Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge#Wildlife Refuge Formation

The refuge is managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, an agency within the United States Department of the Interior. Refuge lands lie within the townships of Chatham, Harding, and Long Hill.

The Great Swamp is the remnant of the bottom of the once-mighty Glacial Lake Passaic that approximately 15,000 to 11,000 years ago stretched across {{convert|30|by|10|mi|km}} in what is presently northern New Jersey. The lake was formed by the melting waters of the retreating Wisconsin Glacier at the end of the last ice age. The glacier had pushed a moraine ahead of its advance, a rubble of soil and rocks that plugged the existing outlet for the waters that drained into the area of the watershed. As the retreating glacier melted, the waters rose to create the lake before a new outlet began to allow the water to exit at a much higher elevation.

The plug altered the course of the Passaic River, which had drained a swamp that predated the lake. A range of mountains to the west of Morristown formed the western boundary of the new lake and the most easterly line of the Watchung Mountains became the eastern boundary. The tops of some of the Watchung range became islands in the great lake. Water that had vented through the Watchung range, or to its south, found a new path that altered the old drainage paths. When the plug collapsed, the river still was forced to travel north through the range before finding a new outlet near present-day Paterson where it could manage the eastern turn toward the sea.

Some ten thousand years ago, Amerindians arrived in the area and established settlements shortly after the retreat of the glacier, hunting, fishing, and farming. In 1614, Dutch colonists claimed part of the area as New Netherlands and they traded with the natives. Later, British settlers came, establishing dominion over what they called the Province of New Jersey.

The refuge includes about one-quarter of the Great Swamp {{Convert|55|sqmi|km2|adj=on}} watershed that gives rise to the Passaic River. The watershed touches ten modern communities, many of which were settled by European colonists long before the American Revolution.

[[File:Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, December.jpg|thumb|

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, December

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The land that would become the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge was established by an Act of Congress on November 3, 1960, after a multi-year legal battle that pitted local residents against Port Authority of New York and New Jersey officials wishing to turn the Great Swamp into a major regional airport to supplement Newark Airport's ability to accommodate large jet aircraft.{{Cite book |last1=Plotch |first1=Philip M.|last2=Nelles|first2=Jen|title=Mobilizing the Metropolis: How the Port Authority Built New York |publisher=University of Michigan Press |year=2023 |isbn=978-0472056132 |pages=54–69 |language=English}}

The Jersey Jetport Site Association was the first to form in opposition. Their efforts to prevent the development of an airport in the swamp became public knowledge on December 3, 1959, when four of its members (Kafi Benz, Joan Kelly, Esty Weiss, and Betty White) were expelled from a meeting at the Essex House in Newark that had been organized to generate support for its construction.St. John, Kate, [http://www.birdsoutsidemywindow.org/2015/11/03/55-years-ago-today-a-victory-for-birds/ 55 Years Ago Today: A Victory For Birds], Outside My Window, November 3, 2015 The JJSA activity was followed closely by a national and influential sister organization, when (because of connections with Marcellus Hartley Dodge, Sr., a major donor to and participant in JJSA) the North American Wildlife Foundation established its Great Swamp Committee in 1960.Hamilton, Leonard W., Ph.D., [http://www.tentowns.org/10t/suststew.htm Keynote Address to the Tenth Anniversary Celebration] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060907202759/http://beatl.barnard.columbia.edu/cuhis3057/textscans/MHDodge1932.htm |date=September 7, 2006 }}, Ten Towns Committee, Sustainable Stewardship, June 24, 2005 Between the two organizations and, in less than a year, enough property in the core of the swamp was quickly purchased, assembled, and donated to the federal government to qualify for perpetual protection as a national wildlife refuge.[https://web.archive.org/web/20081030065209/https://www.fws.gov/news/historic/1964/19640525b.pdf GREAT SWAMP IN NEW JERSEY, DONATED TO GOVERNMENT AS WILDLIFE AREA, TO BE DEDICATED] (press release) Fish and Wildlife Service. May 25, 1964. As the representative from Arizona, Stewart Udall immediately championed the efforts of these residents, whom he described as having mounted the greatest effort ever made by residents in America to protect a natural habitat, and later, on May 29, 1964, as the Secretary of the Interior, he oversaw its dedication as a refuge. The initial donation was {{convert|2600|acre|km2}}, which assured its protection as a refuge and the acquisition of additional lands continued. In 1960, Representative Peter Frelinghuysen, Jr., whose estate was in the area targeted for development also joined the effort.{{cite news|last=Dean|first=Clarence|title=Plan for Airport Argued in New Jersey|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1960/01/14/99471228.pdf |access-date=June 5, 2013|newspaper=The New York Times|date=January 14, 1960}}{{cite news|last=Honig|first=Milton|title=Jetport Enemies Say They've Won|url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1961/12/17/97630846.pdf|access-date=June 5, 2013|newspaper=The New York Times|date=December 17, 1961}}{{cite book|last=Doig|first=Jameson W.|title=Empire on the Hudson: Entrepreneurial Vision and Political Power at the Port of New York Authority|year=2001|publisher=Columbia University Press|pages=[https://archive.org/details/empireonhudson00jame/page/385 385]–6|url=https://archive.org/details/empireonhudson00jame|url-access=registration}}

Image:Great swamp map.png

By the end of 2010, the extent of the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge had grown to nearly {{convert|7800|acre|km2}} of varied habitats. It lies within the Northeastern coastal forests ecoregion.{{cite journal|last1=Olson|first1=D.M.|first2=E.|last2=Dinerstein|title=Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World: A New Map of Life on Earth |journal=BioScience |year=2001 |volume=51 |issue=11 |pages=933–938 |doi=10.1641/0006-3568(2001)051[0933:TEOTWA]2.0.CO;2 |display-authors=etal |df=mdy-all |doi-access=free }} When the remainder of the area donated was dedicated on September 9, 1968, it was the first refuge to receive wilderness designation.{{Cite web|url=https://friendsofgreatswamp.org/site/|title=Friends of Great Swamp}}

The Great Swamp is a migration-resting and feeding area or a permanent habitat for more than 244 species of birds. The major routes of birds migrating along the eastern portion of the United States follow the corridor that includes the Great Swamp as an important stopping place for rest and nutrition.

Many species of birds reside permanently in the watershed. Deer, fish, fox, frogs, muskrat, raccoons, snakes, turtles, as well as many insects and a wide variety of wildflowers and plants call the refuge home. Some of the animals hunted by the prehistoric native inhabitants and colonists, such as bear and beaver, are encountered occasionally. Its role in draining the region and absorbing flood water for gradual release can be critical during extreme weather conditions. The refuge also plays an important role in improving water quality by acting as a natural ecological filter trapping sediments and contaminants.

Numerous nonprofit organizations have arisen from the communities within the Great Swamp watershed and work closely in partnership with the refuge. The Great Swamp Watershed Association, founded in 1981, works to protect the entire {{Convert|55|sqmi|km2|adj=on}} watershed that surrounds the swamp.{{Cite web|url=https://www.greatswamp.org/|title=Great Swamp Watershed Association}} Within the Great Swamp there also is a nonprofit bird-rehabilitation center founded in 1977, called The Raptor Trust, mainly specializing in birds of prey, such as eagles, hawks, and owls. Lord Stirling Park is part of the Somerset County Park System. The park is entered from the community of Stirling that is named after a military officer of the American Revolution who lived in the community, William Alexander. The park is located immediately adjacent to the southwestern boundary of the refuge on the western side of the Passaic River. The park offers excellent hiking facilities that include trails, boardwalks, observation blinds, and naturalist exhibits displayed in its park office that are related to the swamp and its wildlife.

The Morris County Park Commission manages parks in the vicinity of the Great Swamp National Wildlife Reserve, including the Great Swamp Outdoor Education Center.{{Cite book |last=Senate |first=United States Congress |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cKEGFwdLIFgC&dq=%22morris+county+park+commission%22&pg=RA9-PA40 |title=Hearings |date=1968 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |pages=40–41 |language=en}}

Image:Image-Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge New Jersey01.jpg|Winter scene

Image:Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge New Jersey02.jpg|Winter scene

Image:Image-Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge New Jersey04.jpg|Barns in winter

Image:Great.Swamp.JPG|Fall scene

{{Reflist}}

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• {{cite book|last1=Plotch|first1=Philip M.|first2=Jen|last2=Nelles|url=https://www.press.umich.edu//12009801|title=Mobilizing the Metropolis: How the Port Authority Built New York|publisher=University of Michigan Press|doi=10.3998/mpub.12009801|doi-access=free|isbn=9780472903481|year=2023|pages=54-69}}

{{commons category|Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge}}

• [http://www.fws.gov/refuge/great_swamp/ U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge]
• [http://www.friendsofgreatswamp.org/ Friends of the Great Swamp]
• [http://www.greatswamp.org/ Great Swamp Watershed Association]
• [http://www.njskylands.com/odswamp.htm New Jersey's Great Northwest Skylands: The Great Swamp]
• [http://www.tentowns.org/10t/index.htm Ten Towns Great Swamp Watershed Management Committee]
• [http://www.nynjtc.org/park/great-swamp-national-wildlife-refuge Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge Trail Details and Info]
• [https://www.savingthegreatswamp.com/ Saving The Great Swamp] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200304070227/https://www.savingthegreatswamp.com/ |date=March 4, 2020 }} — a documentary about the struggle to preserve the refuge from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey's attempts to build an airport on the site between 1959 and 1968.

{{Protected areas of New Jersey}}

{{National Wildlife Refuges of the United States}}

{{National Natural Landmarks in New Jersey}}

{{Passaic River}}

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Category:Long Hill Township, New Jersey

Category:National Wildlife Refuges in New Jersey

Category:Protected areas of Morris County, New Jersey

Category:Passaic River

Category:Swamps of New Jersey

Category:National Natural Landmarks in New Jersey

Category:Protected areas established in 1960

Category:Watchung Mountains

Category:Wetlands of New Jersey

Category:Landforms of Morris County, New Jersey