During its first 115 years, Morris Township was the sole municipality for what now consists of Morristown and Morris Township. English Presbyterians settled the area around 1715 as the village of New Hanover, originally coming from Southold, New York on Long Island and New Haven, Connecticut. On March 15, 1739, the village of New Hanover changed its name to Morris Township when it became the seat of the newly created Morris County, both being named after the then sitting royal governor of New Jersey, Lewis Morris (Hoskins, 1). The village of Morristown, within Morris Township, rose to national prominence when George Washington and 3,000 troops of the Continental Army marched into the village of 250 people and made it his winter headquarters. By 1860, the differences between the village of Morristown and Morris Township were beginning to show. Morristown was a small village and the primary retail center for the entire township. Morris Township, however, was a rural community of farmers. Because of this, in 1865, the residents voted to separate the village of Morristown from Morris Township. On the day before the end of the Civil War, April 6, 1865, Morristown was officially incorporated by the New Jersey Legislature. On February 18, 1895, the complete separation of the "'City from the Township'" took place, which finalized the disputed boundaries, as well as disputed municipaltiy duties. From then after, Morris Township and Morristown were two distinct municipalities (Hoskins, 2).
The Town of Morristown, as of 2021, has a strong Mayor-Council form of government. The Council consists of seven members, one from each of the four wards and three at-large. The Mayor and the Council members are elected via partisan elections to four-year terms. The Mayor exercises the executive power of the Town, while the Council is the legislative arm of the government; responsible for making and setting policy for the town. The functioning of the Town Council exists under the Faulkner Act, or the Optional Municipal Charter Law, that went into effect on January 1, 1974. With the advice and consent of the Council, the Mayor appoints a Business Administrator and department directors to run the municipal operation. Morristown offers a full range of municipal services including police, fire, health, recreation, inspections, roads, garbage and recycling collection, and sanitary sewer.
The Morristown Municipal Records contains some of the town’s oldest government records. It is composed of historically significant 19th and 20th century records originating from various town agencies including: the Town Clerk’s Office, Finance and Revenue, the Building Department, the Public Works Department, the Board of Health, the Police Department, the Fire Department, the Civil Defense Department, and the Housing Authority.
The Morristown Municipal Records Collection spans the years 1763-1982 with the bulk of the material falling between 1865-1970. The growth of Morristown’s government and how it evolved from a simple system of custom rules to the complex bureaucracy of the 20th century is clearly documented – sometimes tragically, sometimes humorously – in these records. The collection is comprised of historically significant records from nine Morristown Town Offices. These records consists of reports, correspondence, resolutions, ordinances, lawsuits, financial information, membership information, ledgers, publications, manuals, and artifacts. The nine town offices are arranged as individual series and are as follows: Town Clerk, Finance Records, Building and Zoning, Public Works, Board of Health, Police Department, Fire Department, Civil Defense, and Housing Authority.
Series I: Town Clerk, contains five subseries. Subseries A: Clerk’s Records, 1868-1933, are records generated by the Town Clerk. They include correspondence and minutes. Subseries B: Office of the Town Clerk Records, 1860-1969, are a grouping of miscellaneous records filed by the Town Clerk. These include publications of charters, ordinances, annual reports of the housing authority, election returns licenses, surety bonds given, and land records. The land records are mainly regarding the different properties of the Vail Estate, but also include an agreement between Normandy Water Co. and Punch Bowl Realty for Water Main Extension in 1928. Subseries C: Mayor, Aldermen, and Council Records, 1763-1961, include a grouping of charters (one Morristown charter and several State of NJ Supplements to the Charter), common council road records covering the years 1763 to 1882, the Mayor’s Message for two years, miscellaneous papers of the council, resolutions, petitions, and ordinances. Resolutions, 1867-1926, were motions that were adopted by the council relating to the running of the town. These resolutions included approving money for street improvements, forming committees, approving money for the Board of Health, building sewers, paving roads, buying property, approving budgets and taxes, remedying traffic, etc.
Petitions, 1865-1927, were addressed to town officials from residents or businesses hoping to find remedy from the Town for issues such as: upgrading streets and utilities, collecting damages, improving properties or buildings, enforcing or amending laws, redressing existing nuisances. Ordinances, 1865-1961, were laws that were passed. This grouping of ordinances include ones dealing with paving sidewalks, snow removal, salaries of different city officials, repealing certain ordinances, prohibiting carrying of loaded shotguns, acquiring property, establishing zoning laws, etc. This grouping also includes ordinances that were not passed. Title Abstracts, 1893-1943, are documents that show chain of property ownership of different lands on streets and created for certain people or companies. There are also a couple of deeds within this category. Subseries D: Committee Records, 1897-1927, includes budget estimates and track elevation committee correspondence. Subseries E: Works Progress Administration Project Records, 1931-1939, includes different WPA projects and the program for employment and dependency relief records. WPA I738-I4 Project, 1936, made copies of ordinances from log books and arranged both chronologically and divided into classifications and identified amendments, supplements, and repeals.
Series II: Finance Records, contains correspondence, tax searches, tax exemption applications, foreclosure actions and title searches, property sale notices, reports, auditor’s reports, lists of unpaid taxes, tax assessment correction notices, tax and account books, and ledgers. Subseries A: Taxes and Foreclosure, 1934-1954, contains tax exemption applications, tax searches, foreclosure actions and title searches, and foreclosure subject files. Subseries B: S. Beach Files, 1900-1929, contains correspondence, property sale notices, reports, abstract of ratables, property liens searches, auditor’s reports, lists of unpaid taxes, tax notices, and miscellaneous papers relating to S. Beach, the collector of Taxes. Subseries C: Ledgers, 1873-1937, contains ledger books relating to taxes and account information for the town of Morristown. Some of the ledgers contain the term "duplicate" in the title, which is a handwritten copy of the orginal ledger.
Series III, Building and Zoning, contains building specifications created by the Building Department. The blueprints from this department were removed from this collection into their own collection located in the North Jersey History and Geneaology Center Collection mentioned above in Related Collections.
Series IV, Public Works, contains sewer connection applications, appointment papers, special election information, correspondence, lawsuit information, bid reports, account information, sewer bond resolutions and papers, inspector’s notes, time and wage books, and ledgers dealing with streets and fire. Subseries A: Board of Sewers, 1907-1915, contains applications for sewer connections from the street to a person’s house. It is organized alphabetically by street name. Subseries B: Subject File, Sewer System, 1906-1919, is comprised of several different subjects, some of which are special elections, correspondence, lawsuits, bid reports, resolutions, sewer specification manuals, account information, and bond papers. Subseries C: Streets and Sewers, 1911-1929, contains time and wage books, accounts for departments, and two ledger books dealing with streets and fire. Subseries D: Water Department, 1924-1932, contains records, a job book, a hydrant book, and records.
Series V, Board of Health, contains correspondence, minutes, reports and surveys, statistics, license applications, vital records, plumbing plans, financial records and publications. Correspondence, 1904-1942, is primarily arranged chronologically by sent and received. Letters from citizens, businesses, organizations and government agencies, reveal the concerns and issues of the day and highlight citizens’ engagement with their government, including: public health threats, neighbors’ disputes, resident complaints, vital records discrepancies, sanitary conditions, doctors’ notes, residential and business violations, funding requests, directives from NJ State agencies (NJ State Board of Health is a frequent correspondent), and notices to public institutions regarding contagion. Letters from lawyers, architects and doctors representing wealthy clients are included. Letters sent anonymously document a variety of unclean, improper or distressing conditions found in town. Along with individual residents, Board of Health employees corresponded with midwives, funeral directors, milkmen, schools, clergy, soldiers, employees, hospital patients, and police. Clerk, secretary and inspectors’ outgoing letters were filed together. Items were often filed under signee’s last name—not by institution, e.g., Shonghum Sanitarium filed under Superintendent Dandley, Morristown Library under Mary Parsons, Morris School District under Superintendent Wiley.
The influenza epidemic of 1918 is well-documented from a local perspective. Minutes of the Board of Health run from 1893-1973, with minimal gaps. Reports were generated by various Board of Health employees and document testing, programs, inspections and procedures undertaken to insure the safety of the public. They are arranged by employee title. Statistics are often recorded. Reports are usually straightforward—a few are more detailed—and become more comprehensive in ensuing years. Occasionally reports overlap or the employee’s job title changed. Physician reports mention number and types of cases seen; Health Officer reports mention number and types of complaints and nuisances investigated; Sanitary Inspector includes reports on Civilian Conservation Corps facilities; Sanitary Committee reports touch on sewer connections and the smallpox house; Hygiene Nurse and Hygiene Teacher kept statistics regarding home and school visits, vaccinations and exams; dairy inspections concerned milk producers selling in Morristown; Tuberculin tests on cattle herds using temperature methods were administered and recorded by veterinarians, and they are arranged alphabetically by owner; Individual contagion statistics include the 1918 influenza epidemic, along with other diseases.
Vital Record and Permits contain the stubs of official vital records certificates sent to the State. Permits for removal and and/or transportation of corpses include Morristown military personnel who died overseas during World War I and whose bodies were returned home. Financial records provide a meticulous accounting of how the agency used its funds. The records tally expenditures and purchases, list accounts and often note the specific activity associated with the transaction, e.g., cholera fund, burying animals, hiring watchmen, anti-toxins, contagion cases. Publications, sent to the Board of Health, include magazines, bulletins, catalogs, near-print materials, advertisements, circulars, and drafts. Many originate from federal or state agencies and commercial outlets. Official Board of Health publications, e.g. town codes, ordinances, and broadsides are also found here, including a public notice, written in Italian, and a quarantine placard for infantile paralysis. Subjects include public health concerns, contagious and sexually transmitted diseases, treatment of veterans, workplace conditions, mortality, and employment opportunities. Record of Inspection books, 1902-1940, comprise the Health Inspector’s field notes as he did rounds inspecting building and residences, answering complaints, tracking down quarantined individuals, contagion cases, fumigating and disinfecting premises. Public hygiene survey was sent to residents in 1881, with a list of questions to be answered by residents and then returned to the board office. The Board of Health authorized a Canvass of households with children, 1916, to enforce quarantine procedures following outbreaks of measles and infantile paralysis. In a Notebook of sewer connections inspections, 1924-1929, are descriptions of human diseases and appropriate testing for those diseases. Plumbing and drainage plans are arranged by street name. Indexes for death certificate stubs, disinterment permits, receipted bills and vital records are available. Two volumes originating from the office of the Overseer of the Poor, 1911-1928, have been removed from the collection and are located in the NJHC collection: Call Number HM5 Poor.
Series VI, Police Department, contains minutes, correspondence, financial records, officer’s daily reports, subject files, policies, service records, ephemera, brochures, artifacts relating to items used by officers, and ledger’s books. Subseries A: PBA Local #43, 1917-1979, consists of the records of Morristown’s Police Benevolent Association. Types of materials include minutes, correspondence and financial records. Subseries B: Police Department, 1897-2002, includes items like Officer’s Daily Duty Reports, pension warrants, ordinances, policy manuals, forms, publications, and service records. Subseries C: Artifacts, 1956-1957, are items belonging to the department or individual cops, including car flashes, uniform buttons, tie clops, badges, whistles, patches, bullet holders, night sticks, handcuffs, and a full uniform. Subseries D: Ledger’s Books, 1890-1957, includes Daily Log Books, Police Records, Police Blotters, and Miscellaneous. Daily Log Books—sometimes titled “Information”—document every call or complaint coming into the department and are arranged chronologically. A sampling included car accidents, auto theft, bad check, break-ins, child missing, stolen animals or mad dogs, emergency medical assistance, disorderly persons or rowdy children, lost wallets or jewelry, suspicious individuals, beggars, downed electrical wiring or Greystone Park runaways. Police Record is a formal record of arrests that includes name, address, color, sex, nationality, age, physical description (rarely used), arresting officer, and location of arrest, charge, name of magistrate and disposition of case. Monthly arrest statistics are also tracked. Police Blotters appear to be a draft of the Police Record. Miscellaneous is similar to a Daily Log Book in informational value, but it is not a day book. It is arranged by subject and includes police surgeon calls, fire calls, ambulance calls, dogs and horses shot, store doors found open and street lights out. A police surgeon was often called to the scene of a drunken driving offense, and the doctor would pronounce the driver “fit” or “unfit” to drive.
Series VII, Fire Department, contains permits, applications for permits, day books, oil burner applications, minute books, dues books, reports books, payroll books, and a calls and run book. Subseries A: Bureau of Fire Prevention, 1917-1944, was originally named Office of Buildings and Combustibles (created by ordinance in 1915) and managed by an Inspector of Buildings and Combustibles. It comprised the duties of fire marshal, fire inspector and building inspector. Sometime in the 1920s, the title of the office changed to Bureau of Fire Prevention. Commercial or industrial enterprises and residents had to file permits and pay a fee to keep explosives, ammunition, fireworks, gasoline and movies. Oil and fuel burner (either above or underground) applications were also kept in this office. Usually filed by the contractor doing the installation, the applications show the names and addresses associated with the premises, and sometimes include property information or drawings or blueprints. Following completion of the work, the inspector would conduct an on-site review. These materials are arranged in chronological order. Mention re: erect/alter buildings. Subseries B: Firemen's Mutual Benefit Association (FMBA), 1929-1952, contains a minute book and a dues book. Subseries C: Morristown Fire Department (FMBA #43), 1892-1960, contains the Chief Engineer and Board of MFD Engineers report book, a payroll book, and a calls and run book. Subseries D: Association of Exempt Firemen (FMBA #43), 1876-1925, contains a minute book (1876-1894) that includes a constitution and bylaws; a minute book (1894-1922)that contains proceedings, and a member dues book.
In Morristown during World War II, the Morristown Civil Defense Council coordinated the civilian war effort, aimed at inspiring local citizens to do their part to support the war. The Council was dismantled following the end of hostilities. With tensions building between Russia and the United States, in 1950 funding was provided to state and local governments to set up community programs to prepare for nuclear attack. The Morristown Civil Defense and Disaster Control Council came into being, and greatly increased the scope of its activities as the Cold War progressed. Morristown was typical of many American towns that utilized volunteer fire companies and rescue squads, civil air patrol and ham radio operators, scouting organizations, citizens’ committees and neighborhood civic associations to help in the tasks to civil defense. The bulk of the papers in this series highlight one community’s response to its nation’s call to duty. The records offer a detailed accounting of the organization’s hierarchy, affairs and activities, and capture the vague sense of unease and insecurity that gripped Morristown during the Cold War. Series VIII, Civil Defense, contains directives, minutes, agendas, plans, notebooks, communications, loyalty oaths, correspondence, memorandum, files, publications, and artifacts. Subseries A: Administrative Files, Minutes, and Correspondence, 1942-1964, comprises the bulk of the collection. This subseries includes correspondence, agendas, minutes of meetings, messages from the control center, civilian oaths of loyalty, and files (monthly and subject). Subseries B: Publications, 1950-1968, includes Morris County, New Jersey State, and Federal publications ranging from information bulletins to annual reports. Subseries C: Artifacts, 1947-1982, contains artifacts that were found in the fallout shelter located in the basement of the Alfed Vail School on Speedwell Avenue.
Series IX, Housing Authority, contains reports, an invitation and program for a dedication ceremony for “Pocohantas Homes”, and a publication called “Your Home”. The reports contain surveys, annual reports, and the statement of the Workable Program for Urban Renewal, as well as the application for recertification of the Workable Program.
Folder titles were copied from the original files labels when possible. Ledgers and bound books were titled as they were titled either on the outside or inside of the item. Paper wrapped ledgers were given a number for easy shelving and locating.
Series I, 1763-1969, contains correspondence, minutes, publications, election returns, licenses, bonds, land records, town and state charters, road records, council notices, resolutions, petitions, ordinances, title abstracts, budget estimates, and Works Progress Administration Project Records. It is categorized into five subseries, A: Clerk’s Records, B: Office of the Town Clerk Records, C: Mayor, Aldermen, and Council Records, D: Committee Records, and E: Works Progress Administration Project Records.
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Town Clerk Box 1.
Series II, 1870-1954, contains correspondence, tax searches, tax exemption applications, foreclosure actions and title searches, property sale notices, reports, auditor’s reports, lists of unpaid taxes, tax assessment correction notices, tax and account books, and ledgers. It is categorized into three subseries, A: Taxes and Foreclosure, B: S. Beach Files, and C: Ledgers. "Duplicate Ledgers" refer to the copies of this record type that were transferred to the History Center
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Finance Records Box 1.
Series III, 1919-1957, contains building specifications.
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Building and Zoning Box 1.
Series IV, 1907-1929, contains sewer connection applications, appointment papers, special election information, correspondence, lawsuit information, bid reports, account information, sewer bond resolutions and papers, inspector’s notes, time and wage books, and ledgers dealing with streets and fire. It is categorized into four subseries, A: Board of Sewers, B: Subject File, Sewer System, C: Streets and Sewers, and D: Water Department.
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Public Works Box 1.
Series V, 1876-1973, contains correspondence, minutes, reports and surveys, statistics, license applications, vital records, plumbing plans, financial records and publications.
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Board of Health Box 1.
Two volumes originating from the office of the Overseer of the Poor, 1911-1928, have been removed from the collection and are located in the NJHC collection: Call Number HM5 Poor.
Series VI, 1890-2002, contains minutes, correspondence, financial records, officer’s daily reports, subject files, policies, service records, ephemera, brochures, artifacts relating to items used by officers, and ledger’s books. It is categorized into four subseries A: PBA Local #43, B: Police Department, C: Artifacts, and D: Ledger’s Books.
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Police Department Box 1.
Series VII, 1876-1960, contains permits, applications for permits, day books, oil burner applications, minute books, dues books, reports books, payroll books, and a calls and run book. It is categorized into four subseries, A: Bureau of Fire Prevention, B: Firemen's Mutual Benefit Association (FMBA), C: Morristown Fire Department (FMBA #43), and D: Association of Exempt Firemen (FMBA #43).
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Fire Department Box 1.
Series VIII, 1942-1968, contains directives, minutes, agendas, plans, notebooks, communications, loyalty oaths, correspondence, memorandum, files, publications, and artifacts. It is categorized into five subseries, A: Administrative Files, Minutes, and Correspondence, B: Publications, and C: Artifacts.
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Civil Defense Box 1.
Series IX, 1949-1956, contains reports, an invitation and program for a dedication ceremony for “Pocohantas Homes”, and a publication called “Your Home”. The reports contain surveys, annual reports, and the statement of the Workable Program for Urban Renewal, as well as the application for recertification of the Workable Program.
Box numbers are assigned by series, with this series starting with Housing Authority Box 1.
This material is open for research without restriction under the conditions of the North Jersey History Center archives access policy. Records may be copied for use in individual scholarly or personal research, however, as with all materials in the History Center, researchers are responsible for obtaining copyright permission to use material from the collection. Material in The Morristown Municipal Records Collection may be photocopied, but because this material is a permanent part of the History Center's collections, researchers are advised to photocopy with care, using only the edge scanner for bound material.
The Morristown Municipal Records Collection was first donated to the North Jersey History and Genealogy Center by the town in 1996; additional materials were transferred periodically.
The suggested citation to this collection is: The Morristown Municipal Records Collection. North Jersey History Center, The Morristown and Morris Township Library.
Processing by Assistant Archivists, Cheryl Turkington and Tara Schaberg, and by Meghan Chapuran, 2019-2021. Encoded by Meghan Chapuran, Assistant Archivist, February 2022. Updated by Assistant Archivist Katelyn Leffler in 2025.