Shrewsbury Township is a township situated in the Jersey Shore region, within Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 1,076,
Covering nearly when it was first formed in 1693, the originally large Shrewsbury Township steadily diminished in size as 74 new municipalities were created from its former boundaries, leaving the township as it currently exists, covering , ranked as New Jersey's smallest municipality by area. The combined population of the municipalities that been part of Shrewsbury Township was 935,232 in 2020, which would have made it the 13th largest city in the country, slightly more than that of Fort Worth, Texas.
History
thumb|left|Original Shrewsbury Township Hall, later became the Red Bank Borough Hall, now in use by the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton]]
Shrewsbury was part of the Navesink Patent or Monmouth Tract granted soon after the creation of East Jersey in 1665.
When it was formed in 1693, Shrewsbury Township covered an area of almost , extending to the north to the Navesink River, south to include all of present-day Ocean County, east to the Atlantic Ocean and west to the present-day border of Monmouth County. It retained its size and scope until 1750, when Stafford Township was formed, taking away most of present-day Ocean County. The Parker Homestead, one of the oldest buildings in state, was built by early settlers to the region.
What is now Shrewsbury Township was originally formed on October 31, 1693, and was created as a township by the Township Act of 1798 of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21, 1798.
Creation of new municipalities
Over the centuries, portions of the township have been taken to form Stafford Township (March 3, 1750), Dover Township (March 1, 1768, now Toms River Township), Howell Township (February 23, 1801), Ocean Township (February 24, 1849), Atlantic Township (February 18, 1847, now Colts Neck), Red Bank (March 17, 1870), Eatontown (April 4, 1873), Rumson (May 15, 1907), Fair Haven (March 28, 1912), Little Silver (March 19, 1923), Shrewsbury borough (March 22, 1926) and New Shrewsbury (April 15, 1950, now Tinton Falls). The township was named for Shrewsbury, England.
The remaining land was formerly owned by the Government and called Camp Vail, a complex of 265 homes constructed for families of Fort Monmouth employees. After World War II the government planned to close the site but the established families, with nowhere else to go, purchased the land from the Army with the help of Ann Switek who arranged to maintain the Original Township Charter which had been abandoned. Ann Switek was then elected Town Clerk of Shrewsbury Township and maintained that post for close to 50 years. Camp Vail became Alfred Vail Mutual Association, one of New Jersey's first cooperative housing entities. Following the end of federal subsidies to Shrewsbury Township schools and services residents of the community outside the Vail Homes felt that the residents in the homes received undue benefits. They attempted to force the Vail Homes out of Shrewsbury Township but were unable to. They instead seceded from Shrewsbury to form New Shrewsbury which was later renamed Tinton Falls.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 0.1 square miles (0.26 km<sup>2</sup>), all of which was land.