Morristown's Building Department enforces New Jersey construction codes by reviewing permit applications for both new buildings and modifications to existing structures, and by conducting inspections prior to issuing certificates of occupancy. The records in this collection date back to the early 20th century, and they reflect efforts to ensure that structures comply with uniform constructions methods and are safe for both occupants and neighboring properties.
Building employees utilized proposed floorplans and specifications to identify flaws that could result in structural issues, fire hazards, and water damage, among other issues. Follow up inspections ensured that the resulting construction was done properly, complied with the original design and specifications, and was otherwise safe.
The collection consists of 5.83 linear feet of architectural blueprints, diazotypes, hand-drawn plans, specifications, and permit applications for commercial and residential structures to be built in Morristown between 1909 and 1959. These materials will be of interest to the owners of the homes, businesses, and organizations that currently occupy the land. The records may also be useful to genealogists, town officials, as well as those studying the history of zoning laws, business trends, suburban development, architectural history and land use.
The drawing sets in this collection were submitted to the town building and construction division for permitting purposes, and do not necessarily reflect the completed structure. In many cases, drawings depict the entire building project; for example, a new home, storefront or business, house of worship, service station, or light industry. However, some only concern small projects, such as a new deck or bathroom added to an existing home, or other modifications to a structure.
The contents of each project folder vary by job type and code requirements of the time. They often include a floorplan or building elevation and an application for a building permit, and may also include a set of specifications, additional notes, correspondence, plot plans or sketches. Not all drawings are dated, although many include a stamp with the building official's final approval that is often signed and dated.
Users should note that some project folders do not include a full street address; some only specify the street name and owner's identity. Additional research with the City Directories may be needed to identify a modern address for these items.
Records are organized according to individual project file and sorted by folder number. They are arranged alpha-numerically by street name, and, when known, listings includes the record type (e.g., blueprint, dizaotype, set of specifications, etc.), and date. Most project folders include a Permit Number, and some may also include a Tax Map Lot Number and a Block Number.
When requesting a set of drawings, please specify both the Drawer/Box and Folder number in addition to the full title. This information is necessary to ensure the correct item is retrieved since many projects share similar owners and street addresses. Users *must* call ahead to request access to this collection so that staff have adequate time to retrieve material from storage.
Due to the nature of this collection users *must* call ahead to request access so that staff have ample time to retrieve material from storage.
This collection is open for research under the conditions set forth in the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center archives access policy. All archival material should be handled with care and kept in its original order; notes may only be taken in pencil or with a computer, and food and drink are prohibited in the Reading Room. Records may be copied for scholarly or personal research using a digital camera without flash; however, researchers must obtain copyright permission prior to publishing material from the collection.
The Building Permit Drawings and Records were transferred to the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center by the town clerk in 1996 prior to the relocation of town hall from the Vail Mansion to its new home on South Street.
Morristown Building and Construction Permits Division, Blueprints and Records, 1909 - 1959, North Jersey History and Genealogy Center, Morristown and Morris Township Library.
Processed, described and encoded by Jeffrey V. Moy, Archivist, December 2021.