By Andrew Koch
From the sights and sounds of Atlantic City’s famous boardwalk to the technological marvels of Thomas Edison’s Menlo Park, New Jersey has a lot to offer history buffs, thrill-seekers, intellectuals, gamblers, and patrons of the arts alike. The state has a deep history and rich records, diverse and proud like its people. Did your ancestors plant their roots in the Garden State? Read on to learn how to research in New Jersey.
1664
1787
1855, 1865, 1875, 1885, 1895, 1905, 1915
1800 (Cumberland Co. only); 1830
State
1848
1848
New Jersey Department
of Health
Bureau of Vital Statistics
and Registration
Box 370
Trenton, NJ 08625
(866) 649-8726
The Algonquian-speaking Lenni Lenape, also known as the Delaware, lived in what is now New Jersey for centuries. They call their ancestral land (which stretched well into modern Pennsylvania, Delaware and New York) Lenapehoking, with New Jersey specifically known as Scheyichbi. The Munsee division of Lenape lived in northern New Jersey.
Encroaching European settlement forced most Lenape to leave the region by the early 1800s. Brotherton was among the first Indian reservations in the modern United States, and the only to have existed in New Jersey. Explorer Henry Hudson sailed up the river named for him in 1609, claiming the surrounding area for the Dutch. “New Netherland” was settled in fits and starts, hindered by confrontations with indigenous groups.
The Dutch also faced competition from the Swedish, whose New Sweden colony stretched up the Delaware River into modern southwest New Jersey. The Dutch town of Bergen (modern Jersey City), founded in 1660, was the first long-lasting settlement. England conquered New Netherland from the Dutch in 1664. King Charles II granted the land to his brother the Duke of York (later, King James II). He then designated Sir George Carteret and Lord John Berkeley as proprietors of the area between the Hudson and Delaware Rivers. Cataret was from the island of Jersey; thus, the land became the Province of “New Jersey.”
After briefly being occupied by the Dutch in 1674, the colony was divided into West Jersey and East Jersey. The two Jerseys reunited in 1702, now under the royal governor of New York. (New Jersey gained its own governor in 1738.) The colony’s proximity to New York encouraged migration from the latter; even today, many New Jerseyans work in the New York. The colony was also notable for its policy of religious tolerance. Among early residents were Puritans, French Huguenots, and Quakers. Other notable immigrant groups include the Dutch and Scottish.
More Revolutionary War battles were fought in New Jersey than in any other colony, and the colony was home to a sizeable number of Loyalists (including Governor William Franklin, son of Benjamin Franklin). George Washington famously crossed the Delaware River from Pennsylvania into New Jersey in 1776, routing Hessian troops in the Battle of Trenton and inspiring a famous portrait. New Jersey was also active in the early United States, becoming the third state to ratify the Constitution and the first to ratify the Bill of Rights. Trenton was briefly a candidate for the permanent US capital, but ultimately lost to the new city of Washington, DC.
In the 1800s, industrialization attracted workers to the textile and manufacturing hubs of Paterson, Trenton, Camden, Newark and Jersey City. The advent of canals and railroads made transportation even easier, especially given New Jersey’s placement between New York City and Philadelphia.
Today, New Jersey (with the fifth-smallest amount of land and the 11th-largest population) is the most densely populated US state and among the most ethnically diverse. Famous past and present residents include Thomas Edison, Bruce Springsteen and Frank Sinatra.
1524
Giovanni de Verrazano
is the first European
to explore modern
New Jersey
1609
Henry Hudson claims
“New Netherland”
for the Dutch
1674
England captures New Netherland
1674
New Jersey is administered
as the separate
divisions of East Jersey and West Jersey
1674
East and West Jersey merge into the Province of New Jersey, now a
royal colony
Map of New Jersey. Appleton D. and Co., New York. 1891. (David Rumsey Map Collection)
Some New Jersey towns required birth, marriage and death records as early as the 1600s, though compliance was spotty. In 1848, New Jersey became just the second state to mandate statewide vital registration. The New Jersey State Archives is responsible for records created prior to 1922 (for births) or 1940 (for marriages and deaths). From its website, you can search an index of 19th-century marriage and death records or request state-level vital records from 1848 to 1922/1940.
Records of events since 1922/1940 are held by the state department of health. The vital records office distinguishes between “genealogical records” (which cover deceased individuals and took place more than 80 years ago for births, 50 years for marriages and 40 years for deaths) and “non-genealogical records” (which are of living individuals and/or were created within those time frames).
Anyone can request “certifications” of vital events— genealogical or non-genealogical—documented by the department of health. But full records (“certified copies”) are restricted to the subject, their spouse, their child or parent, or someone empowered by a court order. Requests for genealogical records can only be made by mail and must be paid for via check or money order. You can also look to county-level registrar offices for early records; find a list on the New Jersey Department of Health website.
Each of the large genealogy websites—Ancestry.com, FamilySearch and MyHeritage—have various collections of vital records and indexes. And advocate group Reclaim the Records published a database of New Jersey death records: browsable images for the 20th century (with some gaps), and a searchable index from 2000 to 2017.
One of the Thirteen Colonies, New Jersey has been enumerated in every decennial federal census since 1790. Unfortunately, records of censuses from that year through 1820 have been lost, and (as in most of the United States) the 1890 census of New Jersey has largely been destroyed. Surviving censuses are widely available at FamilySearch, Ancestry.com and MyHeritage.
New Jerseyans are fortunate in that the state government took its own censuses every 10 years between 1855 and 1915. FamilySearch and Ancestry.com each have these records, though only Ancestry.com has the 1875 census. The state censuses neatly complement those taken by the US government, and the 1895 and 1905 censuses in particular can help compensate for the destroyed 1890 federal census. (Note: The 1855 and 1865 enumerations name only heads of household.) The Genealogical Society of New Jersey has a county-by-county guide.
As a state-land state, New Jersey had its land sold by the colonial or state government, rather than the federal government. After the English took possession of the region, New Jersey’s land was granted to two proprietors, who in turn sold their shares to interested parties.
Though East and West Jersey politically merged in 1702,the proprietors’ legal successors maintained their land rights as separate organizations—even into the early 20th century. The state archives has custody of records from the proprietors of both East and West Jersey, and has digitized indexes to some 374,000 early land record entries online. The state archives collection also includes early deeds, which were filed by the New Jersey secretary of state. In 1785, deed-keeping transferred to the county level (though many land transfers went un-recorded). Post-1785 deeds are at the county clerk office.
Early New Jersey publications include the Plain Dealer (1775) and The New Jersey Gazette (1777), as well as the single-issue The Constitutional Courant (1765) that protested the infamous Stamp Act. Rutgers University Library partnered with the state archives and library to create the New Jersey Digital Newspaper Project. Completed in November 2023, the project added roughly 300,000 pages from New Jersey titles to the free website Chronicling America. New Jersey newspapers are also included at subscription websites Newspapers.com, GenealogyBank and NewspaperArchive.
The New Jersey State Library has historical directories for many cities, even those outside the state. You can also find robust city directory collections at Rutgers University Libraries, Ancestry.com, FamilySearch and MyHeritage. Fold3 holds directories of Newark from 1861 to 1923.
New Jerseyans have been involved in every major US military conflict. The FamilySearch Wiki can help you connect to records from each era. The state archives has searchable indexes for Civil War servicemen and payment vouchers, WWI deaths, and claims filed by residents whose property was damaged in the Revolutionary War. Civil War service information is also available through the Soldiers and Sailors Database, and you can request various military records from the National Archives.
FamilySearch Research Wiki: New Jersey
Genealogy & History, New Jersey State Government
New Jersey State Archives Databases
Genealogical and Memorial History of the State of New Jersey, four volumes by Francis Bazley Lee (Clearfield/Genealogical Publishing Co.)
Guide to Vital Statistics Records in New Jersey, two volumes by the Works Progress Administration
New Jersey: A History of the Garden State by Maxine N. Lurie (Rutgers University Press)
Old Burial Grounds of New Jersey: A Guide by Janice Kohl Sarapin (Rutgers University Press)
The Genealogical Society of New Jersey
National Archives at New York City
The New Jersey Historical Society
*FamilyTreeMagazine.com is a participant in the Amazon Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. It provides a means for this site to earn advertising fees, by advertising and linking to Amazon and affiliated websites.
