New Jersey Roads - Bergen CR 61

Bergen CR 61


NB in Wallington; click on the second photo for a shield closeup. Look at a map, and you'll find South Hackensack, well, south of Hackensack where you'd expect it. Right now, I'm well west of there. Here's the deal - South Hackensack was once a single entity, until pieces started getting carved out of it. Hasbrouck Heights, Teterboro, Moonachie, Little Ferry, Wood-Ridge, Lodi... well, you get the picture. The old township was decimated. However, each town that came out of it defined its particular boundaries in particular ways, and those didn't always coincide with the edges of the old township. As a result, there's a wedge of South Hackensack south of Moonachie and this smaller but populated chunk between Wood-Ridge and Lodi.


The SB side of the South Hackensack town line sign. Again, click for shield closeup.


Technically, the town line is at this old railroad trestle, seen NB. Also technically, only the west side of the road enters South Hackensack, which happens to be the side the signpost is on. The east/NB side of CR 61 is in Wood-Ridge instead. Both sides then enter Lodi together.


One of the interesting consequences of Bergen County splitting into so many towns so late in development (turn of the 20th century, give or take) is that many boundaries follow streets. I've already noted that CR 61 (Main St.) is only half in Wood-Ridge at this point. Well, CR 38 (Passaic St.) does the same thing, forming the boundary between Wood-Ridge and Lodi. In fact, Lodi considers this to be Terhune Ave., and the whole thing becomes Passaic Ave. when it enters Hasbrouck Heights (though WB enters before EB). This assembly therefore has to be on the southeast corner of the northeastern CR 38/61 intersection (38 came in on Saddle River Ave. in South Hackensack).

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