Butler, New Jersey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Butler, New Jersey
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Borough
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| Borough of Butler | |
American Hard Rubber Company
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Location in Morris County and the state of New Jersey.
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Census Bureau map of Butler, New Jersey
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| Country |  United States |
| State |  New Jersey |
| County |  Morris |
| Incorporated | March 13, 1901 |
| Named for | Richard Butler |
| Government | |
| • Type | Borough |
| • Body | Borough Council |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.06 sq mi (5.34 km2) |
| • Land | 2.03 sq mi (5.27 km2) |
| • Water | 0.03 sq mi (0.07 km2) 1.31% |
| Area rank | 410th of 565 in state 36th of 39 in county |
| Elevation | 456 ft (139 m) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 7,539 |
| • Estimate
(2019)
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7,654 |
| • Rank | 304th of 566 in state 25th of 39 in county |
| • Density | 3,703.2/sq mi (1,429.8/km2) |
| • Density rank | 170th of 566 in state 7th of 39 in county |
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT)) |
| ZIP Code |
07405
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| Area code(s) | 973 |
| FIPS code | 3402709040 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0885175 |
Butler is a borough in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 7,539, reflecting an increase of 119 (+1.6%) from the 7,420 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 28 (+0.4%) from the 7,392 counted in the 1990 Census.
Butler was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 13, 1901, from portions of Pequannock Township.
Contents
History
The area now known as Butler was originally called "West Bloomingdale" and was sparsely populated. Water power brought manufacturing entities to the area. In 1857, The Pequannock Valley Paper Company moved from Bergen County and in 1868 the Newbrough Hard Rubber Company built a factory, both based along the Pequannock River. These were two significant economic entities that contributed to the growth of the Borough. In 1871, the New Jersey Midland Railroad extended track through Butler from Paterson, making an important transportation connection for both passengers and freight. The northern terminus for the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway's passenger service was located at Butler until 1966. The railroad still carries freight through Butler.
The growing community was given the name "Butler" in 1881 after Richard Butler, who had taken ownership of the Hard Rubber Company. A Post Office was established and a larger railroad station was built. This station has been the Borough Museum since about 1977. The Hard Rubber Company eventually merged with other businesses and became the American Hard Rubber Company in 1898. A "Soft" Rubber Company built a factory just along Main Street. The borough continued to grow as other factories and supporting businesses were established. The population in 1920 was 2,265 people. By 1950, it was 4,063.
Butler's largest fire began just after midnight, February 26, 1957, when one of the nation's largest rubber reclaiming mills (Pequanoc Rubber Company on Main Street) was destroyed by a blaze estimated to have caused a loss of as much as $3 million at the time. The mill occupied the site on upper Main Street, an irregular shaped complex 600 feet by 300 feet and three to four stories high; it produced over 100 tons of reusable sheet rubber daily from 200 tons of scrap. One Butler Heights resident remembers the fire being so bright she could read a newspaper in her yard at 3am at a distance of a mile. The glow reportedly was visible for 100 miles, mutual aid response was required by volunteer fire companies from a dozen nearby fire companies.
Numerous organizations exist in town and, along with the neighboring towns of Kinnelon and Bloomingdale, many "Tri-Boro" organizations serve the area, including the local Little League & Volunteer First Aid Squad.
Butler was the location of a health resort run by Benedict Lust called "Yungborn" that opened on September 15, 1896.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 2.089 square miles (5.410 km2), including 2.036 square miles (5.273 km2) of land and 0.053 square miles (0.137 km2) of water (2.53%).
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1910 | 2,265 | — | |
| 1920 | 2,886 | 27.4% | |
| 1930 | 3,392 | 17.5% | |
| 1940 | 3,351 | −1.2% | |
| 1950 | 4,050 | 20.9% | |
| 1960 | 5,414 | 33.7% | |
| 1970 | 7,051 | 30.2% | |
| 1980 | 7,616 | 8.0% | |
| 1990 | 7,392 | −2.9% | |
| 2000 | 7,420 | 0.4% | |
| 2010 | 7,539 | 1.6% | |
| 2019 (est.) | 7,654 | 1.5% | |
| Population sources: 1910-1920 1910 1910-1930 1900-2010 2000 2010 |
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Census 2010
As of the census of 2010, there were 7,539 people, 3,031 households, and 1,976 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,703.2 per square mile (1,429.8/km2). There were 3,169 housing units at an average density of 1,556.6 per square mile (601.0/km2)*. The racial makeup of the borough was 88.95% (6,706) White, 1.11% (84) Black or African American, 0.16% (12) Native American, 3.02% (228) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 4.95% (373) from other races, and 1.80% (136) from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.41% (860) of the population.
There were 3,031 households out of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.8% were married couples living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.8% were non-families. 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the borough, the population was spread out with 20.7% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 28.1% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.2 years. For every 100 females there were 100.7 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and old there were 99.6 males.
The Census Bureau's 2006-2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $78,614 (with a margin of error of +/- $5,375) and the median family income was $102,435 (+/- $7,072). Males had a median income of $69,407 (+/- $4,399) versus $46,286 (+/- $4,815) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $36,678 (+/- $3,263). About 3.2% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.6% of those under age 18 and 1.3% of those age 65 or over.
Transportation
Roads and highways
As of May 2010[update], the borough had a total of 27.84 miles (44.80 km) of roadways, of which 23.29 miles (37.48 km) were maintained by the municipality, 2.40 miles (3.86 km) by Morris County and 2.15 miles (3.46 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.
New Jersey Route 23 is the main highway serving Butler. County Route 511 also traverses the borough. Interstate 287 passes just outside the borough limits within neighboring municipalities.
Public transportation
NJ Transit bus service is provided on the 194 route to and from the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan, with seasonal service to Mountain Creek in Vernon Township on the 304 route.
Points of interest
- Founded in 1996, High Point Brewing Company is a brewer of German-style lagers and wheat beers.
- The Butler Museum is located on Main Street in the former NYS&W railroad station, across from 234 Main Street. The museum houses exhibits that reflects on the town's history.
- Meadtown Shopping Center is a shopping center located between Butler and Kinnelon that includes stores and restaurants and also includes a New York Sports Club and Bowtie Cinemas. It formerly housed a bowling alley.
- Butler Public Schools's 2014–15 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
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Education
The Butler Public Schools serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. As of the 2017–18 school year, the district, comprised of three schools, had an enrollment of 1,211 students and 103.9 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.7:1. Schools in the district (with 2017-18 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Aaron Decker School with 380 students in grades K-4, Richard Butler School with 289 students in grades 5-8 and Butler High School with 499 students in grades 9-12.
Students from Bloomingdale attend Butler High School as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Bloomingdale School District.
St. Anthony of Padua School was a Catholic school operated under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson that was closed in June 2012 in the face of declining enrollment, after having served the community for 130 years.
Since March 2020, the Butler Public Schools have been shut due to the novel Coronavirus, or COVID-19. Students from grades 3-12 will be receiving lessons via Google Classroom, Pearson Education, Khan Academy and other sources. Students without home internet or those in grades Pre-K to 2 will be provided with traditional learning resources.
Notable people
People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Butler include:
- Kurt Adler (1907–1977), music conductor.
- Frederick Aldrich (1927–1991), marine biologist best known for his research on giant squid.
- Harry L. Sears (1920-2002), politician who served for 10 years in the New Jersey Legislature.
- Andrew Turzilli (born 1991), wide receiver who played in the NFL for the Tennessee Titans.
- Gary Wehrkamp (born 1970), musician, songwriter and producer best known a member of the progressive rock band Shadow Gallery.
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