As early as 1747, The Boonton Ironworks began manufacturing iron for plows, tools, kettles, locks, nails and large iron to be exported to England. Following the Revolutionary War, the business went into decline, however, with the building of the Morris Canal, a group of businessmen recognized the potential and incorporated the NJ Iron Company, located on a six-acre tract by the falls. The company used the Canal to transport the fuel that kept its two furnaces running nonstop, as well as for shipping its finished products to market. It continued its operation to 1911 when the plant closed. The property for the Boonton Ironworks proposed historic district is the former grounds of the New Jersey Iron Company.  In the late 1870’s the site was donated to the Town as a public park in memory of John Couper Lord’s daughter, Grace Lord Nicoll. The area encompassing the Arch Bridge, Boonton Ironworks, and the Train Trestle was purchased through Greenspace funds in the late 1970s and was added to the park.  

The Stone Arch Bridge over the Rockaway River, constructed circa 1866, is representative of the unique history of the town’s ironworks during the Industrial Revolution. The bridge was constructed as an aqueduct to carry piped water from a pond to the Boonton Ironworks to ensure fire protection for the Ironworks; the water was piped to fire hydrants at key points throughout the facility. It is the single remaining intact portion of the industrial complex that evolved in Boonton in the years after the opening of the Morris Canal.  

The 2020 Trust grant will help fund stabilization and restoration of the Stone Arch Bridge over the Rockaway River, in the Boonton Ironworks Historic District.  The 2019 Trust grant helped fund a National Register nomination for the Boonton Ironworks Historic District.  

For more information, visit https://www.boonton.org/