Harding Township is a township in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located in the Passaic Valley region within the New York metropolitan area. The township was formed as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on September 1, 1922, from portions of Passaic Township (since renamed as Long Hill Township), based on the results of a referendum passed on May 9, 1922.Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 193. Accessed May 28, 2024.Staff. Acts of the One Hundred and Forty-Sixth Legislature of the State of New Jersey, pp. 74-77. New Jersey Secretary of State, 1922. Accessed October 17, 2015. "Chapter 40 - An Act to incorporate the township of Harding, in the county of Morris"Historical Timeline of Morris County Boundaries , Morris County Library. Accessed December 24, 2016. "1922, September 1. Harding Township is established from Passaic. The township includes sections Green Village and New Vernon. From PL 1923, p. 587." As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 3,871, an increase of 33 (+0.9%) from the 2010 census count of 3,838, which in turn reflected an increase of 658 (+20.7%) from the 3,180 counted in the 2000 census.Table 7. Population for the Counties and Municipalities in New Jersey: 1990, 2000 and 2010, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, February 2011. Accessed May 1, 2023.

The long-established hamlets of New Vernon and Green Village (also within Chatham Township) are both located in Harding Township. The township is home to the private club community Mount Kemble Lake, a former summer colony developed in the 1920s.Lawlor, Julia. "If You're Thinking of Living In/Harding Township, N.J.; Open Space, Scenic Beauty, Pricey Homes", The New York Times, November 3, 2002. Accessed October 7, 2020. "In the Mount Kemble Lake area, a summer vacation community developed in 1928, small cottages on 9,000-square-foot lots have been converted to year-round homes surrounding one of Harding's two lakes."Brochure, Mount Kemble Lake. Accessed October 7, 2020. "Established in 1926, Mt. Kemble Lake is an unusual mix of privately owned homes and community owned assets, with a deep sense of volunteerism and community pride."

Described by The New York Times as "one of the most restrictive and elegant of New Jersey's residential suburban areas"Waggoner, Walter H. "Town With 3‐Acre Zoning Minimum Ordered to Allow Garden Apartments", The New York Times, July 6, 1973. Accessed October 7, 2020. "Harding Township, just south of Morristown, has been called 'the Garden of Eden of Morris County' by County Judge Jacques H. Gascoyne, and it is one of the most restrictive and elegant of New Jersey's residential suburban areas." and as an "affluent Morris County township",Garbarine, Rachelle. "In the Region/New Jersey; A Patient Family Becomes a Careful Developer", The New York Times, April 5, 1998. Accessed October 7, 2020. "The broad swath of meadows, hayfields and thick woods is among the last large estates and working farms in this affluent Morris County township." the community has been one of the state's highest-income municipalities. Harding Township had a per capita income of $109,472 and was ranked first in New Jersey based on data from the 2006–2010 American Community Survey from the United States Census Bureau, more than triple the statewide average of $34,858.Median Household, Family, Per-Capita Income: State, County, Municipality and Census Designated Place (CDP) With Municipalities Ranked by Per Capita Income; 2010 5-year ACS estimates , New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Accessed December 2, 2019. Based on data from the ACS for 2014–2018, Harding Township ranked sixth in the state with a median household income of $183,587 and had almost half of households earning more than $200 thousand annually.Cervenka, Susanne. "Rich in New Jersey: Here are the 50 wealthiest towns in the state. Is yours one of them?", Asbury Park Press, July 1, 2019. Accessed October 7, 2020. "6. Harding County: Morris County Median household income: $183,587 Percent making more than $200,000: 47%"

The 07976 ZIP Code for New Vernon was named one of the "25 Richest ZIP Codes" in the United States by Forbes magazine in 2006.The Most Expensive ZIP Codes 2006 , Forbes magazine April 21, 2006 Many relatively unchanged large country estates that have been passed down through several generations attest to the wealth of many of its residents. Some have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and some have nonprofit support organizations that assure the retention of the original nature of the properties.New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Morris County, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Historic Preservation Office, updated October 1, 2020. Accessed October 7, 2020.

As of 2021, the median value of a home in Harding Township lies at $1,181,000.Census Reporter: Harding township, Morris County, NJ.

History After the retreat of the Wisconsin Glacier, a mighty glacial lake called Glacial Lake Passaic formed in this area that, about 15,000 to 11,000 years ago, extended for in length and was wide. The lake finally drained when a blockage of the Passaic River reopened. The Great Swamp is the remnant of the lake bottom and portions of the swamp lay in what now is the township. Once the lake drained, higher areas became a wooded area that was used for hunting, fishing, and farming by Native Americans. At the time of colonization by the Dutch it belonged to the Lenape tribes, but British colonists did their best to displace them westward.

Much of what now is known as Harding was an agricultural community with roots stretching as far back as the early 18th century. Bypassed by colonial turnpikes, revolution era canals, and railroads laid in the Victorian era, the area remained a rural backwater. For almost two centuries of European occupation, its open and rolling landscapes reflected its agricultural use, as land had been cleared for cattle pastures, orchards, and fields of grain. The Great Swamp, the wooded slopes of the Watchung Mountains, and those near Jockey Hollow also were used by local farmers for wood supply. The communities of Green Village, Logansville, New Vernon, and Pleasantville were the village centers in this agricultural community.

Wealthy urban residents from Manhattan and Newark bought farmland, enlarged old farmhouses, and landscaped the grounds. The movement to establish Harding Township was driven by local property owners who wanted to maintain a bucolic community without suburban development.

The township was created in 1922 from the northern half of what was then Passaic Township (present day Long Hill Township) and it was named after the incumbent President of the United States, Warren G. Harding.Washington, Gregory C. "Town snapshot: Harding", The Star-Ledger, November 30, 2006. Accessed August 2, 2007. "When concluded, Passaic Township was cut in half and the northern half was named after the sitting president of the United States, Warren G. Harding."Bloom, Susan. "Harding Township re-dedicates municipal building", Daily Record, December 8, 2014. "In 1922, they seceded from Passaic Township, named their new town after then-sitting President Warren Harding, and never looked back."

The New Vernon Neighborhood Restrictive Agreement was established in 1928 by estate owners under which they agreed to voluntarily place restrictive covenants on their land that would require future owners of the properties to maintain the rural nature of the area.Staff. "Harding Township", Observer Tribune. Accessed September 11, 2013. "The desire to preserve Harding's rural character was evident even in 1928 when an unusual private land preservation effort began with the New Vernon Neighborhood Restrictive Agreement." This voluntary effort to limit development and save the pastoral qualities of over across Harding Township influenced subsequent zoning codes, which emerged several decades later, and helped preserve the landscape to the present day.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 20.57 square miles (53.28 km2), including 20.05 square miles (51.94 km2) of land and 0.52 square miles (1.34 km2) of water (2.51%). The township includes unincorporated communities, a portion of Green Village and all of New Vernon, both of which have origins as colonial settlements that predate the American Revolution. The governmental offices for the township are in New Vernon.

Other unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Baileys Mill, Dickson Mill, Glen Alpin, Jockey Hollow Park, Logansville, Mount Kemble Lake, Olmstead Mills, Osborn Mill, Pleasantville, Sugar Loaf and Van Dorens Mill.Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed May 21, 2015.

The township borders Mendham Township to the west, Madison to the northeast, Chatham Township to the east, Morris Township to the north, and Long Hill Township to the southeast in Morris County and Bernardsville to the southwest and Bernards Township to the south in Somerset County.Areas touching Harding Township, MapIt. Accessed March 13, 2022.Morris County Municipalities Map, Morris County, New Jersey Department of Planning and Preservation. Accessed February 23, 2020.New Jersey Municipal Boundaries, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.

Demographics

Population

2010 census The 2010 United States census counted 3,838 people, 1,474 households, and 1,126 families in the township. The population density was 192.7 per square mile (74.4/km2). There were 1,610 housing units at an average density of 80.8 per square mile (31.2/km2). The racial makeup was 94.14% (3,613) White, 0.99% (38) Black or African American, 0.13% (5) Native American, 2.66% (102) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 0.34% (13) from other races, and 1.75% (67) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.49% (134) of the population.

Of the 1,474 households, 31.2% had children under the age of 18; 68.7% were married couples living together; 5.7% had a female householder with no husband present and 23.6% were non-families. Of all households, 20.6% were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.00.

24.0% of the population were under the age of 18, 4.8% from 18 to 24, 14.5% from 25 to 44, 35.8% from 45 to 64, and 21.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48.9 years. For every 100 females, the population had 93.7 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 93.1 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $168,365 (with a margin of error of +/− $37,371) and the median family income was $185,647 (+/− $30,739). Males had a median income of $123,854 (+/− $38,454) versus $66,131 (+/− $25,727) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $109,472 (+/− $24,951). About 6.8% of families and 7.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.5% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.DP03: Selected Economic Characteristics from the 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates for Harding township, Morris County, New Jersey , United States Census Bureau. Accessed December 2, 2012.

2000 census