Long Hill Township, New Jersey
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| Long Hill, New Jersey | |
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| Coordinates: | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| State | New Jersey |
| County | Morris |
| Incorporated | March 23, 1866 as Passaic Twp. |
| Name changed | November 3, 1992 as Long Hill Twp. |
| Government | |
| - Type | Township |
| - Mayor | George Vitureira (R, 2008) |
| - Administrator | Richard Sheola[1] |
| Area | |
| - Total | 12.1 sq mi (31.3 km²) |
| - Land | 12.1 sq mi (31.3 km²) |
| - Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²) |
| Elevation [2] | 233 ft (71 m) |
| Population (2006)[3] | |
| - Total | 8,785 |
| - Density | 726.8/sq mi (280.6/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| FIPS code | 34-41362[4] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0882196[5] |
| Website: http://www.longhillnj.org/ | |
Long Hill Township is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 8,777.
Long Hill Township was incorporated as Passaic Township on March 23, 1866. On September 1, 1922, part of what was then Passaic Township was taken to form Harding Township.[6] On November 3, 1992, by a 1,901-1,821 margin, the voters elected to change the name of the municipality to Long Hill Township, a change largely driven by the desire to avoid confusion with the City of Passaic, some 22 miles away.[7][8]
The township consists of four communities: the enclaves of Gillette, Millington, and Stirling, and the hamlet of Meyersville. Homestead Park is the name of the first subdivision in the township, developed in the 1920s.
Contents |
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 12.1 square miles (31.3 km²), all of it land.
Long Hill Township is located in the most southern part of Morris County. It is bounded by the Passaic River on the south and west and by the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge on the north. It borders both Union and Somerset counties.
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1930 | 2,149 |
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| 1940 | 2,664 | 24.0% | |
| 1950 | 3,429 | 28.7% | |
| 1960 | 5,537 | 61.5% | |
| 1970 | 7,393 | 33.5% | |
| 1980 | 7,275 | -1.6% | |
| 1990 | 7,826 | 7.6% | |
| 2000 | 8,777 | 12.2% | |
| Est. 2006 | 8,785 | [3] | 0.1% |
| Population 1930 - 1990.[9] | |||
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 8,777 people, 3,139 households, and 2,457 families residing in the township. The population density was 726.8 people per square mile (280.5/km²). There were 3,206 housing units at an average density of 265.5/sq mi (102.5/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 92.75% White, 0.39% African American, 0.17% Native American, 4.79% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.56% from other races, and 1.31% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.45% of the population.
There were 3,139 households out of which 36.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.6% were married couples living together, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.7% were non-families. 18.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.19.
In the township the population was spread out with 26.3% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 25.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $84,532, and the median income for a family was $103,037. Males had a median income of $71,827 versus $46,100 for females. The per capita income for the township was $42,613. About 2.3% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.7% of those under age 18 and 3.2% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government
[edit] Local government
Long Hill Township has a township committee form of government. Five members of the township committee are elected at large for staggered three-year terms. The township committee reorganizes annually during the first week in January, at which time it elects a mayor and deputy mayor from among the five members. The mayor presides at meetings of the township committee and performs such other duties as the township committee or state laws prescribe.
Members of the township committee are Mayor George Vitureira (R; term ends December 31, 2008), Deputy Mayor Jerry Aroneo (R; 2009), Mead Briggs III (R; 2009), Chris Collins (D; 2008) and Mike Mazzucco (R; 2010).[10]
[edit] Federal, state, and county representation
Long Hill Township is in the Eleventh Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 21st Legislative District.[11]
New Jersey's Eleventh Congressional District, covering western portions of Essex County, all of Morris County, and sections of Passaic County, Somerset County and Sussex County, is represented by Rodney Frelinghuysen (R, Harding Township). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).
For the 2008-2009 Legislative Session, the 21st 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).[12] The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).[13]
Morris County is governed by a seven-member Board of Chosen Freeholders, who are elected to three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two or three seats up for election each year.[14] As of 2008, Morris County's Freeholders are Freeholder Director Margaret Nordstrom, Deputy Freeholder Director Gene F. Feyl, Douglas R. Cabana, William J. Chegwidden, John J. Murphy, James W. Murray and Jack J. Schrier.[15]
[edit] Education
The Long Hill Township School System serves public school students in Kindergarten through eighth grade. Schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[16]) are Gillette School (Grades K-1, 233 students, Principal: Joanna Hughes), Millington School (Grades 2-5, 505 students, Principal: Jennifer Dawson) and Central Middle School (Grades 6-8, 357 students, Principal: Richard Cimino).
Long Hill Township's high school students in public school attend Watchung Hills Regional High School in Warren Township. Students from Long Hill Township and from the neighboring communities of Green Brook Township, Warren Township, and Watchung (in Somerset County) attend the school.[17]. As of the 2006-2007 school year, there were over 2,100 students attending.
[edit] Library
The Long Hill Township Library began about 1880 in what was then known as Passaic Township. At the time a group of women in Millington formed a reading club purchasing a small number of books to trade amongst themselves. A similar group was established in Meyersville. In 1920 when the Morris County Library was built the groups joined the county system and books on loan from the county were housed in the homes of the associations’ members.
By the nineteen fifties the Millington Association’s Library had relocated to the Town Hall and the Meyersville group occupied one room in the town’s Central School. In 1956, however, the Township asked the Millington Association to find other quarters, and the Central School location had steadily become less than satisfactory due to increasing enrollment. A referendum in the amount of $25,000 for the construction of a new building was submitted to the community. The measure passed by two votes. The new library opened in 1958 on Central Avenue in Stirling as the Passaic Township Free Public Library with a paid director and several volunteers.
By 1968 the library’s collection had grown substantially and plans were made for a new addition to the building. Another $25,000 was raised and the addition was completed in 1972. A later addition followed in the nineteen eighties. The library remained on Central Avenue until 2005 when an entirely new building was dedicated in April of that year. In the meantime, in 1992, the township had formally changed its name to Long Hill Township and the Passaic Township Free Public Library duly became the Long Hill Township Free Public Library.
The Long Hill Township Library now occupies a site in Gillette, NJ, adjacent to Town Hall. The library contains 16,000 square feet of space and has a capacity for 72,000 books. The library is a member of the Morris Automated Information Network consortium. Through this consortium residents of Long Hill Township have access to library materials at 37 area libraries.
[edit] Communications
Long Hill is in the 908 Area Code. The legacy exchange is 908-647 (MIllington-7). It was one of the last exchanges in New Jersey to be converted from manual to dial operation. Current exchanges serving Long Hill Township (and adjacent areas of Bernards and Warren Townships in Somerset County) are 350, 360, 394, 484, 495, 504, 542, 563, 580, 604, 605, 607, 626, 647, 649, 660, 762, 860, 877, 903, and 991.
The current cable company servicing the area is Patriot Media which provides local TV, internet, and phone service. Most of Long Hill now also has access to Verizon's FiOS service.
Long Hill Township operates a public service television channel on Patriot (Ch 25) and Verizon (Ch 37).
[edit] Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Long Hill Township include:
- Jack H. Jacobs (1945-), Medal of Honor recipient in 1969 for his heroic actions during the Vietnam War.[18]
- Gina Genovese, businesswoman and politician who has served as mayor of the township and recently ran for state senator
[edit] References
- ^ Administrator & Staff, Long Hill Township. Accessed December 19, 2007.
- ^ USGS GNIS: Township of Long Hill, Geographic Names Information System, accessed December 19, 2007.
- ^ a b Census data for Long Hill township, United States Census Bureau. Accessed October 9, 2007.
- ^ a b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 193 (re Harding) and 195 (re Long Hill)
- ^ "How Green Was My Passaic, Now Long Hill', The New York Times, December 3, 1992. pg. B.1
- ^ Long Hill Township: General Information, accessed December 27, 2006
- ^ Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
- ^ 2007 Township Committee Members, Long Hill Township. Accessed February 6, 2007.
- ^ 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters, p. 60. Accessed August 30, 2006.
- ^ Legislative Roster: 2008-2009 Session, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed June 6, 2008.
- ^ About the Governor, New Jersey. Accessed June 6, 2008.
- ^ What is a Freeholder?, Morris County, New Jersey. Accessed February 6, 2008.
- ^ Meet the Freeholders, Morris County, New Jersey. Accessed February 6, 2008.
- ^ Data for the Long Hill Township School System, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 28, 2008.
- ^ Somerset County School Districts-Sending/Receiving/Regional, Somerset County Superintendent of Schools. Accessed April 27, 2008.
- ^ James, George. "COMMUNITIES; Those Whom We Honor", The New York Times, May 28, 2000. Accessed December 19, 2007. "Especially now, said Jack H. Jacobs, who received his medal for his service in Vietnam, as he recently sat sipping coffee in the kitchen of his big Victorian house in Millington."
[edit] External links
- Long Hill Township website
- Long Hill Township School System
- Long Hill Township School System's 2006-07 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
- Data for the Long Hill Township School System, National Center for Education Statistics
- Watchung Hills Regional High School website
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