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Morris Township is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 22,306, reflecting an increase of 510 from the 21,796 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 1,844 from the 19,952 counted in the 1990 Census.It is known as the "doughnut" around Morristown since it completely encapsulates it, and has at least five times the area, though near Morris Plains the width of Morris Township is less than a mile.
Morris Township was originally formed as of March 25, 1740. Portions of the township were taken on December 24, 1740, to form Roxbury Township and on March 29, 1749, to form Mendham Township. Morris Township was incorporated as a township by the Township Act of 1798 by the New Jersey Legislature on February 21, 1798, as part of the state's initial group of 104 townships. Portions of the township were taken to create Chatham Township, Morristownand Passaic Township. The township was named for Lewis Morris, colonial governor of New Jersey.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 15.762 square miles, including 15.618 square miles of land and 0.144 square miles of water.
Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Convent Station, Gillespie Hill, Loantaka Terrace, Normandy Heights, Normandy Park and Washington Valley.
Morris Township completely surrounds Morristown, making it part of 21 pairs of "doughnut towns" in the state, where one municipality entirely surrounds another. The township borders the Morris County municipalities of Parsippany-Troy Hills Township, Morris Plains and Hanover Township to the north, Harding Township to the south, Mendham Township and Randolph to the west and Florham Park and Madison to the east.
Students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade attend the schools of the Morris School District, which also serves public school students in the communities of Morristown (K-12) and Morris Plains (9-12). As of the 2014-15 school year, the district and its 10 schools had an enrollment of 5,123 students and 426.7 classroom teachers for a student–teacher ratio of 12.0:1. Schools in the district are Lafayette Learning Center (PreK; 176 students), Hillcrest School (K-2; 318), Alfred Vail School (K-2; 332), Woodland School (K-2; 305), Alexander Hamilton School (3-5; 271), Thomas Jefferson School(3-5; 317), Sussex Avenue School (3-5; 323), Normandy Park School (K-5; 368), Frelinghuysen Middle School (6-8; 1,144) and Morristown High School (9-12; 1,678).
The Academy of St. Elizabeth is a Catholic school for girls that admitted its first students in 1860, located in the Convent Station area, and operated independently of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson. The school has an enrollment of 230 students and is the oldest school for girls in New Jersey.
The College of Saint Elizabeth is a private Roman Catholic, four-year, liberal arts college for women, located in Convent Station. The college was founded in 1899 by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth of New Jersey.
The Rabbinical College of America, one of the largest Chabad Lubavitch Chasidic yeshivas in the world is located in Morristown. The Rabbinical College of America has a Baal Teshuva yeshiva for students of diverse Jewish backgrounds, named Yeshiva Tiferes Bachurim. The New Jersey Regional Headquarters for the worldwide Chabad Lubavitch movement is located on the campus.