In Money magazine's 2013 Best Places to Live rankings, Montville was ranked 13th in the nation, the second-highest among the three places in New Jersey included in the top 50 list.[24][25] The township was ranked 17th in the magazine's 2011 ranking of the "Best Places to Live", the highest-ranked place in New Jersey, after having been ranked 13th in 2007.[26][27] In 2009, Money magazine named Montville the 21st best place to live in the United States; the 2nd highest ranked community in New Jersey.[28]
Over 10,000 years ago, the area was part of the Lenapehoking. It was originally settled by the Lenape tribes of the Munsee dialect.[29] The Lenape tribes maintained peace and no significant battles were recorded in the area.[30]
On October 12, the Morris County Parks Commission holds Lenape Day at the Great Swamp to celebrate the culture and history of Ramapough Lenape people.[31]
Dutch settlement
Dutch farmers from New Amsterdam (now part of New York City) entered the area in 1710.[30] As part of New Netherland, the town was originally called "Uyle-Kill" (the Dutch spelling of "Owl-Kill"), a name given to the creek and valley, which ran through the area.
By the 1740s, the settlement had grown in size and construction of the first road was begun. The early road, now known as U.S. Route 202, connected various farms with Montville's first gristmill, sawmill and tanneries.
In 1756, the Dutch Reformed Church was founded in Old Boonton and moved to Montville in the early 1800s after land was purchased in Montville for a parsonage.[32]
In 1760, the first schoolhouse in the Montville township was built out of logs in Pine Brook. It was located on "the road leading to Boonton," which could refer to multiple northwest-facing roads including Changebridge Road. Additional schools were constructed in 1785, 1816, and 1852.[30]
During the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), Montville was on a major military route from Morristown to the Hudson River. General George Washington's troops often took this route and Washington stayed in the Towaco section of what is now Montville Township in June 1780.[33] The French troops under the leadership of General Rochambeau spent four days passing through Montville Township on their way to the War's final victory at Yorktown, Virginia, as part of a group of 5,000 soldiers, 2,000 horses, 500 oxen, possibly 900 cattle, artillery, boats and followers.[34]
The Mandeville Inn was established around 1770 and was pronounced "Mondeveil" by the Dutch, which in turn was corrupted to Montville. The Montville Inn was, up until July 2006, located at the site of the pre-Revolutionary War Mandeville Inn, which burned down in the early 20th century.[35] Other sources attribute the township's name to its location in the mountains of Northern New Jersey.[36]
In 1809, the first store in Montville was opened by Conrad Esler. In 1820, Montville contained 16 houses, 2 bark mills, a grist mill, a cider mill and distillery, a blacksmith shop, a carpenter shop, a wheelwright shop, and a small store; at the time, Montville was considered a business center compared to nearby towns. By 1880, it contained 40 houses, a bark mill, two grist mills, a tannery, a saw mill, a rubber factory, two blacksmith shops, two taverns, and 2 stores.[30]
The construction of the Morris Canal in this area was completed in 1828, bringing commercial navigation to the Montville/Towaco area. The mid-19th century saw the development of two smaller village centers set apart from Montville: Pine Brook, a fertile agricultural area in the Township's southern end, and Towaco, situated on the Morris Canal.[37]
The Pine Brook Speedway, which operated from July 1962 until October 1989, was designed for midget car racing and became one of the earliest sites for microstock racing. Mario Andretti raced at the track and had some of his earliest success as a race car driver at the Speedway.[38]
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 19.12 square miles (49.51 km2), including 18.63 square miles (48.24 km2) of land and 0.49 square miles (1.27 km2) of water (2.57%).[1][2]
Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Horse Neck Bridge, Lake Valhalla, Lower Montville, Pine Brook, Taylortown, Towaco and White Hall.[39]
Camp Dawson is a small camp area in Towaco that is home to a variety of recreational events such as hiking, sledding, soccer, lacrosse, rugby and football. In 2007, Camp Dawson was described by Money magazine as one of reasons for ranking Montville as the 13th best smaller population place to live in the United States.[43] Many Montville sports teams use the fields at Camp Dawson, which include two turf fields mainly used for football, soccer and lacrosse. These fields have lighting available for these teams to play at night.[44] There was a flurry of concern in 2008, when testing of Dawson's new artificial turf playing fields showed what turned out to be false positive finding of dangerously high levels of toxic lead.[43][45][46]
Climate
The lowest recorded temperature in Montville is −25 °F (−32 °C), set in February 1943, and the highest recorded temperature is 105 °F (41 °C), set in July 1936 and 2011.[47]
Montville township, Morris County, New Jersey – Racial and Ethnic Composition (NH = Non-Hispanic) Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
Of the 7,485 households, 39.2% had children under the age of 18; 69.9% were married couples living together; 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present and 20.0% were non-families. Of all households, 17.4% were made up of individuals and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.85 and the average family size was 3.23.[18]
25.7% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 22.0% from 25 to 44, 31.7% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.0 years. For every 100 females, the population had 95.7 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 90.9 males.[18]
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $119,493 (with a margin of error of +/− $12,959) and the median family income was $143,811 (+/− $17,082). Males had a median income of $102,178 (+/− $5,041) versus $66,933 (+/− $6,419) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $54,618 (+/− $3,849). About 2.6% of families and 3.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.9% of those under age 18 and 4.4% of those age 65 or over.[59]
As of the 2000 United States census[15] there were 20,839 people, 7,380 households, and 5,867 families residing in the township. The population density was 1,104.3 inhabitants per square mile (426.4/km2). There were 7,541 housing units at an average density of 399.6 per square mile (154.3/km2). The racial makeup of the township was 84.95% White, 0.93% African American, 0.04% Native American, 12.57% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.36% from other races, and 1.14% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.55% of the population.[55][56]
There were 7,380 households, out of which 37.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 71.0% were married couples living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.5% were non-families. 16.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.7% 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 3.17.[55][56]
In the township the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 30.6% from 25 to 44, 28.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.[55][56]
The median income for a household in the township was $94,557, and the median income for a family was $105,394. Males had a median income of $71,356 versus $45,427 for females. The per capita income for the township was $43,341. About 2.6% of families and 3.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.4% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.[55][56]
Government
Local government
Montville is governed under a special charter, which was granted by an act of the New Jersey Legislature in 1867 and retains many characteristics of the Township form of government; it is one of 12 municipalities (of the 564) statewide governed by a special charter.[60][61][62][63] The Township Committee is comprised of five members, who are elected directly by the voters at-large in partisan elections to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with either one or two seats coming up for election each year as part of the November general election in a three-year cycle.[7][64] At an annual reorganization meeting, the Township Committee selects one of its members to serve as Mayor. The Township Administrator serves as the chief administrative and executive officer for the organization and is responsible for the day-to-day operations of all municipal departments.[37]
As of 2023[update], Montville's Township Committee is comprised of Mayor Matthew S. Kayne (R, term on committee and as mayor ends December 31, 2023), Deputy mayor Frank W. Cooney (R, term on committee ends 2024; term as deputy mayor ends 2023), Richard D. Conklin (R, 2025), Richard A. Cook (R, 2025) and June Witty (R, 2023).[3][65][66][67][68][69][70]
A Charter Study Commission was approved by the voters on November 8, 2005, to investigate possible changes to Montville's form of government.[71] The commission voted 4–1 against making any modifications.
The Montville Municipal Court is the judicial branch of government. The Court has original jurisdiction over Motor vehicle violations local ordinance offenses, petty disorderly person offenses, disorderly person offenses, fish and game violations, traffic and criminal offenses, weights and measure violations, and citizen complaints.[72]
Federal, state and county representation
Montville is located in the 11th Congressional District[73] and is part of New Jersey's 26th state legislative district.[74][75][76]
Morris County is governed by a Board of County Commissioners composed of seven members who are elected at-large in partisan elections to three-year terms on a staggered basis, with either one or three seats up for election each year as part of the November general election.[81] Actual day-to-day operation of departments is supervised by County Administrator Deena Leary.[82]: 8 As of 2025[update], Morris County's Commissioners are:
The county's constitutional officers are:
Clerk Ann F. Grossi (R, Parsippany–Troy Hills, 2028),[90][91]
Sheriff James M. Gannon (R, Boonton Township, 2025)[92][93] and
Surrogate Heather Darling (R, Roxbury, 2029).[94][95]
Politics
As of June 2021, there were a total of 17,735 registered voters in Montville Township, of which 4,446 (25%) were registered as Democrats, 6,490 (36.5%) were registered as Republicans, with the majority of the remaining 6,799 (38.3%) registered as Unaffiliated.[96]
In the 2020 presidential election, Republican Donald Trump received 50.86% of the vote (7,199 cast), ahead of Democrat Joe Biden with 47.63% (6,742 votes), and other candidates with 1.5% (213 votes).[97] In the 2016 presidential election, Republican Donald Trump received 55.1% of the vote (6,440 cast), ahead of Democrat Hillary Clinton with 42.5% (4,939 votes), and other candidates with 2.7% (311 votes), among the 11,690 ballots cast.[98] In the 2012 presidential election, Republican Mitt Romney received 60.4% of the vote (6,460 cast), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 38.3% (4,101 votes), and other candidates with 1.3% (142 votes), among the 10,749 ballots cast by the township's 15,001 registered voters (46 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 71.7%.[99][100] In the 2008 presidential election, Republican John McCain received 57.8% of the vote (6,720 cast), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 41.0% (4,761 votes) and other candidates with 0.7% (84 votes), among the 11,623 ballots cast by the township's 14,890 registered voters, for a turnout of 78.1%.[101] In the 2004 presidential election, Republican George W. Bush received 59.0% of the vote (6,605 ballots cast), outpolling Democrat John Kerry with 40.0% (4,483 votes) and other candidates with 0.5% (77 votes), among the 11,203 ballots cast by the township's 14,582 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 76.8.[102]
In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 74.7% of the vote (4,703 cast), ahead of Democrat Barbara Buono with 24.1% (1,515 votes), and other candidates with 1.2% (74 votes), among the 6,389 ballots cast by the township's 14,958 registered voters (97 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 42.7%.[103][104] In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 61.6% of the vote (4,679 ballots cast), ahead of Democrat Jon Corzine with 30.0% (2,278 votes), Independent Chris Daggett with 6.8% (513 votes) and other candidates with 0.9% (69 votes), among the 7,593 ballots cast by the township's 14,526 registered voters, yielding a 52.3% turnout.[105]
In the 2014 senate election, Republican Jeff Bell received 60.6% of the vote (3,191 cast), ahead of Democrat Cory Booker with 38.3% of the vote (2,017 votes), and other candidates with 1.1% (57 votes), among the 5,265 ballots cast.[106]
Education
Montville School House, 1910
The Montville Township School District serves public school students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade.[107] As of the 2022–23 school year, the district, comprised of seven schools, had an enrollment of 3,469 students and 348.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.0:1.[108] Schools in the district (with 2022–23 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[109]) are
Cedar Hill Elementary School[110] with 328 students in grades PreK-5,
Hilldale Elementary School[111] with 320 students in grades K-5,
William H. Mason Jr. Elementary School[112] with 277 students in grades K-5,
Valley View Elementary School[113] with 365 students in grades PreK-5,
Woodmont Elementary School[114] with 310 students in grades K-5,
Robert R. Lazar Middle School[115] with 724 students in grades 6-8 and
Montville Township High School[116] with 1,112 students in grades 9-12.[117][118][119] InIn 2016, Cedar Hill Elementary School was one of ten schools in New Jersey recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School by the United States Department of Education.[120] In 2024, Hillsdale Elementary School was one of 11 statewide that was recognized as a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence.[121][122]
Private schools include Trinity Christian School, a Christian day school founded in 1986 that serves students in Kindergarten through 12th grade.[123] St. Pius X School was a K–8 Catholic school that operated under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson until it closed after the 2017–2018 school year after enrollment numbers for the 2018–2019 school year were just more than half of the 250 students needed to remain financially viable.[124]
Community
Montville Day is celebrated every year in the fall. It brings members of the community together to enjoy food and entertainment.[125]
As of May 2010[update], the township had a total of 121.75 miles (195.94 km) of roadways, of which 100.98 miles (162.51 km) were maintained by the municipality, 13.91 miles (22.39 km) by Morris County and 6.86 miles (11.04 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.[126]
NJ Transit offers bus service to and from Newark on the 29 route, with local service available on the 871 and 874 routes,[129][130] replacing service that had been offered on the MCM1 route until 2010, when subsidies to the local provider were eliminated as part of budget cuts.[131][132]
^ abTownship Committee, Montville Township. Accessed April 26, 2023. "The Montville Township Committee is the governing body of the municipality and is comprised of five elected officials. They establish the laws and policies for the Township. The Mayor and the Deputy Mayor are members of the Township Committee and are elected annually by the full Committee."
^Oberto, Dino. "Vintage racing at its best", Standard-Speaker, July 5, 2012. Accessed May 1, 2017. "Saturday's race is also taking place one day after the 50th anniversary of the opening of Pine Brook Speedway in Pine Brook, N.J., so that milestone will be noted as well. The Pine Brook track, the first purpose-built track for TQ Midgets, debuted on Friday evening, July 6, 1962, with Bob Dini claiming the historic first victory. Pine Brook is also the track in which Mario Andretti recorded his early career success and was also the birthplace of Micro Stock racing."
^ abSchneider, Tehani (July 17, 2007). "Montville ranked 13th best place to live in U.S.". Daily Record (Morristown). Money (magazine). ProQuest439928983.
^Capuzzo, Jill P. "Montville Township, N.J.", The New York Times, July 2, 2010. Accessed August 12, 2018. "Children have a range of sports and recreation programs to choose from in the township's numerous parks, among them the sprawling Montville Community Park, which has picnic grounds, bocce courts, an amphitheater and six playing fields. Camp Dawson has lighted fields for soccer, football and lacrosse."
^Schneider, Tehani (May 2, 2008). "Montville restricts use of fields after tests reveal unsafe lead levels". Daily Record. ProQuest440028549.
^Schneider, Tehani (May 7, 2008). "No harmful lead levels found in new test of Montville turf fields". Daily Record. ProQuest440027635.
^Kosta, Don. "Montville Township Committee reorganizes for 2014"Archived 2015-07-03 at the Wayback Machine, Neighbor News (Montville edition), January 8, 2014. Accessed June 29, 2015. "Of the 565 municipalities in New Jersey, Montville is only one of 12 to operate under a special charter. In Montville's form of government, none of the five Committee members have any additional authority over the rest. They operate as a committee of five with majority rule."
^Board of County Commissioners, Morris County, New Jersey. Accessed June 1, 2022. "Morris County is governed by a seven-member Board of County Commissioners, who serve three-year terms."
^Montville Township Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Montville Township School District. Accessed September 25, 2024. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades Kindergarten through twelve in the Montville Township School District. Composition: The Montville Township School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Montville Township."
^Kelley, Tina. "11 new National Blue Ribbon Schools named in N.J.", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, September 23, 2024. Accessed September 24, 2024. "Eleven public and private schools have been chosen as New Jersey’s newest National Blue Ribbon Schools, the U.S. Department of Education announced Monday."
^School Snapshot, Trinity Christian School. Accessed December 19, 2012. "Trinity Christian School of Montville, New Jersey, is a board-run private Christian day school following a classical model of education. The school does not discriminate against anyone on the basis of race, color, and national or ethnic origin. TCS was founded in 1986 and currently serves approximately 160 students from Kindergarten through grade 12."
^Westhoven, William. "Parents shocked, angry with closing of St. Pius X School in Montville", Daily Record, June 22, 2018. Accessed February 3, 2020. "Montville — St. Pius X School shut its doors permanently after students were dismissed for the summer on Thursday.... The K-8 school at St. Pius X Church publicly announced its closure Thursday after privately informing parents in a parish meeting, according to Diocese of Paterson spokesman Richard Sokerka.... Sokerka estimated the school needed about 250 tuition-paying students to break even. The school had 130 students enrolled for the just-completed school year, according to its website, which still has a home page notice reading: 'now accepting applications for the 2018-19 school year.'"
^McMillan, Alex Frew. "Street courts day trade firms", CNN Money, February 25, 2000. Accessed November 13, 2016. "In late 1997, Omar Amanat was sleeping in the Manhattan office-storeroom he'd rented from a Mexican investment bank.... Amanat grew up in Montville, N.J. His father, a Columbia biochemistry doctorate, ran a lab for 20 years, but sold it to trade options and futures from home."
^ abBradford, Stacey. "What I Learned from The Real Housewives of New Jersey", July 30, 2010. Accessed February 23, 2011. "I have a confession: I can't stop reading about Teresa Giudice from The Real Housewives of New Jersey. It isn't that I'm a reality show junkie. I'm fascinated because she lives in my hometown and has shattered any illusions I had about growing up in Montville Township."
^Staff. "Montville High School announces its new Hall of Fame members", The Citizen of Morris County, March 26, 2009. Accessed August 11, 2016. "A number of athletes, including a nationally known psychologist who starred in lacrosse at Montville Township High School and at Brown University, Providence, R.I., are among people inducted in to the school's Hall of Fame and honored at a banquet at 6 p.m. on Saturday, March 21, at Zeris Inn in Mountain Lakes.... The class of 1985 has two Hall of Fame inductees - Chris Brauchle and Bryan Winter. Brauchle was an outstanding soccer player in high school garnering All Conference, All County, and All State honors."
^Seman, Rob. "Ex-Morris vet's name to grace Florida school", Daily Record, February 25, 2005. Accessed August 19, 2007. "Cafferata was born in New York City, but moved to Morris County with his family when he was 9 years old and lived in Lake Hiawatha and Montville. He graduated from Boonton High School in 1949, and was one of the first inductees to the school's Hall of Fame in 1996."
^ abcCapuzzo, Jill P. "Living in Montville Township, N.J.", The New York Times, July 2, 2010. Accessed February 23, 2011. "If you moved to Montville Township, it wouldn't be out of the question to find yourself neighbor to a current or former New Jersey Devil (Bruce Driver is one example), or a member emeritus of the paparazzi (Ron Galella), or a Real Housewife of New Jersey (Teresa Giudice)."
^Canner-O'Mealy, Ryan. "The cruelest twist: English keeps swim dreams afloat despite asthma", Sports Illustrated, May 29, 2007. Accessed February 23, 2011. "Of all the cruel twists irony can take, this is about as bad as it gets. Lauren English, a senior swimmer at Montville (N.J.) and a potential 2008 Olympian who owns multiple state records and five Meet of Champions titles, suffers from chlorine-induced asthma."
^Fensom, Michael J. "Super Bowl pomp countered by retired NFL players' painkiller abuse", Inside Jersey, January 31, 2014. Accessed September 15, 2024. "Frank Mattiace was still a college football player when he felt the pain shooting up and down his back.... Mattiace, from Montville, is now executive director and a substance-abuse counselor at the New Pathway Counseling Service based in New Jersey."
^Klis, Mike. "O'Dowd no fan of dollar dominance", The Denver Post, October 22, 2000. Accessed February 23, 2011. "He is an adult now, though, much more objective about the game and no doubt considerably less emotionally attached than his childhood buddies from Montville."
^Staff. "Pennacchio's poison pen?", Daily Record, March 20, 2008. Accessed February 23, 2011. "Seventeen years ago, Joseph Pennacchio, the current state senator from Montville and now leading candidate for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, wrote what he called The Nationalist Agenda: A blueprint for the 21st Century."
^Fox, Ron. "Montville Produced Super Duo", The Record, January 19, 1999. Accessed February 23, 2011. "Atlanta Falcons defensive end Lester Archpub=Daily+Recordambeau of Montville is headed for the Super Bowl. His high school teammate, Jim Price, already has a Super Bowl ring as a member of the Dallas Cowboys' 1993 championship team."
^Strauss, Robert. "Starbucks' Newest Flavor Has New Jersey Musicians", The New York Times, May 29, 2005. Accessed August 12, 2018. "Dena Tauriello started playing drums in her basement in Montville, after she found out that Karen Carpenter, a favorite of her mother's, was a drummer. "
^Staff. "Montville's Warech living his dream playing professional basketball in Germany", USA Today High School Sports, December 31, 2013. Accessed August 12, 2018. "Growing up, Travis Warech always wanted to play professional basketball and on Oct. 18, 2013, his dream became a reality. Warech, a Montville High School graduate, landed in Germany in October to begin his professional basketball career with the Pro-A Gotha Rockets, a team based two hours outside of Frankfurt."
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