Sparta is a township in Sussex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 19,600, a decrease of 122 (−0.6%) from the 2010 census count of 19,722, which in turn reflected an increase of 1,642 (+9.1%) from the 18,080 counted in the 2000 census.Table 7. Population for the Counties and Municipalities in New Jersey: 1990, 2000 and 2010, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, February 2011. Accessed May 1, 2023.

Sparta was organized as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 14, 1845, from portions of Byram Township, Frankford Township, Hardyston Township and (the now-defunct) Newton Township.Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 232. Accessed May 30, 2024. The township was named after the existing community of Sparta, which had been settled and named years before,Snell, James P. (1881) History of Sussex and Warren Counties, New Jersey, With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men and Pioneers. (Centennial ed., Harmony, NJ: Harmony Press, 1981, p. 407) the name likely coming from Sparta, Greece.Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed October 8, 2015. Ogdensburg borough was incorporated on February 26, 1914, from portions of Sparta Township.

The township was listed as the safest place in New JerseyEdwards, Rebecca. New Jersey’s 50 Safest Cities of 2022, SafeWise, September 29, 2022. Accessed February 3, 2023. as well as the seventh safest municipality in the nation according to a 2022 crime statistic compilation from Safewise.com.Edwards, Rebecca. 100 Safest Cities in the US, SafeWise, March 30, 2022. Accessed February 3, 2023.

History

Overview Sparta was originally inhabited by Lenape Native Americans. In the 1750s, Dutch explorers discovered red ores in the area and attempted to mine copper. No permanent settlers arrived until 1778, when Robert Ogden and his wife built their home and constructed an iron forge on lands he had acquired and "called their house and farm Sparta."Chambers, Theodore Frelinghuysen. Proceedings of the centennial anniversary of the Presbyterian church at Sparta, N.J., November 23, 1886, together with a history of the village., p. 69. The Williams Company, 1887 (New York). Accessed October 8, 2015. The first public building in Sparta was the Presbyterian Church which was incorporated in 1786. Schools were established in Ogdensburg by 1806 and in Sparta by 1812.About Sparta , Sparta Township. Accessed April 15, 2015.

Iron, zinc, and limestone supported a mining industry for over 100 years, but today the mining operations have ceased and the township is now a residential community served by retail, professional, and service small businesses. According to the 2000 census, 65% of Sparta workers commute to jobs outside of the county.

Mining industry

Iron Robert Ogden settled in 1778 near the present town of Ogdensburg and built an iron forge, utilizing local ore from his Ogden Mine on Sparta Mountain. The Horseshoe mine was opened in 1772 by the Englishmen Spargo and Harvey who shipped ore by horse and mule to the forges at Sparta and Hopewell. It wasn't until 1868 that the Ogden Mine Railroad began operations and made it economical to ship zinc and iron ore to Nolan's Point on Lake Hopatcong where the Morris Canal had a marine terminal that could ship ore to Newark. In 1872, the New Jersey Midland Railroad (later known as the New York, Susquehanna & Western) extended to Ogdensburg and captured the zinc ore traffic.

In 1836, Henry Decker, along with Nelson Hunt and Lewis Sherman, began the manufacture of anchors at their forges in Sparta. Their success led to a small industry of forging anchors in Sparta, but by the end of the Civil War the forge industry in Sparta had come to an end.

In 1889, Thomas Edison invested $3.5 million in his Edison Ore-Milling Company to build iron operations on of Sparta Mountain. Edison hoped to concentrate the mountain's vast quantities of low-grade ore and supply East Coast mills with raw material. At its peak Edison's operation employed 500 people, but after a 10-year effort he abandoned his attempt to compete with more economical ores from Minnesota's Mesabi Iron Range. The availability of the cheap Minnesota ores put an end to iron mining in Sparta.Staff. "A Town Marks Its Ties to Edison; Invented Separator for Ore", The New York Times, October 20, 1979. Accessed October 25, 2018.

Zinc In 1848 the New Jersey Zinc Company began operations at Sterling Hill. Earlier attempts to obtain iron from the mineral rich ore of the Sterling Hill failed because of manganese contamination, but zinc was recoverable and the ores at Sterling Hill were rich with it.Staff. "Zinc Mine Showcases a Disappearing World", The New York Times, October 8, 1992. Accessed October 8, 2015. "In 1848, the process to extract zinc from ore was developed there.The mine was owned by the New Jersey Zinc Company, a subsidiary of Horshead Industries of New York City, until it shut for financial reasons in 1986."

In 1856 the Passaic Zinc Company started operations at the Sterling Hill Mine and constructed large ore crushers, shipping the ores to the company's plant in Jersey City.

By 1868, both iron and zinc operations were in progress at Sterling Hill, but the numerous companies and claims were embroiled in continuous legal battles, the largest of which was a 12-year dispute between the New Jersey Zinc Company and the Franklin Iron Company over rights to mixed ores, each company having purchased the right to mine zinc and iron, respectively. In 1880, the Franklin Iron Company acquired the New Jersey Zinc Company's operations at Sterling Hill mine, ending the dispute. Large scale operations began in 1897 when the claims were consolidated under the New Jersey Zinc Company and by 1900 its mill was processing 1,500 tons of ore daily.

Zinc operations continued until 1986 when the Sterling Hill mine ceased operation. The Sterling Hill mine site is currently occupied by the Sterling Hill Mining Museum and is open to the public for tours.

Limestone After closing his iron operations, Thomas Edison recouped his losses by opening a quarry called Limecrest near Sparta in 1919. The lime quarry fed Edison's Portland cement operations, and was in continuous operation under various owners for more than 80 years until it closed in 2003. During the years of its operation the limestone quarry was an important source of employment and tax revenue for Sparta. Limestone is no longer mined, but a limited amount of granite continues to be quarried by a handful of employees.Staff. "Limecrest Quarry changes hands", The Sparta Independent, September 26, 2012. Accessed October 8, 2015. "The quarry known as Limecrest, started by Thomas Edison more than 100 years ago, and subsequently operated by several different companies is now being run by the Braen Family."

Tourism

The New Jersey Midland Railroad opened to Ogdensburg in 1872 for zinc ore traffic, but in 1882 the line was extended to Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania and a station was built at Sparta, giving tourists easy access to the many boarding houses that served summer residents from the cities. Passenger service ended in 1935, but by then Sparta was well established as a summer destination. In 1926, the Arthur D. Crane Company along with developer and designer Herbert L. Closs constructed a dam across the Wallkill River to form Lake Mohawk in 1928.Benko, Dawn. "Simple times at boardwalk", Daily Record, September 5, 2002. Accessed November 6, 2013. "On March 17, 1928, the valley filled and water ran over a spillway that had been built beneath the boardwalk." The private resort community created by the Crane Company consisted primarily of summer homes, but the homes began to be winterized in the 1940s and the current membership of 2,600 families are largely year-round residents.

Geography The township borders the municipalities of Andover Township, Byram Township, Franklin Borough, Hardyston Township, Hopatcong Borough, Lafayette Township and Ogdensburg, New Jersey Ogdensburg Borough in Sussex County; and Jefferson Township in Morris County.Sussex County Map, Sussex County, New Jersey. Accessed March 10, 2020.New Jersey Municipal Boundaries, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 38.80 square miles (100.50 km2), including 36.79 square miles (95.28 km2) of land and 2.02 square miles (5.22 km2) of water (5.20%).

Unincorporated communities Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Ackerson, Edison, Hopewell, Houses Corner, Lake Mohawk, Monroe, Sparta Junction, Sussex Mills, Upper Mohawk and Woodruffs Gap.Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed April 15, 2015.

Lake Mohawk Lake Mohawk (with 8,092 out of the CDP's total 2010 Census population of 9,916 in the townshipDP-1 - Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data for Lake Mohawk CDP, New Jersey , United States Census Bureau. Accessed February 18, 2013.) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) split between Byram Township and Sparta.GCT-PH1 - Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density: 2010 - County -- County Subdivision and Place from the 2010 Census Summary File 1 for Sussex County, New Jersey , United States Census Bureau. Accessed February 19, 2013.2006-2010 American Community Survey Geography for New Jersey, United States Census Bureau. Accessed February 19, 2013.New Jersey: 2010 - Population and Housing Unit Counts - 2010 Census of Population and Housing (CPH-2-32), United States Census Bureau, August 2012. Accessed February 19, 2013.

Sparta Junction Sparta Junction was where the tracks of the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railroad and the Lehigh and Hudson River Railway crossed, near the western boundary of Sparta. A railroad telegraph office and a train order station, that controlled train signalling semaphores, was located there. It is located at .

Geology Sparta is in the Highlands which is comprised of igneous and metamorphic rock. Folding and faulting occurred when a continent struck the North American Plate. This is what created the mountains through Sparta and northwards. The Wisconsin Glacier created all the lakes and streams. The Franklin Marble goes through the township from Lime Crest Quarry to the New York line.

Demographics

Sparta has been noted for the high number of pilots and their families who settle in the area. In his 1994 book The Airport: Terminal Nights and Runway Days at John F. Kennedy International, James Kaplan describes the home township of an interviewee as "thickly populated, for no particular reason, with pilots, many of whom do their flying out of Kennedy. The view out [the pilot's] picture window is of trees ... The lights and noise of Manhattan, fifty miles distant, attract flight attendants, single people mostly. Pilots like the woods."Kaplan, James. The Airport: Terminal Nights and Runway Days at John F. Kennedy International, William Morrow, Incorporated, 1994. .

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 19,722 people, 6,868 households, and 5,453 families in the township. The population density was . There were 7,423 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 94.15% (18,569) White, 1.00% (198) Black or African American, 0.11% (22) Native American, 2.49% (491) Asian, 0.02% (4) Pacific Islander, 0.70% (139) from other races, and 1.52% (299) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.34% (1,054) of the population.