Forked River, New Jersey

Forked River, New Jersey
—  CDP  —
Map of Forked River CDP in Ocean County
Coordinates:
Country United States
State New Jersey
County Ocean
Area
 • Total 10.3 sq mi (26.7 km2)
 • Land 2.9 sq mi (7.5 km2)
 • Water 7.4 sq mi (19.2 km2)
Elevation 13 ft (4 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 5,244
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 08731
Area code(s) 609
FIPS code 34-24180[1]
GNIS feature ID 0876413[2]

Forked River (pronounced fork'id river) is a census-designated place and unincorporated area located within Lacey Township, in Ocean County, New Jersey. As of the United States 2010 Census, the CDP population was 5,244.

Many Ocean County residents commonly refer to all of Lacey Township as Forked River with the first word pronounced with two syllables (FOR-ked or FORK-ed). Pronouncing the first word with one syllable (forkt, which is the standard American pronunciation) is a sign of a new resident or outsider.[3][4]

Contents

Geography

Forked River is located at .[5]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 26.7 km2 (10.3 mi2). 7.5 km2 (2.9 mi2) of it is land and 19.2 km2 (7.4 mi2) of it (71.97%) is water.

Forked River is located on US Route 9 south of Toms River.

Nearby Forked River is a river that empties into Barnegat Bay.

Demographics

Historical populations
Census Pop.
1990 4,243
2000 4,914 15.8%
2010 5,244 6.7%
source:[6]

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 4,914 people, 1,927 households, and 1,383 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 656.5/km2 (1,700.3/mi2). There were 2,468 housing units at an average density of 329.7/km2 (853.9/mi2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 97.37% White, 0.73% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.83% from other races, and 0.51% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.38% of the population.

There were 1,927 households out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.8% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 97.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.2 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $55,433, and the median income for a family was $59,830. Males had a median income of $46,179 versus $30,987 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $25,696. About 6.3% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.9% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those age 65 or over.

In the news

On October 11, 1989, 3 aides of New York business mogul Donald Trump were killed in a helicopter crash near the Garden State Parkway in Forked River. Five people, including three high-level executives of Donald J. Trump's three casinos in Atlantic City, were killed when their helicopter crashed in pine woodlands.[7]

June 6, 1997

Death at Prom

Melissa Drexler (born 1979, a.k.a. "The Prom Mom"), delivered a baby in a restroom stall at her Lacey Township High School prom, and threw the body in the trash before returning to the dance. She pled guilty to aggravated manslaughter, and was sentenced to fifteen years' imprisonment. After serving nearly 37 months, she was released on parole. She was given her "Prom mom" nickname by the American mass media.

May 23, 2003

Three arrested in killings of eight birds at a Jersey Shore zoo

Three teenagers with a "morbid sense of entertainment" were charged with killing eight birds at a zoo for abused animals, authorities said. Matthew Ronneberg, Thomas Cavanaugh and Matthew Mercuro, all 18, were arrested for the bludgeoning deaths of three emus, three ducks and two rheas at the Popcorn Park Zoo in Lacey Township, NJ.

Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Forked River include:

References

  1. ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  2. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
  3. ^ "Say What? : From 'Morris' River to 'R-Kansas' Avenue, Area Residents have own way of speaking.", The Press of Atlantic City, April 24, 2003
  4. ^ "Jerseyana: Where They Don't Speak With Forked Tongue", The New York Times, December 8, 2002.
  5. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
  6. ^ "Population Finder: Forked River CDP, New Jersey". U.S. Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/SAFFPopulation?_event=Search&geo_id=06000US3402937380&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US34%7C05000US34029%7C06000US3402937380&_street=&_county=forked+river&_cityTown=forked+river&_state=&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=geoSelect&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=060&_submenuId=population_0&ds_name=null&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=null&reg=null%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=. Retrieved 2007-03-16. 
  7. ^ The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=om&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=1. 
  8. ^ Assembly Member Christopher J. Connors, Project Vote Smart. Accessed August 9, 2007.
  9. ^ "Palguta Named to Men's Soccer All-Ivy Second Team", CSTV. November 16, 2004. Accessed October 10, 2007. "It was announced today by the Ivy League offices that Cornell senior defenseman Scott Palguta (Forked River, N.J.) has been given All-Ivy honors, being named to the second team."
  10. ^ "Decision Whether to Charge Prom Mother Awaits Tests", NYTimes. June 10, 1997. Accessed April 23, 2007. "Lacey Township High School classmates identify girl as Melissa Drexler..." ."