Bass River Township, New Jersey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bass River Township, New Jersey
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Township
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Bass River State Forest Firefighters Memorial
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| Motto(s):
"A Clean Community"
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Location of Bass River Township in Burlington County highlighted in red (right). Inset map: Location of Burlington County in New Jersey highlighted in red (left).
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Census Bureau map of Bass River Township, New Jersey
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 Bass River Township, New Jersey
Location in Burlington County, New Jersey
Bass River Township, New Jersey
Location in New Jersey
Bass River Township, New Jersey
Location in the United States
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| Country |  United States |
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| State |  New Jersey |
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| County | Burlington | |
| Incorporated | March 30, 1864 | |
| Named for | Jeremiah Basse | |
| Government | ||
| • Type | Walsh Act | |
| • Body | Board of Commissioners | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 78.41 sq mi (203.09 km2) | |
| • Land | 75.12 sq mi (194.57 km2) | |
| • Water | 3.29 sq mi (8.52 km2) 4.19% | |
| Area rank | 11th of 565 in state 3rd of 40 in county |
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| Elevation | 43 ft (13 m) | |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 1,355 | |
| • Estimate
(2023)
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1,369 | |
| • Rank | 520th of 565 in state 37th of 40 in county |
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| • Density | 18.0/sq mi (6.9/km2) | |
| • Density rank | 562nd of 565 in state 38th of 40 in county |
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| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST)) | |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT)) | |
| ZIP Code |
08224 – New Gretna
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| Area code(s) | 609 | |
| FIPS code | 3400503370 | |
| GNIS feature ID | 0882086 | |
Bass River Township is a township at the southeastern tip of Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The township bears a shoreline fronting both the Bass River and the Great Bay. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 1,355, a decrease of 88 (−6.1%) from the 2010 census count of 1,443, which in turn had reflected a decline of 67 (−4.4%) from the 1,510 counted in the 2000 census. The township and all of Burlington County is a part of the Philadelphia-Reading-Camden combined statistical area and the Delaware Valley. Bass River is traversed by the Garden State Parkway.
Bass River was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 30, 1864, from portions of Little Egg Harbor Township and Washington Township.
The township's name originated from the Bass River, a 4.7-mile-long (7.6 km) tributary of the Mullica River, that was in turn named for Jeremiah Basse, who served as governor of both West Jersey and East Jersey.
Contents
Geography
_in_Bass_River_Township,_Burlington_County,_New_Jersey.jpg)
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 78.41 square miles (203.09 km2), including 75.12 square miles (194.57 km2) of land and 3.29 square miles (8.52 km2) of water (4.19%).
Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Allens Bridge, Bass River State Forest, Calico, Charcoal Landing, Doctors Point, Frogtown, Harrisville, High Bridge, Leektown, Martha, Merrygold, Munion Field, New Gretna, Oak Island, Oswego Lake, Sim Place, State Forest and Wading River.
The township borders Washington Township and Woodland Township in Burlington County; Galloway Township and Port Republic in Atlantic County; and both Barnegat Township and Little Egg Harbor Township in Ocean County.
The township is one of 56 South Jersey municipalities that are included within the New Jersey Pinelands National Reserve, a protected natural area of unique ecology covering 1,100,000 acres (450,000 ha), that has been classified as a United States Biosphere Reserve and established by Congress in 1978 as the nation's first National Reserve. All of the township is included in either the state-designated Pinelands area or the Pinelands National Reserve, which includes portions of Burlington County, along with areas in Atlantic, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester and Ocean counties.
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1870 | 807 | — | |
| 1880 | 1,006 | 24.7% | |
| 1890 | 853 | −15.2% | |
| 1900 | 800 | −6.2% | |
| 1910 | 685 | −14.4% | |
| 1920 | 612 | −10.7% | |
| 1930 | 700 | 14.4% | |
| 1940 | 599 | −14.4% | |
| 1950 | 688 | 14.9% | |
| 1960 | 737 | 7.1% | |
| 1970 | 815 | 10.6% | |
| 1980 | 1,344 | 64.9% | |
| 1990 | 1,580 | 17.6% | |
| 2000 | 1,510 | −4.4% | |
| 2010 | 1,443 | −4.4% | |
| 2020 | 1,355 | −6.1% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 1,369 | −5.1% | |
| Population sources: 1870–2000 1870–1920 1870 1880–1890 1890–1910 1910–1930 1940–2000 2000 2010 2020 |
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2010 census
The 2010 United States census counted 1,443 people, 522 households, and 407 families in the township. The population density was 19.2 per square mile (7.4/km2). There were 587 housing units at an average density of 7.8 per square mile (3.0/km2). The racial makeup was 97.37% (1,405) White, 0.28% (4) Black or African American, 0.14% (2) Native American, 0.76% (11) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 0.35% (5) from other races, and 1.11% (16) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.12% (45) of the population.
Of the 522 households, 28.4% had children under the age of 18; 60.7% were married couples living together; 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present and 22.0% were non-families. Of all households, 15.5% were made up of individuals and 5.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.09.
20.2% of the population were under the age of 18, 10.0% from 18 to 24, 23.3% from 25 to 44, 33.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.0 years. For every 100 females, the population had 104.4 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 101.0 males.
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $64,185 (with a margin of error of +/− $5,782) and the median family income was $66,364 (+/− $8,461). Males had a median income of $50,625 (+/− $7,486) versus $48,950 (+/− $3,139) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $24,440 (+/− $2,573). About 9.4% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.5% of those under age 18 and 27.8% of those age 65 or over.
Education
The Bass River Township School District served students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade at Bass River Township Elementary School. As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprised of one school, had an enrollment of 106 students and 12.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 8.3:1. In the 2016–2017 school year, Bass River had the 10th-smallest enrollment of any school district in the state, with 102 students.
The Bass River Township Elementary School was closed and students from the township began attending the schools of the Little Egg Harbor Township School District in the 2020–21 school year. As of the 2021–22 school year, the district, comprised of three schools, had an enrollment of 1,672 students and 156.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.7:1. Schools in the district (with 2021–22 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics.) are Robert C. Wood Sr. Early Childhood Center with 281 students in pre-kindergarten, George J. Mitchell Elementary School with 611 students in kindergarten through third grade and Frog Pond Elementary School with 780 students in grades 4 to 6.
Public school students in seventh through twelfth grades attend the schools of the Pinelands Regional School District, which also serves students from Eagleswood Township, Little Egg Harbor Township and Tuckerton Borough. Schools in the district (with 2021–22 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Pinelands Regional Junior High School with 532 students in grades 7–8 and Pinelands Regional High School with 1,070 students in grades 9–12. The district's board of education is comprised of nine members directly elected by the residents of the constituent municipalities to three-year terms on a staggered basis, with three seats up for election each year. Seats on the high school district's board of education are allocated based on the population of the constituent municipalities, with one seat allocated to Bass River Township.
Students from Bass River Township, and from all of Burlington County, are eligible to attend the Burlington County Institute of Technology, a countywide public school district that serves the vocational and technical education needs of students at the high school and post-secondary level at its campuses in Medford and Westampton Township.
Transportation
_from_the_overpass_for_U.S._Route_9_(New_York_Road)_in_Bass_River_Township,_Burlington_County,_New_Jersey.jpg)
Roads and highways
As of May 2010[update], the township had a total of 50.11 miles (80.64 km) of roadways, of which 23.48 miles (37.79 km) were maintained by the municipality, 14.63 miles (23.54 km) by Burlington County and 5.24 miles (8.43 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation and 6.76 miles (10.88 km) by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.
Bass River Township is the only municipality in Burlington County that hosts U.S. Route 9 and the Garden State Parkway. The two roads enter from the southwest concurrently, then separate at Exit 50. Exit 50 is one of two partial interchanges on the parkway that are located in Bass River, with Exit 50 being northbound off-southbound on. The other exit, Exit 52 for County Route 654 in New Gretna, is northbound on-southbound off. The township also hosts a high-speed toll plaza on the mainline northbound Garden State Parkway.
Other state and county-maintained roads that pass through include Route 167 (a 0.15-mile (0.24 km) dead-ended old alignment of U.S. 9) and County Route 542.
Public transportation
NJ Transit provides service in the township on the 559 route that runs between Atlantic City and Lakewood Township.
Notable people
People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Bass River Township include:
- Andy Boswell (1873–1936), Major League Baseball pitcher who served in the New Jersey General Assembly
- Thomas A. Mathis (1869–1958), political boss and racketeer who served in the New Jersey Senate and was the Secretary of State of New Jersey
