Boonton Falls is a series of cascades along the Rockaway River in Boonton, New Jersey.
The area surrounding Boonton Falls was once home to the Boonton Ironworks. Established in 1825, the Ironworks symbolized the rise and fall of northern New Jersey’s iron industry. During its early years, rich iron veins in the region were being mined, and iron manufacturing operations were developing. Small colonial villages, built around furnaces and forges, experienced increased investment and often faced overly optimistic economic expectations. The development of the Boonton Ironworks, along with the Morris Canal and later the Morris & Essex Railroad, directly contributed to the growth of the Town of Boonton. After 1876, Boonton Ironworks entered a prolonged decline, mirroring the near-total collapse of the iron industry in northern New Jersey.
In 1929, the estate of James Couper Lord deeded a large park space on the south side of the river to the Town of Boonton in honor of Grace Lord Nicoll, James Couper Lord’s daughter. The deed stipulated that the property would be used as a public park, named Grace Park.
Grace Lord Park featured a bandstand and a swimming beach during the 20th century. By 1949, the Town of Boonton had acquired the core of the former Boonton Ironworks property, with the exception of two industrial lots.
The area encompassing the stone arch bridge, Boonton Ironworks, and a railroad bridge was purchased through Greenspace funds in the late 1970s and was added to the park. In 2019, a $50,000 New Jersey Historic Trust grant helped fund a National Register nomination for the Boonton Ironworks Historic District. In 2020, a $320,000 grant from the Trust helped fund the stabilization and restoration of the stone arch bridge.
The Boonton Iron Works site was listed as the Boonton Ironworks Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places on July 14, 2023, for its significance in engineering, industry, and transportation.
