Rockaway, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Rockaway, New Jersey
Borough
Borough of Rockaway
Joseph Jackson House
Location in Morris County and the state of New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Rockaway, New Jersey
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Morris
Incorporated	June 19, 1894
Government
• Type	Borough
• Body	Borough Council
Area
• Total	2.12 sq mi (5.49 km2)
• Land	2.07 sq mi (5.37 km2)
• Water	0.05 sq mi (0.12 km2)  2.22%
Area rank	400th of 565 in state 34th of 39 in county
Elevation	538 ft (164 m)
Population  (2010 Census)
• Total	6,438
• Estimate  (2019)	6,276
• Rank	332nd of 566 in state 27th of 39 in county
• Density	3,106.7/sq mi (1,199.5/km2)
• Density rank	209th of 566 in state 9th of 39 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	07866
Area code(s)	973
FIPS code	3402764050
GNIS feature ID	0885374
Website

Rockaway is a borough in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 6,438, reflecting a decline of 35 (-0.5%) from the 6,473 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 230 (+3.7%) from the 6,243 counted in the 1990 Census.

Rockaway was formed as a borough on June 19, 1894, from portions of Rockaway Township, based on the results of a referendum held the previous day. Additional portions of Rockaway Township were annexed by the borough in 1908.

The borough shares its name with the Rockaway River and the neighboring township. The name is derived from a Native American term, variously said to mean "place of sands", "creek between two hills" or "bushy" / "difficult to cross".

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 2.119 square miles (5.488 km²), including 2.072 square miles (5.367 km²) of land and 0.047 square miles (0.121 km²) of water (2.20%).

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Rockaway has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Demographics

Census 2010

As of the census of 2010, there were 6,438 people, 2,443 households, and 1,656 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,106.7 per square mile (1,199.5/km²). There were 2,521 housing units at an average density of 1,216.5 per square mile (469.7/km²)^*. The racial makeup of the borough was 82.79% (5,330) White, 3.22% (207) Black or African American, 0.14% (9) Native American, 7.66% (493) Asian, 0.06% (4) Pacific Islander, 4.05% (261) from other races, and 2.08% (134) from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.07% (970) of the population.

There were 2,443 households out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.2% were non-families. 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.20.

In the borough, the population was spread out with 22.1% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 30.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.7 years. For every 100 females there were 95.0 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and old there were 92.0 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006-2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $77,861 (with a margin of error of +/- $10,631) and the median family income was $108,776 (+/- $9,129). Males had a median income of $57,770 (+/- $13,090) versus $37,868 (+/- $9,230) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $37,636 (+/- $4,186). About 6.3% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.8% of those under age 18 and 1.6% of those age 65 or over.

Census 2000

As of the 2000 United States Census there were 6,473 people, 2,445 households, and 1,709 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,098.9 people per square mile (1,195.8/km²). There were 2,491 housing units at an average density of 1,192.5 per square mile (460.2/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 87.75% White, 1.41% African American, 0.20% Native American, 6.36% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.98% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.39% of the population.

There were 2,445 households, out of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.3% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.16.

In the borough the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 33.6% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $61,002, and the median income for a family was $66,997. Males had a median income of $44,673 versus $35,956 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $26,500. About 3.0% of families and 5.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.4% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

I-80 eastbound at Exit 37 in Rockaway

Roads and highways

As of May 2010^[update], the borough had a total of 25.88 miles (41.65 km) of roadways, of which 20.16 miles (32.44 km) were maintained by the municipality, 3.53 miles (5.68 km) by Morris County and 2.19 miles (3.52 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

Interstate 80 clips the northeast corner of the borough. Access is provided via Exit 37 (County Route 513). U.S. Route 46 passes through the southern end of the borough.

Public transportation

NJ Transit train service does not stop in the borough, but is accessible in adjacent towns at Denville station and Dover station. The Morris and Essex Railroad and its successor the Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western Railroad formerly provided service to the town, but the Boonton Branch bypass was constructed in 1902 that provided a much shorter path to Dover, so service was cut in 1948.

NJ Transit offers local bus service on the 880 route, which replaced the MCM10 route that operated until 2010.

Lakeland Bus Lines offers bus service along Main Street to the New York City Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan on its Route 46 and Route 80 lines.

In pop culture

Many scenes (the train tracks, Main Street and The Old Mill Tavern) from the 2003 movie, The Station Agent, were filmed in Rockaway.

The band Houston Calls had its start here.

Education

The Rockaway Borough Public Schools serve students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. As of the 2017–18 school year, the district, comprised of two schools, had an enrollment of 580 students and 50.2 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 11.6:1. Schools in the district (with 2017-18 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Lincoln Elementary School with 230 students in grades PreK-3 and Thomas Jefferson Middle School with 348 students in grades 4–8.

Public school students in ninth through twelfth grades attend Morris Hills High School, in Rockaway Borough, which also serves students from Wharton and some from Rockaway Township (the White Meadow Lake section and other southern portions of the township). The Academy for Mathematics, Science, and Engineering, a magnet high school program that is part of the Morris County Vocational School District is jointly operated on the Morris Hills campus. The two high schools are part of the Morris Hills Regional High School District. As of the 2017–18 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 1,300 students and 120.4 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8:1.

Divine Mercy Academy, operated by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson, is the only private school in Rockaway. It opened in September 2016 with the merger of the two Catholic schools in Rockaway, Sacred Heart of Jesus School and St. Cecilia School.

Notable people

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

• Bruce Bannon (born 1951), former NFL linebacker.
• Sue Naegle, business executive who was President of HBO Entertainment.
• General Raymond T. Odierno (born 1954), Chief of Staff of the United States Army and former commander of United States Forces – Iraq.
• General Gustave F. Perna (born 1960), commander of United States Army Materiel Command.
• Frank Joseph Rodimer (1927-2018), American Roman Catholic bishop, was born in Rockaway.
• Erik Storz (born 1975), American football linebacker who played in the NFL for the Jacksonville Jaguars.
• Rachel Wainer Apter, lawyer who was nominated in March 2021 to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey.
• June Walker (1934-2008), Chairperson of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations and a member of AIPAC's Executive Committee who was the national president of Hadassah Women's Zionist Organization of America.

See also

In Spanish: Rockaway (Nueva Jersey) para niños