County · code 34037
Sussex CountyNew Jersey
Sussex County is a county in New Jersey, formed in 1753 from Morris County, with its county seat in Newton.
- Founded1753
- County seatNewton
- Named forSussex, England
- Land area519 sq mi + 17 sq mi water
- Population144,221 2020 Census
- Parcels mapped76,562 checked 15 October 2026
Where it is
Sussex on the map of New Jersey
New Jersey has 21 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.
History
Formed in 1753 from Morris County
An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.
Sussex County was formed in 1753 from Morris County, and named after Sussex, England. Newton is the county seat.
Deeds and plats from before 1753 for land now in Sussex County may have been recorded in Morris County.
- 1753
- 1773Lost territory Sussex lost to Orange (New York) and Ulster (New York) when King George Iii approved the boundary between New Jersey and New York, as determined by a commission appointed in 1769 at the joint request of the two colonies after decades of dispute. Line defined as running from the junction of the Delaware and Neversink rivers, a spot several miles south of the terminus selected in 1719, to the Hudson River at the parallel of 40 degrees north latitude. The boundary was demarcated in 1774 and, despite small adjustments later during resurveying and a New Jersey claim to Staten Island, it has remained unchanged to the present. · Pratt, 2:789; Snyder, 13-14; Van Zandt, 76
- 1824Lost territory Sussex lost to creation of Warren. · N.J. Acts 1824, pp. 146-147; Snyder, 36
Land and parcels
What the maps cover in Sussex
Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.
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Parcels Good enough
Lot lines and tax-map numbers for 76,562 parcels. Drawn for tax purposes: usually within a few feet of a survey, but not a survey.
edited 21 September 2026 · checked 15 October 2026 -
Address points Official
One point per address, 69,816 in all from NJOGIS.
edited 23 September 2026 · checked 14 October 2026 -
Buildings Reference
Roof outlines traced from aerial imagery from FEMA Response Geospatial Office with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Good for seeing what is on a lot; not accurate enough to set a fence from.
checked 18 October 2026
- Official
- from the office that keeps the record
- Good enough
- a reliable statewide or national copy
- Fallback
- a guide only; check the official record
- Missing
- nothing public found yet
People and land
Sussex by the Census
Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Rules and offices
Who to ask before you build, dig or sell
Official county pages only. We link to them; we do not copy them, because they change.
Inside a city or town, permits usually come from that city rather than the county.
Records
- Assessor and property records
Board of Taxation
- Clerk of court: deeds and plats
County Clerk
Permits
Zoning and code
- Planning and zoning
County Planning Board
- Land Development Standards
- Land Development Standards (PDF)
County government
- County government
The official website of Sussex County.
See your own lot on these maps
Open Sussex County on Parcel Chart's free map and click your parcel. Save it with a free account; the full record of your place (site map, projects, documents) is Pro, in early access.
Questions
Common questions about Sussex County
- When was Sussex County founded?
- Sussex County was founded in 1753, formed from Morris County, and named after Sussex, England.
- What is the county seat of Sussex County?
- The county seat of Sussex County is Newton.
- Is there an online parcel map for Sussex County?
- Yes. A public source publishes a parcel map of 76,562 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
- Has Sussex County's boundary or name changed?
- Sussex County was created in 1753 from Morris County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 2 later changes, chiefly involving Iii County, Orange (N.Y.) County and Ulster (N.Y.) County.
- Who issues building permits in Sussex County?
- The county's page on building permits: Temporary Food Vendor Permit (PDF). Inside a city or town, ask that city first.
- Who issues septic and well permits in Sussex County?
- The county's page on septic systems and wells: Health Division.
- Is my lot in a flood zone?
- We do not have flood maps for Sussex County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.
Nearby