Frenchtown is located along the banks of the Delaware River on the Hunterdon Plateau, 32 miles (51 km) northwest of the state capital of Trenton.

[20] Various names have been applied to this settlement after the many ferry operators residing on both sides of the river.

The borough was formed by an Incorporation act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 4, 1867, from portions of Alexandria Township.

[22] The Lenape Native Americans had populated the area until they were fully supplanted by European settlement around 1750.

One notable settler was Luther Calvin, a landowner and ferry operator who also bought a Hotel on Everittstown Road.

[24] In 1757, three joint owners of a tract purchased from the West Jersey Land Society began laying out streets and building lots at what was then known as Calvin's Ferry.

The developing town was to be called "Alexandria" in honor of William Alexander, Lord Stirling, one of the three owners.

In 1794, Lowrey sold the tract to Paul Henri Mallet-Prevost, a Swiss fugitive from the French Revolution.

He and other early settlers were French speaking, leading some to begin calling the settlement "Frenchtown.

Boatmen and river men helped fuel Frenchtown's growth through their buying of cargo and food, and hiring of pilots.

In the years after Henri Mallet-Prevost's death, his sons sold off portions of their property and no longer was the town privately owned.

Steam-powered industry became widely developed, and by the 1860s, water powered mills were being converted into larger factories.

In 1889, Britton Brothers Big Brick Store, which sold a variety of goods, opened on Bridge Street.

Its extant towpaths are now a popular biking and hiking trail from Trenton through Lambertville to Frenchtown and beyond.

In the early 20th century, growth was spurred by the arrival of Frenchtown Porcelain Works, the establishment of the Milford plant of the Warren Paper Company, and the rise of the poultry industry.

[28] Hurricane Diane in 1955 raised the level of the Delaware River dramatically and flooded the streets of Frenchtown as well as other riverbank towns and caused serious damage to buildings and residences.

[6] The borough form of government used by Frenchtown is a "weak mayor / strong council" government in which council members act as the legislative body with the mayor presiding at meetings and voting only in the event of a tie.

The mayor can veto ordinances subject to an override by a two-thirds majority vote of the council.

[43][44] As of 2023[update], the mayor of Frenchtown is Republican Brad Myhre, whose term of office ends on December 31, 2023.

[53] In the November 2015 general election, Republican Brad Myhre ran a successful write-in campaign, defeating incumbent Democrat Warren Cooper by 236–185 to win the seat.

[57] For the 119th United States Congress, New Jersey's 7th congressional district is represented by Thomas Kean Jr. (R, Westfield).

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 19, 1994, for its significance in architecture, commerce, community planning and development, and transportation from 1795 to 1931.

[90] Public school students in ninth through twelfth grades attend the Delaware Valley Regional High School in Frenchtown, which serves students in western Hunterdon County from Alexandria, Holland and Kingwood townships along with the boroughs of Frenchtown and Milford.

[103] Frenchtown holds La Fete Nationale on Bastille Day in July with a different theme each year related to borough's "French heritage and flavor".