Haledon was incorporated in 1908, having been the Oldham district of the former Passaic County municipality of Manchester Township. Home rule secession of municipalities in New Jersey was common and other examples include nearby Woodland Park (formerly West Paterson) and Elmwood Park, both of which were once part of Paterson.

At the height of the Red Scare, Haledon, which was largely rural at the time, elected a socialist mayor, William Bruekmann, who afforded the opportunity to members of the labor movement to hold meetings at the home of Pietro and Maria Botto at a time when factory workers were striking in Paterson.