Whippany, New Jersey Explained

Whippany is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP)^[4] in Hanover Township, Morris County, New Jersey, United States.^[5] As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 8,863.^[2]

Whippany's name is derived from the Whippanong Native Americans, a tribe that once inhabited the area. Whippanong meant "place of the willows", named for the trees growing along the banks of the Whippany River.^[6]

History

The Whippany River is an important part of the Munsee, colonial, and industrial history of the town.

Munsee Lenape

Circa 1000 CE, the area, along with most of northern New Jersey, was inhabited by the Munsee Lenape people. Circa 1500, all of New Jersey was part of the Lenapehoking,^[7] the homelands of the Lenape.

The Munsee harvested mussels from the Whippany River. Arrowheads found in Munsee encampments throughout the nearby Washington Valley suggest that they hunted wolf, elk, and wild turkey for game.^[8]

Colonial settlement

The earliest European settlers to live along the Whippany River can be traced back to 1685. The river was an integral part of life in the area; it provided water power for the various mills which developed in the town.^[9]

Modern history

The Seeing Eye, the first guide dog school for the blind in the United States, was located in Whippany between 1931 and 1966, before moving to its current campus in nearby Morris Township.^[10]

Geography

Whippany is in eastern Morris County and occupies most of the eastern part of Hanover Township. It is bordered to the west, across Interstate 287, by Cedar Knolls, also in Hanover Township. Whippany is bordered to the north by Parsippany–Troy Hills Township, to the east by East Hanover Township, to the south by the Black Meadows Preserve and Morristown Municipal Airport, and to the southwest by Morris Township, Morris Township. Morristown, the county seat, is 5miles to the southwest.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Whippany CDP has a total area of 5.74sqmi, of which 5.61sqmi are land and 0.13sqmi, or 2.21%, are water.^[1] The Whippany River flows through the center of town, leading northeast to join the Passaic River near Pine Brook. The river is protected by the Whippany River Watershed Action Committee.

Education

Public schools in the area include Bee Meadow School, Mountview Road School, Salem Drive School, Memorial Junior School and Whippany Park High School.

Arrow Academy is a Christian school for grades PreK-8.

Sports

The New York Red Bulls U23, a development team for the New York Red Bulls, play at the team's 15acres development facility in the township.^[11]

Notable organizations

• J. E. Ashworth & Sons operated a woolen blanket mill in Whippany.^[12]
• Barclays relocated part of their Manhattan operations to Whippany in 2018.^[13]
• The Whippany Railway Museum is located in the central part of the community.
• Bayer HealthCare
• Communication Techniques, Inc. (CTI),^[14] a wholly owned subsidiarity of Herley Industries^[15]
• The New Jersey Jewish News, a weekly newspaper published by United Jewish Communities of MetroWest New Jersey
• CAE Inc. provides flight simulation and crew training services to the Business Aviation community.
• The Ukrainian American Cultural Center of New Jersey is in Whippany.
• Physicians' Desk Reference

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Whippany include:

• Adlan Amagov (born 1986), Strikeforce fighter^[16]
• Sal Canzonieri, guitarist and founding member of the band Electric Frankenstein^[17]
• Damon Daunno (born 1984), actor who starred in the 2019 Broadway revival of Oklahoma!^[18]
• Dan Frischman (born 1959), character actor, noted for his many roles as "geek" or "nerd" characters^[19]
• Dan Miller (born 1981), UFC fighter^[20]
• Brian Saxton (born 1972), tight end who played for the New York Giants^[21]
• Linda Tripp (1949-2020), former U.S. civil servant who figured in the Monica Lewinsky scandal involving former U.S. President Bill Clinton^[22]

External links

• "A Place Called Whippany", its history and contemporary times
• CAE North East Training Center
• Ukrainian American Cultural Center of New Jersey

Notes and References

1. Web site: 2024 U.S. Gazetteer Files: New Jersey. United States Census Bureau . November 13, 2024.
2. Web site: P1. Race – Whippany CDP, New Jersey: 2020 DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171). U.S. Census Bureau. November 13, 2024.
3. https://mcdc.missouri.edu/applications/geocodes/?state=34 Geographic Codes Lookup for New Jersey
4. https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/tigerwebmain/Files/tab20/tigerweb_tab20_cdp_2020_nj.html State of New Jersey Census Designated Places - BVP20 - Data as of January 1, 2020
5. http://www.state.nj.us/infobank/localnames.txt Locality Search
6. Cheslow, Jerry. "If You're Thinking of Living In /Whippany, N.J.; Where Houses Are in High Demand", The New York Times, August 8, 1999. Accessed May 19, 2012.
7. Encyclopedia: The American Heritage Book of Indians . American Heritage . 1961 . Alvin M. Josephy Jr . 168–189 . 61-14871.
8. Book: Barbara . Hoskins . Washington Valley, an informal history . Foster . Caroline . Roberts . Dorothea . Foster . Gladys . 1960 . Edward Brothers . 28817174.
9. Book: Hanover Township: Whippany and Cedar Knolls. Hepler. Steven P.. Krygoski. Robert F.. Arcadia Publishing. 1998. 978-0752409764. Mount Pleasant.
10. Web site: The Seeing Eye - History . 2021-11-16 . www.seeingeye.org.
11. https://www.newyorkredbulls.com/youth/red-bulls-training-facility Red Bulls Training Facility
12. News: James E. Ashworth . ... came to United States as a young man. Manufactured horse blankets in Vermont. Came to this place (Westbrookville, New York) had a heavy loss due to fire. After the fire he went to Whippany, New Jersey. Later he returned to this place, engaged in the saw mill business and later rebuilt the mill and conducted a large blanket manufacturing business. . . 1910 .
13. Web site: Barclays relocating jobs from Manhattan to Whippany New Jersey. April 24, 2018 .
14. Web site: Herley CTI . June 15, 2010 .
15. Web site: Herley Industries, Inc. Acquires Communication Techniques, Inc. (CTI), a Subsidiary of Dover Technologies, Inc. . Herley News . March 29, 2004. June 15, 2010 .
16. https://www.mma-core.com/fighters/Adlan_Amagov/143310 Adlan Amagov
17. Benson, John. "Electric Frankenstein delivers a jolt", Youngstown Vindicator, June 17, 2010. Accessed May 19, 2012. "'We're a real meat-and- potatoes rock 'n' roll band that doesn't waste people's time,' said guitarist Sal Canzonieri, calling from Whippany, N.J."
18. Kuperinsky, Amy. "Tony Awards 2019: N.J.'s Ali Stroker and Damon Daunno nominated for 'Oklahoma!' revival; see full list of nominees", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, April 30, 2019. Accessed June 30, 2019. "Daunno, 34, who hails from Whippany, is also a musician and composer and plays guitar in Oklahoma!"
19. Johnson, Janis. "Playing a Nerd is Too Easy", The Miami Herald, February 16, 1987. Accessed December 11, 2007. "But is the 23-year-old Whippany, N.J., native, character actor and stand-up comedian a nerd."
20. Berman, Marc. "The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) coming to Revel", NJ.com, April 16, 2012. Accessed July 18, 2012. "New Jersey is very well represented by UFC stars Dan Miller (Whippany), Nick Catone (Englewood), and Rich Attonito (Elizabeth)."
21. Meisel, Barry. "A Giant Gamble BC's Saxton Replaces Injured Pierce", New York Daily News, November 11, 1996. Accessed December 11, 2019. "People wanted to talk to Brian Saxton throughout the practice week, and not only because he's a Boston College football alumnus. The 24-year-old native of Whippany, N.J., who spent the entire season sitting behind Aaron Pierce on the depth chart at H-back was prepared to fill in a week earlier vs. Arizona, when Pierce suffered a sprained knee on the third play of the Giants' 16-8 win."
22. [Elaine Sciolino|Sciolino, Elaine]