According to tradition, Bayonne gets its name from the city of Bayonne in France. It is said that French Huguenots settled there some time before New Amsterdam was founded. A 1904 history suggests that the area's developers named it Bayonne because it is on the shores of two bays, Newark and New York, hence Bay-on, or "on the Bays”. Bayonne was originally formed as a township on April 1, 1861, from portions of Bergen Township. Bayonne was reincorporated as a city by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 10, 1869, replacing Bayonne Township, subject to the results of a referendum held nine days later.