Bernards Township, New Jersey

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Bernards Township, New Jersey
—  Township  —
Map of Bernards Township in Somerset County. Inset: Location of Somerset County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Bernards Township, New Jersey
Coordinates: 40°41′4″N 74°34′13″W / 40.68444°N 74.57028°W / 40.68444; -74.57028
Country United States
State New Jersey
County Somerset
Incorporated February 21, 1798
Royal charter 1760
Government[1]
 • Type Township (New Jersey)
 • Mayor Mary Pavlini
 • Administrator Bruce McArthur[2]
Area
 • Total 24.0 sq mi (62.2 km2)
 • Land 24.0 sq mi (62.2 km2)
 • Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation[3] 308 ft (94 m)
Population (2010 Census)[4]
 • Total 26,652
 • Density 1,110.5/sq mi (428.5/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 07920 (Basking Ridge)
07938 (Liberty Corner)
07939 (Lyons)
07931 (Far Hills)
Area code(s) 908
FIPS code 34-05560[5][6]
GNIS feature ID 0882174[7]
Website http://www.bernards.org
Aerial view of western portion of Bernards Township

Bernards Township (play /ˈbɜrnərdz/) is a township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. At the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 26,652.[4]

Basking Ridge, Liberty Corner, Lyons and West Millington are ZIP codes and unincorporated areas located within Bernards Township. Martinsville is an unincorporated area split between Bernards Township and Bridgewater Township.

Contents

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 24.0 square miles (62 km2), of which, 24.0 square miles (62 km2) of it is land and 0.04% is water.

It is roughly bounded by the Second Watchung Mountain in the southwest, the Dead River swamp on the south, the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Passaic River, and Millington Gorge in the East.

Bernardsville Harding Twp
Far Hills and
Bedminster Twp		 Long Hill Twp
   Bernards Twp    
Bridgewater Township Warren Township

[edit] History

Bernards Township was originally formed by Royal Charter in 1760 as Bernardston Township from remaining portions of Northern precinct.[8] It was incorporated as Bernards Township as one of New Jersey's initial group of 104 townships by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21, 1798. Portions of the township were taken to form Warren Township (March 5, 1806), Far Hills (April 7, 1921) and Bernardsville (March 6, 1924).[9] Bernards Township now comprises Basking Ridge, Liberty Corner, Lyons, and West Millington and celebrated its 250th charter anniversary on May 24, 2010.[8]

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop. %±
1930 2,293
—
1940 4,512 96.8%
1950 7,487 65.9%
1960 9,018 20.4%
1970 13,305 47.5%
1980 12,920 −2.9%
1990 17,199 33.1%
2000 24,575 42.9%
2010 26,652 8.5%
Population 1930 - 1990.[4][10]

At the 2000 census[5], there were 24,575 people, 9,242 households and 6,487 families residing in the township. The population density was 1,023.8 per square mile (395.4/km²). There were 9,485 housing units at an average density of 395.1 per square mile (152.6/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 89.20% White, 1.44% African American, 0.05% Native American, 7.85% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.40% from other races, and 1.05% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.63% of the population.

There were 9,242 households of which 37.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.0% were married couples living together, 5.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 26.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.17.

Age distribution was 27.7% under the age of 18, 3.2% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.0 males.

[edit] Government

[edit] Local government

Bernards Township operates under the Township form of New Jersey municipal government. The Township Committee consists of five members, elected by the public in partisan elections for three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats coming up for election each year.[1] In the Township Committee form of government, all legislative and executive powers of the Township are the responsibility of the Township Committee, except in matters of health. The Mayor is elected by the committee from among its members at the annual Reorganization meeting held in January. In the Township Committee form of government, all members have equal power and may vote on all issues.

As of 2011, members of the Township Committee are Mayor John Malay, Deputy Mayor Mary Pavlini, John Carpenter, Carolyn Gaziano and Scott Spitzer.[11]

[edit] Federal, state and county representation

Bernards Township is in the 11th Congressional district and is part of New Jersey's 16th state legislative district.[12] The township was relocated to the 21st state legislative district by the New Jersey Apportionment Commission based on the results of the 2010 Census.[4] The new district will be in effect for the June 2011 primary and the November 2011 general election, with the state senator and assembly members elected taking office in the new district as of January 2012.[12]

New Jersey's Eleventh Congressional District is represented by Rodney Frelinghuysen (R, Harding Township). New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).

The 16th Legislative District of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Christopher Bateman (R, Somerville) and in the General Assembly by Jack Ciattarelli (R, Hillsborough Township).[13] Peter J. Biondi won re-election to an eighth term in the Assembly but died days after the November 2011 election; He will be replaced by a Republican Party convention of district delegates and the remaining year on his seat will be filled in a November 2012 special election.[14] The Governor of New Jersey is Chris Christie (R, Mendham).[15] The Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey is Kim Guadagno (R, Monmouth Beach).[16]

Somerset County is governed by a five-member Board of Chosen Freeholders, whose members are elected at-large to three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats coming up for election each year.[17] As of 2012, Somerset County's Freeholders are Freeholder Director Patricia L. Walsh (Green Brook Township, term ends December 31, 2013),[18] Freeholder Deputy Director Peter S. Palmer (Bernardsville, 2014),[19] Mark Caliguire (Montgomery Township, 2012),[20] Patrick Scaglione (Bridgewater Township, 2012).[21] and Robert Zaborowski (Franklin Township, 2014),[22][23]

[edit] Elections

In recent years, Bernards Township has leaned toward the Republican Party on the national and state levels.[24] In the 2008 Presidential Election, Republican candidate John McCain received 56% of the vote, over the Democrat candidate Barack Obama, who received around 43%.[25] In the 2009 Gubernatorial Election, Republican Chris Christie received 59.5% of the vote, over Democrat Jon Corzine, who received around 26%.[24]

[edit] The partnership with Terrebonne Parish

In 2005, after Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita, which had a devastating effect on the area, locals from the Bernards Township sent supplies to Houma, Louisiana.

In 2007, the Parish returned the favor by sending The Terrebonne High School Marching band on a 26-hour bus ride to the Bernards Township to march in their Christmas parade, and perform a Christmas concert for the public at a local church.

[edit] Economy

[edit] Personal income

The median household income was $107,204, and the median family income was $135,806 (these figures had risen to $115,582 and $149,900 respectively in a 2007 estimate[26]). Males had a median income of $95,758 versus $60,865 for females. The per capita income for the township was $56,521. About 0.6% of families and 1.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.2% of those under age 18 and 2.9% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Industry

The headquarters of Avaya, Barnes & Noble College Booksellers, Fedders, Hitachi Power Systems USA[27] and Verizon Wireless are located in town. Verizon Communications, which technically keeps its world headquarters in New York City, has located operations of its major business units in buildings that were formerly AT&T's world headquarters.[28]

[edit] Education

Students in kindergarten through twelfth grade are educated by the Bernards Township School District. The schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[29]) include four K-5 elementary schools — Cedar Hill Elementary School with 606 students; Liberty Corner Elementary School with 607 students; Mount Prospect Elementary School with 756 students and Oak Street Elementary School with 604 students (including pre-K); William Annin Middle School with 1,347 students in grades 6 - 8; and Ridge High School, with 1,697 students in grades 9 - 12. Cedar Hill Elementary currently houses a state of the art public program for children on the autism spectrum, utilizing the principles of ABA.

Ridge High School was ranked 194th, the second-highest in New Jersey, in Newsweek magazine's 2010 rankings of America's Best High Schools.[30] The school was the 12th-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 322 schools statewide, in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2010 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", after being ranked 24th in 2008 out of 316 schools.[31]

Pingry School, a private coeducational college preparatory day school, has its upper campus, for grades 6 to 12, located in Martinsville.[32]

[edit] Points of interest

  • The Devil's Tree - A solitary oak tree in a field off Mountain Road in the southern corner of the township that has been subject of several stories in Weird NJ magazine.[citation needed]
  • The Brick Academy - A restoration of what was known as the Basking Ridge Classical School, a prep school for those hoping to attend Princeton University. The Brick Academy is the current home of the Historical Society of the Somerset Hills.

[edit] Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Bernards Township include:

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b 2005 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book, Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, April 2005, p. 77.
  2. ^ Administration, Bernards Township. Accessed March 22, 2011.
  3. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Township of Bernards, Geographic Names Information System, accessed January 4, 2008.
  4. ^ a b c d 2011 Apportionment Redistricting: Municipalities sorted alphabetically, New Jersey Department of State. Accessed June 5, 2011.
  5. ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  6. ^ A Cure for the Common Codes: New Jersey, Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed July 14, 2008.
  7. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  8. ^ a b Sadlouskos, Linda. "250th anniversary tea to celebrate Bernards history", Courier News (New Jersey), January 6, 2010. Accessed March 22, 2011. "The events commemorate the 250th anniversary of the granting of a charter from British King George II to create the township of Bernardston, Kennedy said."
  9. ^ John P. Snyder The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 222.
  10. ^ New Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
  11. ^ Township Committee, Bernards Township. Accessed March 22, 2011.
  12. ^ a b 2011 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters, p. 54. Accessed June 5, 2011.
  13. ^ Legislative Roster 2012-2013 Session, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 11, 2012.
  14. ^ Megerian, Chris. "Assemblyman Peter J. Biondi (R-Somerset), dies at 69, days after re-election", The Star-Ledger, November 10, 2011. Accessed January 11, 2012. "Assemblyman Peter Biondi, who on Tuesday was elected to his eighth term in the state Legislature representing the 16th District covering parts of Somerset and Morris Counties, died tonight after a battle with cancer, the Assembly Republican office said."
  15. ^ "About the Governor". New Jersey. http://www.nj.gov/governor/about/. Retrieved 2010-01-21. 
  16. ^ "About the Lieutenant Governor". New Jersey. http://www.nj.gov/governor/lt/. Retrieved 2010-01-21. 
  17. ^ Somerset County Government: At Your Service, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 25, 2012.
  18. ^ Patricia Walsh, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 25, 2012.
  19. ^ Peter S. Palmer, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 25, 2012.
  20. ^ Mark Caliguire, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 25, 2012.
  21. ^ Patrick Scaglione, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 25, 2012.
  22. ^ Robert Zaborowski, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 25, 2012.
  23. ^ Somerset County Board of Chosen Freeholders, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 25, 2012.
  24. ^ a b "Governor Morris County". State of New Jersey. 2009. http://www.state.nj.us/state/elections/election-results/2009-governor_results-somerset.pdf. Retrieved 2010-04-23. 
  25. ^ "Presidential Election Results Morris County". State of New Jersey. 2009. http://www.state.nj.us/state/elections/election-results/08-gen-elect-presidential-results-somerset.pdf. Retrieved 2010-04-23. 
  26. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-context=adp&-qr_name=ACS_2007_3YR_G00_DP3YR3&-ds_name=ACS_2007_3YR_G00_&-tree_id=3307&-redoLog=false&-_caller=geoselect&-geo_id=06000US3403505560&-format=&-_lang=en
  27. ^ Hitachi Power Systems - Contact Us. Accessed January 1, 2010.
  28. ^ Verizon New Operations Center Basking Ridge, bestofnj.com
  29. ^ Data for the Bernards Township School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed May 13, 2008.
  30. ^ Staff. "America's Best High Schools: The List", Newsweek, June 13, 2010. Accessed March 23, 2011.
  31. ^ Staff. "2010 Top High Schools", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2010. Accessed March 23, 2011.
  32. ^ About Pingry, November 2008
  33. ^ Horner, Shirley. "ABOUT BOOKS", The New York Times, October 3, 1993. Accessed December 19, 2007. "The other inductees are Patricia Lee Gauch of Basking Ridge, who has written more than 30 children's books"
  34. ^ Page McConnell, Legacy Recordings. Accessed November 11, 2008.
  35. ^ Caldwell, Dave. "IN PERSON; Renaissance Man", The New York Times, December 4, 2005. Accessed January 24, 2008. "The taciturn Mulcahy, who graduated from Millburn High School and lives in Basking Ridge, did much of the groundwork that let Schiano, after a few tough seasons, become a success in his home state -- their home state."
  36. ^ Samuel Lewis Southard, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed July 29, 2007.
  37. ^ "Jets GM Invited to Ridge Football Homecoming"
  38. ^ Sceurman, Mark. "Zip, the What Is It?", Weird NJ. Accessed June 5, 2011.

[edit] External links

Municipalities and communities of Somerset County, New Jersey, United States
Boroughs
Townships
CDPs
Communities

Coordinates: 40°40′22″N 74°33′31″W / 40.67278°N 74.55861°W / 40.67278; -74.55861

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