), including 6.79 square miles (17.58&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of land and 0.32 square miles (0.83&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of water (4.53%).

Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Pequannock and Pompton Plains, each of which is served by a separate post office of the United States Postal Service.

Pequannock Township borders the municipalities of Kinnelon, Lincoln Park and Riverdale in Morris County; and Pompton Lakes and Wayne in Passaic County.

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 15,540 people, 6,471 households, and 3,986 families in the township. The population density was . There were 6,794 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 95.76% (14,881) White, 0.48% (75) Black or African American, 0.09% (14) Native American, 1.94% (302) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 0.89% (138) from other races, and 0.84% (130) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.52% (703) of the population.

2000 census

The 2000 United States census counted 13,888 people, 5,026 households, and 3,829 families in the township.

There were 5,026 households, out of which 35.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.5% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.8% were non-families. 20.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.23. The council is comprised of five members elected at-large in a partisan vote to four-year terms in office on a staggered basis, with either two or three seats coming up for election in even-numbered years as part of the November general election. At an annual reorganization meeting, the members of the council select one of their members to serve as mayor and another as deputy mayor, each serving a one-year term. The Township Council hires a Township Manager, who serves as the chief executive and administrative officer of the township.

, Pequannock's Township Council was comprised of Mayor David G. Kohle (R, term on council ends December 31, 2024; term as mayor ends 2023), Deputy Mayor Ryan Herd (R, term on council ends 2024; term as deputy mayor ends 2023), John Driesse (R, 2026), Melissa Florance-Lynch (R, 2026) and Kyle Russell (R, 2026).

In July 2021, the Township Council appointed John Driesse to fill the seat expiring in December 2022 that had been held by Richard Phelan until he resigned from office the previous month.

Ed Engelbart was named Township Historian, following a resolution passed on May 10, 2011, making him the first person to be named to this position in a decade.

Federal, state and county representation

Pequannock Township is located in the 11th Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 26th state legislative district.

Politics

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, there were a total of 10,911 registered voters in Pequannock Township, of which 4,042 (37.0%) were registered as Republicans, 2,242 (20.5%) were registered as Democrats, and 4,625 (42.4%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 2 voters registered as Libertarians or Greens.

In the 2012 presidential election, Republican Mitt Romney received 58.8% of the vote (4,850 cast), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 40.3% (3,326 votes), and other candidates with 0.9% (76 votes), among the 8,309 ballots cast by the township's 11,383 registered voters (57 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 73.0%. In the 2008 presidential election, Republican John McCain received 58.8% of the vote (5,341 cast), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 39.7% (3,608 votes) and other candidates with 0.9% (84 votes), among the 9,088 ballots cast by the township's 11,236 registered voters, for a turnout of 80.9%. In the 2004 presidential election, Republican George W. Bush received 62.0% of the vote (4,889 ballots cast), outpolling Democrat John Kerry with 37.1% (2,925 votes) and other candidates with 0.4% (45 votes), among the 7,886 ballots cast by the township's 10,055 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 78.4.

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In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 68.6% of the vote (3,695 cast), ahead of Democrat Barbara Buono with 29.9% (1,612 votes), and other candidates with 1.5% (82 votes), among the 5,436 ballots cast by the township's 11,301 registered voters (47 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 48.1%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 58.5% of the vote (3,550 ballots cast), ahead of Democrat Jon Corzine with 33.1% (2,008 votes), Independent Chris Daggett with 6.9% (420 votes) and other candidates with 0.8% (49 votes), among the 6,073 ballots cast by the township's 11,127 registered voters, yielding a 54.6% turnout.

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Education

The Pequannock Township School District serves public school students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. As of the 2024–25 school year, the district, comprised of five schools, had an enrollment of 2,118 students and 180.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.7:1. Schools in the district (with 2024–25 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are

Stephen J. Gerace Elementary School 334 with students in grades K–5,

Hillview Elementary School 306 with students in grades K–5,

North Boulevard Elementary School 326 with students in grades PreK–5,

Pequannock Valley School with 476 students in grades 6–8 and

Pequannock Township High School with 655 students in grades 9–12.

Holy Spirit School is a Catholic school serving pre-kindergarten through eighth grade operated under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson. In addition, there is Kolbe Immaculata School, a non-diocesan Catholic school for grades 1–8; the Netherlands Reformed Christian School (PreK–12); and Chancellor Academy, a school founded in 1983 that serves students in sixth through twelfth grades who have not succeeded in a traditional school structure.

Transportation

thumb|right|[[Interstate 287 southbound in Pequannock Township]]

Roads and highways

, the township had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality, by Morris County and by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

Two major roadways exist within the township; Interstate 287 runs for across the northwest corner and Route 23 runs for along the eastern boundary.

Public transportation

The NJ Transit Mountain View and Lincoln Park train stations are both near Pequannock, offering service on the Montclair-Boonton Line to Hoboken Terminal. Pequannock Township was formerly served by the Pompton Plains railroad station, which has been added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Bus service is provided by NJ Transit on the 194 line to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan. In September 2012, as part of budget cuts, NJ Transit suspended service to Newark on the 75 line.

Downtown Pompton Plains is from Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark / Elizabeth, from Teterboro Airport, from Morristown Municipal Airport in Hanover Township, from Greenwood Lake Airport in West Milford, from Essex County Airport and from Lincoln Park Airport in Lincoln Park.

Media

Pequannock is served by New York City TV stations. It is served by the newspapers the Daily Record and The Record of Bergen County.

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Pequannock Township include:

  • Don Argott (born 1972), documentary filmmaker and musician
  • Jason Biggs (born 1978), actor who has appeared in the American Pie films
  • Michael T. Cahill, Dean of Brooklyn Law School
  • Peter Cameron (born 1959), novelist and short-story writer.
  • Frank Ackerman Hill (1919–2012), military veteran and World War II fighter ace
  • Derek Jeter (born 1974), former shortstop for the New York Yankees
  • Danny Kass (born 1982), Olympic snowboarder
  • Sibyl Kempson (born 1973), playwright and performer
  • Shawn Keough (born 1959), member of the Idaho Senate
  • Davana Medina (born 1974), figure competitor
  • Susan Misner (born 1971), actress who has appeared on films and television, including roles in One Life to Live, The Bronx Is Burning, Rescue Me and Chicago
  • French Montana (born 1984), rapper
  • Criss Oliva (1963–1993), musician who was the lead guitarist and co-founder of Savatage
  • Dan Prestup (born 1984), drummer
  • Danielle Rose Russell (born 1999), actress who has appeared in films and on television, including roles in The Originals, Legacies and Wonder
  • Pete Yorn (born 1974), singer-songwriter and musician
  • Karen Young (born 1958), actress

References

  • Pequannock Township Official Website
  • Pequannock Township School District
  • School Data for the Pequannock Township School District, National Center for Education Statistics
  • Pequannock Skatepark Association
  • Pequannock Lacrosse Club
  • Revolutionary Petition of Patriots (May 1776)
  • Pequannock Democratic Club
  • Pequannock Historical Society