Sussex County, New Jersey

Sussex County
County
Flag Seal
Location within the U.S. state of New Jersey
New Jersey's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 41°08′N 74°41′W
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
Founded	June 8, 1753
Seat	Newton
Largest city	Vernon Township (pop. 23,493)
Area
• Total	536 sq mi (1,388 km2)
• Land	521 sq mi (1,350 km2)
• Water	15 sq mi (38 km2)  2.75%
Population  (2010)
• Total	149,265
• Density	286.4/sq mi (110.6/km2)
Website	www.sussex.nj.us

Sussex County is the northernmost county in the State of New Jersey. It is part of the New York City Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 United States Census, the county had 149,265 residents, an increase of 5,099 (3.5%) from the 144,166 persons enumerated in the 2000 Census, making it the 17th-most populous county among the state's 21 counties. The Bureau of Economic Analysis ranked the county as having the 142nd-highest per capita income of all 3,113 counties in the United States (and the ninth-highest in New Jersey) as of 2009.

Because of its topography, Sussex County has remained relatively rural and forested area. The county is part of the Skylands Region—a term promoted by the New Jersey Commerce, Economic Growth, & Tourism Commission to encourage tourism. In the western half of the county, several state and national parks have kept the large tracts of land undeveloped and in their natural state. The eastern half of the county experienced more suburban development because of its closeness to more populated areas and commercial development zones. Most of Sussex County's economy was based on agriculture (chiefly dairy farming) and the mining industry. With the decline of these industries in the 1960s, Sussex County transformed into a bedroom community that absorbed population shifts from New Jersey's urban areas. Recent studies estimate that 60% of Sussex County residents work outside of the county--many seeking or maintaining employment in New York City or New Jersey's more suburban and urban areas.

Geology and Geography

High Point Monument as seen from Lake Marcia in Montague Township, Sussex County. High Point is the highest elevation in New Jersey at 1803 feet above sea level.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Sussex County has a total area of 536 square miles (1,390 km²), of which, 521 square miles (1,350 km²) of it is land and 15 square miles (39 km²) of it (2.75%) is water. It is the fourth-largest of the state's 21 counties in terms of area. This land area converts to approximately 343,000 acres.

High Point located at the northernmost tip of New Jersey in Montague Township is the highest natural elevation in the state at 1,803 feet (549.5 m) above sea level. Nearby, Sunrise Mountain in Stokes State Forest has an elevation of 1,653 feet (504 m). Many mountains in the Highlands region are between 1250-1500 feet (375-450 m). Offically, the county's lowest elevation is approximately 300 feet (90 m) above sea level along the Delaware River near Flatbrookville. However, local authorities claim that several a mine adit descending 2,675 feet at the Sterling Hill Mine in Ogdensburg unoffically is the lowest elevations in New Jersey.

Physiographic Provinces

The geology of the region is dominated by two of New Jersey's physiographic provinces: (1) The Ridge and Valley Appalachians, and (2) the New York-New Jersey Highlands.

The Ridge and Valley province was created approximately 300 million years ago during the Appalachian orogeny--a period of tremendous pressure and rock thrusting that caused the creation of the Appalachian Mountains. This physiographic province occupies approximately two-thirds of the county's area--the county's western and central sections--and is characterized by long, even ridges, with long, continuous valleys in between. This region is largely formed by sedimentary rock.

The New York - New Jersey Highlands, or Highlands region, in the county's eastern section is older, created from geological forces applied towards Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rock formations approximately 500 million to 1.15 billion years ago. This region was protected by the New Jersey Legislature and Governor Jim McGreevey under the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act enacted in 2002 which sought to preserve water resources, to promote open space and farmland preservation, to create new recreational parks, and to regulate planning to achieve these goals. The watersheds within the Highlands provide fresh water resources for millions of residents in New Jersey and the New York City Metropolitan Area.

Mountains and Valleys

The valley of the Delaware River in this region is often referred to as either the Upper Delaware Valley or as the Minisink Valley. Elevations in this region range from 300 to 500 feet.

Kittatinny Mountain is the dominant geological feature in the western section of the county. It is part of the Appalachian Mountains, and part of a ridge that continues as the Blue Ridge or Blue Mountain in Eastern Pennsylvania, and as Shawangunk Ridge in New York. It begins in New Jersey as the eastern half of the Delaware Water Gap, and travels southwest-to-northeast along the Delaware River. Elevations range from 1,200 to 1,800 feet and attains a maximum elevation of 1,803 feet at High Point, in Montague Township. Between Kittatinny Mountain and the Delaware River is the Walpack Ridge with elevations of 500 to 800 feet. It is a smaller ridge that parallels Kittatinny Mountain between the Walpack Bend and Port Jervis, New York and encloses the watershed of the Flat Brook.

The Kittatinny Valley lies to the east of Kittatinny Mountain and ends with the Highlands in the east. It is largely a region of rolling hills and flat valley floors. Elevations in this valley range from 400 to 1,000 feet. It is part of the Great Appalachian Valley running from eastern Canada to northern Alabama. This valley is shared by three major watersheds--the Wallkill River with its tributaries Pochuck Creek and Papakating Creek flowing north, and the Paulins Kill watershed and Pequest River watershed flowing southwest. This valley floor is part of the Ordovician Martinsburg Formation (shale and slate) which make up most of the valley--and the Jacksonburg Formation (mostly limestone). Several sources have compared the Martinsburg shale to the Marcellus Shale formations to the West in Pennsylvania and New York and cited that there is the possibility of natural gas extraction in this region. Of peculiar curiosity is Rutan Hill, a patch of igneous rock north of Beemerville in Wantage Township that was once an ancient volcano.

Dividing the Kittatinny Valley (and the Ridge and Valley Province) from the Highlands region is a narrow fault of Hardyston Quartzite. The Mountains here are not part of a solid, linear ridge and tend to randomly rise from the surrounding land as the result of folds, faults and intrusions. Elevations in the Highlands region range from 1,000 to 1,500 feet. Notable Mountains in this area are Hamburg Mountain (elevation: 1495 ft.), Wawayanda Mountain (elevation: 1448 ft.), Sparta Mountain (elevation: 1232 ft.), Pochuck Mountain (elevation: 1194 ft.)

Rivers and watersheds

Sussex County's rivers and watersheds flow in three directions--North to the Hudson River, West and South to the Delaware River, and East toward Newark Bay.

• Wallkill River starting at its source at Lake Mohawk in Sparta Township drains north into Rondout Creek, a tributary of the Hudson River.
• Pochuck Creek flows north into the Wallkill River.
• Papakating Creek in the north central region of the county beginning in Frankford Township also drains into the Wallkill the Hudson.
• The Flat Brook flowing through Walpack and Sandyston Townships, joins the Delaware River at the Walpack Bend.
• The Paulins Kill (or, incorrectly, Paulinskill), with its two branches (the West starting at Culver's Lake in Frankford Township, the Main or East Branch starting at Newton) combine near Augusta, New Jersey to flow southwest through Hampton, Stillwater, Hardwick, Blairstown, and Knowlton to join the Delaware River near the Delaware Water Gap.
• The Pequest River, beginning near Springdale in Andover Township, flowing trough Green Township, and Warren County to the Delaware near Belvidere in Warren County.
• The Musconetcong River beginning at Lake Hopatcong, forms the eastern border between Warren County and Morris and Hunterdon Counties.
• Small sections of eastern Sussex County drain into the watersheds of the Pequannock River, Passaic River, and Rockaway River which end in Newark Bay.

These rivers are used in local recreation--including canoeing and fishing. The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife stock these waterways each year with various species of trout. Some, such as the Flat Brook, Paulins Kill and Pequest have become well known as trout streams and for their suitability for fly-fishing.

Climate

Sussex County is located in Northwestern New Jersey which has a humid continental climate (microthermal)—a cooler climate due to its higher elevations. This differs from the rest of the state which is generally a humid mesothermal climate.

During winter and early spring, New Jersey can in some years experience "nor'easters"—significant storm systems that have proven capable of causing blizzards or flooding throughout the northeastern United States. Hurricanes and tropical storms, tornadoes, and earthquakes are relatively rare.

According to the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service soil survey, the area receives sunshine approximately 62% of the time in summer and 48% in winter. Prevailing winds are typically from the southwest for most of year; but in late winter and early spring come from the northwest. The lowest recorded temperature was -26°F on 21 January 1994. The highest recorded temperature was 104°F on 3 September 1953. The heaviest one-day snowfall was 24 inches recorded on 8 January 1996 (on the next day, total snowfall was 40 inches). The heaviest one-day rainfall—6.70 inches— was recorded on 19 August 1955.

Climate data for Sussex Borough, Sussex County, New Jersey: NOAA-SUSSEX 2 NW (288644)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)	31.3 (−0.4)	37.7 (3.2)	46.4 (8.0)	59.4 (15.2)	71.2 (21.8)	79.2 (26.2)	85.1 (29.5)	80.7 (27.1)	73.8 (23.2)	62.6 (17.0)	55.5 (13.1)	44.6 (7.0)	60.6 (15.9)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)	12.6 (−10.8)	14.4 (−9.8)	27.0 (−2.8)	40.5 (4.7)	50.5 (10.3)	57.9 (14.4)	62.4 (16.9)	59.1 (15.1)	56.9 (13.8)	43.1 (6.2)	33.3 (0.7)	27.3 (−2.6)	40.4 (4.7)
Average precipitation inches (mm)	1.94 (49)	3.65 (93)	5.84 (148)	5.62 (143)	6.09 (155)	2.53 (64)	4.03 (102)	16.11 (409)	13.16 (334)	3.93 (100)	3.09 (78)	4.56 (116)	70.55 (1,792)
Average snowfall inches (cm)	18.0 (46)	4.8 (12)	5.0 (13)	0.4 (1.0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	6.5 (17)	0 (0)	0 (0)	34.7 (88)
Source: NOAA

Soils

According the Natural Resource Conservation Service, Sussex County soils are derived from parent materials that are largely till and glaciofluvial deposits, alluvium, and organic matter deposits. Till is the rock of soil material transported or deposited by glacial ice. In this case, the most recent glaciation (i.e. the last ice age), the Wisconsinian continental glacier, deposted a till plain composed of ground and recessional moraines. This glaciation reached its maximum extent roughly 22,000 years ago (20,000 B.C.E.). Glaciofluvial deposits (or "outwash") are rock and soil materials that melting glaciers deposit as the glacier recedes. Alluvium is materials that are deposited by floodwaters from engorged bodies of water--chiefly streams and rivers. Organic deposits are largely the result of decomposing plant material.

Adjacent counties

With its location at the top of New Jersey, Sussex County is bordered by counties in New Jersey, and neighboring New York and Pennsylvania. Because it is shaped roughly like a diamond or rhombus with its point matching the cardinal points of the compass, it's boundary lines are roughly oriented along the ordinal or intercardinal directions.

The following counties are adjacent and contiguous to Sussex County (in order starting with the northernmost and rotating clockwise):

• Orange County, New York - to the northeast (along the boundary line between New York and New Jersey).
• Passaic County, New Jersey – to the east
• Morris County, New Jersey – to the east and south
• Warren County, New Jersey – to the southwest
• Monroe County, Pennsylvania – to the west (for a few hundred yards at the county's westernmost tip, Walpack Bend in the Delaware River)
• Pike County, Pennsylvania – to the northwest (along the Delaware River)

State and federal protected areas

Under the National Park Service Appalachian National Scenic Trail (shared by 14 states) Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area (shared with Pennsylvania) Middle Delaware National Scenic River (shared with Pennsylvania) Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge (shared with New York)

Under the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry Allamuchy Mountain State Park High Point State Park Hopatcong State Park Kittatinny Valley State Park Stokes State Forest Swartswood State Park Wawayanda State Park

History

European Settlement

There are frequent references in several amateur histories citing that a "company of Dutch miners" building the Old Mine Road and establishing a copper mine near the Delaware Water Gap circa 1640 were the first European settlement in Sussex County. However, these stories are unsupported by documentary or archaeological evidence. At this time, many adventurers (or coureurs des bois) from Sir Edmund Plowden's failed New Albion Colony and Dutch New Netherlands are reputed to have sought mineral deposits (especially precious metals) and animal furs in the undefined wilderness and journeyed to trade with inland Indian tribes, but little or no evidence of their efforts remain.

As early as 1690, Dutch and Huguenot colonists from New York began permanently settling in the Upper Delaware Valley (known as the "Minisink") as early as 1690. At this time, the county was populated by the Munsee, a group of Lenape that inhabited Northwestern New Jersey and Southern New York. Following Indian Trails from Esopus (now Kingston, New York, these Dutch and Huguenot families established settlements along the Rondout Creek, Neversink River and Mamakating Valley in Orange County, New York, and along the Delaware River in Northwestern New Jersey and Northeastern Pennsylvania. This Indian Trail led to the council fire of the Munsee tribes at Minisink, an island in the Delaware in present-day Montague Township. It would later become the route of the Old Mine Road and stretches of present-date U.S. Route 209.

Palatine German immigrants arriving in Philadelphia and New York City would begin settling river valleys in Northwestern New Jersey and Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley starting in 1709, but reaching their height after 1740. Also, in the 1740s and 1750s, Scottish settlers from Elizabethtown and Perth Amboy, and English settlers from these cities, Long Island, Connecticut and Massachusetts, came to New Jersey and moved up the tributaries of the Passaic and Raritan. Some settled in the eastern sections of present-day Sussex and Warren County.

Creation of the Sussex County

By the 1750s, residents of this area began to petition colonial authorities for a new county to be formed and cited complaints of the inconvenience and long journey required to conduct business with the government and the courts. By this time, four large townships had been created in this sparsely populated Northwestern region: Walpack Township (before 1731), Greenwich Township (before 1738), Hardwick Township (1750) and Newtown Township (1751). On 8 June 1753, Sussex County was created from these four municipalities that were a large portion of Morris County. The size of Sussex County at this time stretched over present-day Sussex and Warren Counties as its boundaries were legally drawn as:

That all and singular, the lands and upper parts of said Morris County northwest of Muskonetkong river, BEGINNING at the mouth of said river, where it empties itself into Delaware river, and running up said Muskonetkong river, to the head of the great pond; from thence to the line that divides the province of New-York and said New-Jersey; thence along the said line to Delaware river aforesaid; thence down the same to the mouth of Muskonetkong...

The county purportedly was named by Royal Governor Jonathan Belcher after Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle (1693–1768), who at the time was the Secretary of State for the Northern Department, and later the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1754–1756, 1757–1762). The Duke of Newcastle and his brother Henry Pelham were both prominent political figures in England from 1710 to 1762 and their family's ancestral seat was in the County of Sussex in England.

In the early 19th Century, residents of the southern portion of the county sought to have court sessions held in alternating locations—in Newton in the north and in either Oxford or Belvidere in the south. After several previous petitions were not successful, the state legislature voted to divide Sussex County in two using a line drawn from the juncture of the Flat Brook and Delaware River in a southeasterly direction to the Musconetcong River running through Yellow Frame in present-day Fredon Township (then part of Hardwick). On 20 November 1824, Warren County was created from the southern territory of the Sussex County.Template:GR.

Dairy Farming and other Agriculture

In 1914, Montclair stockbroker James Turner invested $500,000 to develop Lusscroft Farm in a 578-acre property in Wantage Township. He sought to create a perfect model for dairy farming and to promote scientific research to improve production and efficiency within the industry. In 1931, Turner donated the farm property (then 1,050 acres in total), cattle and operations to the State of New Jersey to be used as an agricultural research station. Cook College, the agriculture and environmental science residential college at Rutgers University used the property for active research in animal husbandry, horticulture and forestry until 1970 and Rutgers finally closed the facility in 1996. Research conducted at Lusscroft Farm led to the development of new techniques in grassland farming, ensilage, livestock breeding (the creation of artificial insemination techniques for dairy cows) and production testing for a safe milk supply. Today, the property is operated by the Heritage and Agriculture Association, a local non-profit organization, under a memorandum of understanding with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection as an agricultural heritage center focused on agricultural education, outdoor recreation, and historical interpretation.

Iron Mining

The Highlands Region of Northwestern New Jersey has proven to possess rich deposits of iron ore. In the mid 18th Century, several entrepreneurial colonists began mining iron in present-day Sussex County and establishing forges and furnaces to create pig iron and bar iron. By the end of the 18th Century, almost all of the trees in Sussex County were cut to provide charcoal to fuel the forges and furnaces in iron production.

In 1749, William Allen and Joseph Turner of Philadelphia acquired 21,363 acres of land in northwestern New JErsey for 3,000 pounds which included “well known Andover mine and the village of Andover with its forges and furnaces”. This forge, known as "Old Andover" was located at present-day Waterloo in Byram Township. In 1760, Allen and Turner built a blast furnace and forge on a branch of the Pequest River in present-day Andover Borough. However, both owners remained loyal to the British Crown during the American Revolution. In 1777, the Quarter Master department of the Continental Army complained to Congress of difficulties in acquiring iron to support the war effort. After trying to procure iron from Allen and Turner and being rebuffed, the Continenal Congress's ordered Colonel Benjamin Flower and Colonel Thomas Maybury to take possession of the Iron Works in order to equip General Washington's army. This mine lay idle from 1800 to 1848, when the firm Cooper & Hewitt acquired the works for $2,500 and proceeded to produce 50,000 tons of iron ore each year. The firm produced rails and the country's first structural steel, and led to the building of railroads and commercial development in the county.

Iron from the Andover mines was fashioned into cable wire for the bridge built at Niagara Falls and for the beams used to rebuild Princeton University's Nassau Hall in Princeton, New Jersey after a fire undermined the structure in 1855. During the American Civil War, Andover iron found its way into rifle barrels and cannonballs just as it had during the Revolution years before. According to local tradition, Andover Forge forged the huge chain used at West Point to keep British naval vessels from coming up the Hudson River during the Revolution.

In the 1870s, prolific American inventor Thomas Edison began to explore the commercial opportunities of processing poor-quality low-grade iron ore to combat the growing scarcity of iron deposits in the United States. He developed a process of crushing and milling iron-bearing minerals and separating iron ore from the material through large electromagnets. After experimenting at a plant in Bechtelsville, Pennsylvania, Edison built one of the world's largest ore-crushing mills near Ogdensburg, New Jersey. Completed in 1889, the factory contained three giant electromagnets and was intended to process up to 1200 tons of iron ore every day. However, technical difficulties repeatedly thwarted production. At the outset, Edison had high hopes that he would "do something now so different and so much bigger than anything I've ever done before people will forget that my name ever was connected with anything electrical." However, in the 1890s, richer soft-grade iron ore deposits located in Minnesota rendered Edison's Ogdensburg operation unprofitable and he closed the works in 1900. Edison adapted the process and machinery for the cement industry and proceeded to invest in producing Portland Cement.

Zinc Mines and Fluorescent Minerals

Fluorescent minerals of the Franklin mineral district: franklinite (black), willemite (green), and calcite (red). USGS

After completing medical school in Philadelphia, Samuel Fowler (1779-1844) settled in Franklin, New Jersey to open up a medical practice, but is largely known for his interest in mineralogy which led to his developing commercial uses for zinc and for discovery of several rare minerals (chiefly various ores of zinc) that are known for fluorescing in vivid colors when exposed to ultraviolet light. Franklin is known as the "Flourescent Mineral Capital of the World." Fowler, who later served in the New Jersey State Senate and U.S. House of Representatives, purchased and operated an iron works in the village (which he named Franklin Furnace) and bought several abandoned zinc and iron mines in the area.

Shortly after his death, two companies were created to exploit the iron and zinc deposits in this region and acquired the rights to Fowler's holdings in Franklin and nearby Sterling Hill. The Sussex Zinc and Copper Mining and Manufacturing Corporation was incorporated in 1848 for the purpose of mining zinc, and the New Jersey Exploration and Mining Company was incorporated in 1849 to extract iron. The founding partners were the same for both companies, and in 1852 the companies merged to form the New Jersey Zinc Corporation (today known as Horsehead Industries). Because of ambiguous deeds, overlapping claims, and misunderstanding over the nature of the ores at Franklin and Sterling Hill, mining companies in the district were in constant litigation. From 1868 to 1880, the New Jersey Zinc Company fought a legal battle with Moses Taylor's Franklin Iron Company, a dispute that was finally resolved in 1880 by merging the two companies into the New Jersey Zinc and Iron Company. In 1897, the remaining Franklin District companies were consolidated under the umbrella of the New Jersey Zinc Company, and managed by Stephen S. Palmer. At this time, Russian, British, Irish, Hungarian and Polish immigrants came to Franklin to work in the mines and the population of Franklin swelled from 500 (in 1897) to over 3,000 (in 1913). The Palmer family controlled the company for 46 years until the death of Stephen's son, Edgar Palmer, in 1943. In order to pay inheritance taxes, his estate was forced to sell its controlling interest in the company. Declining deposits in the Franklin area, the expense of pumping groundwater from mine shafts, and misdirected investments by the company led to the abandonment of the mines by the 1970s. Today, both the Franklin and Sterling Hill mines are operated as museums.

Railroads

As of 2012, a freight line running in Hardyston and Sparta townships is the only railroad operating in Sussex County. However, in the past, several railroad companies operated lines in the county when the county's dairy and mining industries relied on trains in their commerce. With the decline of those industries, the end of transporting the mail by train, refrigeration in trucks, lower freight and fuel costs by trucking, the railroads began to lose business and were forced to cease operating in the 1960s and 1970s. Today, many of the abandoned railbeds have been transformed into recreational trails. With the reconstruction and scheduled 2014 reopening of the Lackawanna Cut-Off by New Jersey Transit, passenger rail service will return to Sussex County for the first time in almost fifty years.

Newton Station (built 1873) was one of the first station sites in the system.

With the reopening of the Andover iron mines, the Sussex Railroad was chartered in 1848 to transport iron ore and products to the Morris Canal. Construction of the line began in 1853 and the connection was completed to Newton at the end of the following year. The line was extended to Branchville and Lafayette (1866-1869), Franklin in 1871 (to provide service to the zinc mines). This was the first railroad company to establish service in Sussex County and it played a role in the economic development of the dairy and mining industry in the area. The Sussex Railroad operated until 1945 when the line merged with the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad system. The last train travelled the route on 2 October 1966 and the tracks were soon removed. Today, the right-of-way was transformed into a recreational rail trail called the Sussex Branch Trail.

From 1886 to 1962, the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway and Blairstown Railway operated a branch that followed the valley of the Paulins Kill. This railway's principal business was in the transport of coal from Northeastern Pennsylvana to New York City. In the late 1980s, the State of New Jersey purchased the abandoned railbed and transformed into a recreational trail. The Paulinskill Valley Trail is a 27-mile scenic trail system that is used for hiking, cycling, jogging and horseback riding. Motor vehicles and all-terrain vehicles are not permitted.

The westbound Lackawanna Limited travelling through the Pequest Fill in Sussex County, c. 1912

At the beginning of the 20th Century, the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad opened a 400-mile (645 km) mainline that ran from Hoboken, New Jersey, to Buffalo, New York. A segment of this line called the Lackawanna Cut-Off (also known as the New Jersey Cut-Off, the Hopatcong-Slateford Cut-Off, the Lackawanna Highline, or simply the Cut-Off) was built across the southern portion of Sussex County from 1908 to 1911. It was in operation until 1979 and abandoned four years later. This route is being rebuilt and is scheduled to begin operating in 2014 under the management of New Jersey Transit. The Cut-Off ran west from Port Morris Junction—near the southern tip of Lake Hopatcong in New Jersey, about 45 miles (72.4 km) west-northwest of New York City — to Slateford Junction near the Delaware Water Gap in Pennsylvania, a total of 28.45 miles (45.9 km). The Lackawanna Cut-Off is an example of early 20th-century right-of-way construction, which minimized grades and curves and was built without vehicular crossings. It was one of the first railroad projects to use reinforced concrete on a large scale.

Government and politics

Board of Chosen Freeholders

Sussex County is governed by a five-member Board of Chosen Freeholders who are elected at-large to serve three-year terms. This board serves both as a small legislative body and as an administrative body with broad powers over the county's budget, government services, and infrastructure. Seats on the five-member board are elected on a staggered basis over three years, with two seats available in the first year, two seats the following, and then one seat. All terms of office begin on January 1 and end on December 31.

As of 2012, the five elected members of the Sussex County Board of Chosen Freeholders are:

• Philip R. Crabb (R, Franklin Borough) Freeholder Director
• Parker Space (R, Wantage Township) Deputy Freeholder Director
• Susan M. Zellman (R, Stanhope Borough)
• Richard A. Zeoli (R, Byram Township)
• Richard A. Vohden (R, Green Township)

The freeholders appoint a County Administrator to oversee the day-to-day management of the county by both "implementing the policy directives set forth by the Board of Chosen Freeholders" and "directing, managing, or guiding the County's administrative departments, divisions and agencies." The current Adminstrator is John Eskilson. Many services overseen by the county government overlap with those provided at the municipal level. However, the County government oversees and administers the following areas of responsibility:

Public Safety and Emergency Management Sussex County Community College Sussex County Technical School The County Library System Social Services Youth Services Community Service Public Mental Health Division of Senior Services The "Homestead"--the County Nursing Home (formerly the Alms House)

Environmental and Public Health Services Mosquito Control The Medical Examiner's Office The County Jail and Juvenile Detention Center Farmland and Open Space Preservation Economic Development The Maintenance and repair of County Roads and Bridges the Para Transit System and Transportation Planning Solid Waste Planning (The county dump in Lafayette Township) the County Master Plan (including Water Resource Planning)

Before 1911, two freeholders from each township were elected annually to serve on the board. However, as this became unwieldy during the era of Boroughitis and the creation of hundreds of municipalities, the State Legislature chose to reorganize the size of county freeholder boards to an odd number between three and nine members. The size of the board was a reflection of the county's population. As Sussex County was rural and among the least populated counties in the state, for the next 80 years, Sussex County's Board of Chosen Freeholders consisted of three elected members. The board increased from three to five members in 1992.

Constitutional officers

Pursuant to Article VII Section II of New Jersey's Constitution, each county in New Jersey is required to have three elected administrative officals known as "constitutional officers." These officers are the County Clerk (elected for a five-year term), the County Surrogate (elected for a five-year term), and the County Sheriff (elected for a three-year term).

The County Clerk is responsible for certifying notaries; processing and recording deeds, mortgages, and real estate documents; business trade names, processing petitions from candidate for elective office, drawing up ballots, overseeing elections and counting ballots, and many other tasks. The current County Clerk is Jeffrey M. Parrott (Republican).

The County Surrogate is both a constitutional officer and judge with jurisdiction over estate and probate matters (wills, guardianships, trusteeships), and in processing adoptions. The current County Surrogate is Nancy D. Fitzgibbons (Republican).

The County Sheriff is responsible for law enforcement, protection of the courts, administering the county jail, and the delivery and service of court documents. The current County Sheriff is Michael F. Strada (Republican). His term began 1 January 2011.

State and Federal Representation

Sussex County is part of two Congressional Districts.

• New Jersey's 5th congressional district, which consists of roughly four-fifths of Sussex County (it's northern and western area), all of Warren County, and parts of Passaic and Bergen counties is currently represented in the U.S. House of Representatives by E. Scott Garrett of Wantage Township. Representative Garrett is a Republican.
• New Jersey's 11th congressional district contains the southeastern corner of Sussex County (Hopatcong Borough, Stanhope Borough, Byram Township, and part of Sparta Township) and parts of Morris County. This district is represented in the House of Representatives by Rodney Frelinghuysen of Harding Township, New Jersey. Representative Frelinghuysen is a Republican.

New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Democrats Cory Booker (Newark, term ends 2027) and George Helmy (Mountain Lakes, term ends 2024).

Sussex County is in the For the 2024-2025 session, the 24th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Parker Space (R, Wantage Township) and in the General Assembly by Dawn Fantasia (R, Franklin) and Mike Inganamort (R, Chester Township).

Municipalities

Index map of Sussex County municipalities (click to see index key)

The following are Sussex County's 24 incorporated municipalities:

Andover Township (township) Andover (borough) Branchville (borough) Byram Township (township) Frankford Township (township) Franklin (borough) Fredon Township (township) Green Township (township) Hamburg (borough) Hampton Township (township) Hardyston Township (township) Hopatcong (borough)

Lafayette Township (township) Montague Township (township) Newton (town) Ogdensburg (borough) Sandyston Township (township) Sparta Township (township) Stanhope (borough) Stillwater Township (township) Sussex (borough) Vernon Township (township) Walpack Township (township) Wantage Township (township)

Politics

Sussex County is a predominantly Republican area, as among registered voters, affiliations with the Republican Party outpace those of the Democratic Party by a ratio of three to one. All five members of the county board of Chosen Freeholders, all three county-wide constitutional officers, and all except a few of the 108 municipal offices among the county's 24 municipalities are held by Republicans. In the 2004 U.S. Presidential election, George W. Bush carried the county by a 29.6% margin over John Kerry, the largest margin for Bush in any county in New Jersey, with Kerry carrying the state by 6.7% over Bush. In 2008, John McCain carried Sussex County by a 20.6% margin over Barack Obama, McCain's best showing in New Jersey, with Obama winning statewide by 15.5% over McCain. In the 2009 Gubernatorial Election, Republican Chris Christie received 63% of the vote, defeating Democrat Jon Corzine, who received around 26%. Also, Sussex County is the home county of Scott Garrett, who is by far the most conservative congressman from New Jersey. He represents almost all of Sussex County along with Warren County, northern Passaic County, and northern Bergen County. The southeast corner of Sussex County is represented by Rodney Frelinghuysen.

Economy

Early industry and commerce chiefly centered on agriculture, iron mining, shifting during the late 19th and early 20th centuries to focus on several factories and the mining of zinc. Today, Sussex County features a mix of rural farmland, forests and suburban development. Though agriculture (chiefly dairy farming) is on the decline and because the county hosts little industry, Sussex County is considered a "bedroom community" as most residents commute to neighboring counties (Bergen, Essex and Morris Counties) or to New York City for work.

Agriculture

Although Sussex County's dairy farming industry has declined significantly in the last 50 years it is still the majority of agricultural production in the region. Rising taxes, regulation and decreasing profitability in dairy farming have forced farmers to adapt by growing other products or converting their farms to other uses. Many farmers have sold their properties to real estate developers who have built residential housing. Many Sussex County farms are nursery farms producing ornamental trees, plants and flowers.

With the repeal of several prohibition-era alcohol laws in 1981, 43 wineries have become licensed and are presently operating in the state. New Jersey wines have grown in stature due to increased marketing and quality, recent successes and awards in competitions, and appreciation by critics. Sussex County is home to three established wineries and three more are in development.

Taxes

Property taxes in Sussex County have always been historically lower than its neighboring counties. Taxes on an acre of land, depending on the condition and size of the house, could be as low as $1500 a year. Typical property taxes in the county are in the $3000–$6000 a year range. This is due to low local spending, regional schools, modest police departments, and all municipalities having a volunteer Fire Department.

Transportation

Sussex County is served by a number of roads connecting it to the rest of the state and to both Pennsylvania and New York. Interstate 80 passes through the extreme southern tip of Sussex County solely in Byram. Interstate 84 passes just yards north of Sussex County, but never enters New Jersey.

New Jersey's Route 15, Route 23, Route 94, Route 181, Route 183, and Route 284 pass through the County, as does U.S. Route 206

Commuter rail service is available from Netcong, New Jersey on the Morris & Essex Lines of New Jersey Transit. New Jersey Transit also is in the process of re-opening the Lackawanna Cutoff, which passes through Andover and Green Townships, to commuter rail service, connecting Scranton, Pennsylvania with Hoboken, New Jersey and New York City. Service from Andover, NJ via the Cut-Off is slated to open in 2014.

Sussex County has four public-use airports, all privately owned and catering to recreational pilots. They are Sussex Airport, in Wantage Township, which has a runway of 3,500 feet (1,100 m), Newton Airport in Andover Township, Andover Aeroflex Airport also in Andover Township, and Trinca Airport in Green Township, which has a 1,900-foot (580 m) grass runway.

Television and radio broadcasting

Clear Channel Radio owns a cluster of four stations in the area.

• 102.3 WSUS-FM – Franklin. Format: Adult Contemporary
• 103.7 WNNJ – Newton. Format: Classic Rock
• 1360 WTOC – Newton. Format: Oldies
• 106.3 WHCY-FM – Franklin. Format: Hot Adult Contemporary

Stations from The Hudson Valley Also can be heard: 92.7 WRRV-FM- Middletown. Format: Alternative 104.7 WSPK-FM- Poughkeepsie. Format: Top 40 Stations from Scranton-East Stroudsburg Area also can be heard: 107.9 WKRF-FM- Tobyhanna. Format: Top 40 Stations from The Lehigh Valley Area can also be heard: 104.1 WAEB-FM- Allentown. Format: Top 40 FST Broadcasting Corp. owns WTBQ, just north of Vernon, New Jersey.

• 1110 WTBQ – Warwick, New York (can be heard throughout Northern Sussex County). Format: NewsTalk and Sports

The radio station WNTI, 91.9 FM, is broadcast from Centenary College in Hackettstown (Warren County). It is a commercial free, public station playing progressive music. It can be heard throughout most of Sussex County. Calvary Chapel of Howell, New Jersey broadcasts WRDR The Bridge FM with towers in Northern New Jersey and Southern New York.

• 103.1 WJGK-FM
• 99.7 WJUX-FM Sullivan and Orange Counties, New York. Format: Religious
• 94.3 WJUX-FM Pamona, New York and parts of Rockland County, New York. Format: Religious

Public radio (NJN – New Jersey Public Radio); primarily NPR but also an American Public Media outlet:

• 88.5 WNJP – Sussex, New Jersey
• 89.3 WNJY – Netcong, New Jersey

Crime and law enforcement

Heroin use has been on the rise and shows no signs of improvement despite efforts of law enforcement and community groups working to fight the problem. This is due to the inexpensive cost of heroin and its highly addictive nature. Yet for the most part, crime is fairly low in Sussex County. Law Enforcements are well organized and the sheriff is elected by the people of Sussex County. This is the only law enforcement position that is elected in the county. The Sheriff's office is located on 39 High Street, in Newton. The current sheriff of Sussex County is Michael Strada.

The State Police are located on Route 206 in Augusta and most townships have local police departments. There is also N.J. Park police in Stokes State Forest and other state parks.

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1790	19,500		—
1800	22,534		15.6%
1810	25,549		13.4%
1820	32,752		28.2%
1830	20,346	*	−37.9%
1840	21,770		7.0%
1850	22,989		5.6%
1860	23,846		3.7%
1870	23,168		−2.8%
1880	23,539		1.6%
1890	22,259		−5.4%
1900	24,134		8.4%
1910	26,781		11.0%
1920	24,905		−7.0%
1930	27,830		11.7%
1940	29,632		6.5%
1950	34,423		16.2%
1960	49,255		43.1%
1970	77,528		57.4%
1980	116,119		49.8%
1990	130,943		12.8%
2000	144,166		10.1%
2010	149,265		3.5%
* lost territory historical census data source:

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 144,166 people, 50,831 households, and 38,784 families residing in the county. The population density was 277 people per square mile (107/km²). There were 56,528 housing units at an average density of 108 per square mile (42/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.70% White, 1.0% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 1.20% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.74% from other races, and 1.14% from two or more races. 3.30% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 20.4% were of Italian, 18.1% Irish, 16.0% German, 7.2% English, 5.9% Polish and 5.2% American ancestry according to Census 2000.

By 2006, 90.3% of the county population was non-Hispanic whites. The percentage of African-Americans was up to 1.7%. Asians were now 1.9% of the population. 5.3% of the population was Latino.

In 2000 there were 50,831 households out of which 39.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.0% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.7% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.24.

In the county the population was spread out with 27.9% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 31.5% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.6 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $67,266, and the median income for a family was $73,335 (these figures had risen to $79,434 and $89,302 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $50,395 versus $33,750 for females. The per capita income for the county was $26,992. About 2.8% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.1% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Sussex County's municipalities are divided into eight local and regional public high school districts. Each municipality (except Walpack Township) has its own elementary or grammar school. Several municipalities have two or more elementary or grammar schools. Because of its distance from other county high schools and the higher costs of busing students one of those locations, Montague Township sends their students to Port Jervis, New York for schooling. Several of the county's high schools are highly ranked by both state and federal education departments, with two high schools (Kittatinny Regional and High Point Regional) having achieved the U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon School Award.

The county's eight public high schools are:

• High Point Regional High School (Grades 9-12)
• Hopatcong High School (Grades 9-12)
• Kittatinny Regional High School (Grades 7-12)
• Lenape Valley Regional High School (Grades 9-12)
• Newton High School (Grades 9-12)
• Sparta High School (Grades 9-12)
• Vernon Township High School (Grades 9-12)
• Wallkill Valley Regional High School (Grades 9-12)

The county's Board of Chosen Freeholders oversees the Sussex County Technical School (formerly the Sussex County Vocational-Technical School), a county-wide technical high school in Sparta Township, New Jersey.

Pope John XXIII Regional High School in Sparta, New Jersey, operates under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson, which also operates the K-8 schools Immaculate Conception in Franklin, St. Joseph in Newton and Rev. George A. Brown in Sparta. There are several other private schools in the county.

Higher education

Sussex County Community College is a two-year community college located at the intersection of County Route 519 and Plotts Road in Newton. Opened in 1982, SCCC offers 37 associate degrees and 11 certificate programs to its more than 4,200 students.

South Orange-based Upsala College located its Wirth Campus in Sussex County, which served 300 students before the school closed in 1995.

Tourism and recreation

There are nine wildlife management areas located in Sussex County for hunting, fishing, trapping, hiking, snowshoeing and cross country skiing, covering more than 15,000 acres (6,100 ha). There are also several state forests and state parks.

State and federal parks

• Stokes State Forest
• High Point State Park
• Swartswood State Park
• Wawayanda State Park
• Kittatinny Valley State Park
• Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
• Allamuchy Mountain State Park

Sports franchises

Augusta is the site of Skylands Park, a minor league baseball stadium, home of the Sussex Skyhawks. The Skyhawks play in the Can-Am League. Skylands Park was the former home of the New Jersey Cardinals (from 1994–2005), but the Cardinals moved to State College, Pennsylvania making room for the Skyhawks.

See also

• List of Sussex County, New Jersey people
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Sussex County, New Jersey

References and other resources

Books and printed materials

• Armstrong, William C. Pioneer Families of Northwestern New Jersey (Lambertville, New Jersey: Hunterdon House, 1979).
• Cawley, James S. and Cawley, Margaret. Exploring the Little Rivers of New Jersey (New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1942, 1961, 1971, 1993). ISBN 0-8135-0684-0
• Chambers, Theodore Frelinghuysen. The Early Germans of New Jersey: Their History, Churches, and Genealogies (Dover, New Jersey, Dover Printing Company, 1895), passim.
• Cummings, Warren D. Sussex County: A History (Newton, New Jersey: Newton Rotary Club, 1964). NO ISBN
• Cunningham, John T. Railroad Wonder: The Lackawanna Cut-Off (Newark, New Jersey: Newark Sunday News, 1961). NO ISBN
• Documents Relating to the Colonial, Revolutionary and Post-Revolutionary History of the State of New Jersey [Title Varies]. Archives of the State of New Jersey, 1st–2nd series. 47 volumes. (Newark, New Jersey: 1880–1949). NO ISBN
• Honeyman, A. Van Doren (ed.). Northwestern New Jersey—A History of Somerset, Morris, Hunterdon, Warren, and Sussex Counties Volume 1. (Lewis Historical Publishing Co., New York, 1927).
• McCabe, Wayne T. Sussex County (Images of America) (Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2003).
• Schaeffer, Casper M.D. (and Johnson, William M.). Memoirs and Reminiscences: Together with Sketches of the Early History of Sussex County, New Jersey. (Hackensack, New Jersey: Privately Printed, 1907). NO ISBN
• Schrabisch, Max. Indian habitations in Sussex County, New Jersey Geological Survey of New Jersey, Bulletin No. 13. (Union Hill, New Jersey: Dispatch Printing Company, 1915). NO ISBN
• Schrabisch, Max. Archaeology of Warren and Hunterdon counties Geological Survey of New Jersey, Bulletin No. 18. (Trenton, N.J., MacCrellish and Quigley co., state printers, 1917). NO ISBN
• Snell, James P. History of Sussex and Warren Counties, New Jersey, With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. (Philadelphia: Everts & Peck, 1881). NO ISBN
• Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries 1606–1968 (Trenton, New Jersey: Bureau of Geology and Topography, 1969). No ISBN
• Stickney, Charles E. Old Sussex County families of the Minisink Region from articles in the Wantage Recorder (compiled by Virginia Alleman Brown) (Washington, New Jersey: Genealogical Researchers, 1988)

Maps and atlases

• Map of Jonathan Hampton (1758) in the collection of the New Jersey Historical Society, Newark, New Jersey.
• Hopkins, Griffith Morgan. Map of Sussex County, New Jersey. (1860) [Reprinted by the Sussex County Historical Society: Netcong, New Jersey: Esposito (Jostens), 2004.]
• Beers, Frederick W. County Atlas of Warren, New Jersey: From actual surveys by and under the direction of F. W. Beers (New York: F.W. Beers & Co. 1874). [Reprinted by Warren County Historical Society: Harmony, New Jersey: Harmony Press, 1994].
• Hagstrom Morris/Sussex/Warren counties atlas (Maspeth, New York: Hagstrom Map Company, Inc. 2004).

External links

County Government Sussex County webpage. Churches St Mary's Episcopal Church, Sparta NJ Education Sussex County Community College Sussex County Technical School Sussex County Interscholastic League

History and Tourism Sussex County Historical Society Sussex County Abandoned Mine History Newton Fire Museum News and Media The Advertiser-News The Sparta Independent Times Herald-Record The New Jersey Herald The Star-Ledger The Township Journal WSUS 102.3 FM