Warren County, is named for Dr. Joseph Warren, a Revolutionary War hero who fell in the Battle of Bunker Hill. Warren County was separated from Sussex County in 1824. The County of Warren occupies an area of 365 square miles, is 32 miles long with an average width of 13 miles, and ranks ninth in size among the state's twenty-one counties. Within the County is some of the most rugged and scenic terrain to be found in the State. The landscape is characterized by a series of ridges and valleys in a northeasterly /southwesterly direction. Elevations range from 124 feet to 1,600 feet above sea level. Mountain ranges and ridges which divide fertile river valleys include Kittatinny Mountain, Jenny Jump Mountain, Scott's Mountain and Pohatcong Mountain. Fertile valleys have enabled the county to become an important agricultural district in the Garden State.

For a taste of the call of the wild a trip to the Lakota Wolf preserve in Columbia is a must.

Transportation has played an important role in the development of the county since its beginning. The first European settlers in the county were the Dutch, who came to Pahaquarry Township and dug for copper in the early 1600s. They built Old Mine Road, which is known to be the first commercial highway in the United States. The road is still in existence today and traverses the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, a major visitor attraction in the county.

In the early 1830s, the Morris Canal opened across northern New Jersey, from Phillipsburg on the Delaware River to Newark, and later to Jersey City on the Hudson River. It provided a thoroughfare for the county's farm products to reach metropolitan markets. The county continues to retain some of its early agricultural prominence, leading the Garden State in the production of dairy cattle, milk, eggs, feed corn and alfalfa. In addition, farm markets, nurseries, wineries, and "boutique" growers are expanding within the county.

The Morris Canal also brought together the anthracite coal from Pennsylvania with the limestone and iron ore from New Jersey in the formation of heavy industry. Railroads quickly replaced the canal and sped the development of industry within the county. In 1835, Oxford Furnace became the first U.S. smelting operation to use the hot blast process, and in 1859 Peter Cooper's Furnace in Phillipsburg was the first U.S. operation to experiment with the Bessemer process. During the 1860s, Cooper Furnace was the most productive iron furnace in America.

At one time, Phillipsburg was the crossroads for five railroads, each with its own freight yard and maintenance facility in the town. Also, one heavy manufacturing plant employed up to 4,500 people and provided a great deal of machinery to the World War II effort. Warren County continues to lead the state in the percentage of its population involved in manufacturing.

Today, sections of the Morris Canal are being transformed into a public greenway across the county. Moreover, because of its transportation prominence, Phillipsburg has been tapped for the location of a proposed New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Heritage Center, a museum to focus on how New Jersey shaped transportation history and how transportation shaped the state. In addition to being a former railroad center and the terminus of the Morris Canal, the first commercially successful diesel electric locomotives were developed in the town, and dirigible mooring masts were built there as well. Also, another symbol of manufacturing in the county, Shippen Manor, the circa 1740s ironmaster's residence for Oxford Furnace, has been restored and transformed into a county museum.

Another large development affecting Warren County was the Merrill Creek Reservoir, a 1.1 square mile reservoir built by a consortium of seven regional electric utilities. Mandated by the Delaware River Basin Commission and completed in 1988, the reservoir holds water that can be used to replenish the river during times of drought, replacing the water used by the power companies at their generating facilities along the Delaware. It is now the largest tax paying entity in the county, and includes a 290-acre nature preserve and a visitor's center that are open to the public.

Warren County offers a great deal in the way of wholesome outdoor recreation. Nearly 40,000 acres are prime forest, and more than 61,000 acres are termed forest land of statewide importance. Parks, forest and conservation lands within the County total nearly 38,000 acres and include Jenny Jump State Forest, Stephens State Park, Allamuchy Mountain State Park, Worthington State Forest, Merrill Creek Environmental Resource Preserve, Pequest Trout Hatchery and Natural Resource Educational Center, and the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Country roads for biking, hiking or driving offer many scenic vistas as well as country craft and antique shops for browsing, farms for picking fresh vegetables and fruits, and wineries which welcome visitors to taste their selections.

The Delaware River, with 52 miles of county shoreline, is a major recreation resource. Visitors can fish for bass, muskies, shad and a variety of other fish, enjoy canoeing, swimming, tubing and boating. The Delaware's tributary streams and rivers, each having their own picturesque setting, are alive with sport fish and offer other recreational opportunities.

The Pequest Trout Hatchery, where all of the brook, brown and rainbow trout stocked by the State of New Jersey are raised, opened in 1982. The hatchery, located at the junction of Liberty, Mansfield, Oxford and White townships, features a natural resource education center that is a popular attraction in Warren County. It takes approximately 18 months to raise a trout for stocking. The hatchery raises more than 600,000 trout a year for release into state waters. An observation deck allows visitors to view feeding which takes place four times a day.

The Village of Hope contains many of the buildings constructed during the Moravian settlement period between 1769 and 1808. One of the most noteworthy is the 1770 Moravian Grist Mill, a stone mill still in its original condition. It is now the Inn at Mill Race Pond, a charming country inn.

Oxford Township is one of Warren s oldest townships. Its history is directly related to the iron mines which began operating there in the mid 1700's. The remnants of the old Oxford Furnace can still be seen. This iron works provided cannon balls to George Washington’s Army and also produced cannon balls during the War of 1812 and Civil War. There are some fine old mansions in the township that were built by owners of the furnace. The oldest is Shippen Manor, now owned by the county. The county is restoring the home back to its original grand style and operates it as a visitors attraction and museum.