Chatham Borough, New Jersey

About

Chatham Borough is a suburban borough in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 9,212, an increase of 250 (+2.8%) from the 2010 census count of 8,962, which in turn reflected an increase of 502 (+5.9%) from the 8,460 counted in the 2000 census.

The area that is now Chatham and surrounding Morris County has been inhabited by the Lenape people for thousands of years before Europeans first arrived. During historic times, Europeans began trading with the Native Americans who farmed, fished, and hunted in the area when it was claimed as part of New Netherlands. The community that now is Chatham was first settled by Europeans in 1710 within Morris Township, in what was then the English Province of New Jersey. The community was settled because the site already was on the path of a well-worn Native American trail, the location of an important crossing of the Passaic River, and being close to a gap in the Watchung Mountains. The residents of the English community changed its name from John Day's Bridge to Chatham, New Jersey in 1773.