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Jamesburg, New Jersey
Borough
Borough of Jamesburg
Jamesburg as seen across Lake Manalapan from Thompson County Park
Jamesburg as seen across Lake Manalapan from Thompson County Park
Jamesburg highlighted in Middlesex County. Inset: Location of Middlesex County in New Jersey.
Jamesburg highlighted in Middlesex County. Inset: Location of Middlesex County in New Jersey.
Jamesburg, New Jersey is located in Middlesex County, New Jersey
Jamesburg, New Jersey
Jamesburg, New Jersey
Location in Middlesex County, New Jersey
Jamesburg, New Jersey is located in New Jersey
Jamesburg, New Jersey
Jamesburg, New Jersey
Location in New Jersey
Jamesburg, New Jersey is located in the United States
Jamesburg, New Jersey
Jamesburg, New Jersey
Location in the United States
Country  United States
State  New Jersey
County Middlesex
Incorporated March 19, 1887
Named for James Buckelew
Government
 • Type Borough
 • Body Borough Council
Area
 • Total 0.89 sq mi (2.31 km2)
 • Land 0.88 sq mi (2.29 km2)
 • Water 0.01 sq mi (0.02 km2)  0.90%
Area rank 517th of 565 in state
24th of 25 in county
Elevation
85 ft (26 m)
Population
 • Total 5,915
 • Estimate 
(2019)
5,885
 • Rank 348th of 566 in state
23rd of 25 in county
 • Density 6,741.8/sq mi (2,603.0/km2)
 • Density rank 68th of 566 in state
5th of 25 in county
Time zone UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code
08831
Area code(s) 732 exchanges 521,605 and 656
FIPS code 3402334890
GNIS feature ID 0885263
Website

Jamesburg is a borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 5,915, reflecting a decline of 110 (-1.8%) from the 6,025 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 731 (+13.8%) from the 5,294 counted in the 1990 Census.

History

Jamesburg was formed as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 19, 1887, when it was created from portions of Monroe Township, based on the results of a referendum held on March 15, 1887. Jamesburg's incorporation was confirmed on April 15, 1915. The borough was named for James Buckelew, who established a mill that became the nucleus of what became Jamesburg.

On July 17, 2005, approximately 7 to 8 inches (18 to 20 cm) of rain fell in Jamesburg, flooding areas on West Railroad Avenue, East Church Street, Pergola Avenue, Willow Street, Forsgate Drive, and Gatzmer Avenue. Roughly 75 to 100 families were evacuated from their homes and housed at the John F. Kennedy Elementary School.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 0.883 square miles (2.289 km2), including 0.877 square miles (2.272 km2) of land and 0.006 square miles (0.016 km2) of water (0.71%).

The borough is the older and more urban core area located in the center of and completely surrounded by Monroe Township, making it part of 21 pairs of "doughnut towns" in the state, where one municipality entirely surrounds another.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1880 681
1890 887 30.2%
1900 1,063 19.8%
1910 2,075 95.2%
1920 2,053 −1.1%
1930 2,048 −0.2%
1940 2,128 3.9%
1950 2,307 8.4%
1960 2,853 23.7%
1970 4,584 60.7%
1980 4,114 −10.3%
1990 5,294 28.7%
2000 6,025 13.8%
2010 5,915 −1.8%
2019 (est.) 5,885 −0.5%
Population sources:
1880-1890 1890-1920
1890-1910 1910-1930
1930-1990 2000 2010

2010 Census

As of the census of 2010, there were 5,915 people, 2,172 households, and 1,492 families residing in the borough. The population density was 6,741.8 per square mile (2,603.0/km2). There were 2,267 housing units at an average density of 2,583.9 per square mile (997.6/km2)*. The racial makeup of the borough was 73.90% (4,371) White, 8.84% (523) Black or African American, 0.85% (50) Native American, 4.53% (268) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 9.42% (557) from other races, and 2.47% (146) from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic or Latino of any race were 22.38% (1,324) of the population.

There were 2,172 households out of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.0% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.3% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.26.

In the borough, the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35.9 years. For every 100 females there were 102.2 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and old there were 100.7 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006-2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $52,169 (with a margin of error of +/- $10,781) and the median family income was $69,531 (+/- $13,862). Males had a median income of $49,615 (+/- $9,412) versus $50,164 (+/- $5,717) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $28,668 (+/- $3,584). About 4.9% of families and 8.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.7% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation

Buckelew Mansion
Historic Buckelew Mansion, overlooks Lake Manalapan

Thompson Park is located on the south western edge of Jamesburg and is also partially in the neighboring town of Monroe. Thompson Park takes up at total of 675 acres (2.73 km2). The 30-acre (120,000 m2) Manalapan Lake is located on the eastern edge of the park. The park in total has four tennis courts, four basketball courts, two handball courts, three baseball fields, a softball field, many soccer fields, multiple picnic groves equipped with grills, three hiking/biking trails, fishing, animal haven, and a gazebo.

The park has three entrances. Two are located on Perrineville Road, and one is located on Forsgate Drive.

Monroe Township Soccer Club hosts a tournament every year on the soccer fields that are located in the park.

Transportation

Roads and highways

2018-05-18 13 29 01 View west along Middlesex County Route 522 (Rhode Hall Road) just west of Middlesex County Route 698 (Dayton Road) in Jamesburg, Middlesex County, New Jersey
County Route 522 in Jamesburg

As of May 2010, the borough had a total of 16.53 miles (26.60 km) of roadways, of which 11.67 miles (18.78 km) were maintained by the municipality and 4.86 miles (7.82 km) by Middlesex County.

No Interstate, U.S. or state highways serve Jamesburg directly. The only major roads that pass through are county routes, including County Route 522, County Route 612, County Route 615 and County Route 625 (Perrineville Road).

The closest limited access road is the New Jersey Turnpike (Interstate 95) at Exit 8A in surrounding Monroe Township. Route 612 provides a connection between the Turnpike/Route 32 and CR 520.

Public transportation

In the 19th & 20th centuries, Jamesburg Borough and Monroe Township had a major railway in the area, which was the Freehold and Jamesburg Agricultural Railroad. This railway was owned and operated by the Camden & Amboy Railroad Company (C&A), in which surveying for the line began on September 8, 1851, grading began on October 19, 1852, and the first track was laid on April 4, 1853. The first section of line was opened on July 18, 1853. The establishment of the Freehold & Jamesburg Agricultural Railroad caused this region to become a transportation hub. The Freehold and Jamesburg Railroad was abandoned by the early 1930s. A 2.8-mile long (4.5 km) portion of the former railroad's right-of-way was later approved to be sold by the New Jersey Board of Public Utility Commissioners (PUC) to Jersey Central Power & Light Company in 1966, with occasional freight service still being utilized through the Freehold Industrial Track.

Middlesex County Area Transit (MCAT) shuttles provide service to and from Jamesburg on routes operating across the county. The M1 route operates between Jamesburg and the New Brunswick train station and the M2 Route connects Jamesburg, Helmetta and Spotswood with East Brunswick including the Brunswick Square Mall.

Education

The Jamesburg Public Schools serves students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. As of the 2017–18 school year, the district, comprised of two schools had an enrollment of 702 students and 54.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 13.0:1. Schools in the district (with 2017-18 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are John F. Kennedy Elementary School (493 students; in grades PreK-5) and Grace M. Breckwedel Middle School (201; 6-8).

Jamesburg High School, founded in 1905, graduated its last class in June 1979. Since 1980, Jamesburg's high school students attend Monroe Township High School in Monroe Township, as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Monroe Township School District. As of the 2017–18 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 2,307 students and 173.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 13.3:1.

With annual tuition costs per student at Monroe Township High School rising past $16,000 as the Monroe district has added debt service costs into their tuition charges, the Jamesburg Public Schools looked for an alternate high school in the area to send students at lower cost, which would have started with the freshman class in 2012–13, though students already enrolled at Monroe Township High School would continue their attendance there until they graduate. The Jamesburg district contacted 18 districts and received interest from high schools in the Freehold Regional High School District, Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District, Old Bridge Township Public Schools, South Amboy Public Schools and the West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District, which had been sent demographic information in July 2011 about the Jamesburg high school population as part of their review process. By October 2011, the district decided to maintain sending students to Monroe Township, as had been done since 1979.

Eighth grade students from all of Middlesex County are eligible to apply to attend the high school programs offered by the Middlesex County Vocational and Technical Schools, a county-wide vocational school district that offers full-time career and technical education at Middlesex County Academy in Edison, the Academy for Allied Health and Biomedical Sciences in Woodbridge Township and at its East Brunswick, Perth Amboy and Piscataway technical high schools, with no tuition charged to students for attendance.

Notable people

See also (related category): People from Jamesburg, New Jersey

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

  • Harrison Woodhull Crosby, in 1847 became the first to can tomatoes.
  • Reed Gusciora (born 1960), politician who previously served in the General Assembly from 1996 to 2018 representing the 15th Legislative District and is currently the mayor of Trenton.
  • Frankie Hayes (1914–1955), catcher in Major League Baseball from 1933 to 1947 who batted and threw right-handed, and played for the Philadelphia Athletics for most of his career.
  • George Edward Pendray (1901-1987), space flight proponent.

See also

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