Florham Park

History

First occupied by the Lenape tribe of Native Americans, the area that is now Florham Park was first settled by European settlers of English and Dutch origin sometime between 1680 and 1700, and the community was long recognized as a prime farming area. The area was known for the manufacture of quality brooms, which was the source of one of its town names, Broomtown. At various times during its history, the area was known as Hoppingtown, Broomtown, Columbia, Afton, and finally Florham Park. It was part of Hanover Township, then Chatham Township before being incorporated as Florham Park in 1899. The second part to the name "Florham Park" received its name from a second mansion in town that was on about of land situated where the current Brooklake Country Club is located. Owned by Leslie Ward—one of the founders of the Prudential Insurance Company and the first vice president of the company—it was named "Brooklake Park", partially because of the beautiful lake that was on the property. Both of these families were supporters of many civic projects including the petitioning of the State of New Jersey to create their own municipality. After the legislature voted on March 9, 1899, the governor signed the bill on March 20, making Florham Park a borough. The new town was named after Florence and Hamilton Twombly's and Ward's estates.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 7.48 square miles (19.36 km2), including 7.31 square miles (18.93 km2) of land and 0.17 square miles (0.43 km2) of water (2.23%). The borough is located in southeastern Morris County and is bordered to the south by Madison and Chatham Boroughs; to the north by Hanover and East Hanover Townships; to the west by Morris Township; and on the east by the Passaic River where it borders Essex County communities Livingston and Millburn Townships. As of 2026, the borough is a member of Local Leaders for Responsible Planning in order to address the borough's Mount Laurel doctrine-based housing obligations.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Morristown High School
  High · MORRISTOWN · 1,868 students · 13.4:1 ratio
• Morris Knolls High School
  High · DENVILLE · 1,447 students · 11.1:1 ratio
• Chatham High School
  High · CHATHAM · 1,231 students · 12.1:1 ratio
• Montville Township High School
  High · MONTVILLE · 1,112 students · 10.4:1 ratio
• Frelinghuysen Middle School
  Middle · MORRISTOWN · 1,069 students · 10.7:1 ratio
• Parsippany Hills High School
  High · Morris Plains · 998 students · 9.9:1 ratio
• Brooklawn Middle School
  Middle · Parsippany · 904 students · 10.8:1 ratio
• Parsippany High School
  High · Parsippany · 886 students · 9.6:1 ratio