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Freehold Township, New Jersey
Township
Township of Freehold
Walker-Combs-Hartshorne Farmstead
Walker-Combs-Hartshorne Farmstead
Official seal of Freehold Township, New Jersey
Seal
Motto(s): 
Western Monmouth's Family Town
Map of Freehold Township in Monmouth County. Inset: Location of Monmouth County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Map of Freehold Township in Monmouth County. Inset: Location of Monmouth County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Freehold Township, New Jersey
Census Bureau map of Freehold Township, New Jersey
Freehold Township, New Jersey is located in the United States
Freehold Township, New Jersey
Freehold Township, New Jersey
Location in the United States
Country  United States
State  New Jersey
County Monmouth
Established October 31, 1693
Incorporated February 21, 1798
Government
 • Type Township
 • Body Township Committee
Area
 • Total 38.88 sq mi (100.71 km2)
 • Land 38.65 sq mi (100.11 km2)
 • Water 0.23 sq mi (0.59 km2)  0.59%
Area rank 59th of 565 in state
4th of 53 in county
Elevation
118 ft (36 m)
Population
 • Total 35,369
 • Rank 62nd of 566 in state
5th of 53 in county
 • Density 939.8/sq mi (362.9/km2)
 • Density rank 393rd of 566 in state
45th of 53 in county
Time zone UTC– 05:00 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC– 04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code
07728
Area code(s) 732/848 and 908 (mobile)
FIPS code 3402525230
GNIS feature ID 0882116

Freehold Township is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. Freehold Township is a regional commercial hub for Central New Jersey. It is a bedroom community of New York City, located within the Raritan Valley region of the much larger New York Metropolitan Area. The township is located roughly 35 miles (56 km) away from Manhattan and about 15 miles (24 km) away from Staten Island. As of the 2020 United States Census, the township's population was 35,369, reflecting a decrease of 815 (-2.3%) from the 36,184 counted in the 2010 Census.

Freehold Township was first formed on October 31, 1693, and was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21, 1798. Portions of Freehold Township were taken to form Upper Freehold Township (c. 1731), so some wills and official records following the split referred to "Lower Freehold Township" although the official name has always been Freehold Township. Additional portions formed Millstone Township (February 28, 1844), Jackson Township (March 6, 1844), Atlantic Township (February 18, 1847; now Colts Neck Township), Marlboro Township (February 17, 1848) and Manalapan Township (March 9, 1848). Freehold town was formed within the township on March 25, 1869, and formally separated when it was reconstituted as a borough on April 15, 1919, including additional portions of the township.

The Battle of Monmouth was fought in June 1778 in what has been preserved as Monmouth Battlefield State Park, which is in Freehold Township and Manalapan Township.

Economy

Due to suburbanization within the township, its convenient location near the Jersey Shore, along with its proximity to major cities such as New York City, Newark, Trenton, and Philadelphia, the township has been a longtime economic center in the Central Jersey region.

Agriculture

One of many crop farms in the township
Wemrock Orchards on Route 33 Business
Battleview Orchards on Wemrock Road
Fruit picking at Battleview Orchards
Smaller orchard on Ely Harmony Road
Community garden on the premises of the historic Oakley Farmstead

Despite suburbanization in recent decades, the township's agricultural roots have still been preserved. There are numerous crop farms, thoroughbred farms, sod farms, nurseries, and orchards in the township. Notable farms in the township include Brock Farms, Battleview Orchards, Clayton Family Farm, Crawford Farms, the historic Oakley Farm, Reid Sod Farm, and Wemrock Orchards.

Tomasello Winery (originally based in Hammonton) has a wine tasting room located in Wemrock Orchards. The winery offers over 50 homegrown wines for tasting sessions (reservations strongly encouraged), but the winery is also open to retail transactions of their stocked wine. There are other wineries that are nearby to the township, including Four JG's Orchards & Vineyards in Colts Neck, Cream Ridge Winery in Cream Ridge, Working Dog Winery in Robbinsville, and Hopewell Valley Vineyards in Hopewell.

Commerce

Established in 1853, making it the nation's oldest half-mile harness racing track, Freehold Raceway offers horse lovers and bettors an opportunity to see harness racing.

Completed in August 1990, the Freehold Raceway Mall was constructed at a cost of $125 million on a site covering more than 175 acres (71 ha) across from the Freehold Raceway over U.S. 9. A super-regional high-end shopping mall, it has a gross leasable area of 1,600,000 square feet (150,000 m2), making it the second-largest mall in the state, behind Westfield Garden State Plaza.

Outside of the Freehold Raceway Mall, the township itself has many other shopping malls and plazas. Diane & Co. is a dress shop that has been featured on the Oxygen Network's show Jersey Couture.

iPlay America is an indoor family entertainment and event center that opened in November 2011, offering rides, arcade and carnival games, along with Topgolf, music venues, laser tag, shops, bars, and restaurants.

Six Flags Great Adventure is an amusement park located in neighboring Jackson. In 2012, Six Flags combined its 160-acre (65 ha) Great Adventure with its 350-acre (140 ha) Wild Safari animal park to form Six Flags Great Adventure & Safari park, making it the second-largest theme park in the world following Disney's Animal Kingdom. The massive amusement park is popular with Freehold residents, along with visitors from other parts of New Jersey, New York City, and Philadelphia.

Main Street

Freehold Borough (which the township surrounds) is home to Downtown Freehold, located on East and West Main Street (County Route 537). This downtown section has various eateries, bars, boutiques, historical sites, and other excursions. Within this section of town, there have been plans to revitalize the downtown area, as outlined in the Freehold Center Core Revitalization Plan (2008), in which NJ Transit has sponsored a project in transforming the Freehold Center Bus Station into a Transit Village. This new designation would foster in the creation of a transit-oriented development zoning district around by the Freehold Center Bus Station between West Main Street (County Route 537) and Throckmorton Street (County Route 522). This would have a huge positive impact to the Freehold area economy.

There are many other shopping destinations right outside of the Freeholds region, including the Manalapan EpiCentre (formerly, the Manalapan Mall) in Manalapan, the Jackson Premium Outlets in Jackson, and The Shoppes in Old Bridge.

Manufacturing

Freehold Township and Borough began to grow in commercial and industrial manufacturing of goods during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Among most prominent of companies that began doing operations in the township was Brockway Glass, which had built a facility on Center Street in 1955. Brockway Glass then proceeded to build additional facilities in the region in 1956, 1967, 1969 & 1976. The company ceased operations in the township in 1991, in which the site is now operated by the Freehold campus location for Iron Mountain, an enterprise information management services company.

Nestle opened a production plant in 1948, which is still in operation and has expanded its operations in logistics and engineering. 3M opened a magnetic tape production facility in 1957.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1790 3,785
1810 4,784
1820 5,146 7.6%
1830 5,481 6.5%
1840 6,303 15.0%
1850 2,642 −58.1%
1860 3,811 44.2%
1870 4,231 11.0%
1880 1,870 −55.8%
1890 2,165 15.8%
1900 2,234 3.2%
1910 2,329 4.3%
1920 1,498 −35.7%
1930 1,720 14.8%
1940 2,459 43.0%
1950 3,442 40.0%
1960 4,779 38.8%
1970 13,185 175.9%
1980 19,202 45.6%
1990 24,710 28.7%
2000 31,537 27.6%
2010 36,184 14.7%
2020 35,369 −2.3%
Population sources:
1800–1920 1840 1850–1870
1850 1870 1880–1890
1890–1910 1910–1930
1930–1990 2000 2010
* = Lost territory in previous decade.

2010 Census

As of the census of 2010, there were 36,184 people, 12,577 households, and 9,382 families residing in the township. The population density was 939.8 per square mile (362.9/km2). There were 13,140 housing units at an average density of 341.3 per square mile (131.8/km2)*. The racial makeup of the township was 84.32% (30,509) White, 5.34% (1,931) Black or African American, 0.13% (47) Native American, 7.03% (2,544) Asian, 0.02% (7) Pacific Islander, 1.47% (531) from other races, and 1.70% (615) from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.76% (2,808) of the population.

There were 12,577 households out of which 36.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.4% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were non-families. 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.24.

In the township, the population was spread out with 24.3% under the age of 18, 7.5% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 30.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.3 years. For every 100 females there were 97.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and old there were 96.9 males.

West Freehold
The West Freehold neighborhood of Freehold Township

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $94,735 (with a margin of error of +/- $5,749) and the median family income was $112,094 (+/- $4,124). Males had a median income of $85,099 (+/- $6,540) versus $48,926 (+/- $4,407) for females. The per capita income for the township was $40,504 (+/- $2,006). About 2.8% of families and 3.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.6% of those under age 18 and 4.0% of those age 65 or over.

Sports

Youth of Freehold
Youth of Freehold playing soccer
Parkgoers at Lake Topanemus
Lake Topanemus on a calm afternoon

In 2004, the Freehold Township Senior League baseball team won the Senior League World Series. Led by manager Mike Brach of Freehold Township, the team became the first from Freehold Township to make it to the World Series, let alone win it.

In 2016, Freehold Township Little League 12u baseball team won the New Jersey state championship and made it to the Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament, the first team from the township to take the state title since 2003.

Education

Freehold Township High School front
Freehold Township High School located on Elton-Adelphia Road

Public school students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade are educated by the Freehold Township Schools. As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprised of eight schools, had an enrollment of 3,737 students and 329.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.3:1. Schools in the district (with 2018–19 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Early Childhood Learning Center (97 students; in grades PreK), C. Richard Applegate School (424; K-5), Joseph J. Catena School (488; K-5), Laura Donovan School (436; K-5), Marshall W. Errickson School (435; K-5), West Freehold School (501; K-5), Clifton T. Barkalow School (661; 6–8) and Dwight D. Eisenhower Middle School (686; 6–8).

Students in ninth through twelfth grades attend either Freehold Township High School or Freehold High School (based on home address), as part of the Freehold Regional High School District (FRHSD) The district also serves students from Colts Neck Township, Englishtown, Farmingdale, Freehold Borough, Howell Township, Manalapan Township and Marlboro Township. Freehold Township High School is home to the Contemporary Global Studies Learning Center and Freehold High School hosts the Medical Sciences Learning Center; each program admits students on a selective basis from all over the Freehold Regional High School District. of the 2018–19 school year, Freehold Township High School had an enrollment of 2,043 students and 137.3 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 14.9:1, while Freehold Borough High School had an enrollment of 1,422 students and 103.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 13.7:1. The FRHSD board of education has nine members, who are elected to three-year terms from each of the constituent districts. Each member is allocated a fraction of a vote that totals to nine points, with Freehold Township allocated one member, who has 1.4 votes.

High school students in Freehold Township have the opportunity of attending vocational schools such as Biotechnology High School, High Technology High School, the Marine Academy of Science and Technology, Communications High School, and the Academy of Allied Health & Science, which are part of the Monmouth County Vocational School District, which are available to all students in Monmouth County on a selective basis.

Rutgers University, in partnership with Brookdale Community College offers several bachelor's degree completion programs at Brookdale's Freehold Campus.

Infrastructure

Public safety

Emergency services

Freehold Township offers different departments of varying emergency services. The following are the emergency service departments in Freehold Township:

Fire Prevention

The township offers various fire prevention programs for Freehold Township residents.

Fire prevention courses

Freehold Township offers programs designed to prepare children on the importance of fire safety. These courses are engaging with students and are offered at Township schools and other municipal buildings.

Fire squads

Freehold Township has two volunteer fire companies:

  • Freehold Township Independent Fire Company #1 is located on Stillwells Corner Road in West Freehold
  • Freehold Township Independent Fire Company #2: East Freehold Fire Company (founded 1972) is located on Kozloski Road in East Freehold
First aid squads

Freehold EMS (founded 1941) is located in Freehold Borough and offers pre-hospital care to residents of both the borough and the township.

Transportation

Roads and highways

2021-07-22 11 26 54 View north along U.S. Route 9 from the overpass for New Jersey State Route 33 (Freehold Bypass) in Freehold Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey
US 9 northbound at the Route 33 interchange

As of May 2010, the township had a total of 200.13 miles (322.08 km) of roadways, of which 158.62 miles (255.27 km) were maintained by the municipality, 26.49 miles (42.63 km) by Monmouth County and 15.02 miles (24.17 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

2020-09-15 09 18 21 View west along New Jersey State Route 33 (Freehold Bypass) at the exit for U.S. Route 9 SOUTH (Lakewood) in Freehold Township, Monmouth County, New Jersey
Route 33 westbound at the US 9 interchange

Several major roads pass through the township. Major state routes include US Route 9, Route 18, Route 33 (also known as the Freehold Bypass), and Route 79. Major county routes that pass through are County Route 522, 524, 527, and 537.

Access to Interstate 195 is available in neighboring Howell via Route 9 or Jackson via CR 537. The Garden State Parkway entrance at exit 100 is about ten miles east on Route 33 in Tinton Falls. The New Jersey Turnpike entrance at exit 8 is about ten miles west on Route 33 in East Windsor.

Public transportation

Rail

In the 19th & 20th centuries, Freehold Borough and Freehold Township had two major railways. One major railway in the area was the Freehold and Jamesburg Agricultural Railroad, which was owned and operated by the Camden & Amboy Railroad Company (C&A). 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 helped make the Freeholds a transportation hub. The other major railway in the area was the Central Railroad of New Jersey, which had a branch that connected the still-active former Penn Central line from Jamesburg to CNJ's Seashore Branch and the New York and Long Branch line (now owned by NJ Transit) at Matawan.

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. Meanwhile, The Central Railroad of New Jersey went into bankruptcy in the early 1970s and entered into Conrail on April 1, 1976, with its freight service on the rails from Freehold to Matawan being terminated in 1979 (the rails were removed in 1980). Today, it is mostly a rail-trail, converting into the Henry Hudson Trail.

The Monmouth Ocean Middlesex Line is a proposal by New Jersey Transit to restore passenger railway service to the region, by utilizing the same tracks as the Freehold Industrial Track. The township and its neighboring borough would be potential stops for the 'MOM' Line.

As of now, the nearest train stations to the township are located in Aberdeen-Matawan, Asbury Park, and Long Branch on the North Jersey Coast Line, and Metropark in Iselin, New Brunswick, and Princeton Junction on the Northeast Corridor Line.

Busing

NJ Transit provides bus service to communities along US Route 9 from Lakewood Township to Old Bridge Township, and to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City via bus routes 131, 135 and 139, to Newark Liberty International Airport and the City of Newark at large on the 67 route, to Jersey City on the 64 and 67, as well as to Six Flags Great Adventure and shopping via local service on the 833, 836 and 307 routes. Bus service is available from Route 9 to Wall Street in New York's Financial District via the Academy Bus Line.

CentraState Front view 2
Front of CentraState Medical Center

Bus service is available to Philadelphia from Freehold Township via transfer in Lakewood. There are several bus stops to the points listed above located along Route 9 in the township. Freehold Township has two commuter parking lots available only to township residents, which are located at the Freehold Mall Shopping Center and on Schibanoff Lane.

Ferry

Ferry service is available through the SeaStreak service in Highlands, a trip that involves about a 30-35 minute drive from Freehold Township (depending on the section of town) to reach the departing terminal. SeaStreak offers ferry service to New York City with trips to Pier 11 (on the East River at Wall Street) and East 35th Street in Manhattan. The ferry service also offers seasonal travel, such as to the public beaches on Sandy Hook, baseball games at Yankee Stadium and Citi Field, trips to Broadway matinees, Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts, college football games at West Point, fall foliage in the Hudson Valley, and to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, among other excursions.

Healthcare

CentraState Medical Center is a regional hospital located in the township. Serving parts of Monmouth, Ocean, Middlesex, and Mercer counties in central New Jersey, the hospital is a partner of Atlantic Health System and is affiliated with Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. The facility has 287 beds and is part of CentraState Healthcare System, the county's fourth-largest employer. Other regional hospitals near the township include the Lakewood division of Monmouth Medical Center and the Old Bridge division of Raritan Bay Medical Center.

The closest major university hospitals to the township are Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune Township, Penn Medicine Princeton Medical Center in Plainsboro Township, and Saint Peter's University Hospital and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick.

Notable people

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

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

  • Amanda Anisimova (born 2001), professional tennis player.
  • Danny Bohn (born 1988), NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series driver.
  • Brad Brach (born 1986), professional baseball player
  • Brian Brikowski (born 1989), defensive end who played in the Canadian Football League with the Montreal Alouettes.
  • Dave Cantin (born 1979), entrepreneur.
  • Danielle Colaprico (born 1992), midfielder for the Chicago Red Stars of the National Women's Soccer League.
  • Katie Dippold, comedy writer, actress, and improvisational comedian who has co-produced and written for Parks and Recreation.
  • Joann Downey (born 1966), politician representing the 11th Legislative District in the New Jersey General Assembly.
  • Clare Farragher (born 1941), member of the New Jersey General Assembly from 1988 to 2002 who also served as mayor of Freehold Township.
  • Michele Fitzgerald (born 1990), winner of Survivor: Kaôh Rōng in 2016, the 32nd season of the reality series Survivor.
  • Lindsey Gallo (born 1981), former track and field athlete who competed in middle-distance events.
  • Milton Goode (born 1960), high jumper who participated at the 1984 Summer Olympics.
  • Vin Gopal (born 1985), politician who will take office in January 2018 to represent the 11th Legislative District in the New Jersey Senate, which covers portions of Monmouth County.
  • Thomas Henderson (1743–1824), acting Governor of New Jersey.
  • William Barberie Howell (1865–1927), Chief Justice of the United States Customs Court.
  • Dan Lewis (1936–2015), American football halfback / fullback who played in the NFL for the Detroit Lions, Washington Redskins and New York Giants.
  • Caren Lissner (born 1972), novelist.
  • Paulie Litt (born 1995), actor and producer, best known for his role as Justin Shanowski on the sitcom Hope & Faith.
  • Val Majewski (born 1981), center fielder who played for the Baltimore Orioles.
  • Catello Manzi (born 1950), harness racing driver.
  • Rebecca Metz, actress known for her role as Tressa on the FX television comedy-drama series Better Things.
  • Joel Parker (1816–1888), politician, who served as the 20th Governor of New Jersey from 1863 to 1866, and again from 1872 to 1875.
  • Kal Penn (born 1977), actor of Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle.
  • Charles Richman, former commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs.
  • Peter Schrager (born 1982), sportscaster on Fox Sports and NFL Network.
  • John A. Scudder (1759–1836), U.S. Representative from New Jersey.
  • Jaime Primak Sullivan (born c. 1977), reality television star of Jersey Belle.
  • John C. Ten Eyck (1814–1879), United States Senator from New Jersey from 1859 to 1865.
  • William H. Vredenburgh (1840–1920), attorney and public figure who served for nearly 20 years as a judge of the New Jersey Court of Errors and Appeals.
  • Emily Wold (born 1994), former field hockey player, who played as a midfielder.

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Municipio de Freehold (Nueva Jersey) para niños

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