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Local History

This pathfinder to local history information about New Providence is organized by the location of the material.

Online Sources are free online unless otherwise noted.
Print Materials in the library can be accessed during library hours.
The Mason Room archives at the back of the library has special hours.

Online Sources

Newspapers

1) Independent Press

New Providence Archives has the Berkeley Heights-New Providence edition of the Independent Press for the years 1964-69, 1974-76, 1992-97, and 2006-2009, with gaps.
Berkeley Heights Public Library has access to the full text of articles for the years 2009-2016. (No images or ads.) Visit BHPL in person to use the Newsbank database on their public PCs.

2) The Dispatch

This Berkeley Heights-New Providence newspaper is available online in the New Providence Archives for the years 1950-2006, with gaps. Missing years are 1953, 1954 and half of 1979.

3) Summit newspapers often covered New Providence. The Summit Library’s collection of digital historic newspapers include the Summit Record, the Summit Herald, and the Herald-Dispatch.

4) Newark Evening News (1883-1931) is available online through the Newark Public Library and had some coverage of New Providence.

5) New Jersey Journal (1779-1783) was published in Chatham and had some coverage of Turkey, what New Providence was called at the time. Available online through the Morristown-Morris Township Library.

Other Online Sources

HeritageQuest contains Census records up to 1950 for New Providence. Log in with your library card’s barcode number.
New Providence Archives includes brochures, maps and print materials that relate to New Providence history. These include the Diary of Betsey Crane from 1824, Windows into the Past, a brochure by the Historical Society, the 90th anniversary special edition of the Independent Press, and a 2005 article in the Union County Voice.
New Providence Welcome Guide, a borough publication, has a few pages on New Providence’s history.
Topographical maps from 1888 to the present, from the United States Geological Survey.
Landowner maps of New Providence for 1736 and 1845
Turkey Tracks is the newsletter of the New Providence Historical Society and has facts about New Providence history.

Print Materials

Mason Room Archives

The Mason Room is located at the back of the library. It is open on Tuesdays 10 AM – 12 PM, and the second Saturday of the month, 11 AM – 1 PM, when members of the New Providence Historical Society are on hand to provide assistance. It is also available by appointment. Call (908) 665-1034, or email the Historical Society.

The Mason Room contains an extensive collection of historic photographs, maps, newspapers, maps, official minutes, audio tapes and other records. Of special interest are binders of newspaper clippings and photographs organized by topic/organization, and the local telephone directory from the days when you could look someone up by their name or address.

For assistance finding any print materials, please ask at the reference desk. These materials may be viewed in the library during regular hours.

New Providence General History

Images of America: New Providence by Joan Gonczlik and Jane Coddington provides information about New Providence’s history, as well as photographs.
The Founders of New Providence, New Jersey by Willis Johnson and This is New Providence, published in 1968 by the League of Women Voters, provide histories of New Providence.
The New Providence High School yearbook, The Trail, has volumes dating back to 1960. Ask staff to retrieve a yearbook for you from storage.

Early New Providence History

What is now New Providence was formerly part of Springfield from 1794 until 1809, when New Providence Township was formed. (Prior to 1750 New Providence was known as Turkey). See volume II of The History of Union County, New Jersey by Abraham Honeyman and chapter 26 of The History of Elizabeth, New Jersey by Edwin Hatfield (as Springfield was part of Elizabethtown before 1794).
In 1869, Summit seceded from New Providence Township. Family Records by John Littell, Summit, New Jersey by Edmund Raftis and Summit’s Story by Robin Little are useful for New Providence history up to 1869.
In 1899, the Borough of New Providence split from New Providence Township (which is now known as Berkeley Heights). From the Passaiack to the Wach Unks, the history of Berkeley Heights edited by Helen Desmond, covers New Providence history up until 1899.

Maps

Ask at the reference desk to see the library’s historical maps of New Providence and Union County, which date from 1938 to 2005.

Newspapers

The Independent Press is available from March 1997-2006, 2009-May 2015 with gaps. These are the original newspapers. If you wish to view them, please contact the reference department in advance at info@newprovlibrary.org or call ahead at (908) 655-0311 x4 so staff have sufficient time to take them out of storage.

The Library will be closed Mon. Oct 12 for staff development. We will reopen at 10 am on Oct. 13.

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Online Sources

Newspapers

Other Online Sources

Print Materials

Mason Room Archives

New Providence General History

Early New Providence History

Maps

Newspapers