page_title: Boroughitis
section_title: Background
hierarchical_section_title: Boroughitis / Background
context_page_description: Boroughitis was the creation in the 1890s, usually by referendum, of large numbers of small boroughs in the American state of New Jersey, particularly in Bergen County. Attempts by the New Jersey Legislature to reform local government and the school systems led to the breakup of most of Bergen County's townships into small boroughs, communities that still balkanize the state's political map. This occurred following the development of commuter suburbs in New Jersey, residents of which wanted more government services than did the long-time rural population.
  In the late 19th century, much of New Jersey was divided into large townships. In Bergen County, several of these townships contained multiple commuter suburbs, often formed around railroad stations. Political disputes arose between the growing number of commuters, who wanted more government services for the new developments near railroad lines, and long-time residents such as farmers, who feared higher taxes. A previously little-used law permitted small segments of existing townships to vote by referendum to form independent boroughs.
context_section_description: At the time of the union of East Jersey and West Jersey into the Province of New Jersey in 1702, there were about 24 townships; more were added under British government by letters patent, court decrees, or legislative action. Following the American Revolutionary War, the New Jersey Legislature confirmed all municipal charters, and granted new ones; by 1798, the state had 104 townships.  Increased economic activity in Essex, Morris and Sussex counties, and the formation of Warren County, raised the number to 125 by 1834.
  Most of the townships had low taxes and little government; the roads (mostly of dirt) were maintained by farmers in lieu of taxes.  Township meetings occurred each February; the citizens would discuss concerns, seek solutions, and collectively appoint agents to carry out their will. Voters in each township elected members of the county governing body, the Board of Chosen Freeholders.
  The railroad brought major changes to New Jersey beginning in the mid-19th century. The state was mostly agricultural, and the new lines made it easier for farmers to get their crops to market.  But they also made it easier for those employed in New York City or Philadelphia to live outside the urban core and yet go to work each day. Even before the Civil War, the  Brick Church station, in Orange, Essex County, about 15 miles (24 km) from New York City, became the center of the nation's first commuter suburb. New Jersey's townships acquired a new population, of commuters, who formed communities near railroad stations, and who wanted good well-lit streets and roads, quality schools, and a stake in the government.  They were bitterly opposed on each issue by the rural, agricultural population (or "punkin dusters"), who feared that their taxes would be raised to pay for services they did not want or expect to utilize.
  Schools and school districts caused angry debate between commuters and long-time residents. School district lines were independent of those of townships, for every school formed its own school district. Accordingly, townships could contain a number of school districts: Bergen County's Franklin Township in the early 1890s contained eleven school districts serving 774 students. Bergen County was sparsely populated when the railroad lines went through in the 1850s, making for a different pattern of development than other suburban counties, such as Union and Camden, which saw more planned development around railroad stations. Bergen's pattern of development was unique in New Jersey, with, until 1894, several commuter suburbs in a single township, something rare elsewhere in the state. 
  The town-meeting style of government then prescribed for townships proved ill-suited to those changing times. The New Jersey Constitution gave the state government in Trenton relatively weak powers over the townships, but from time to time the legislature attempted reform. The townships were divided into road districts, with residents appointed to see that maintenance was done; in 1859, the state allowed residents of each district to elect a road commissioner, who saw to it their road taxes were spent effectively.  Many of these districts later became individual municipalities, with the road commissioner often the first mayor.
caption: Bergen County (and neighboring Passaic County) in 1872
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