An enlightening tour of Washington, NJ – all six of them

There are 564 officially recognized municipalities in the state of New Jersey. (Yes, we used to have 565, until Pine Valley merged into Pine Hill in January 2022.)

Of those 564, not one, not two, not three or four or five, but six — more than one percent — carry the name of "Washington". Astounding.

Don't get me wrong. Our first President was certainly a critical figure in America's history. And he did some momentous things here in New Jersey.

But do we really need five Washington Townships and a Washington Borough in our tiny state? That doesn't even include a 7th town where voters decided to change their name several years ago. And it's not even including a handful of unincorporated places that also carry the name. How confusing!

That is why our newsroom will always mention a county when referencing "Washington Township" in a story. And unfortunately, you will never hear us give a current temperature for Washington, as the audience won't know which one we're talking about.

Of course, New Jersey municipal governments aren't renowned for their naming creativity. We also have five places named Franklin, and three each named Greenwich and Hopewell.

Let's take a little "virtual tour" of New Jersey's various Washingtons. Despite the naming befuddlement, you'll find a delightful variety of Garden State landscapes, geographies, and demographics.

Dan Zarrow is Chief Meteorologist for Townsquare Media New Jersey and won his school's Geography Bee in 4th and 5th grades. He loves New Jersey, and the weather too - follow on Facebook or Twitter for the latest news and updates.