Palmyra, New Jersey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Palmyra, New Jersey
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Borough
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East Broad Street near northern edge of the borough with River Line tracks in foreground
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| Motto(s):
"A Place to Grow"
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Location of Palmyra in Burlington County highlighted in red (right). Inset map: Location of Burlington County in New Jersey highlighted in red (lower left).
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Census Bureau map of Palmyra, New Jersey
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 Palmyra, New Jersey
Location in Burlington County, New Jersey
Palmyra, New Jersey
Location in New Jersey
Palmyra, New Jersey
Location in the United States
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| Country |  United States |
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| State |  New Jersey |
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| County | Burlington | |
| Incorporated | April 19, 1894 | |
| Named for | Palmyra, Syria | |
| Government | ||
| • Type | Borough | |
| • Body | Borough Council | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 2.54 sq mi (6.58 km2) | |
| • Land | 1.85 sq mi (4.79 km2) | |
| • Water | 0.69 sq mi (1.79 km2) 27.28% | |
| Area rank | 371st of 565 in state 32nd of 40 in county |
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| Elevation | 7 ft (2 m) | |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 7,438 | |
| • Estimate
(2023)
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7,489 | |
| • Rank | 308th of 565 in state 23rd of 40 in county |
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| • Density | 4,022.7/sq mi (1,553.2/km2) | |
| • Density rank | 157th of 565 in state 7th of 40 in county |
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| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST)) | |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT)) | |
| ZIP Code |
08065
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| Area code(s) | 856 exchanges: 303, 726, 829, 786 | |
| FIPS code | 3400555800 | |
| GNIS feature ID | 0885339 | |
| Website | ||
Palmyra is a borough in Burlington County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 7,438, an increase of 40 (+0.5%) from the 2010 census count of 7,398, which in turn reflected an increase of 307 (+4.3%) from the 7,091 counted in the 2000 census. The borough, and all of Burlington County, is a part of the Philadelphia-Reading-Camden combined statistical area and the Delaware Valley.
Palmyra was originally incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 19, 1894, from portions of Cinnaminson Township and Riverton. On February 20, 1923, Palmyra was reincorporated as a borough.
Contents
History
The area that is now Palmyra was settled in the late 17th century by Swedes, marking the northernmost border of New Sweden. A farmhouse built in 1761 by the third generation of settlers still remains as the oldest house in Palmyra. Farming was the primary use of land in Palmyra and the surrounding area until after the construction of the Camden and Amboy Railroad in 1834 with a station in the area, after which railroad workers built homes on lots they purchased along the railroad right of way. The community was originally known as Texas, but a local landowner, Isaiah Toy, a descendant of the original Swedish settlers and a stockholder in the Camden and Amboy Railroad, who wanted to have a post office established in the community, convinced the railroad to change the name of the station in 1849 to Palmyra, which came from his love of ancient history. Palmyra was the name of an ancient trading center located in central Syria. The post office was established in 1851. Palmyra, along with Bordentown, Burlington, Moorestown Township, and Mount Holly Township, established its high school in the late 1890s, making it one of the oldest high schools in Burlington County and in New Jersey.
The community was laid out in 1850, when Joseph Souder's land was broken up into building lots to pay his debts, with the street names matching those of Center City, Philadelphia—Market, Arch, Race, and Vine (from south to north), and Front Street and numbered streets from the Delaware River. What is now Palmyra was part of Chester Township (now Maple Shade Township), which was created in 1694 and was one of the original 104 townships in New Jersey incorporated in 1798. Palmyra became a part of Cinnaminson Township when that township was set off from Chester in 1860. Palmyra Township was set off from Cinnaminson in 1894, and Palmyra was incorporated as a borough in 1923.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 2.54 square miles (6.58 km2), including 1.85 square miles (4.79 km2) of land and 0.69 square miles (1.79 km2) of water (27.28%).
Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the borough include West Palmyra.
The borough borders Cinnaminson Township and Riverton in Burlington County; Pennsauken Township in Camden County; and Philadelphia, across the Delaware River in Pennsylvania.
The borough is connected to the Tacony section of Philadelphia via Route 73 by the Tacony-Palmyra Bridge, which is named for the two communities connected by the bridge. The bridge was completed in 1929 at a cost of $4 million.
In 1999, a 250-acre (100 ha) nature park, Palmyra Nature Cove, was opened along the banks of the Delaware which borders Palmyra on the west; in addition to serving as a bird sanctuary, the park offers educational programs for schools and hiking trails for walkers. The park is open from dawn to dusk; no pets or bicycles are allowed.
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 571 | — | |
| 1890 | 1,903 | 233.3% | |
| 1900 | 2,300 | 20.9% | |
| 1910 | 2,801 | 21.8% | |
| 1920 | 3,834 | 36.9% | |
| 1930 | 4,968 | 29.6% | |
| 1940 | 5,178 | 4.2% | |
| 1950 | 5,802 | 12.1% | |
| 1960 | 7,036 | 21.3% | |
| 1970 | 6,969 | −1.0% | |
| 1980 | 7,085 | 1.7% | |
| 1990 | 7,056 | −0.4% | |
| 2000 | 7,091 | 0.5% | |
| 2010 | 7,398 | 4.3% | |
| 2020 | 7,438 | 0.5% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 7,489 | 1.2% | |
| Population sources: 1880–1890 1900–2000 1900–1920 1900–1910 1910–1930 1940–2000 2000 2010 2020 |
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2010 census
The 2010 United States census counted 7,398 people, 3,156 households, and 1,938 families in the borough. The population density was 3,968.4 per square mile (1,532.2/km2). There were 3,392 housing units at an average density of 1,819.5 per square mile (702.5/km2). The racial makeup was 78.75% (5,826) White, 14.54% (1,076) Black or African American, 0.31% (23) Native American, 1.84% (136) Asian, 0.08% (6) Pacific Islander, 1.95% (144) from other races, and 2.53% (187) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 5.37% (397) of the population.
Of the 3,156 households, 23.5% had children under the age of 18; 43.1% were married couples living together; 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present and 38.6% were non-families. Of all households, 31.5% were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.97.
19.5% of the population were under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 31.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.0 years. For every 100 females, the population had 95.1 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 91.2 males.
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $61,990 (with a margin of error of +/− $3,744) and the median family income was $74,265 (+/− $6,025). Males had a median income of $53,295 (+/− $6,313) versus $48,417 (+/− $6,580) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $30,361 (+/− $2,319). About 6.5% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.0% of those under age 18 and 4.2% of those age 65 or over.
Education
The Palmyra Public Schools district serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Palmyra, along with those from Beverly and Riverton who attend the district's high school as part of sending/receiving relationships. Students from Beverly and Riverton attend the district's high school as part of sending/receiving relationships with both districts. As of the 2022–23 school year, the district, comprised of three schools, had an enrollment of 1,032 students and 90.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.4:1. Schools in the district (with 2022–23 enrollment from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Palmyra Preschool serves students in PreK Charles Street Elementary School with 457 students in grades PreK-5 and Palmyra Middle School / Palmyra High School with 577 students in grades 6-12.
Students from Palmyra, and from all of Burlington County, are eligible to attend the Burlington County Institute of Technology, a countywide public school district that serves the vocational and technical education needs of students at the high school and post-secondary level at its campuses in Medford and Westampton.
Transportation
Roads and highways
As of May 2010[update], the borough had a total of 27.67 miles (44.53 km) of roadways, of which 23.04 miles (37.08 km) were maintained by the municipality, 3.11 miles (5.01 km) by Burlington County, 0.98 miles (1.58 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation and 0.54 miles (0.87 km) by the Burlington County Bridge Commission.
Route 73 traverses the borough, connecting to the Burlington County Bridge Commission-operated Tacony-Palmyra Bridge at the roadway's northern terminus and interchanging with County Route 543, most of which is called Broad Street within Palmyra.
Public transportation
The Palmyra station on NJ Transit's River Line light rail system is located on East Broad Street. The station opened on March 15, 2004. Southbound service from the station is available to Camden, including a transfer to the PATCO Speedline available at the Walter Rand Transportation Center. Northbound service is available to the Trenton Rail Station with connections to NJ Transit trains to New York City, SEPTA trains to Philadelphia, and Amtrak trains.
NJ Transit provides bus service in the borough on the 419 route that runs between Camden and Burlington.
Notable people
People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Palmyra include:
- Jim Bailey (1949–2015), singer, film, television and stage actor, and female impersonator
- Lena Blackburne (1886–1968), major league baseball player and manager best known for his discovery of a mud in a tributary of the Delaware River near Palmyra which is still used to rub down baseballs, allowing pitchers to gain better control over the ball
- Jack Casey (1935–2019), member of the New Jersey Senate and General Assembly, who also served as mayor of Palmyra
- Deron Cherry (born 1959), former free safety for the Kansas City Chiefs
- Robert K. Crane (1919–2010), biochemist best known for his discovery of sodium-glucose cotransport
- Calvin T. Durgin (1893–1965), Vice Admiral who served in the U.S. Navy from 1916 until 1951, and was Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Air in 1949
- Kelvin Harmon (born 1997), wide receiver for the Washington Commanders of the NFL
- Clarence B. Jones (born 1931), lawyer and former personal counsel, advisor, draft speech writer and close friend of Martin Luther King Jr.
- Frank A. Mathews Jr. (1904–1964), represented New Jersey's 4th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1945 to 1949
- Quron Pratt (born 1991), Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver since 2014
- A. Raymond Randolph (born 1943), federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit who was appointed to the court in 1990
- Justin Sherin (born 1981), playwright, screenwriter, and political analyst
- Troy Singleton (born 1973), member of the New Jersey General Assembly since 2011
See also
In Spanish: Palmyra (Nueva Jersey) para niños
