Borough of Rockaway Historical Society

Borough of Rockaway Historical Museum

199 West Main Street
Rockaway, New Jersey 07866

For information on events, click on the website below:

https://www.rockawayborough.org/HistoricalCommittee/

The Borough of Rockaway Historical Committee is a community organization that provides means for contributing and preserving historical, cultural, and educational heritage of the Borough of Rockaway. The Borough of Rockaway Historical Committee Museum is open to the public on the 4th Sunday of the month from 1 to 3 PM. Visits are by appointment only during the months of July and August. The museum is located at 199 West Main Street, next to Donatoni Park. We encourage you to stop by to explore and experience the rich history of Rockaway Borough.

By the time of the Revolutionary War, there were around fifty people who resided in Rockaway Village. Business and industrial companies included a gristmill, saw mill, and a forge built on the Rockaway River. General merchandise stores were located along Newark Street (now known as West Main Street). Most identified as Rockawayites lived in the surrounding area. After the British enactment of the Mercantile Acts, Rockaway-a focal point of iron manufacture- became a stronghold for Revolutionary activity.

The Borough of Rockaway was incorporated on July 19, 1894. Early in the 1900's. there were two major railroads, a trolley line, an iron foundry, and inclined plane and two basins of the Morris Canal, a bicycle factory, a three story department store selling everything from bonnets to bedsteads, and three hotels, including one that was a favorite of Annie Oakley.

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