Town guide · Mercer County
Living in Hightstown, NJ
Hightstown is a small, walkable borough of about a square and a quarter miles, surrounded on every side by East Windsor Township. Its downtown grew up around a mill pond on Rocky Brook and an early railroad, and Main Street, Memorial Park and the Victorian homes of Stockton Street still set the tone.
- County
- Mercer
- Population
- About 5,900 (2020 census)
- Size
- About 1.3 square miles
- Setting
- Small town downtown with older residential streets around a lake
- Main roads
- Route 33 (Main Street), County Routes 539 and 571, with Route 133 and Turnpike Exit 8 just outside the borough
First things first
Hightstown and East Windsor are two different towns
Hightstown Borough sits entirely inside East Windsor Township, one of 21 of these doughnut town pairs in New Jersey. Hightstown was created from part of East Windsor in 1853 and became fully independent around 1894. The two have separate governments and separate property tax rates.
Hightstown's 08520 ZIP code is also used by many homes in East Windsor, so a Hightstown mailing address does not always mean a home is in the borough. Before we talk about price or taxes, we confirm the home is actually inside the borough line.
Neighborhoods
A downtown built around the water
The borough is named for John and Mary Hight, who ran a tavern here in the 1750s. The Camden and Amboy Railroad, the first chartered railroad in New Jersey, reached Hightstown in 1831 using the John Bull locomotive. Mills once lined the waterfront, until a fire in 1920 destroyed most of the wooden mill buildings and the land became Memorial Park.
Rocky Brook flows into Peddie Lake in the heart of town, then crosses Route 33 and continues west toward the Millstone River.
- Downtown: Centered on Main Street (Route 33) and Stockton Street (County Route 571), lined with historic buildings.
- Stockton Street Historic District: Both sides of Stockton Street from Railroad Avenue to Summit Street, plus part of Rogers Avenue, with Victorian homes and a Civil War monument.
- Residential streets: Older homes on blocks radiating out from downtown toward the East Windsor line.
Homes
What you will find
- Victorian and older homes: Many from the 1800s and early 1900s, especially in and around the Stockton Street Historic District.
- Single family homes: On the residential streets around downtown, built over more than a century as the borough grew out toward the East Windsor line.
Worth knowing: Hightstown has a historic district and a historic preservation commission, so exterior changes to some homes may need extra review. Many houses here date to the 1800s and early 1900s, which makes a thorough inspection worth the time. And because so many East Windsor homes share the 08520 ZIP code, we confirm a property is inside the borough before comparing taxes or sales.
Property taxes
What taxes look like in Hightstown
- 3.028%2025 effective tax rate, as a share of market value
- $11,0762025 average residential tax bill
A home worth $350,000 on today's market would pay roughly $10,598 a year at Hightstown's 2025 effective rate. Your actual bill depends on your assessment, so we pull the real tax record for any home you are considering.
Source: New Jersey Division of Taxation, 2025 general and effective tax rates. Rates are set each year.
Getting around
Roads and commuting
Route 33 is the main road through the borough, running as Main Street and sharing pavement with County Routes 539 and 571. A small piece of U.S. Route 130 crosses the northwest corner. Just outside town, Route 133, the Hightstown Bypass, and the New Jersey Turnpike meet Route 33 at Turnpike Exit 8. There is no train station. A shuttle connects Hightstown and East Windsor with the Princeton Junction station on NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line, and Suburban Transit commuter buses run to Manhattan. Daily shopping is downtown and along Route 33 and Route 130 in East Windsor.
Places worth knowing
Parks, landmarks and open space
- Memorial Park: A borough park on North Main Street on the old mill waterfront, with stone walls, a dam and a footbridge, dedicated on Armistice Day in 1924.
- Peddie Lake: The lake on Rocky Brook in the center of town, the backdrop for downtown and Memorial Park.
- Stockton Street Historic District: A walkable stretch of Victorian homes and a Civil War monument along Stockton Street.
- Ely House: A Greek Revival house from about 1850, home of the Hightstown East Windsor Historical Society, with a restored Camden and Amboy Railroad freight station behind it.
Common questions
Questions people ask us about Hightstown
What are property taxes in Hightstown, NJ?
Hightstown Borough's 2025 effective tax rate is 3.028 percent of market value, and the average residential tax bill is $11,076, according to the New Jersey Division of Taxation. Actual bills depend on each home's assessment.
Is Hightstown part of East Windsor?
No. Hightstown was created from part of East Windsor in 1853 and became fully independent around 1894. It has its own government and tax rate, even though East Windsor Township surrounds it on every side.
How did Hightstown get its name?
The traditional story is that the borough is named for John and Mary Hight, who established a tavern in the area in the 1750s. That was about a century before Hightstown was created from part of East Windsor in 1853.
What is the closest Turnpike exit to Hightstown?
The closest is Exit 8 of the New Jersey Turnpike, just outside the borough in East Windsor. It connects to Route 33, which runs right through downtown Hightstown as Main Street, and to the Route 133 bypass.
Is there a train station in Hightstown?
Not today. The Camden and Amboy Railroad reached Hightstown in 1831, but passenger rail is long gone, and the old freight station now sits behind the Ely House. The nearest station is Princeton Junction on NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line, reached by a shuttle.
Buying or selling in Hightstown?
A small borough where each sale counts
In a borough of about 1.3 square miles, a few sales can swing the numbers. We look at the street, the age of the house and its condition before we talk price, and we explain each way you could sell.
Call or text either of us directly.