Monmouth County, New Jersey
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| Monmouth County, New Jersey | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of New Jersey |
|
 New Jersey's location in the U.S. |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | 1675 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Freehold Borough |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
665 sq mi (1,722 km²) 472 sq mi (1,222 km²) 193 sq mi (500 km²), 29.04% |
| Population - (2006) - Density |
635,285 1,303/sq mi (503/km²) |
| Website: www.visitmonmouth.com | |
Monmouth County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, within the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2000 Census, the population is 615,301. Its county seat is Freehold Borough[1]. The most populous municipality is Middletown Township with 66,327 residents at the time of the 2000 Census. It is the northernmost county on the Jersey Shore.
Monmouth County ranks 42nd among the highest-income counties in the United States. It also is ranked 53rd in the United States by personal per-capita income. [2]
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[edit] History
Monmouth County was established in 1675. Its name may come from the Rhode Island Monmouth Society[3] or from a suggestion from Colonel Lewis Morris. He suggested it be named after Monmouthshire, Wales.[citation needed] In 1714 the first county government was established. At the June 28, 1778 Battle of Monmouth, near Freehold, General George Washington's soldiers defeated the British under Sir Henry Clinton, in the largest battle of the American Revolutionary War.
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 665 square miles (1,723 km²), of which, 472 square miles (1,222 km²) of it is land and 193 square miles (500 km²) of it (29.04%) is water.
Much of Monmouth County remains flat and low-lying even far inland. However, there are some low hills in and around Holmdel Township, and one of them, Crawford Hill, the former site of a radar facility, is the county's highest point at at least 380 feet (116 m) above sea level. The top portion of the hill is owned by Alcatel-Lucent and houses a research laboratory of Bell Laboratories.
The northeastern portion of the county, in the Locust neighborhood of Middletown Township and the boroughs of Highlands and Atlantic Highlands, are also very hilly. The lowest point is sea level.
Along with adjacent Ocean County, Monmouth County is a mecca of boating and fishing. Its waterways include several rivers and bays that flow into New York Harbor and the Atlantic Ocean. The Manasquan Inlet is located in the county, which connects the Atlantic Ocean with the estuary of the Manasquan River, a bay-like body of saltwater that serves as the starting point of the Intracoastal Waterway.
[edit] Adjacent counties
- Middlesex County, New Jersey - north
- Ocean County, New Jersey - south
- Burlington County, New Jersey - southwest
- Mercer County, New Jersey - west
Monmouth County also shares a border with the New York City borough of Staten Island. This border is shared through the Raritan Bay, which is the area of the Atlantic Ocean which turns into Lower New York Bay west of Sandy Hook.
[edit] National protected area
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1790 | 16,918 |
|
|
| 1800 | 19,872 | 17.5% | |
| 1810 | 22,150 | 11.5% | |
| 1820 | 25,038 | 13.0% | |
| 1830 | 29,233 | 16.8% | |
| 1840 | 32,909 | 12.6% | |
| 1850 | 30,313 | * | -7.9% |
| 1860 | 39,346 | 29.8% | |
| 1870 | 46,195 | 17.4% | |
| 1880 | 55,538 | 20.2% | |
| 1890 | 69,128 | 24.5% | |
| 1900 | 82,057 | 18.7% | |
| 1910 | 94,734 | 15.4% | |
| 1920 | 104,925 | 10.8% | |
| 1930 | 147,209 | 40.3% | |
| 1940 | 161,238 | 9.5% | |
| 1950 | 225,327 | 39.7% | |
| 1960 | 334,401 | 48.4% | |
| 1970 | 461,849 | 38.1% | |
| 1980 | 503,173 | 8.9% | |
| 1990 | 553,124 | 9.9% | |
| 2000 | 615,301 | 11.2% | |
| Est. 2006 | 635,285 | [4] | 3.2% |
| * lost territory historical census data source: [5][6] |
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As of the census[7] of 2000, there were 615,301 people, 224,236 households, and 160,328 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,304 people per square mile (503/km²). There were 240,884 housing units at an average density of 510 per square mile (197/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 84.39% White, 8.06% Black or African American, 0.14% Native American, 3.97% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.74% from other races, and 1.68% from two or more races. 6.20% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Based on the first ancestries reported by Monmouth County residents in the 2000 Census, 23% of residents were of Italian ancestry, 18% Irish, 9% German and 5% Polish ancestry.[8]
There were 224,236 households out of which 35.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.20% were married couples living together, 10.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.50% were non-families. 23.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.24.
In the county the population was spread out with 26.10% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 30.40% from 25 to 44, 24.10% from 45 to 64, and 12.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 94.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.90 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $64,271, and the median income for a family was $76,823. Males had a median income of $55,030 versus $35,415 for females. The per capita income for the county was $31,149. About 4.50% of families and 6.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.50% of those under age 18 and 7.00% of those age 65 or over.
Monmouth County is home to a large Irish-American population, with 141,515 residents (23% of the county's population) listed themselves as being of Irish ancestry in the 2000 Census.[9] Among U.S. municipalities with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry, Monmouth had three of the top 10 highest percentage of residents of Irish ancestry: Spring Lake (ranked 1st, at 39.4%), Avon-by-the-Sea (#3 at 36.5%) and Sea Girt (in the 9th spot, at 34.1%).[10]
[edit] Government
Monmouth County is governed by a five-member Board of Chosen Freeholders, who are elected at-large for three year terms. Each January, the freeholders select one of their members to serve as the director of the board for the year to preside over the meetings and activities of the board. Monmouth County's Freeholders have both administrative and policy making powers.
The Freeholders oversee the five mandatory functions of county government delegated to it by the state. Each freeholder is assigned responsibility for one of the five functional areas: Administration and Special Services; Public Works and Engineering; Human Services, Health and Transportation; Finance and Administration of Justice. In total, the Board is responsible for supervising more than 70 county departments.
Monmouth County's Freeholders are[11]:
- Director Lillian G. Burry (R)
- Deputy Director Robert D. Clifton (R)
- Director William C. Barham (R)
- John D'Amico, Jr. (D)
- Barbara McMorrow (D)
[edit] Politics
Monmouth County has trended in favor of the Republican party for quite some time until recently. Most recently, President George W. Bush in the 2004 election carried Monmouth County with 54.6% of the vote, and in the 2006 Senate election State Senator Tom Kean Jr. also carried Monmouth, by a similar margin of 52.63% of the vote. The Republican Party currently holds three of five Freeholder seats; however it is the first time in 20 years that a Democrat has won a seat on the board, as Barbara McMorrow of Freehold Township won a close race in November of 2006 with 51% of the vote.
[edit] Municipalities
- Aberdeen Township
- Allenhurst
- Allentown
- Asbury Park
- Atlantic Highlands
- Avon-by-the-Sea
- Belmar
- Bradley Beach
- Brielle
- Colts Neck Township
- Deal
- Eatontown
- Englishtown
- Fair Haven
- Farmingdale
- Freehold Borough
- Freehold Township
- Hazlet Township
- West Keansburg
- Highlands
- Holmdel Township
- Howell Township
- Interlaken
- Keansburg
- Keyport
- Lake Como
- Little Silver
- Loch Arbour
- Long Branch
- Elberon
- North Long Branch
- Pier Village
- West End
- Manalapan Township
- Manasquan
- Marlboro Township
- Matawan
- Middletown Township
- Millstone Township
- Monmouth Beach
- Neptune City
- Neptune Township
- Ocean Township
- Oceanport
- Red Bank
- Roosevelt
- Rumson
- Sea Bright
- Sea Girt
- Shrewsbury Township
- Shrewsbury
- Spring Lake
- Spring Lake Heights
- Tinton Falls
- Union Beach
- Upper Freehold Township
- Wall Township
- West Long Branch
[edit] Fire Departments
WIth the exception of the City of Asbury Park, and Long Branch[12] the remainder of the municipalities in the county have volunteer fire departments with the largest in Middletown. However, in terms of HazMat emergencies, very few towns have special units to respond to these and so the Special Unit from the Middeltown Township Fire Department responds to most HazMat cases.
[edit] Education
Brookdale Community College is the two-year community college for Monmouth County, one of a network of 19 county colleges statewide. The school is in Lincroft and was founded in 1967. Monmouth University is a four-year private university located in West Long Branch.
In addition to multiple public high schools, there are many secular and non-secular private schools in Monmouth County such as Red Bank Catholic High School, Christian Brothers Academy, Ranney School, St. John Vianney High School, and Mater Dei High School.
The county has an extensive vocational high school program, known as the Monmouth County Vocational School District including 5 magnet schools:
- Academy of Allied Health & Science (AAHS) in Neptune Township
- Biotechnology High School (BTHS) in Freehold
- Communications High School (CHS) in Wall Township
- High Technology High School (HTHS) in Lincroft
- Marine Academy of Science and Technology (MAST) in Sandy Hook
[edit] References
- ^ Find a County. National Association of Counties. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ 250 Highest Per Capita Personal Incomes of the 3111 Counties in the United States, 2006, Bureau of Economic Analysis. Accessed May 2, 2008.
- ^ The Origin of New Jersey Place Names: M, GetNJ.com. Accessed December 15, 2007.
- ^ QuickFacts: Monmouth County, New Jersey. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2007-09-22.
- ^ New Jersey Resident Population by County: 1880 - 1930.
- ^ Geostat Center: Historical Census Browser. University of Virginia Library. Retrieved on 2007-03-02.
- ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ Monmouth County, New Jersey, City-Data.com. Accessed December 16, 2007.
- ^ Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States Census Bureau. Accessed September 20, 2007.
- ^ Irish Communities, Epodunk. Accessed September 20, 2007.
- ^ Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 29, 2008.
- ^ http://asburyparkfirefighters.org/homepage.html
[edit] See also
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