The township is home to the private club community Mount Kemble Lake, a former summer colony developed in the 1920s.

[24][25] Described by The New York Times as "one of the most restrictive and elegant of New Jersey's residential suburban areas"[26] and as an "affluent Morris County township",[27] the community has been one of the state's highest-income municipalities.

Harding Township had a per capita income of $109,472 and was ranked first in New Jersey based on data from the 2006–2010 American Community Survey from the United States Census Bureau, more than triple the statewide average of $34,858.

[30] Many relatively unchanged large country estates that have been passed down through several generations attest to the wealth of many of its residents.

Some have been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and some have nonprofit support organizations that assure the retention of the original nature of the properties.

[32] After the retreat of the Wisconsin Glacier, a mighty glacial lake called Glacial Lake Passaic formed in this area that, about 15,000 to 11,000 years ago, extended for 30 miles (48 km) in length and was 10 miles (16 km) wide.

At the time of colonization by the Dutch it belonged to the Lenape tribes, but British colonists did their best to displace them westward.

For almost two centuries of European occupation, its open and rolling landscapes reflected its agricultural use, as land had been cleared for cattle pastures, orchards, and fields of grain.

Wealthy urban residents from Manhattan and Newark bought farmland, enlarged old farmhouses, and landscaped the grounds.

The movement to establish Harding Township was driven by local property owners who wanted to maintain a bucolic community without suburban development.

[34][35] The New Vernon Neighborhood Restrictive Agreement was established in 1928 by estate owners under which they agreed to voluntarily place restrictive covenants on their land that would require future owners of the properties to maintain the rural nature of the area.

[36] This voluntary effort to limit development and save the pastoral qualities of over 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) across Harding Township influenced subsequent zoning codes, which emerged several decades later, and helped preserve the landscape to the present day.

[1][2] The township includes unincorporated communities, a portion of Green Village and all of New Vernon, both of which have origins as colonial settlements that predate the American Revolution.

[38][39][40] The 2010 United States census counted 3,838 people, 1,474 households, and 1,126 families in the township.

[45] As of the 2000 United States census[15] there were 3,180 people, 1,180 households, and 940 families residing in the township.

[55] For the 119th United States Congress, New Jersey's 11th congressional district is represented by Mikie Sherrill (D, Montclair).

[57] For the 2024-2025 session, the 25th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Anthony M. Bucco (R, Boonton Township) and in the General Assembly by Christian Barranco (R, Jefferson Township) and Aura K. Dunn (R, Mendham Borough).

[59] Actual day-to-day operation of departments is supervised by County Administrator Deena Leary.

The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 25, 2000, for its significance in architecture and military history.

U.S. Route 202 is the main highway providing local access to Harding Township.

Additionally, many residents use the Madison, Morristown, and other nearby train stations to commute to Midtown Manhattan.