Long Hill Township, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Long Hill Township, New Jersey
Township
Boyle–Hudspeth-Benson House in Millington
Seal
Location of Long Hill Township in Morris County highlighted in red (right). Inset map: Location of Morris County in New Jersey highlighted in orange (left).
Census Bureau map of Long Hill Township, New Jersey
Long Hill Township, New Jersey Location in Morris County, New Jersey Show map of Morris County, New Jersey Long Hill Township, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Long Hill Township, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Morris
Incorporated	March 23, 1866 (as Passaic Township)
Renamed	November 3, 1992 (as Long Hill Township)
Government
• Type	Township
• Body	Township Committee
Area
• Total	12.06 sq mi (31.22 km2)
• Land	11.80 sq mi (30.55 km2)
• Water	0.26 sq mi (0.67 km2)  2.14%
Area rank	192nd of 565 in state 15th of 39 in county
Elevation	325 ft (99 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	8,629
• Estimate  (2023)	8,613
• Rank	277th of 565 in state 23rd of 39 in county
• Density	731.5/sq mi (282.4/km2)
• Density rank	416th of 565 in state 31st of 39 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Codes	07933 – Gillette 07946 – Millington 07980 – Stirling
Area code	908
FIPS code	3402741362
GNIS feature ID	0882196

Long Hill Township is a township in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 8,629, a decrease of 73 (−0.8%) from the 2010 census count of 8,702, which in turn reflected a decline of 75 (−0.9%) from the 8,777 counted in the 2000 census.

The township is situated in the southernmost part of Morris County bordering both Somerset and Union counties. It is bounded by the Passaic River to the south and west and to the north by the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge which covers 7,455 acres (3,017 ha) of land overseen by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Refuge lands also lie within neighboring Chatham and Harding townships.

Originally incorporated as Passaic Township in the 1860s, residents voted to change the town's name to Long Hill Township in 1992. It includes the communities of Gillette, Stirling, Millington, Meyersville and Homestead Park. NJ Transit rail service is available at the Gillette, Millington and Stirling stations.

History

Millington station, one of three train stations in Long Hill Township.

Long Hill Township was incorporated as Passaic Township on March 23, 1866. On September 1, 1922, part of what was then Passaic Township was taken to form Harding Township. On November 3, 1992, by a 1,901 to 1,821 margin, the voters elected to change the name of the municipality to Long Hill Township, a change largely driven by the desire to avoid confusion with the City of Passaic, some 22 miles (35 km) away.

Garden State Fireworks, a firm based in Millington that dates back to 1890, has produced the annual July 4 fireworks show in Washington, D.C., on the National Mall. The Raptor Trust is a wild bird rehabilitation center located in Millington.

Clover Hill Swimming Club a club surrounding a lake in Millington, was the subject of lawsuit in which the Supreme Court of New Jersey ruled in 1966 that the club could not discriminate against an African American applicant for membership on the basis of the club being private.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 12.06 square miles (31.22 km²), including 11.80 square miles (30.55 km²) of land and 0.26 square miles (0.67 km²) of water (2.14%).

Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Gillette, Millington, Stirling, Meyersville and Homestead Park a subdivision that was first developed in the 1920s.

The Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge covers 7,455 acres (3,017 ha) of land overseen by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and includes portions east of New Vernon Road that is unmanaged and accessible by visitors, while areas west of New Vernon Road are managed intensively and are not available to the public.

The township is located in the most southern part of Morris County. It is bounded by the Passaic River on the south and west and by the Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge on the north. It borders both Somerset and Union counties. The township borders the municipalities of Chatham Township and Harding Township in Morris County; Bernards Township and Warren Township in Somerset County, and Berkeley Heights in Union County.

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 8,629 people in 3,021 households. The median household income was $136,542.

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 8,702 people, 3,105 households, and 2,434 families in the township. The population density was 734.3 per square mile (283.5/km²). There were 3,226 housing units at an average density of 272.2 per square mile (105.1/km²). The racial makeup was 90.61% (7,885) White, 0.62% (54) Black or African American, 0.09% (8) Native American, 5.98% (520) Asian, 0.01% (1) Pacific Islander, 1.06% (92) from other races, and 1.63% (142) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.06% (614) of the population.

Of the 3,105 households, 37.7% had children under the age of 18; 67.6% were married couples living together; 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present and 21.6% were non-families. Of all households, 18.3% were made up of individuals and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.79 and the average family size was 3.19.

25.6% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 20.3% from 25 to 44, 33.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.9 years. For every 100 females, the population had 97.1 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 94.7 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $120,691 (with a margin of error of ± $11,097) and the median family income was $142,059 (± $14,704). Males had a median income of $91,509 (± $24,098) versus $75,558 (± $11,204) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $54,508 (± $4,818). About 1.7% of families and 2.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.0% of those under age 18 and 1.6% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Long Hill Township School System serves public school students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. As of the 2019–20 school year, the district, comprised of three schools, had an enrollment of 894 students and 80.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.1:1. Schools in the district (with 2019–20 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Gillette School with 223 students in grades Pre-K–1, Millington School with 397 students in grades 2–5 and Central Middle School with 269 students in grades 6–8.

Long Hill Township's high school students in public school for ninth through twelfth grades attend Watchung Hills Regional High School in Warren Township. Students from Long Hill Township and from the neighboring communities of Green Brook Township, Warren Township and Watchung (in Somerset County) attend the school. As of the 2019–20 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 1,948 students and 160.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.1:1. The high school district's board of education has nine members, who are elected directly by the voters to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three seats up for each year. Of the nine elected seats, three are allocated to Long Hill Township.

St. Vincent de Paul School was a Catholic school in Stirling that operated under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson. The school closed in June 2016 in the wake of declining enrollment and financial challenges. The school was recognized with the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence in 2012.

Library

The Long Hill Township Library began about 1880 in what was then known as Passaic Township. At the time a group of women in Millington formed a reading club purchasing a small number of books to trade amongst themselves. A similar group was established in Meyersville. In 1920, when the Morris County Library was built, the groups joined the county system and books on loan from the county were housed in the homes of the associations' members.

By the 1950s, the Millington Association's Library had relocated to the Town Hall and the Meyersville group occupied one room in the town's Central School. In 1956, however, the Township asked the Millington Association to find other quarters, and the Central School location had steadily become less than satisfactory due to increasing enrollment. A referendum in the amount of $25,000 for the construction of a new building was submitted to the community. The measure passed by two votes. The new library opened in 1958 on Central Avenue in Stirling as the Passaic Township Free Public Library with a paid director and several volunteers.

By 1968, the library's collection had grown substantially and plans were made for a new addition to the building. Another $25,000 was raised and the addition was completed in 1972. A later addition followed in the 1980s. The library remained on Central Avenue until 2005 when an entirely new building was dedicated in April of that year. After the township formally changed its name to Long Hill Township in 1992, the Passaic Township Free Public Library was renamed as the Long Hill Township Free Public Library.

The Long Hill Township Library now occupies a site in Gillette, adjacent to Township Hall. The library contains 16,000 square feet (1,500 m²) of space and has a capacity for 72,000 books. The library is a member of the Morris Automated Information Network consortium, which offers residents of Long Hill Township have access to library materials at 37 area libraries. It also hosts a professional concert series.

Transportation

County Route 512 westbound in Long Hill Township

Roads and highways

As of May 2010^[update], the township had a total of 59.57 miles (95.87 km) of roadways, of which 46.31 miles (74.53 km) were maintained by the municipality and 13.26 miles (21.34 km) by Morris County.

No Interstate, U.S. or state highways directly serve Long Hill Township. The most prominent roads within the township are county routes, including County Route 512 and County Route 531. Interstate 78 and Interstate 287 are both nearby and cross adjacent municipalities.

Public transportation

NJ Transit rail service is available at the Gillette, Millington and Stirling stations, offering service on the Gladstone Branch to Newark Broad Street Station and Hoboken Terminal.

NJ Transit offered service on the MCM8 route until 2010, when subsidies offered to the local provider were eliminated as part of budget cuts.

Lakeland Bus Lines provides Route 78 rush-hour service from Bedminster to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan.

Communications

Long Hill is in Area code 908. The legacy exchange is 908–647 (Millington 7), is one of the last manual offices in New Jersey converted dial operation in the early 1960s.

The current cable company serving the area is Comcast which provides local TV, internet, and phone service. Most of Long Hill now also has access to Verizon's FiOS service. Original cable company Patriot Media was sold to Comcast in early 2008.

Long Hill Township operates a public service television channel on Comcast (Channel 25) and Verizon (Channel 37).

Long Hill Television

A Government-access television (GATV) cable TV channel is available for citizens of Long Hill Township that has important news updates, local activities, local weather, storm warnings, etc. It is on Comcast channel 29 (all programming) and Verizon FiOS channels 37 (public meetings and programs) and 38 (community bulletin board).

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Long Hill Township include:

• Jessie Baylin (born 1984), singer-songwriter
• David Bird (c. 1959–2014), journalist and longtime reporter at The Wall Street Journal, whose work "was instrumental in the expansion of energy markets reporting in the 1990s
• George B. Cooper (1808–1866), politician who was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1858, but left office after a year when Congress awarded the seat to his opponent in 1860
• George Estock (1924–2010), MLB pitcher who played for the Boston Braves in 1951
• Eugenio Fernandi (1922–1991), operatic tenor
• Jack H. Jacobs (born 1945), Medal of Honor recipient in 1969 for his heroic actions during the Vietnam War
• Robert Tappan Morris (born 1965), computer scientist and entrepreneur best known for creating the Morris Worm in 1988, considered the first computer worm on the Internet
• Bill Murray (born 1997), guard for the New England Patriots
• Keith Sims (born 1967), former professional football offensive lineman who played in the NFL for the Miami Dolphins and Washington Redskins

See also

In Spanish: Municipio de Long Hill (Nueva Jersey) para niños