Oaklyn, New Jersey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Oaklyn, New Jersey | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | New Jersey |
| County | Camden |
| Incorporated | March 13, 1905 |
| Government | |
| - Type | Borough (New Jersey) |
| - Mayor | Mike LaMaina |
| Area | |
| - Total | 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km²) |
| - Land | 0.6 sq mi (1.6 km²) |
| - Water | 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²) |
| Elevation [1] | 30 ft (9 m) |
| Population (2006)[2] | |
| - Total | 4,080 |
| - Density | 6,824.2/sq mi (2,634.8/km²) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 08107 |
| Area code(s) | 856 |
| FIPS code | 34-53880[3] |
| GNIS feature ID | 0885331[4] |
| Website: http://www.oaklyn-nj.com | |
Oaklyn is a Borough in Camden County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 4,188.
Oaklyn was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 13, 1905, from portions of Haddon Township.[5]
Contents |
[edit] Geography
Oaklyn is located at (39.902063, -75.080389)[6].
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²), of which, 0.6 square miles (1.6 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (11.43%) is water.
[edit] History
The area now known as Oaklyn was once dense forest land which was inhabited by the Lenape Native Americans, until 1681 when a group of Quakers from Wickloe, Ireland sailed up the Delaware River and settled on Newton Creek. The leader of these Quakers, William Bates, purchased 250 acres (1 km²) on the south side of Newton Creek from the local Native Americans. This became known as the Newton Colony.
The Colony began to grow rapidly and the land was cleared for farming. Eventually two highways were laid out. One, from the Delaware River to Egg Harbor, followed an old Native American trail, which is today the Black Horse Pike. The other was known as the Long-a-coming trail, which extended from Atlantic City to Berlin and then from Berlin to Camden. This trail is now known as the White Horse Pike.
After the American Revolutionary War, a group of Virginia sportsmen built a racetrack on the east side of the White Horse Pike. President Ulysses S. Grant visited this track as a young man before it closed in 1846.
A Samuel Bettle bought the land which was formerly the racetrack and eventually, the land was deeded to Haddon Township.
As the years passed, the farms along Newton Creek were divided into lots and the development called "Oakland the Beautiful." The name was changed to Oaklyn in 1894 to avoid confusion with another Oakland in North Jersey. Finally, in 1905, Oaklyn broke away from Haddon Township and became an independent borough governed by a mayor and six councilmen.
Oaklyn borders Audubon, Audubon Park, Collingswood, and Haddon Township.
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1930 | 3,843 |
|
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| 1940 | 3,869 | 0.7% | |
| 1950 | 4,889 | 26.4% | |
| 1960 | 4,778 | -2.3% | |
| 1970 | 4,626 | -3.2% | |
| 1980 | 4,223 | -8.7% | |
| 1990 | 4,430 | 4.9% | |
| 2000 | 4,188 | -5.5% | |
| Est. 2006 | 4,080 | [2] | -2.6% |
| Population 1930 - 1990[7] | |||
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 4,188 people, 1,791 households, and 1,067 families residing in the borough. The population density was 6,824.2 people per square mile (2,650.8/km²). There were 1,893 housing units at an average density of 3,084.6/sq mi (1,198.2/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 95.92% White, 1.15% African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.96% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.84% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.32% of the population.
There were 1,791 households out of which 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.9% were married couples living together, 11.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.4% were non-families. 34.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 3.07.
In the borough the population was spread out with 22.8% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 30.8% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 16.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 94.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.3 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $44,364, and the median income for a family was $55,434. Males had a median income of $37,474 versus $30,243 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $24,157. About 5.2% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.5% of those under age 18 and 8.2% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government
[edit] Local government
Oaklyn Borough's Mayor is Mike LaMaina. Members of the Oaklyn Borough Council (with their departmental assignments in parentheses) are Council President Jim Rafferty (Public Works), Jeff Elder (Recreation & Senior Affairs), Robert Forbes (Buildings & Grounds), Michael Krusen (Finance), Maggie McNamara (Public Safety) and Michael Powell (Planning & Zoning.[8]
[edit] Emergency services
The Oaklyn Fire Department (Station 18-3) is responsible for fire protection in the Borough of Oaklyn and until December of 2007 was responsible for Haddon Township Fire District 3, which paid the Borough of Oaklyn for fire protection through tax money it collected from its residents. Fire District 3 covers the Bettlewood, Heather Glen, and Heather Woods sections of Haddon Township. This was a long standing agreement that existed since 1905. From 1902 when the Oaklyn fire service was established until 1905, Oaklyn and the Bettlewood section were both in Haddon Twp. Subsequently the Oaklyn Fire Company No. 1 of the Oaklyn section of Haddon Township provided fire protection to the the whole area, as it was and still is a continuous land mass. When Oaklyn seceded from the Township in 1905 there was an agreement made between Oaklyn Borough and Haddon Township that Oaklyn would still protect the District 3 section since they were much closer and the fire apparatus was horse drawn at the time. This relationship continued for another 102 years until January 2008. Currently, Fire District 3 is protected by Westmont Fire Co. # 1 pursuant to three consecutive one year agreements.
The Oaklyn Fire Company No. 1 (Station 18-1) was established in 1902 (predating the borough's establishment) and was located on Newton Avenue near the Suburban Lumber Company, which ironically has been the site of several famous Camden County fires occurring in the 1950s, 1980s, and 1990s. The Oaklyn Fire Co. building still stands today as a private residence. The company was formed by Oaklyn residents who had been volunteering their services at the nearby Defender Fire Company (Station 1-2), which was located in the community of Orston (then another section of Haddon Township, now part of Audubon borough). Until the formation of the Oaklyn Fire Company, the Defender Fire Company handled firefighting duties in the Borough of Oaklyn (The Defender Fire Company was subsequently taken over by the Audubon Fire Department (Station 1-1) as of 1996).
The Welcome Fire Company (Station 18-2) was established in 1906 and was located at the corner of the White Horse Pike and West Clinton Avenue. Today, the building houses the Oaklyn Police Department and Borough Hall and stands next to the current fire station. The Welcome Fire Company was established when residents who wished to volunteer with the Oaklyn Fire Company found they had filled their roster and were not "welcoming" any new members, hence their name.
The current incarnation of the Oaklyn Fire Department was established in 1976 when Oaklyn Fire Company No. 1 and the Welcome Fire Company consolidated their services. David Aron was the first Chief following the merger, previously serving as Chief of the Welcome Fire Company. The current Fire Chief is Mark Quinter.
Ambulance: The Oaklyn Community Ambulance Corps was disbanded in 2005 due to a lack of volunteers and the subsequent increasing difficulty in responding consistent and timely fashion. Until 2005, the Oaklyn Community Ambulance Corps operated for 65 years, providing free emergency medical services to the residents of Oaklyn as well as Bettlewood and the West Collingswood Extension sections of Haddon Township As the Borough of Oaklyn no longer hosts its own ambulance squad, Bettlewood and "the extension" are covered respectively by Westmont and Collingswood. Oaklyn currently relies on the Mt. Ephraim EMS, in exchange for billing rights, as well as Westmont Fire Co. No. 1, the Collingwood Fire Department], and Haddon Heights EMS. Calls are answered based on availability of sufficient crews in the respective EMS units by the Camden County Communication Center.
[edit] Federal, state and county representation
Oaklyn is in the First Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 6th Legislative District.[9]
New Jersey's First Congressional District, covering portions of Burlington County, Camden County and Gloucester County, is represented by Rob Andrews (D, Haddon Heights). 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 6th District of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by John Adler (D, Cherry Hill Township) and in the Assembly by Louis Greenwald (D, Voorhees Township) and Pamela Rosen Lampitt (D, Cherry Hill Township).[10] The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).[11]
Camden County is governed by a seven-member Board of Chosen Freeholders, elected at-large for staggered three-year terms by the residents of the county.[12] As of 2008, Camden County's Freeholders are Freeholder Director Louis Cappelli, Jr. (Collingswood, term ends December 31, 2008), Freeholder Deputy Director Edward McDonnell (Pennsauken Township, 2010), Riletta L. Cream (Camden, 2008), Rodney A. Greco (Gloucester Township, 2009), Jeffrey L. Nash (Cherry Hill Township, 2009), Joseph Ripa (Voorhees Township, 2009) and Carmen Rodriguez (Merchantville, 2010).[13]
[edit] Education
Oaklyn Public School consists of two separate schools within one building. Oaklyn Elementary School educates students from kindergarten through sixth grades. Oaklyn Junior High School educates students in grades seventh through ninth. Oaklyn Public School also educates students from the Borough of Hi-Nella in grades Kindergarten through eighth as part of sending/receiving relationships. The student population in grades Kindergarten through ninth grades averages 500 students, including Hi-Nella pupils.
Public school students in tenth through twelfth grades attend Collingswood High School as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Collingswood Public Schools.[14] The relationships with Collingswood and Hi-Nella have been in place for over 40 years.
[edit] Transportation
New Jersey Transit bus service to Philadelphia is available on the 400 and (New Jersey bus)| routes, with local service on the 450 route.[15]
[edit] References
- ^ USGS GNIS: Borough of Oaklyn, Geographic Names Information System, accessed January 4, 2008.
- ^ a b Census data for Oaklyn borough, United States Census Bureau. Accessed August 23, 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. 108.
- ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
- ^ Government, Borough of Oaklyn. Accessed March 3, 2008.
- ^ 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters, p. 62. 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?, Camden County, New Jersey. Accessed March 25, 2008.
- ^ Board of Freeholders, Camden County, New Jersey. Accessed April 14, 2008.
- ^ Collingswood High School, South Jersey magazine. Accessed November 18, 2007. "Collingswood High School serves about 850 students in grades nine through twelve from the Collingswood, Oaklyn, and Woodlynne school districts"
- ^ Camden County Bus/Rail Connections, New Jersey Transit. Accessed June 21, 2007.
[edit] External links
- Oaklyn Borough municipal website
- Oaklyn Public School
- Oaklyn Public Schools's 2006-07 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
- National Center for Education Statistics data for the Oaklyn Public Schools
- Oaklyn, New Jersey is at coordinates Coordinates:
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