Union Hill was called Pigeon Hill by the earliest settlers and "a New Promised Land" by Quakers fleeing religious persecution. Prospectors established iron forges along what is now Den Brook, and the diverse community united to erect a one-room stone schoolhouse in 1816. No longer a religious sanctuary or iron mecca, this southern half of Denville Township is an upscale residential area that, despite great change, maintains many of the old homes and historic sites, including the old schoolhouse, which is being carefully restored today.