by Erin Feith, Coordinator of Research & Visitor Engagement
June 17, 2025
Known as Boonton’s “Little Niagara,” the Boonton Falls have long been a recognizable feature of the community. Since the early 18th century, the 36-foot waterfall, formed by the Boonton Gorge, drew the attention of settlers seeking to harness available water power. Over time, the Boonton Falls played a starring role in local industry that came to shape the town’s development.
With its proximity to the boundaries of “Old Boonton,” (current site of the Jersey City Reservoir), the falls helped early forges and furnaces flourish. By the 19th century, as fuel shortages and transportation costs threatened such industry, the falls again provided assistance when proprietors of the Morris Canal purchased land from William Scott of Powerville and obtained the right to dam the Rockaway River just ahead of the falls. In return, Scott was able to use the canal as a raceway to power all mills in the ravine– as long as the water was returned to the canal. With this agreement in place, the land near the falls increased in value and came to attract the interest of the New Jersey Iron Company, who built mills, furnaces, and foundry on the property and hired experienced iron workers from England. Utilizing their location, the company expanded until market changes in the 1850s forced its closure.
Still seeing potential in the property, Dudley B. Fuller, John Durand, and James Couper Lord purchased the site at auction and started Fuller, Lord & Company, which assumed ownership of the Boonton Ironworks. During their tenure, the business thrived, becoming the nation’s largest manufacturer of cut nails. Indicative of its prosperity and desire to protect its interests, a stone arch bridge was constructed in 1866 by local mason John Carson Sr. to carry a continuous water supply across the Rockaway River and the falls to the Ironworks as a means to prevent fires. Unfortunately, these measures could not stop a blaze in 1873. The damage was only compounded by the economic Panic that same year, as well as the discovery of iron in western states. As a result, the Boonton Ironworks were never fully operational again after 1876.
The Boonton Falls nonetheless remained a distinct feature of the area’s landscape. Today, evidence of its role in local industry continues to be found in the form of the stone arch bridge which serves as a pedestrian footbridge in Grace Lord Park. In this way, ripples of Boonton’s iron-filled past can still be felt by present-day residents and visitors alike.
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