Belle Mead, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Belle Mead, New Jersey
Census-designated place
The former Belle Mead railroad station located along the former Reading Railroad (as a part of the proposed West Trenton Line)
Belle Mead, New Jersey Location in Somerset County, New Jersey Show map of Somerset County, New Jersey Belle Mead, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Belle Mead, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Somerset
Township	Montgomery
Area
• Total	4.03 sq mi (10.45 km2)
• Land	4.03 sq mi (10.44 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.01 km2)  0.00%
Elevation	98 ft (30 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	5,569
• Density	1,381.54/sq mi (533.43/km2)
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	08502
Area code(s)	908
FIPS code	34-04630
GNIS feature ID	02583967

Belle Mead is a small community in New Jersey, United States. It is part of Montgomery Township in Somerset County. It is known as an "unincorporated community" and a "census-designated place" (CDP). This means it's a recognized area for gathering census data, but it doesn't have its own separate local government.

As of the 2020 United States census, about 5,569 people live in Belle Mead. The area of the CDP grew quite a bit between 2010 and 2020.

History of Belle Mead

Early Days and Name Change

Before 1875, Belle Mead was called Plainville. It was a quiet area with many farms. Around that time, a builder from New York City named Van Aken bought many of these farms. He wanted to create a new city. He divided the land into lots and built some streets. These streets were named like those in New York.

Van Aken also gave land for a new railroad station. This station even had a dining room downstairs. The original station was taken down in 1940. There is still an old, unused train station in Belle Mead today.

Van Aken later ran out of money. His property was then sold to a United States Senator named John R. McPherson. Senator McPherson changed the name from Vanaken to Belle Mead. A popular story says he named it after his daughter, Edna Belle Mead McPherson.

Important Places and Events

The Woods Tavern in Belle Mead was a very popular stop for travelers. It was important for social gatherings and politics for over 100 years. For example, Horace Greeley, a famous newspaper editor, spoke there in 1872. He was campaigning to become President of the United States at the time. Sadly, the tavern burned down in 1932.

During World War II, Belle Mead was home to the Belle Mead Army Depot. This was the largest military supply center in the country. The depot operated until 1991. Today, no buildings from the depot remain. The area is now a special cleanup site. Part of it has become a county park.

The famous author and civil rights activist James Baldwin lived in Belle Mead in the early 1940s. He worked at the army depot during that time.

In the 1970s, Dr. John Summerskill and his wife, Mimi LaFollette Summerskill, started the LaFollette Vineyard in Belle Mead. In 1992, President Bill Clinton and 14 governors met at this vineyard. They held a meeting and a press conference there during Clinton's presidential campaign.

The Abandoned Train Station

The abandoned train station was built by the Reading Railroad in the 1930s. It stopped being used in 1984. Since then, there have been plans to fix it up. However, these projects have only managed to clear away trees and graffiti so far.

Post Office Changes

Belle Mead is located in both Montgomery Township and Hillsborough Township. For many years, people in Belle Mead used the Belle Mead Post Office. This post office was on Route 206 in Montgomery Township. It had the ZIP Code 08502.

In the late 1990s, Hillsborough Township got its own post office. This new post office serves all its residents with ZIP code 08844. This included the part of Belle Mead that was in Hillsborough. Now, the Belle Mead post office and its 08502 ZIP code only serve the part of Belle Mead that is in Montgomery Township.

Geography of Belle Mead

Belle Mead covers a total area of about 4.03 square miles (10.45 square kilometers). Almost all of this area is land. Only a very small part is water.

Population and Demographics

Belle Mead has seen a big change in its population. The number of people living there grew a lot between 2010 and 2020.

One interesting fact about Belle Mead is its growing Asian population. In 2010, only four Asian individuals were counted in the census. By 2020, people of Asian background made up the majority of Belle Mead's residents. This makes Belle Mead notable for having one of the fastest-growing Asian populations in the U.S.

2010 Census Details

The 2010 United States census counted 216 people in Belle Mead. There were 78 households, and 62 of these were families. Most of the people (92.13%) were White. About 1.85% were Asian, and 0.93% were Black or African American. About 8.33% of the population identified as Hispanic or Latino.

Many households (39.7%) had children under 18 living there. Most households (71.8%) were married couples. The average household had 2.77 people. The average family had 3.03 people.

About 25.9% of the population was under 18 years old. About 13.4% were 65 years or older. The average age in Belle Mead was 42.5 years.

Notable People from Belle Mead

Wade Baldwin IV is a basketball player from Belle Mead.

Many interesting people have lived in or are connected to Belle Mead. Here are a few:

• Wade Baldwin IV (born 1996), a basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel.
• Mike Ford (born 1992), a baseball player who plays first base for the Seattle Mariners.
• Brandon Grosso (born 2000), a racecar driver.
• Ricky Proehl (born 1968), a wide receiver who played in the NFL for 17 seasons.
• Elliott F. Smith (1931–1987), a politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly.
• Arlene White Lawrence (1916–1990), a bishop and leader of the Pillar of Fire Church.

See also

In Spanish: Belle Mead para niños