Denville Township, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Denville Township, New Jersey
Township
Township of Denville
Ayres Farm
Nickname(s):  "Hub of Morris County"
Location in Morris County and the state of New Jersey
Census Bureau map of Denville, New Jersey
Denville Township, New Jersey Location in Morris County, New Jersey Show map of Morris County, New Jersey Denville Township, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Denville Township, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Morris
Incorporated	April 14, 1913
Named for	Daniel Denton
Government
• Type	Faulkner Act (mayor–council)
• Body	Township Council
Area
• Total	12.74 sq mi (32.99 km2)
• Land	11.99 sq mi (31.06 km2)
• Water	0.75 sq mi (1.94 km2)  5.86%
Area rank	185th of 565 in state 14th of 39 in county
Elevation	505 ft (154 m)
Population  (2010 Census)
• Total	16,635
• Estimate  (2019)	16,446
• Rank	152nd of 566 in state 12th of 39 in county
• Density	1,401.8/sq mi (541.2/km2)
• Density rank	346th of 566 in state 21st of 39 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	07834
Area code(s)	973
FIPS code	3402717650
GNIS feature ID	0882204

Denville Township is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, located 35 miles (56 km) west of Manhattan. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 16,635, reflecting an increase of 811 (+5.1%) from the 15,824 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 2,012 (+14.6%) from the 13,812 counted in the 1990 Census.

Well known as the "Hub of Morris County" for its strategic location along major transportation routes at the center of the county. Denville is notably home to an "eclectic downtown" in addition to four membership lake communities developed a century ago as summer colonies.

NJ Transit rail service is available at the Denville station, a large three-platform station serving both the Morristown and the Montclair-Boonton train lines, with service to Hoboken Terminal or to Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan via Midtown Direct. It is part of the New York City metropolitan area.

Denville was formed as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 14, 1913, from portions of Rockaway Township. In 1988, as part of the town's 75th anniversary celebration, a time capsule was buried that contained artifacts from that era.

History

Native Lenape Native Americans were known to travel the Minisink Trail for centuries before Europeans arrived in New Jersey. Part of that trail cut across what is now southern Denville, roughly following the course of Route 10 and Mount Pleasant Turnpike. Some research has indicated that there was a Lenape campsite along the trail in Denville, on or near the Ayres / Knuth Farm Historic Site along Route 10.

When Dutch and English settlers began to arrive in the new world in the early 17th century, the Minisink Trail was the likely route they traveled to explore the interior. Daniel Denton, one of the purchasers of what is known as the Elizabethtown Tract in 1664, led an expedition into the interior of northern New Jersey. In 1670, he wrote the first English language description of the area. Some researchers conclude that the name "Denville" derives from Denton.

Some researchers have suggested that European settlers began to come to the Denville area as early as 1690. These early settlers were primarily Dutch and English from Long Island, Quakers from Philadelphia, and Germans. William Penn and several other proprietors began to survey and stake out lands in the Denville area around 1715. These surveys are the first documentation of Denville. Between 1730 and 1760, several forges and mills were erected in Denville along the Rockaway River and the Denbrook. A number of communities associated with the forges and mills began to emerge. Ninkey and Franklin in southern Denville developed around the forges there of the same names. Denville village developed around the Job Allen Iron Works. Early developers of Denville, such as the Hussa family and A.B Crane & Co., were intrinsic in shaping the residential and lake communities.

A letter from early Denville settler John Hinchman in the year 1800, recounts some of the oral history of Denville from 50 years earlier, as stated to him by some of the elders of the time. Hinchman explains in his letter that the naming of Denville can be traced to a "den" of wild animals located in the swampy regions along the Denbrook and Rockaway River. The animals would bask on a knoll that juts out into the meadows where they were hunted by the native Lenape. This "den", Hinchman states, was the basis for the name of Denville and the Denbrook.

Geography

Broadway, Denville's main street

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 12.641 square miles (32.741 km²), including 11.867 square miles (30.736 km²) of land and 0.774 square miles (2.005 km²) of water (6.12%).

Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Cedar Lake, Cooks Pond, Cooper Lake, Franklin, Indian Lake, Lake Arrowhead, Lake Estling, Lake Openaka, Openaka Lake, Rock Ridge, Snake Hill and Union Hill.

Neighboring towns include Morris County communities Mountain Lakes and Parsippany-Troy Hills to the east, Randolph to the south and west, Rockaway Borough to the west and Rockaway Township to the north and west as well as Boonton Township to the north.

The Tourne county park is in portions of Denville, Boonton Township and Mountain Lakes. The park covers more than 540 acres (220 ha) of undeveloped land and offers a view of the New York City skyline from its peak standing 897 feet (273 m) high.

Denville has 11 named bodies of water within township limits. The four major residential lake communities are Cedar Lake, Indian Lake, Rock Ridge and Lake Arrowhead (including Great Bay and Bay of Deep Waters). Estling Lake is a private summer community, which has some full year residents. The three minor lakes are Cooper Lake, Hollstein Lake, and Openaki Lake. The town also has Cooks Pond, a recreational lake available for public use by membership.

Most residents of Denville live in the non-lake communities in the township, including Bald Hill, Union Hill, and Beacon Hill, communities among others.

The game of American flag rugby was first played in Denville, introduced to the town by resident Tom Feury.

Demographics

2010 Census

As of the census of 2010, there were 16,635 people, 6,432 households, and 4,509 families residing in the township. The population density was 1,401.8 per square mile (541.2/km²). There were 6,734 housing units at an average density of 567.4 per square mile (219.1/km²)^*. The racial makeup of the township was 89.49% (14,887) White, 1.42% (236) Black or African American, 0.12% (20) Native American, 6.52% (1,084) Asian, 0.01% (1) Pacific Islander, 0.78% (129) from other races, and 1.67% (278) from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.31% (883) of the population.

There were 6,432 households out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.8% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.9% were non-families. 25.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.12.

In the township, the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 23.0% from 25 to 44, 31.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.4 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and old there were 87.9 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006-2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $103,435 (with a margin of error of +/- $5,379) and the median family income was $122,600 (+/- $7,473). Males had a median income of $85,571 (+/- $9,730) versus $61,382 (+/- $2,135) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $49,990 (+/- $3,235). About none of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.8% of those under age 18 and 1.7% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

I-80 westbound at the exit for US 46 and Route 53 in Denville

Roads and highways

As of May 2010^[update], the township had a total of 94.01 miles (151.29 km) of roadways, of which 83.83 miles (134.91 km) were maintained by the municipality, 2.60 miles (4.18 km) by Morris County and 7.58 miles (12.20 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

Route 10, Route 53, U.S. Route 46 and Interstate 80 pass through the Township.

Public transportation

The Denville station offers train service to Hoboken Terminal or to Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan via Midtown Direct on NJ Transit's Morristown Line and Montclair-Boonton Line. Denville is actually two stations located within the same property. The Morristown Line station is two platforms located on a curve while the Montclair-Boonton Line station is a single platform next to the closed Denville Tower.

NJ Transit offers local bus service on the 875 and 880 routes, which replaced service that had been offered on the MCM2 and MCM10 routes until June 2010, when NJ Transit pulled the subsidy.

Denville is served by Lakeland Bus Lines with frequent service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan.

Newark Liberty International Airport, is located 27.5 miles (44.3 km) southeast of Denville in Newark, New Jersey. Other nearby airports include LaGuardia Airport (43 miles from Denville) and John F. Kennedy International Airport (54 miles from Denville), both of which are in Queens, New York City.

Popular culture

• The farm scene from the film version of Torch Song Trilogy was filmed at the Knuth Farm.
• Saint Clare's Hospital was where Tony and Christopher were taken after their accident in episode 83 of The Sopranos, "Kennedy and Heidi".
• Married to Jonas, starring Kevin Jonas and wife Danielle, is filmed at their house in the township.

Community

• Our Hometown: Celebrating Denville's Centennial, a feature-length documentary about the history of the township was released in June 2013, in conjunction with Denville's centennial celebration. It features audio interviews with local historians, business leaders, and politicians. The piece was directed by local filmmaker Patrick Flynn.

Sports

The game of American flag rugby was first played in Denville, introduced to the township by resident Tom Feury.

Education

The Denville Township School District serve public school students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprised of three schools, had an enrollment of 1,629 students and 152.9 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.7:1. Schools in the district (with 2018–19 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Lakeview Elementary School with 649 students in grades PreK-5, Riverview Elementary School with 382 students in grades K-5 and Valleyview Middle School with 587 students in grades 6–8. Riverview Elementary School was one of nine schools in New Jersey honored in 2020 by the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program, which recognizes high student achievement.

Students in public school for ninth through twelfth grades typically attend Morris Knolls High School, which is located in Denville, but has a Rockaway address, along with most students from Rockaway Township. The high school is part of the Morris Hills Regional High School District, which also serves the residential communities of Rockaway Borough and Wharton. As of the 2018–19 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 1,434 students and 128.4 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.2:1.

St. Mary's Prep is a K-8 elementary school founded in 1954, and Morris Catholic High School is a four-year comprehensive Roman Catholic regional high school that was founded in 1957, both of which are operated as part of the Diocese of Paterson.

Assumption College for Sisters is a two-year Roman Catholic women's college. Founded in 1953 through an affiliation with Seton Hall University, Assumption is run by the Sisters of Christian Charity. Primarily designed to prepare women for work in religious vocations, Assumption specializes in theological studies and the liberal arts. It is the last remaining sisters' college, or college primarily designed to educate nuns, in the United States. In 2014, the school relocated to a convent on the campus of Morris Catholic High School.

Notable people

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

• Pete Abrams (born 1970), cartoonist; writer and illustrator of Sluggy Freelance
• Marthina Aguirre (born 2001), footballer who plays as a midfielder for college team South Alabama Jaguars and the Ecuador women's national team.
• Frank Stephen Baldwin (1838–1925), calculating machine designer
• Trevor Baptiste (born 1996), professional lacrosse midfielder for the Boston Cannons
• Brian Bergen (born 1979), politician who represents the 25th Legislative District in the New Jersey General Assembly.
• Bill Bradley (born 1943), former pro basketball player and U.S. Senator
• Johnny Cardoso (born 2001), soccer midfielder who plays for Internacional
• Neal Casal (1968-2019), guitarist, singer, songwriter and photographer; has performed with the Chris Robinson Brotherhood and Hard Working Americans
• Todd Coolman (born 1954), jazz bassist and music professor
• Jerome Corsi (born 1946), author and conspiracy theorist
• Jermaine Eluemunor (born 1994), offensive tackle for the Baltimore Ravens
• Russ Flanagan (1974–2008), journalist
• Lexie Fyfe (born 1969 as MaryBeth Bentley), professional wrestler
• Janice Huff (born 1960), meteorologist on WNBC Channel 4 in New York City
• Danielle Jonas (born 1986), reality television personality, social media influencer and hairdresser, known for starring on the E! Entertainment network's reality show Married to Jonas, alongside her husband Kevin Jonas
• Kevin Jonas (born 1987), actor/musician of the Jonas Brothers; appears on E!'s Married to Jonas with his wife, Danielle Deleasa
• Robert Lazzarini (born 1965), artist
• John Lees (born 1943), contemporary expressionist artist and art professor
• Shea Morenz (born 1974), former football and baseball player; current CEO of Stratfor Global Intelligence
• Vickie Paynter (born 1971), former professional tennis player.
• Lisa Rieffel (born 1975), actress, best known for her role as Emily Weston on Empty Nest
• Babe Ruth (1895–1948), baseball player, vacationed in the summer at a house on Cedar Lake
• Morton Salkind (1932–2014), politician; Mayor of Marlboro Township, 1969–1975; served in the New Jersey General Assembly, 1974–1976
• Marvin R. Sambur (born 1946), former Assistant Secretary of the Air Force (Acquisition)
• Laura San Giacomo (born 1962), actress who played the role of Maya Gallo on the TV sitcom Just Shoot Me!
• Tom Verlaine (born 1949), singer, songwriter and guitarist, best known as the frontman of the rock band Television.
• Kevin Walker (born 1965), linebacker who played in the NFL for the Cincinnati Bengals

Images for kids

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  Saint Clare's Hospital, Denville's largest employer

See also

In Spanish: Municipio de Denville (Nueva Jersey) para niños