Early Local History

The Township of Washington was incorporated on February 28, 1849. The Township was originally a portion of Greenwich Township, one of the original divisions of Sussex County. In 1754, Mansfield Township was created out of Greenwich, and on February 28, 1849, Washington Township was created out of Mansfield Township . Small settlements such as Changewater, Imlaydale, Bowerstown, Port Colden, Brass Castle and Pleasant Valley developed within the Township and many have retained their identity. The Borough of Washington was removed in 1868, leaving the present boundaries and containing an area of 17.9 square miles. 

Settlement occurred during the early 18th century with farmers being drawn to the fertile Musconetcong Valley and the advantages of location along the banks of the Musconetcong River. John Bowlby, Colonel William McCullough and Mark Thomson located farms along the Musconetcong during the 1780s. Other families in the Township during the 18th century included the Laceys, Van Horns, Van Nattas, Crevelings and Van Dorens.

By 1740, there was enough population in the Township to warrant the formation of a church. The Mansfield-Woodhouse Presbyterian Church was built around this time -- a log structure intended to service the spiritual needs of the rural population. It is possible that the first settlement to arise within the Township was a small clustering of houses around the church. A school, built around the Revolutionary War period, is recorded but no longer in existence.
                   Imlaydale Mill
  This mill, built in 1857, replaced a mill built
             in 1792 on the same site.

One of the earliest settlements in the Township was at the present Village of Changewater, then known as Changewater Forge. An iron forge was established by Col. Mark Thomson and during the 1750s it was being operated by Jacob Starn. Starn later leased Oxford Furnace from Dr. William Shippen and was crucial to its early success.

Development of inland transportation routes aided in the settlement of communities within Washington Township during the first half of the 19th century. The Morris Turnpike (Route 24 and presently Route 57), a toll road between Morristown and Phillipsburg, was built through Washington Township in 1806. In 1832, the Morris Canal was built through the Township, giving rise to the town of Port Colden and aiding the growth of the tiny hamlet of Bowerstown. The canal carried mule-drawn barges between Phillipsburg and Jersey City loaded with coal and other cargo.

                 picture to right - Bowers Foundry
The Bowers family operated this foundry in the early 1800’s. The        building was later part of Consumers Research complex where                                    Consumers Reports started.

The railroads eventually brought about the demise of the slow moving canal boats. During the mid-19th century, the Township was traversed by the main line of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (former Warren Railroad) , and the Central Railroad of New Jersey (Morris and Essex Railroad) . The Lackawanna Cutoff between Port Morris and Slateford, PA took mainline service away from the area in 1911. 

Although agriculture dominated the business of the Township, industrial operations were conducted within Changewater and Washington, and to a lesser extent in Bowerstown and Brass Castle. The population in 1940 was 1,320 and in     Looking east at the Washington Line. Photo
       taken from the Bridge - Port Colden, NJ
         (about one mile east of Washington, NJ)
                     Photo Date: 1941

1960 it was 3,055. Development of the highway system led to dramatic growth during this century. Suburban communities have arisen due to the construction of Routes 1-80 to the north and 1-78 to the south of the Township. By 1980, the population in the Township had increased to 4,243, and between 1980 and 1990 it increased 26.5% to 5,367 persons.

Trolley - Easton & Washington Traction Company
Picture in downtown Washington of the trolley that ran from Port Colden to Easton along what is now Route 57.
Photo Date: c1905

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