New Brunswick

Sister cities

• Tsuruoka
• Fukui
• Limerick
• Debrecen

History

The area around present-day New Brunswick was first inhabited by the Lenape Native Americans, whose Minisink Trail intersected the Raritan River and followed a route that would be taken by later colonial roads. The first European settlement at the site of New Brunswick was made in 1681. The settlement here was called Prigmore's Swamp (1681–1697), then known as Inian's Ferry (1691–1714). In 1714, with the coronation of King George II of Great Britain, who was also the Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, the settlement was given the name New Brunswick, honoring the administrative capital of the duchy, Braunschweig (Brunswick in Low German), in the state of Lower Saxony, now located in Germany. Braunschweig was an influential and powerful city in the Hanseatic League. Centrally located between New York City and Philadelphia along an early thoroughfare known as the King's Highway and situated along the Raritan River, New Brunswick became an important hub for Colonial travelers and traders. New Brunswick was incorporated as a town in 1736 and chartered as a city in 1784. The Declaration of Independence received one of its first public readings, by Colonel John Neilson in New Brunswick on July 9, 1776, in the days following its promulgation by the Continental Congress. A bronze statue marking the event was dedicated on July 9, 2017, in Monument Square, in front of the Heldrich Hotel. The Trustees of Queen's College (now Rutgers University), founded in 1766, voted by a margin of ten to seven in 1771 to locate the young college in New Brunswick, selecting the city over Hackensack, in Bergen County, New Jersey. Classes began in 1771 with one instructor, one sophomore, Matthew Leydt, and several freshmen at a tavern called the 'Sign of the Red Lion' on the corner of Albany and…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city had a total area of , including of land and of water (9.06%). While the city does not hold elections based on a ward system it has been so divided. There are several neighborhoods in the city, which include the Fifth Ward, Feaster Park, Lincoln Park, Raritan Gardens, and Edgebrook-Westons Mills. }}

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  36,981
• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  35,818
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  35,787
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  33,590
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  26,880
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  26,284
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  25,772
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  25,487

Largest nearby schools

• John P. Stevens High School
  High · EDISON · 2,680 students · 16:1 ratio
• Perth Amboy High School
  High · PERTH AMBOY · 2,658 students · 14.2:1 ratio
• New Brunswick High School
  High · NEW BRUNSWICK · 2,477 students · 14:1 ratio
• Edison High School
  High · EDISON · 2,280 students · 14.3:1 ratio
• Piscataway Township High School
  High · PISCATAWAY · 2,144 students · 14:1 ratio
• East Brunswick High School
  High · EAST BRUNSWICK · 2,036 students · 12.7:1 ratio
• Churchill Junior High School
  Middle · EAST BRUNSWICK · 2,002 students · 12.5:1 ratio
• North Brunswick Township High School
  High · NORTH BRUNSWICK · 1,881 students · 12.6:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.8 — 2025-08-05
  1 km N of Hillsdale, New Jersey
• M 3 — 2025-08-03
  0 km W of Little Ferry, New Jersey
• M 2.9 — 2024-05-24
  6 km E of Califon, New Jersey
• M 2.6 — 2024-05-01
  1 km NW of Gladstone, New Jersey
• M 2.9 — 2024-04-27
  7 km WSW of Gladstone, New Jersey
• M 2.6 — 2024-04-10
  5 km WSW of Gladstone, New Jersey