Mystic Island, New Jersey
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| Mystic Island, New Jersey | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | New Jersey |
| County | Ocean |
| Area | |
| - Total | 7.8 sq mi (20.1 km²) |
| - Land | 7.6 sq mi (19.7 km²) |
| - Water | 0.2 sq mi (0.4 km²) |
| Elevation | 3 ft (1 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 8,694 |
| - Density | 1,141.1/sq mi (440.6/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| FIPS code | 34-49560[1] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0878679[2] |
Mystic Island (also called Mystic Islands or Mystic) is a census-designated place and unincorporated area located within Little Egg Harbor Township, in Ocean County, New Jersey. As of the United States 2000 census, the CDP population was 8,694.
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[edit] Geography
Mystic Island is located at (39.566991, -74.375605)[3].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 20.1 km² (7.8 mi²). 19.7 km² (7.6 mi²) of it is land and 0.4 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (1.93%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1990 | 7,400 |
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| 2000 | 8,694 | 17.5% | |
| source: [4] | |||
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 8,694 people, 3,485 households, and 2,453 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 440.5/km² (1,141.1/mi²). There were 4,962 housing units at an average density of 251.4/km² (651.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 96.51% White, 0.68% African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.53% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.87% from other races, and 1.08% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.22% of the population.
There were 3,485 households out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.6% were non-families. 23.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the CDP the population was spread out with 22.1% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 22.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.9 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $41,674, and the median income for a family was $47,372. Males had a median income of $38,654 versus $27,420 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $18,737. About 4.4% of families and 7.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.3% of those under age 18 and 3.0% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] History
Mystic Islands was built in the early 60's as a Planned community. It also hosts a Volunteer Fire Company, a Strip mall now containing a TD Banknorth, Domino's Pizza, and other privately owned businesses, a gas station (now closed) and a small park, now just an open field. There is a second park with a baseball field, and a playground added in 2000. The homes are located on lagoon-front properties.
The "Mystic Islands Sign" was a giant curved sign reading "Mystic Island" that stretched across a block on Radio Road and E. Anchor Drive. The sign was taken down around the 70's prior to the construction of Upland Mystic, and now is the home to Munro's Marina.
The Tuckerton Wireless Tower () was built in 1912 by the German "Hochfrequenzmaschin Aktiengesellschaft Fuer Drachtlose Telegraphie" company (The High Frequency Machine Corporation for Wireless Telegraphy, often referred to as HOMAG) when the present-day Mystic Island was called Hickory Island. The tower was used to communicate with an identical radio telegraph station in Eilvese, Germany starting on 19 Jun 1914, less than two weeks before the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. The station continued to communicate with Eilvese until America entered World War I on 6 April, 1917. It is rumored that it was used to send the message to order the attack by a German U-boat on the RMS Lusitania. After President Wilson's Declaration of Neutrality, the President ordered the US Navy to take over the station on 9 Sep 1914 to assure the neutrality of messages sent to and from the station; however, the station continued to be operated by German nationals employed by HOMAG and continued to communicate only with the Eilvese radio station. When America entered the war, all U.S. radio stations were seized and shut down by Executive Order. The Tuckerton Radio Station was assigned to the US Navy which used it primarily to back-up the communications of the US Navy's main transatlantic radio station in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The remaining German personnel at Tuckerton became war prisoners and were replaced by Navy personnel when the U.S. entered the war. After the war, the Tuckerton Wireless Station was included in German war reparations paid to America. Shortly afterwards, it was sold to RCA which operated it until 1948 as a backup to their Radio Central facility in Rocky Point, New York. In 1921, RCA installed two massive Alexanderson alternators, which were removed in 1948. For transatlantic communications, The radio station operated under the call signs WCI and WGG. For coastal communications, after World War I, the station operated under the callsign WSC. The 680-foot steel tower, anchored by three large concrete blocks, was taken down on December 27, 1955.[5] The three huge anchor blocks still exist today, in a backyard on North Ensign Drive and in the middle of South Ensign Drive and Storysail Drive. Many smaller anchor blocks providing foundations for smaller towers that supported the umbrella antenna are still visible in the lagoons. Remains of the tower can be seen in scraps at the Giffordtown Museum.
[edit] Community
[edit] Homes
The homes were all pre-fabricated, 3-bedroom, 1-bath bungalows with a carport on the left side, all in an array of pastel colors, considered a vacation village. Now, as some homes are used for vacation, most are lived in full time, and most of the homes are either expanded, or replaced with larger, modular homes on pilings—which are coming into favor for waterfront homes.
The homes were made in a warehouse near the site of the Tuckerton Wireless tower, and had been used for storage for the Sands Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City. The property is now for sale.
[edit] Upland Mystic
There is another section of Mystic: Upland Mystic, was built in the early '70's, and contains many larger ranches and Split-level homes; another section of Upland Mystic was built in the early '90's. The homes in Upland Mystic are not waterfront property.
[edit] Community centers
The first community center was next to the Sands Warehouse and is now home to a church nicknamed "The Rotunda", mainly because of its circular shape.
The Second community center is in Upland Mystic, later turned into a church, and now is the Community Center for Little Egg Harbor Township. It houses basketball and tennis courts, has drive-in movies, and has kids nights on Fridays.
[edit] Mystic Island Casino
The Mystic Island Casino was a restaurant/bar located on Playhouse Dr. between Radio Rd. and S. Captains Dr, near the location of the Tuckerton Wireless tower, and had a marina and a community pool. In the 1980s, the casino was moved to Mathistown Road in Little Egg Harbor, and the vacant building burned down. The site of the casino is now condos, which the marina and pool are privately used for the complex.
Although the name sports "casino", it is not a casino. It is said on the restaurant's menu that the term "casino" was originally used to describe a place for social interaction and fun, but was changed to mean a gambling hall later.
Photos of the old restaurant and Mystic during its early days can be found in the present building. The Mystic Island sign could be spotted in one of the photos.
[edit] Pulaski Monument
There is a statue and plaque in Upland Mystic near the Mystic Island Fire Department on Pulaski Boulevard commemorating Kazimierz Pułaski for his role during the Little Egg Harbor massacre.
[edit] References
- ^ 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.
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Population Finder: Mystic Island CDP, New Jersey. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-03-16..
- ^ Tuckerton Community Profile, accessed April 2, 2007. "Just prior to World War I, the German government built the Tuckerton Wireless, a 680 feet tall tower with the capability of communicating directly with Europe. The tower was operated by German nationals until the entrance of the United States into the war. Local folklore maintains that the message "Get the Lucy" was broadcast from the tower, which resulted in the famous sinking of the Lusitania. The tower was dismantled in 1955. "
[edit] External links
- Mystic Island, New Jersey is at coordinates Coordinates:
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