Morris County · New Jersey Slavery Records · New Jersey Slavery Records

Identifier: NJS-PLC-00057
Place Type: County or Parish
Description: Morris County is located in the northern part of New Jersey west of the Passaic River. Morristown serves as its county seat. The county was formed in 1739 from a large northwestern portion of New Jersey that was formerly considered part of Hunterdon County. The initial territory of Morris County included the entire area that would later become Sussex and Warren Counties along the Delaware River, but these boundaries were only in effect for 14 years until that western area was separated from Morris County in 1753. Morris County borders have not changed since 1753.

County demographics from the 1800 U.S. census, when slavery in New Jersey reached its peak:

In 1800, Morris County had 875 Black residents, ranking 8th in the state by Black population. The number of enslaved persons in the county was 775. In terms of population percentages, 4.9% of the residents were Black, and 4.4% of the residents were enslaved. About 88.6% of the county's Black residents were living in slavery, while 11.4% of Black residents were free; this percentage breakdown closely resembles the nearby counties of Essex and Middlesex. Morris county had 100 free Black residents, representing only 0.6% of the county's total population. The total population of the county was 17,750, ranking 7th in the state.
County (Modern): Morris County
State or Province: New Jersey
Country: United States of America
Latitude: 40.797896
Longitude: -74.483383
Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_County,_New_Jersey
Record Contributor: Jesse Bayker
Linked Places: Morris County was formed in 1739 from a portion of Hunterdon County.

Places located in Morris County:

Beverwyck Plantation, Parsippany

Boisaubin Manor, Chatham

Chatham

Hanover

Long Valley

Morristown

Parsippany

Pequannock
Linked Persons: To filter persons by location and other criteria, visit the Persons browsing page.

Note that only persons whose town or village is uncertain will show up on this list for the county. Check the place records for specific communities within the county to find out who lived there.

Persons of African descent linked to Morris County:

Dick (b. 1784)

White persons linked to Morris County:

Dr. Blatchley
Linked Events: To see all events that occurred in this county, visit the Events browsing page and filter the records by county.