Westville, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Westville, New Jersey
Borough
Thomas West House, built c. 1746
Seal
Motto(s):  "The Gateway to South Jersey"
Map of Westville highlighted in Gloucester County. Inset: Location of Gloucester County in New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Westville, New Jersey
Westville, New Jersey Location in Gloucester County, New Jersey Show map of Gloucester County, New Jersey Westville, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Westville, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Gloucester
Incorporated	April 28, 1914
Named for	Thomas West
Government
• Type	Borough
• Body	Borough Council
Area
• Total	1.38 sq mi (3.58 km2)
• Land	1.02 sq mi (2.65 km2)
• Water	0.36 sq mi (0.93 km2)  25.94%
Area rank	463th of 565 in state 21st of 24 in county
Elevation	23 ft (7 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	4,264
• Estimate  (2023)	4,317
• Rank	405th of 565 in state 18th of 24 in county
• Density	4,165.2/sq mi (1,608.2/km2)
• Density rank	149th of 565 in state 2nd of 24 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	08093
Area code	856
FIPS code	3401580120
GNIS feature ID	0885440

Westville is a borough in Gloucester County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 4,264, a decrease of 24 (−0.6%) from the 2010 census count of 4,288, which in turn reflected a decline of 212 (−4.7%) from the 4,500 counted in the 2000 census. Westville has been called "The Gateway to South Jersey!"

Westville was formed as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 7, 1914, from portions of Deptford Township and West Deptford Township, based on the results of a referendum held on April 28, 1914. The borough was reincorporated on March 8, 1924. Legislation had been passed in 1900 to create Westville, but it had to have a majority vote in favor of the new municipality in both Deptford and West Deptford. The borough was named for Thomas West, who built a home in the area in 1775 that still stands.

The borough had the 17th-highest property tax rate in New Jersey, with an equalized rate of 4.502% in 2020, compared to 3.212% in the county as a whole and a statewide average of 2.279%.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 1.38 square miles (3.58 km²), including 1.02 square miles (2.65 km²) of land and 0.36 square miles (0.93 km²) of water (25.94%). Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the borough include Newbold, South Westville and Westville Manor.

The borough borders the municipalities of Deptford Township and West Deptford Township in Gloucester County, Bellmawr, Brooklawn, and Gloucester City in Camden County, and Philadelphia, located across the Delaware River in Pennsylvania.

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 4,288 people, 1,755 households, and 1,095 families in the borough. The population density was 4,187.0 inhabitants per square mile (1,616.6/km²). There were 1,912 housing units at an average density of 1,867.0 per square mile (720.9/km²). The racial makeup was 89.53% (3,839) White, 4.90% (210) Black or African American, 0.16% (7) Native American, 1.49% (64) Asian, 0.05% (2) Pacific Islander, 2.31% (99) from other races, and 1.56% (67) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.02% (258) of the population.

Of the 1,755 households, 26.2% had children under the age of 18; 40.9% were married couples living together; 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present and 37.6% were non-families. Of all households, 31.3% were made up of individuals and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.06.

20.4% of the population were under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 29.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38.8 years. For every 100 females, the population had 96.1 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 94.1 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $49,854 (with a margin of error of +/− $4,131) and the median family income was $65,089 (+/− $13,208). Males had a median income of $45,294 (+/− $5,957) versus $39,732 (+/− $7,921) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $26,908 (+/− $3,575). About 13.7% of families and 15.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.7% of those under age 18 and 24.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Westville School District is a community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade at Parkview Elementary School. As of the 2019–20 school year, the district, comprised of one school, had an enrollment of 361 students and 31.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.4:1.

For seventh through twelfth grade, students attend Gateway Regional High School, a regional public high school serving students from the boroughs of National Park, Wenonah, Westville and Woodbury Heights, as part of the Gateway Regional High School District. As of the 2019–20 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 900 students and 79.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.4:1.

Students from across the county are eligible to apply to attend Gloucester County Institute of Technology, a four-year high school in Deptford Township that provides technical and vocational education. As a public school, students do not pay tuition to attend the school.

Transportation

Interstate 295 southbound in Westville

Roads and highways

As of May 2010^[update], the borough had a total of 18.05 miles (29.05 km) of roadways, of which 12.72 miles (20.47 km) were maintained by the municipality, 1.66 miles (2.67 km) by Gloucester County and 3.67 miles (5.91 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

County Route 551, Route 45, Route 47, U.S. Route 130, and Interstate 295 are the major roads that pass through the borough.

Public transportation

NJ Transit bus service on the 401 route between Salem and Philadelphia, the 402 between Pennsville Township and Philadelphia, the 408 between Millville and Philadelphia, the 410 between Bridgeton and Philadelphia, the 412 route between Sewell and Philadelphia, the 455 between Cherry Hill Mall and Paulsboro, and the 463 route between Woodbury and the Avandale Park-and-Ride in Sicklerville.

Conrai's Penns Grove Secondary freight rail line passes through the town. The planned diesel multiple unit light rail system, the Glassboro-Camden Line, would use the same right-of-way with a stop in Westville at Crown Point Road.

Notable people

Notable past and present residents of Westville include:

• George Anastasia (born 1947), expert on the American Mafia, author and journalist with The Philadelphia Inquirer
• Stephen Decatur (1779–1820), U.S. Navy officer recognized for heroism in the First Barbary War and the Second Barbary War and in the War of 1812
• Malcolm Fox (1906–1968), former professional race car driver
• Harold W. Hannold (1911–1995), politician who served in the New Jersey Senate from 1945 to 1959 and as Senate President in 1952
• James Hunter III (1916–1989), former United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit judge
• Maria Pallante (born 1964), United States Register of Copyrights
• Antwine Perez (born 1988), college football player
• Milt Plum (born 1935), professional football player with the Cleveland Browns (1957–1961), Detroit Lions (1962–1967), Los Angeles Rams (1968), and New York Giants (1969)
• Larry Sharpe (1951–2017), former professional wrestler

See also

In Spanish: Westville (Nueva Jersey) para niños