Maplewood is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, situated as an inner-ring suburban community in the New York metropolitan area, about 15 miles west of Manhattan. At the 2020 census, the township recorded a population of 25,684. Bordered by South Orange, Millburn, and Union, and adjacent to the South Mountain Reservation, Maplewood occupies a leafy stretch of northern New Jersey long favored by commuters to New York City. The township is best known for two things: its historic housing stock and its schools. Its tree-lined streets are lined with early twentieth-century homes in Victorian, Colonial Revival, Tudor, and Craftsman styles, and its two commercial districts, Maplewood Village and the Springfield Avenue corridor, give the town a walkable, village-centered character. Public education is provided by the South Orange-Maplewood School District, which Maplewood shares with neighboring South Orange. The district operates nine schools and has drawn attention for its intentional school-integration initiative, aimed at balancing enrollment across its elementary and middle schools. Maplewood developed as a planned commuter suburb in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when the arrival of the railroad made the township accessible to New York and Newark. Much of its distinctive housing was built during that period, and the town's villages grew up around the rail line. That history remains visible today in the architecture, the street pattern, and the enduring role of the train station as the center of community life. Maplewood's defining practical asset is its commute. NJ Transit's Morris and Essex Lines provide Midtown Direct rail service with direct trains into New York Penn Station, and the township's station anchors Maplewood Village. The Garden State Parkway and Interstate 78 are also nearby. The community is known for its engaged, progressive civic culture and active arts scene. For residents, Maplewood combines historic suburban charm, strong schools, and a convenient, direct commute, making it one of northern New Jersey's most established and desirable commuter towns.