This Is New Jersey’s Most Historic Town

Which New Jersey town is the most historic in the state? If you think it's a Monmouth or Ocean County town, a recently published report is going to disappoint you.

According to a report at Active Times, which attempted to name the most historic town in each state (not an easy task and certainly not one that is free of a great deal of disagreement across the nation), New Jersey's most historic town is not in Monmouth & Ocean Counties.

The article says Princeton is the Garden State's most historic town, and I promise you, I love Princeton and respect it's amazing history, but this is where I'm going to jump in to stick up for some amazing towns much closer to home.

You know that I have always felt these national 'best in each state' posts always seem to put the spotlight on Cape May and Atlantic City, so in that respect, I was glad to see the focus somewhere else in the state.

But if you asked me which town in our area should get consideration for that title, a few immediately came to mind. I want to give a few of them the credit they deserve.

Freehold. The county seat was founded in 1879 and it's name is all over American history. After all, the largest battle of the Revolutionary War, the Battle of Monmouth took place here in June, 1778, and many experts consider it the turning point of the war. It is home to a beautiful downtown and the historic Hall of Records. And a guy named Bruce Sprinsteen calls it his hometown.

Asbury Park. Just a walk along the Asbury Park Boardwalk is all you need to close your eyes and transport yourself to the Victorian Era and a time when Asbury Park was THE beach destination for everyone in the country. The you open your eyes and realize the city is quickly recapturing that distinction again, right before our eyes!

Obviously, there are so many great choices and we're only touching on a couple of them here. But, Long Branch, Red Bank, Holmdel, Toms River and Lakewood are some of the others that come to mind.

So, congratulations to Princeton for the well deserved honor , but don't forget the amazing Monmouth & Ocean County towns that have made a lot of history as well.