Watchung, New Jersey

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Map of Watchung in Somerset County
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Map of Watchung in Somerset County

Watchung is a Borough in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 5,613.

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[edit] Geography

Watchung is located at 40°38′21″N, 74°26′37″W (40.639202, -74.443715)GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 15.6 km² (6.0 mi²). 15.6 km² (6.0 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.33%) is water.

The name 'Watchung' comes from the Lenni Lenape Native Americans, meaning 'high hills'. It is from the first ridge of the Watchung Mountains that George Washington surveyed the British troops in Perth Amboy many miles SSE. The eastern reach of these ridges is to the Oranges in the direction of Newark.

[edit] Demographics

As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 5,613 people, 2,098 households, and 1,617 families residing in the borough. The population density was 360.0/km² (933.0/mi²). There were 2,155 housing units at an average density of 138.2/km² (358.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the borough was 84.30% White, 3.37% African American, 0.09% Native American, 9.85% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 0.71% from other races, and 1.59% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.99% of the population.

There were 2,098 households out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.4% were married couples living together, 4.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.9% were non-families. 19.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the borough the population was spread out with 21.9% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 30.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 95.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.3 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $101,944, and the median income for a family was $120,764. Males had a median income of $80,658 versus $54,167 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $58,653. About 0.5% of families and 2.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.6% of those under age 18 and 1.6% of those age 65 or over.

Watchung, from the 1900's was a semi-rural small community of about 3,200 people in comparison with the relatively much larger and wealthier cities of Plainfield and Somerville. Even as late as the 1960's, it was common for residents to know one another by name, with few moving in or out of the town. the 1967 Plainfield riots caused an exodus of the large upper-middle class population to move to the Watchung Hills including Watchung, Warren Township and Bridgewater Township. It was at this time that Watchung became a bedroom community and the average income and median house prices soared.

[edit] Government

[edit] Local government

The Mayor of Watchung Borough is Albert S. Ellis. Members of the Watchung Borough Council are Council President Stephen L. Black, Thomas Franklin, Michael Harding, Debra Joren, Gerald M. Mobus and Stephen Pote.

[edit] Federal, state and county representation

Watchung is in the Seventh Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 21st Legislative District.[1]

New Jersey's Seventh Congressional District, covering portions of Hunterdon County, Middlesex County, Somerset County and Union County, is represented by Mike Ferguson (R). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Robert Menendez (D, Hoboken).

The 21st legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Thomas Kean Jr. (R, Westfield) and in the Assembly by Jon Bramnick (R, Westfield) and Eric Munoz (R, Summit). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).

Somerset County is governed by a five-member Board of Chosen Freeholders. Somerset County's Freeholders are: Freeholder Director Rick Fontana, Freeholder Deputy Director Ken Scherer, Denise Coyle, Peter S. Palmer and Robert Zaborowski.

[edit] Education

Students in Kindergarten through eighth grade are educated by the Watchung Borough Schools. Schools in the district (with 2004-05 school enrollment data from the New Jersey Department of Education School Report Cards[2]) are Bayberry Elementary School with 381 students in grades K - 4, and Valley View Schoolwith 276 students in grades 5 - 8.

Watchung's high school students attend Watchung Hills Regional High School in Warren Township. Students from Watchung and from the neighboring communities of Green Brook Township and Warren Township (in Somerset County) and Long Hill Township (in Morris County) attend the school. It serves students in grades nine through twelve and as of the 2005-2006 school year, there were over 1,900 students attending.

[edit] References

  1. ^ League of Women Voters: 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, p. 65, accessed August 30, 2006 incorrectly shows Congressional District 2 and that Watchung is in Camden County, likely due to missing information for Waterford Township, which is in Camden in Congressional District 2 and is omitted from the LWVNJ guide. The 2004 Legislative Data Book confirms that Watchung is in Congressional District 7.
  2. ^ New Jersey School Report Cards

[edit] External links

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Municipalities of Somerset County, New Jersey
(County Seat: Somerville)
Boroughs Bernardsville | Bound Brook | Far Hills | Manville | Millstone | North Plainfield | Peapack-Gladstone | Raritan | Rocky Hill | Somerville | South Bound Brook | Watchung
Townships Bedminster | Bernards | Branchburg | Bridgewater | Franklin | Green Brook | Hillsborough | Montgomery | Warren
Communities Basking Ridge | Belle Mead | Blackwells Mills | Blawenburg | East Millstone | Flagtown | Griggstown | Harlingen | Lamington | Martinsville | Middlebush | Neshanic | North Branch | Pleasant Plains | Six Mile Run | Somerset | South Branch | Zarephath
Historic Houses Meadows Foundation | Old Dutch Parsonage | Wallace House
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