Wall Township, New Jersey
| Wall Township, New Jersey |
| — Township — |
| Map of Wall Township in Monmouth County. Inset: Location of Monmouth County highlighted in the State of New Jersey. |
| Census Bureau map of Wall Township, New Jersey |
| Coordinates: |
| Country |
United States |
| State |
New Jersey |
| County |
Monmouth |
| Incorporated |
March 7, 1851 |
| Government |
| • Type |
Township |
| • Mayor |
Ann Marie Conte |
| • Deputy Mayor |
Jeffrey W. Foster |
| • Administrator |
Joseph L. Verruni[1] |
| Area |
| • Total |
31.4 sq mi (81.3 km2) |
| • Land |
30.6 sq mi (79.3 km2) |
| • Water |
0.8 sq mi (2.1 km2) |
| Elevation[2] |
69 ft (21 m) |
| Population (2010)[3] |
| • Total |
26,164 |
| • Density |
833.5/sq mi (321.8/km2) |
| Time zone |
Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) |
EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP codes |
07719, 07727, 07753, 07762, 08720, 08736, 08750 |
| Area code(s) |
732 |
| FIPS code |
34-76460[4][5] |
| GNIS feature ID |
0882112[6] |
| Website |
http://www.wallnj.com |
Wall Township is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 26,164.[3]
Wall Township was formally incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 7, 1851. Over the years, portions of the township have been taken to form North Spring Lake (May 1884), Ocean Beach (March 9, 1885, now Belmar), Manasquan (December 30, 1887), Spring Lake, (March 14, 1892), Sea Girt (March 29, 1917), Brielle (April 10, 1919), South Belmar (March 12, 1924, now Lake Como) and Spring Lake Heights (March 19, 1927).[7]
Allenwood (2010 census population of 925), Glendola, and West Belmar (pop. 2,493) are census-designated places and unincorporated areas located within Wall Township.
History
Wall Township is named for General Garret D. Wall, a lawyer who commanded a Trenton volunteer company during the War of 1812 and was stationed at Sandy Hook. Wall served five years as clerk of the New Jersey Supreme Court and as quartermaster general of the state for more than 20 years.
- 1734 The Greenville Cemetery is first created when the American Legion bury a casualty of the French and Indian War.
- 1776 Glendola Protestant Bible Church is built. A new church is dedicated in 1964.
- 1822 Allaire Village. James P. Allaire purchases what becomes known as the Howell Works in Wall. By 1836 it is renowned as the largest producing bog iron manufacturing site in New Jersey. Allaire was named posthumously for its most successful owner and operator, James P. Allaire. Today Allaire Village Inc., a non-profit organization, is licensed by the State of New Jersey to operate the site now known as "The Historic Village at Allaire." The village and surrounding acres were later preserved and gifted to the State of New Jersey to form Allaire State Park as a memorial to the last private owner of the site, famed Hearst editor Arthur Brisbane (see below). Brisbane built a palatial residence on his Allaire property that would later serve as the Arthur Brisbane Child Treatment Center.
- 1830 Christ Church in Allaire is erected by James P. Allaire to serve the ironworkers and their families at his bustling Howell Works.
- 1834 Wall United Methodist Church starts worship.
- 1840 The Allgor-Barkalow Homestead at 1701 New Bedford Road is built, although some accounts indicate construction of part of the building began in the 18th century. The building now houses the museum of the Old Wall Historical Society.
- 1846 The Howell Works, owned by James P. Allaire, closes as an iron manufacturing center. It is not until 1907, when famed Hearst editor Arthur Brisbane buys the Allaire property that the village is "brought back to life."
- 1851 The township of Wall is formed from a portion of Howell.
- 1855 The Blansingburg schoolhouse at Sea Girt Avenue is in session. The building is relocated in 1999 to the Allgor-Barkalow Homestead Museum property for refurbishing.
- August 1895 Allenwood Protestant Church on Allaire-Allenwood Road is dedicated.
- Around 1900 The newly formed Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company of America, with its home office in England, purchases a 93-acre (380,000 m2) farm from a Mr. Woolley. The farm becomes the site of the company's receiver equipment for commercial transatlantic radio operation.
- 1907 Famed Hearst editor, Arthur Brisbane, purchases over 8,000 acres (32 km2) of the Allaire family property and sets out to revitalize the former village James P. Allaire created. By 1907 the village was often considered "deserted" by many local journalists. Brisbane also set out to build his "dream house" at Allaire, adjacent to the lake that now bears his name. It was at Allaire that Brisbane (and later his family) could enjoy his favorite hobby – horseback riding. His home was later donated to the State of New Jersey and became part of the Arthur Brisbane Child Treatment Center. It still stands today. Brisbane brought new life to Allaire through development of the Allaire Inn, a model horse and produce farm, and other endeavors. Silent film companies, a toy factory, Great Depression work programs, military training facilities, and a Boy Scout camp were invited or allowed to use Brisbane's Allaire estate courtesy of Arthur Brisbane. As early as 1925 Brisbane began to preserve the former buildings that were part of James P. Allaire's Howell Iron Works Company, and began to make plans of establishing his property at Allaire into a forest preserve and historic facility.
- December 1909 The Wall Fire Company # 1 was formed creating the first volunteer fire company to serve the township. Today the company remains all volunteer and serves the residents of the West Belmar section of town, also known as Wall Fire District # 1.
- January 1921 The Allenwood Hospital, Squankum and Allenwood roads, opens primarily as a sanatorium for tuberculosis patients. In 1957, a 16-room building is dedicated to Geraldine L. Thompson, who served as president of the hospital's board of managers. In the 1960s, the facility becomes an annex to the John L. Montgomery Medical Home in Freehold, a county-run nursing home, and is renamed the Geraldine L. Thompson Medical Home.
- 1924 The Marconi signal site is abandoned.
- 1927 The Marconi signal site is inhabited by the Ku Klux Klan. They are ejected in March 1928.
- May 1931 The Glendola Fire Company is formed, also known as Wall Fire District #2
- Allenwood School opens as a 12-room schoolhouse, leaving the old one across the street to be torn down and replaced by a field.
- 1936 Famed Hearst newspaper editor Arthur Brisbane is laid to rest near his palatial residence at Allaire, after passing away on December 25, 1936. A private ceremony for the family and immediate friends was held at the family grave site, after an elaborate funeral service in New York City. The grave site was located next to Brisbane's library tower and on the highest knoll of the Allaire property. The family later removed his remains to a family plot in Batavia, New York, after the State of New Jersey neglected to maintain the grave site as outlined in the deed of gift in 1940 (see below).
- September 1939 Wall First Aid is organized. Now known as Wall Township First Aid & Rescue Squad.
- 1940 Using an old World War I tank that he converted into a bulldozer, Edward I. Brown begins clearing a vast scrub-pine tract off Route 34 for an airport. The tract of land was formerly owned by Hearst editor Arthur Brisbane, who lived at Allaire from 1907 until his death in 1936. After serving as a Navy pilot during World War II, Brown resumes work on building his airport—today's Monmouth Executive Airport—in 1945.
- December 1940 Mrs. Arthur Brisbane fulfills the dream and intent of her late husband in giving the historic village at Allaire, Allaire Village, and over 1,200 acres (4.9 km2) of adjacent land to the New Jersey Department of Conservation and Development. This gift now forms the heart of Allaire State Park and was to be a memorial to her late husband, Arthur Brisbane, for the sole purpose of establishing "a recreational park area and historic village." Brisbane's legacy and philanthropic efforts at Allaire have recently been given its proper place in history by noted local historian Hance Sitkus and his book Images of America, Allaire.
- November 1941 The United States Army purchases the Marconi site and renames it Camp Evans after Col. Paul Wesley Evans, a World War I signal officer.
- 1940s The Roadside Diner, formerly the Circle Diner and Rusty's, is delivered to its Route 34 site by the Silk City Diner Co. The diner is later used for filming of a scene for the 1983 movie Baby It's You and also appears on the cover of the 1994 Bon Jovi album Cross Road: 14 Classic Grooves. In 2008, it is featured in the music video for "Girls in Their Summer Clothes" by Bruce Springsteen.
- May 1950 Wall Township Speedway opens on Route 34.
- 1953 The Circus Drive-In restaurant on Route 35 opens for business.
- 1954 Exit 98 opens on the Garden State Parkway giving high-speed motor vehicle access to New York City.
- 1957 After nearly 20 years of neglect since the Brisbane family donated the property, the State of New Jersey finally takes an interest in restoring the land donated to them to establish Allaire State Park and the Historic Village at Allaire. The park opens to limited visitation.
- September 1959 Wall High School opens.
- 1960 Wall Community First Aid Squad 52-22 is established.
- 1960 Wall Intermediate School opens up as an eleven-room schoolhouse.
- June 1961 Thirty-two people are injured by an explosion of a boiler at a bingo game held at the Fireman's Hall, 16th Avenue and Route 71.
- July 1961 The Wall Public Library opens.
- July 1973 The Collingwood Circle Center, which houses the Wall Indoor Racquet Club and Ice Arena at Route 33 and Shafto Road, opens.
- 1974 The Wall Herald is launched by Monmouth County Airport owner Ed Brown. Upon Mr. Brown's death, the paper was bought up by rival The Coast Star, and ceased publication.
- May 1976 The Josiah I. Allen house on Allenwood-Lakewood Road, which stood for more than 200 years, is destroyed by fire.
- June 1976 Peddler's Village opens at Route 35 and Atlantic Avenue. Two fires, in July 1979 and June 1980, damage stores there. In 1988, the business is converted to a factory outlet center called Circle Factory Outlet.
- 1981 Interstate 195 is extended into Wall Township giving direct high-speed access to Trenton, the state capital.
- January 1981 Fire destroys the 54-year-old restaurant landmark Le Deauville Inn, located on Gully and Remsen Mill roads in the Glendola section.
- October 1988 A Brick Township man who spent more than nine years building a small-engine plane is killed when the aircraft, on its maiden flight, crashes at the edge of a wooded area on Squankum Road.
- September 1988 At a kickoff dinner at Wall High School, state Attorney General W. Cary Edwards says the township is "ahead of the rest of the state" in its formation of the Wall Township Community Alliance Committee for the purpose of fighting drug abuse.
- January 1991 The Manasquan Reservoir System Water Treatment Plant on Hospital Road is dedicated.
- December 2000 The American Civil Liberties Union sues the township over its holiday display, contending that the religious symbols violate the constitutional separation of church and state.
- December 2002 Glendola Fire Company District 2 hires Wall Township's first career fireman, Christopher Rosenfeld.
- May 2005 Glendola Fire Department hires 10 additional per diem firemen.
(Source: http://orig.app.com/day/story/0,2379,354676,00.html)
- March 2008 Owners of the Wall Township Speedway (A.K.A. Wall Stadium) announce the closing of the landmark which has been in operation since the 1950s. (Source: Asbury Park Press)
For more information, visit the history page at the Wall Township website. See Camp Evans for information about the Marconi Wireless Belmar Station (inhabited by the United States Navy and the Ku Klux Klan), The King's College, the U.S. Army Signal Corps, African-American history, the development of radar, Joseph McCarthy and other items of Wall Township history.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 31.4 square miles (81 km2), of which 30.6 square miles (79 km2) is land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km2), or 2.55%, is water.
Wreck Pond is a tidal pond located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Wall Township and the boroughs of Spring Lake, Spring Lake Heights, and Sea Girt. The Wreck Pond watershed covers about 12 square miles (31 km2) in eastern Monmouth County.
Wall Township is divided into several districts which include Allaire, Allenwood, Glendola, Old Mill and West Belmar.
Demographics
| Historical populations |
| Census |
Pop. |
|
%± |
| 1930 |
3,540 |
|
—
|
| 1940 |
4,383 |
|
23.8% |
| 1950 |
7,386 |
|
68.5% |
| 1960 |
11,929 |
|
61.5% |
| 1970 |
16,498 |
|
38.3% |
| 1980 |
18,952 |
|
14.9% |
| 1990 |
20,244 |
|
6.8% |
| 2000 |
25,261 |
|
24.8% |
| 2010 |
26,164 |
|
3.6% |
| Population 1930–1990.[8] |
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 25,261 people, 9,437 households, and 6,926 families residing in the township. The population density was 825.1 people per square mile (318.5/km²). There were 9,957 housing units at an average density of 325.2 per square mile (125.6/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 97.09% White, 0.61% African American, 0.10% Native American, 1.26% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.32% from other races, and 0.58% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.55% of the population.
There were 9,437 households out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.0% were married couples living together, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.6% were non-families. 22.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.14.
In the township the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.4 males.
The median income for a household in the township is $91,273 and $106,568 respectively as of a 2007 estimate[9]). Males had a median income of $61,022 versus $37,011 for females. The per capita income for the township was $32,954. About 1.7% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.5% of those under age 18 and 2.9% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Local government
Wall is governed under the Township form of government, which is the oldest form of government in New Jersey, having been first established in 1798, and enhanced by the Township Act of 1989. All committee members are elected at large. Each year, at the annual reorganization meeting, the Township Committee selects one of its members to preside as mayor for the year, and another to serve as deputy mayor. It is the only form of government in which the mayor is not elected directly by the voters of the municipality. There are 11 municipalities in Monmouth County using the Township form of government.[10]
As of 2011[update], the members of the Wall Township Committee are Mayor Ann Marie Conte, Deputy Mayor Jeffrey W. Foster, and Clinton C. Hoffman, Todd W. Luttman, and George K. Newberry.[11]
Federal, state and county representation
Wall Township is in the 4th Congressional district. New Jersey's Fourth Congressional District is represented by Christopher Smith (R). New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).
Wall Township is in the 11th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature, which is represented in the New Jersey Senate by Sean T. Kean (R, Wall Township) and in the New Jersey General Assembly by Mary Pat Angelini (R, Ocean Township) and Dave Rible (R, Wall Township).[12]
Monmouth County is governed by a Board of Chosen Freeholders consisting of five members who are elected at-large to serve three year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats up for election each year. [13] As of 2011, Monmouth County's Freeholders are Freeholder Director Robert D. Clifton (R, Matawan; term ends December 31, 2013)[14], Freeholder Deputy Director John P. Curley (R, Red Bank; 2012)[15], Thomas A. Arnone (R, Neptune City; 2013), Lillian G. Burry (R, Colts Neck Township; 2011)[16] and Amy A. Mallet (D, Fair Haven, 2011).[17][18][19]
Politics
On the national and state levels, Wall Township leans strongly toward the Republican Party. In the 2008 Presidential Election, Republican John McCain received 61% of the vote, defeating Democrat Barack Obama, who received around 37%. In the 2009 Gubernatorial Election, Republican Chris Christie received 70% of the vote, defeating Democrat Jon Corzine, who received around 23%.
Transportation
Several state routes pass through the township, namely Route 18, Route 34, Route 35, Route 70, Route 71 and Route 138. Two limited access roads also run through: the Garden State Parkway and Interstate 195.
Major county roads in the township are CR 524 and CR 547.
Education
The Wall Township Public Schools serve students in kindergarten through high school (K-12). Schools in the district (with 2008-09 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics[20]) are Allenwood School (466 students), Central School (618), Old Mill School (507) and West Belmar School (231 for grades K-5; Wall Intermediate School (1,005) for grades 6–8; and Wall High School (1,418) for grades 9–12. Wall Primary School serves the district's preschool disabled children (54).
Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Wall Township include:
- James Peter Allaire (1785–1858), master mechanic and steam engine builder, and founder of Allaire Works (est. 1815), the first steam engine company in New York City, and later Howell Works.[21]
- Dara Brown, news anchor and actress.
- Kim Clijsters (born 8 June 1983), Belgian professional tennis player.[22]
- Peter Criss (born 1945), musician with the band KISS.[23]
- Ashley Alexandra Dupré (born 1985 Ashely Youmans), a.k.a. Kristen, the "high end call girl" whose dalliance with New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer led to his resignation.[24]
- George Gelnovatch, men's head soccer coach, University of Virginia, and former professional soccer player.
- Tom Kain, 1984 U.S. Olympic Soccer Team, top-rated college player in the country at Duke University, 4-time All American
- Sean T. Kean (born 1963), represents the 11th legislative district in the New Jersey General Assembly, served on the Wall Township Planning Board from 2001–2002.[25]
- Guglielmo Marconi (1874–1937), radio pioneer.[26]
- Rusty Schweickart (born 1935), astronaut.[26]
- Charlotte Sometimes (stage name of Jessie Poland, born 1988), musician currently signed to Geffen Records.[27]
- F. Paul Wilson (born 1946), author.[28]
References
- ^ Township Directory, Wall Township. Accessed March 23, 2011.
- ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Township of Wall, Geographic Names Information System, accessed January 4, 2008.
- ^ a b "Race, Hispanic or Latino, Age, and Housing Occupancy: 2010 Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171) Summary File (QT-PL), Wall township, Monmouth County, New Jersey". U.S. Census Bureau, American FactFinder 2. http://factfinder2.census.gov. Retrieved September 2, 2011.
- ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ A Cure for the Common Codes: New Jersey, Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed July 14, 2008.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 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. 186–187.
- ^ New Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930–1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
- ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ACSSAFFFacts?_event=Search&geo_id=06000US3402554270&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US34%7C05000US34025%7C06000US3402554270&_street=&_county=wall&_cityTown=wall&_state=04000US34&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=geoSelect&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=060&_submenuId=factsheet_1&ds_name=ACS_2007_3YR_SAFF&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=null®=null%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=
- ^ Form of Government, Wall Township. Accessed September 29, 2006.
- ^ Wall Township Committee, Wall Township. Accessed January 14, 2008.
- ^ "Legislative Roster: 2010-2011 Session". New Jersey Legislature. http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/roster.asp. Retrieved 2010-02-08.
- ^ Monmouth County Government, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 5, 2011.
- ^ Freeholder Director Robert D. Clifton, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Deputy Director Freeholder John P. Curley, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Freeholder Lillian G. Burry, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Freeholder Amy A. Mallet, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Board of Chosen Freeholders, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Rizzo, Nina. "Monmouth County freeholders sworn into office", Asbury Park Press, January 6, 2011. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Data for the Wall Township Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed March 23, 2011.
- ^ Salmon, Alyce H. In-Depth History, Wall Township. Accessed September 1, 2008.
- ^ KimClijsters "a Belgian professional tennis player."
- ^ Parry, Wayne via the Associated Press."2008 resolutions from Yogi, The Donald, a rock star and more", Burlington County Times, December 28, 2007. Accessed September 1, 2008. "'I have a big mouth for a lot of people, but I never take my own advice and do it myself,' said Criss, who lives in Wall Township and is best known for the ballad "Beth" and his Catman makeup."
- ^ Mongelli, Lorena; and Mangan, Dan. "'KRISTEN' $HOWS WHAT SHE'S GOT", New York Post, May 15, 2008. Accessed November 17, 2008.
- ^ Assembly Member Sean T. Kean, Project Vote Smart. Accessed August 9, 2007.
- ^ a b Carney, Leo H. " WALL: A TOWNSHIP OF MANY FACES", The New York Times, January 3, 1988. Accessed April 11, 2008. "Among its 20th-century residents have been the Italian electrical engineer and inventor Guglielmo Marconi and Russell L. Schweickart, one of the Apollo 9 astronauts."
- ^ La Gorce, Tammy. "It’s the Lipstick That Draws Attention, and the Name Helps Too", The New York Times, March 16, 2008. Accessed November 17, 2008. "“Charlotte Sometimes is a girl in a book I read when I was little,” the singer explained at the Princess Diner here, where she used to hang out as a student at Wall High School.... She has lived in Wall Township all her life, having been adopted by her parents, Hartson and Tracy Poland, as a baby."
- ^ Paul Wilson, Macmillan Publishers. Accessed November 17, 2008.
External links