Nestled in the southern corner of Bergen County, New Jersey, is the tiny Borough of Wallington. The Passaic and Saddle Rivers meander along its northwestern boundaries, giving the town the curious shape of a heart. Although only one-square mile, Wallington's size belies its unique and rich, 100-year history. December 31, 1894, officially marks the beginning of Wallington; however, its history prior to that reveals a wealth of information which leads to understanding its present.

Eons ago, in prehistoric times, the Passaic River was much greater, so much that it extended to the higher ridge of land know as Shueehank Hill. All of the lower-lying areas were actually the bottom of the river. Then, as the geography changed, a branch of the Passaic River caused part of Wallington, between the Gregory Avenue Bridge and the Locust Lane, to form an island. Eventually, that island became part of the mainland. Indians, of course, occupied this territory before Europeans ever stepped foot on American soil, and one of their villages was in the area of what is now Lodi. Although the Indians never settled on the land that is now Wallington, probably because the river's floods and freshets, the Shaueehanks, a tribe of the Lenni Lenape, fished the Passaic River, camped along it, and hunted along the ridge of Shaueehank Hill, which is the higher ridge of land extending across Wallington from the County Park to Park Row.