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The Borough of Atlantic Highlands overlooks where the Atlantic Ocean and the Raritan Bay meet at Sandy Hook. Our hills mark the highest point on the eastern seaboard of the United States south of Maine. Colonists convened the first assembly of New Jersey in 1667 in what is now Atlantic Highlands.
During the Revolutionary War, loyalists to the English crown and patriots to the new America clashed in repeated raids and counter attacks across these lands.
In 1887, Atlantic Highlands was incorporated as a borough, containing 1.2 square miles of land bordering the Raritan Bay. Major construction occurred from the 1880's through 1900. It included hotels, cottages, rooming houses and private homes. A pier was built extending well into the bay to accomodate steamboats from New York City.
The next 20 years saw rapid development within the community. A water and sewer system was constructed, cottages were built and the road system was completed. It was during this period that the Atlantic Highlands Fire Department was also organized.
A number of churches saw their beginning in the 1880's: The Central Baptist, First Presbyterian, Saint Agnes Roman Catholic, First Methodist and Saint Paul Baptist Church.
Steamer service was the most important transport during the formation of the borough and continued through the 1940's. In the 1890's, rail services came to Atlantic Highlands. This opened up Highlands and points south to vacationers. The 1920's saw 26 passenger trains daily passing through the borough. The Central Railroad of New Jersey built a pier at the end of First Avenue.
The Manhattan skyline can be seen from the borough's ridges and shoreline. Pleasure, fishing and commuter boats sail from it's harbor. The municipal harbor was built from 1938 through 1940 with municipal, state and federal funds. At the time, it was the largest on the East Coast, home to 715 craft. In 1966, the Central Railroad of New Jersey pier was destroyed by fire.
