Collingswood, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Collingswood, New Jersey
Borough
Collingswood Commercial Historic District in September 2013
Seal
Motto(s):  Fidelis in Omnibus (Faithful in all things)
Location of Collingswood in Camden County highlighted in red (right). Inset map: Location of Camden County in New Jersey highlighted in orange (left).
Census Bureau map of Collingswood, New Jersey
Collingswood, New Jersey Location in Camden County, New Jersey Show map of Camden County, New Jersey Collingswood, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Collingswood, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Camden
European settlement	1682
Incorporated	May 22, 1888
Named for	Collings family
Government
• Type	Walsh Act
• Body	Board of Commissioners
Area
• Total	1.94 sq mi (5.01 km2)
• Land	1.83 sq mi (4.74 km2)
• Water	0.10 sq mi (0.27 km2)  5.90%
Area rank	418th of 565 in state 19th of 37 in county
Elevation	20 ft (6 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	14,186
• Estimate  (2023)	14,204
• Rank	186th of 565 in state 9th of 37 in county
• Density	7,751.9/sq mi (2,993.0/km2)
• Density rank	56th of 565 in state 3rd of 37 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	08107–08108
Area code(s)	856
FIPS code	3400714260
GNIS feature ID	885191

Collingswood is a borough in Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located 5 miles (8.0 km) east of Center City Philadelphia. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 14,186, an increase of 260 (+1.9%) from the 2010 census count of 13,926, which in turn reflected a decline of 400 (−2.8%) from the 14,326 counted in the 2000 census.

Owing in part to its Quaker history, Collingswood was founded as a dry town where alcohol cannot be sold, however restaurant patrons are permitted to bring their own wine and beer to consume. In July 2015, the town introduced an ordinance that allows craft breweries to operate in the town but not serve food. The ordinance passed in August 2015.

History

Stokes-Lees House, on the 600 block of Lees Avenue

Collings-Knight Homestead

The land in what is present day Collingswood was originally inhabited by Lenape Native Americans. Quakers from England and Ireland settled along Newton Creek and Cooper River in the late 17th century, establishing what was known as the Newton Colony and eventually Newton Township. Much of what is now Collingswood was a farm owned by members of the Collings family during the 18th and 19th centuries. Later a section of Haddon Township, Collingswood was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on May 22, 1888, based on the results of a referendum held that same day. That same year, town resident Edward Collings Knight, a wealthy sugar, real estate and railroad magnate, donated the land that became Knight Park. Knight was a descendant of the Collings family for whom the borough is named.

Collingswood has several historic homes including the 1820s-era house of the Collings family, known as the Collings-Knight homestead, which stands at the corner of Browning Road and Collings Avenue, shadowed by the Parkview at Collingswood apartment homes. The Stokes-Lees mansion located in the 600 block of Lees Avenue dates back to 1707, making it one of the oldest houses in Camden County. Sections of Harleigh Cemetery, the location of poet Walt Whitman's tomb, are in Collingswood.

Geography

The Thackara House on Eldridge Avenue, built in 1754, is one of the oldest houses in Collingswood.

Collingswood is located in the Delaware Valley, 5 miles (8.0 km) east of Philadelphia and 35 miles (56 km) southwest of Trenton, the state capital of New Jersey.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 1.95 square miles (5.04 km²), including 1.83 square miles (4.74 km²) of land and 0.12 square miles (0.30 km²) of water (5.90%).

Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the borough include Knight Park.

Collingswood shares land borders with Camden, Cherry Hill, Haddon Township, Oaklyn, Pennsauken Township and Woodlynne.

The Cooper River serves as the northern border of Collingswood and Newton Creek as the southern border.

Demographics

2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 14,186 residents in Collingswood. The median household income was $73,594 in 2015–2019 according to the American Community Survey.

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 13,926 people, 6,299 households, and 3,345 families in the borough. The population density was 7,639.4 per square mile (2,949.6/km²). There were 6,822 housing units at an average density of 3,742.3 per square mile (1,444.9/km²). The racial makeup was 81.78% (11,388) White, 9.11% (1,268) Black or African American, 0.32% (45) Native American, 2.20% (307) Asian, 0.01% (2) Pacific Islander, 4.01% (559) from other races, and 2.56% (357) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.67% (1,347) of the population.

Of the 6,299 households, 22.6% had children under the age of 18; 36.8% were married couples living together; 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present and 46.9% were non-families. Of all households, 37.0% were made up of individuals and 12.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.96.

19.4% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 30.9% from 25 to 44, 28.2% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.0 years. For every 100 females, the population had 91.1 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 87.2 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $58,769 (with a margin of error of +/− $4,635) and the median family income was $74,236 (+/− $8,567). Males had a median income of $54,088 (+/− $5,121) versus $48,816 (+/− $4,244) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $34,126 (+/− $2,577). About 10.7% of families and 12.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.5% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

Arts and culture

The Perkins Center for the Arts

Collingswood's retail district is anchored by Haddon Avenue, a section of County Route 561 which runs from Camden to Haddonfield. Collingswood's downtown is known primarily for its restaurants, which span a variety of cuisines.

On Saturdays from May to November, the borough hosts a farmers' market under the PATCO line, featuring local produce, baked goods, and crafts.

Collingswood sponsors a bike share program, a community greenhouse, as well as a composting program. Beginning in 2009, Collingswood hosts a Green Festival to raise awareness of environmental responsibility.

Monthly "2nd Saturdays" have the borough's art galleries, stores and restaurants hosting new exhibitions by local, national, and international painters, sculptors, and photographers. In 2002, the Moorestown based Perkins Center for the Arts opened a second location in Collingswood.

The borough is home to two theater companies, the Collingswood Community Theatre and the Collingswood Shakespeare Company, which perform throughout the year.

The Scottish Rite Auditorium was built in 1930. The auditorium and its ballroom hosts local theatrical productions and has hosted national recording artists Ben Folds and The Beach Boys.

Collingswood Theater, which now houses retail shops and The Factory, a creative work space

The Rutgers University-Camden based Symphony in C orchestra's administrative and box offices are located on Haddon Avenue. In 2007, the indie-rock band from Collingswood, Goodnight Lights was formed.

The annual Collingswood Book Festival hosts various authors including Camille Paglia and Matthew Quick, whose novel The Silver Linings Playbook is set in the borough (with scenes filmed in Oaklyn, Voorhees Township and the city of Philadelphia), though David O. Russell's film adaptation was set in Delaware County, Pennsylvania and Philadelphia.

Art Within Reach is a program that offers handmade items produced by local artists, with all profits going to the artists. With the 2014 season, the shows are held twice each year at The Factory.

Collingswood has a large LGBTQ community and Mayor Jim Maley was one of a handful of New Jersey mayors to perform midnight civil union ceremonies the day New Jersey's Civil Union law took effect in 2006; in 2013 Mayor Maley performed a number of same sex marriages at the Scottish Rite ballroom after same-sex marriage was recognized in New Jersey. In 2004, The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote about the borough's "fast growing gay and lesbian community," and the statewide LGBT advocacy and education organization Garden State Equality maintained a Southern New Jersey office in Collingswood until 2010.

Parks and recreation

Knight Park is the home to daytime recreation of the town. It is located across the street from Collingswood High School and it hosts the home games of the high school's sports teams, such as women's field hockey, lacrosse, baseball and softball. During the summer months, the borough offers outdoor movies and classical concerts in the park.

Education

The Collingswood Public Schools serve students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. As of the 2021–22 school year, the district, comprised of nine schools, had an enrollment of 2,264 students and 200.4 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.3:1. Schools in the district (with 2021–22 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Collingswood Preschool with 57 students at Penguin and 43 at Oaklyn in PreK, James A. Garfield Elementary School with 131 students in grades K-5, Mark Newbie Elementary School with 138 students in grades K-5, Thomas Sharp Elementary School with 189 students in grades PreK-5, William P. Tatem Elementary School with 244 students in grades K-5, Zane North Elementary School with 149 students in grades K-5, Collingswood Middle School with 526 students in grades 6-8 and Collingswood High School with 777 students in grades 9-12.

Students in ninth through twelfth grades from Woodlynne attend Collingswood High School as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Woodlynne School District. Students in grades six through 12 from Oaklyn attend the middle and high school as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Oaklyn Public School District.

Good Shepherd Regional Catholic School is an elementary school that operates under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden. On April 17, 2020, the Diocese of Camden announced that Good Shepherd was one of five Catholic schools in New Jersey which would close permanently at the end of the school year on June 30, 2020.

Transportation

Collingswood station in Collingswood is the PATCO Speedline station to Philadelphia and Lindenwold.

Public transportation

The Collingswood PATCO Speedline Park and Ride station links the town to the eastern suburbs, Camden and Philadelphia by elevated rail. The station is grouped in ride price with Westmont and Haddonfield.

Collingswood is also served by NJ Transit local routes 403, 450, and 451 to Camden.

Roads and highways

As of May 2010^[update], the borough had a total of 41.33 miles (66.51 km) of roadways, of which 31.06 miles (49.99 km) were maintained by the municipality, 8.29 miles (13.34 km) by Camden County and 1.98 miles (3.19 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

U.S. Route 30 and U.S. Route 130 are the main highways serving Collingswood. County Route 561 also passes through the borough locally called Haddon Avenue.

Media

The Retrospect, a weekly newspaper founded in 1921 that covers local news in Collingswood and the surrounding suburban communities (with a companion news website), is headquartered on Haddon Avenue. In addition, Patch Media has a Collingswood hyperlocal website. Collingswood is in the Philadelphia media market.

Notable people

Actor Michael Landon graduated from Collingswood High School

Judge Ralph Waldo Emerson Donges in 1899

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Collingswood include:

See also

In Spanish: Collingswood para niños