Kenilworth, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Kenilworth, New Jersey
Borough
Kenilworth Municipal Building
Seal
Map of Kenilworth in Union County. Inset: Location of Union County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Kenilworth, New Jersey
Kenilworth, New Jersey Location in Union County, New Jersey Show map of Union County, New Jersey Kenilworth, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Kenilworth, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Union
Incorporated	May 13, 1907
Named for	Kenilworth Castle
Government
• Type	Borough
• Body	Borough Council
Area
• Total	2.15 sq mi (5.57 km2)
• Land	2.15 sq mi (5.56 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.01 km2)  0.19%
Area rank	398th of 565 in state 17th of 21 in county
Elevation	115 ft (35 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	8,427
• Estimate  (2023)	8,259
• Rank	282nd of 565 in state 17th of 21 in county
• Density	3,925.0/sq mi (1,515.5/km2)
• Density rank	166th of 565 in state 14th of 21 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	07033
Area code(s)	908
FIPS code	3403936690
GNIS feature ID	0885267
Website

Kenilworth is a small town called a borough in Union County, New Jersey. In 2020, about 8,427 people lived here. This was a bit more than in 2010.

Kenilworth became an official borough on May 13, 1907. This happened after people voted for it. The land for Kenilworth came from parts of nearby Cranford and Union Township.

History of Kenilworth

Upsala College

In the late 1890s, a group called the New Orange Industrial Association bought land. They divided this land into building lots. They also brought in big businesses. They even convinced Upsala College to move there from Brooklyn. They offered the college money and free land.

The area was first called New Orange. But people often mixed it up with other towns called "Orange" in Essex County. So, when the borough became official in 1907, they chose the name "Kenilworth." This name came from a book club called The Kenilworth Club. The club was named after a famous book called Kenilworth by Sir Walter Scott. This book is about Kenilworth Castle in England.

Geography and Location

Kenilworth covers about 2.15 square miles (5.57 square kilometers). Most of this area is land. Only a tiny part is water.

The Rahway River Parkway runs through the borough. This parkway follows small streams that flow into the Rahway River.

Kenilworth shares its borders with several other towns. To the north and east is Union Township. To the southeast is Roselle Park. To the southwest is Cranford. And to the northwest is Springfield Township.

Parks and Outdoor Fun

Lenape Park is a large wildlife area and park. It covers about 450 acres. It's part of the Rahway River Parkway in Union County. The park also stretches into Cranford, Springfield, and Westfield.

There's a paved path about 4.5 miles long for walking and biking. It goes through Lenape Park and other parks. It ends near North Michigan Avenue in Kenilworth.

Kenilworth Rail Trail Project

Galloping Hill Golf Course in November 2022

People in the area want to create a walking and biking path. This path would be 7.3 miles long. It would follow an old, unused train track called the Rahway Valley Railroad.

The path would start in Summit. It would then go through Springfield and Union. It would cross over Route 22 and enter Kenilworth. In Kenilworth, it would pass by the Galloping Hill Golf Course. It would end near the border of Cranford and Roselle Park.

A part of this trail in Summit is already being built. People are also working to develop the part of the trail in Kenilworth and Roselle Park. The state owns the old train track land. They are clearing it to get ready for the new trail.

Population and People

In 2010, Kenilworth had 7,914 people. There were 2,841 households, which are groups of people living together. The population included people of many different backgrounds. About 15.5% of the people were of Hispanic or Latino heritage.

The median age in Kenilworth was about 40.9 years old. This means half the people were younger and half were older.

Economy and Businesses

Kenilworth is home to some interesting companies. One is Maingear. This company makes custom computers, especially for gaming. All their computers are made in the United States.

Merck & Co., a big pharmaceutical company, moved its main office to Kenilworth in 2015. They used a site that used to be a factory. This site was also the main office for Schering-Plough before Merck bought them. In 2020, Merck announced they would move their main office again, this time to Rahway.

Arts and Culture

Since 2004, the Hudson Shakespeare Company has performed plays at the Kenilworth Library. They have a program called "Bard on the Boulevard." The Friends of the Kenilworth Library help support these events.

Education and Schools

The Kenilworth Public Schools serve students from pre-kindergarten all the way through twelfth grade. In the 2022–23 school year, there were about 1,473 students in two schools.

The schools in Kenilworth are:

• Warren G. Harding Elementary School: This school has about 681 students in grades PreK-6.
• David Brearley Middle School / David Brearley High School: This school has about 774 students in grades 7-12.

Students from Winfield Township also attend David Brearley High School. This is part of a special agreement between the school districts.

Kenilworth also has a private school called St. Theresa School. It's a Catholic school that opened in 1955. It serves students from pre-school through eighth grade.

Transportation and Getting Around

View north along the Garden State Parkway in Kenilworth

As of 2010, Kenilworth had about 29.62 miles of roads. Most of these roads are taken care of by the town.

Two main county roads pass through Kenilworth:

• County Route 509 (also called Boulevard) runs east to west. It connects Kenilworth to towns like Cranford and Union.
• County Route 617 (Michigan Avenue) runs north to south. It connects to U.S. Route 22 and Route 28.

The Garden State Parkway also goes through Kenilworth. There's an exit (Interchange 138) at County Route 509. This makes it easy for people to travel long distances.

Public Transit Options

NJ Transit offers bus service from Kenilworth. You can take a bus to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Buses also go to places in New Jersey, like Elizabeth and Union County College in Cranford. The local bus route is the 58. This route follows an old trolley line from the early 1900s.

The closest train station is Roselle Park. It's less than a mile from Kenilworth. From there, you can take a train directly to Penn Station in New York City.

An old train line called the Rahway Valley Railroad used to run through Kenilworth. The last train left in 1992. The railroad's main office was in Kenilworth for a long time.

Newark Liberty International Airport is about 9 miles away from Kenilworth.

Notable People from Kenilworth

Many interesting people have lived in or are connected to Kenilworth:

• Tashawn Bower (born 1995): A professional football player who plays as a defensive end.
• Mike Chalenski (born 1970): A former professional football player who played for six seasons in the NFL.
• John P. Gallagher (1932–2011): A politician who served in the New Jersey Senate.
• Sheldon Karlin (1950–2000): A distance runner who won the New York City Marathon in 1972.
• Tony Siragusa (1967–2022): A famous defensive tackle for the Indianapolis Colts and Baltimore Ravens. He grew up in Kenilworth and played football and wrestled for David Brearley High School.

See also

In Spanish: Kenilworth (Nueva Jersey) para niños