Saddle River, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Saddle River, New Jersey
Borough
B. C. Wandell House, listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Seal
Location of Saddle River in Bergen County highlighted in red (left). Inset map: Location of Bergen County in New Jersey highlighted in orange (right).
Census Bureau map of Saddle River, New Jersey
Saddle River, New Jersey Location in Bergen County, New Jersey Show map of Bergen County, New Jersey Saddle River, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Saddle River, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Bergen
Incorporated	November 22, 1894
Named for	The Saddle River
Government
• Type	Borough
• Body	Borough Council
Area
• Total	4.97 sq mi (12.86 km2)
• Land	4.92 sq mi (12.73 km2)
• Water	0.05 sq mi (0.13 km2)  1.03%
Area rank	276th of 565 in state 13th of 70 in county
Elevation	184 ft (56 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	3,372
• Estimate  (2023)	3,368
• Rank	433rd of 565 in state 64th of 70 in county
• Density	686.0/sq mi (264.9/km2)
• Density rank	422nd of 565 in state 67th of 70 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	07458
Area code(s)	201
FIPS code	3400265400
GNIS feature ID	0885384

Saddle River is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a suburb of New York City, located just over 25 miles (40 km) northwest of Manhattan. The town is known for its natural fields, farmland, horse farms, forests, and rivers, and has a bucolic atmosphere, due in part to a minimum zoning requirement of 2 acres (0.81 ha) for homes. The borough contains both stately historic homes and estates, as well as newer mansions. It offers many spacious properties in a countryside-like setting, while also having proximity to New York City.

Saddle River is one of the highest-income small municipalities in the United States and was ranked 9th in New Jersey in per capita income as of the 2010 Census. Saddle River was ranked among the Top 100 in Forbes Most Expensive Zip Codes in America in 2010. In 1989, Saddle River was ranked the richest suburb in the nation among those with 2,500 or more people (based on per capita income). The town has been home to notable residents including former US Presidents, celebrities, athletes, and businessmen (See Notable people list).

The New York Times described Saddle River as "a place where one can still keep horses—one per acre—see a deer, listen to the birds, and catch a fish in the trout stream that gives the town its name."

As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 3,372, an increase of 220 (+7.0%) from the 2010 census count of 3,152, which in turn reflected a decline of 49 (−1.5%) from the 3,201 counted in the 2000 census.

Saddle River is a dry town, where alcohol cannot be sold.

History

European settlement of the area that is now Saddle River traces back to 1675, when the Lenape Native Americans sold a stretch of land along the Saddle River to Albert Zabriskie. Saddle River was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on November 22, 1894, from portions of Orvil Township, based on the results of a referendum held three days earlier. The borough was formed during the "Boroughitis" phenomenon then sweeping through Bergen County, in which 26 boroughs were formed in the county in 1894 alone. Saddle River's referendum passed on November 19, one day before the referendum passed for the formation of the neighboring borough of Upper Saddle River. An additional portion of Orvil Township was annexed in 1903.

The borough is named after the Saddle River, which flows through the borough and is a tributary of the Passaic River, which in turn was named for a stream and valley in Saddell, Argyll, Scotland.

Historic sites

Saddle River is home to the following locations on the National Register of Historic Places:

• Achenbach House – 184 Chestnut Ridge Road (added 1979, burned down in 2004)
• Ackerman House – 136 Chestnut Ridge Road (added 1983)
• Abram Ackerman House – 199 East Saddle River Road (added 1983)
• Garret and Maria Ackerman House – 150 East Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• Garret Augustus Ackerman House – 212 East Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• Ackerman–Dewsnap House – 176 East Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• Ackerman–Smith House – 171 East Allendale Road (added 1986)
• Ackerman–Dater House – 109 West Saddle River Road (added 1983)
• J. J. Carlock House – 2 Chestnut Ridge Road (added 1986)
• Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saddle River and Ramapough Building – 96 East Allendale Road (added 1986)
• Alonzo Foringer House and Studio – 107 and 107B East Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• Hopper House – 45 West Saddle River Road (added 1984)
• Joe Jefferson Clubhouse – 29 East Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• O'Blenis House – 220 East Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• Garret K. Osborn House and Barn – 88 and 90 East Allendale Road (added 1986)
• Dr. E. G. Roy House – 229 West Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• Saddle River Center Historic District – Along West Saddle River Road at jct. of East Allendale Road (added 1986)
• Stillwell–Preston House – 9 East Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• Andries Thomas Van Buskirk House – 164 East Saddle River Road (added 1983)
• Laurance Thomas Van Buskirk House – 116 East Saddle River Road (added 1983)
• B. C. Wandell House – 214, 223, and 224 West Saddle River Road (added 1986)
• F. L. Wandell Estate and Ward Factory Site – 255–261 East Saddle River Road (added 1990)
• Dr. John Christie Ware Bungalow – 246 East Saddle River Road (added 1986)

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 4.97 square miles (12.86 km²), including 4.91 square miles (12.73 km²) of land and 0.05 square miles (0.13 km²) of water (1.03%).

The borough is bounded by eight municipalities in Bergen County: the boroughs of Allendale, Hillsdale, Ho-Ho-Kus, Ramsey, Upper Saddle River, Waldwick, Washington Township and Woodcliff Lake.

Mount Pleasant and Villa Marie Claire are unincorporated communities located within Saddle River.

Property values and taxes

The median home value in Saddle River was $1,960,294, compared to $596,000 for Bergen County, $440,000 for the state of NJ, and $331,000 for the US overall, as of March 31, 2022.

Saddle River has a property tax sate of 1.021% which was the third-lowest property tax rate in Bergen County in 2023

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 3,152 people, 1,216 households, and 894 families in the borough. The population density was 640.2 per square mile (247.2/km²). There were 1,341 housing units at an average density of 272.4 per square mile (105.2/km²). The racial makeup was 84.71% (2,670) White, 2.09% (66) Black or African American, 0.10% (3) Native American, 9.42% (297) Asian, 0.06% (2) Pacific Islander, 1.17% (37) from other races, and 2.44% (77) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.14% (162) of the population.

Of the 1,216 households, 27.1% had children under the age of 18; 65.5% were married couples living together; 5.5% had a female householder with no husband present and 26.5% were non-families. Of all households, 23.6% were made up of individuals and 15.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.08.

21.1% of the population were under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 14.1% from 25 to 44, 35.0% from 45 to 64, and 24.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 50.5 years. For every 100 females, the population had 89.8 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 86.9 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $97,197 (with a margin of error of +/− $48,774) and the median family income was $162,500 (+/− $61,174). Males had a median income of $162,740 (+/− $30,154) versus $56,339 (+/− $25,675) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $86,812 (+/− $16,562). About 0.9% of families and 1.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.1% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

Same-sex couples headed seven households in 2010, an increase from the six counted in 2000.

Parks and recreation

Saddle River Rindlaub Park Bridge Wins ASCE 2024 Award

In May 2024, the American Society of Civil Engineers recognized Saddle River with the 2024 Municipal Project Of The Year Award. The award was meant for developing Saddle River Rindlaub Park Pedestrian Bridge for its innovative design and for connecting the deadlocked land with the existing park for the good of the residents.

Education

The Saddle River School District, serves students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade at Wandell School. As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprised of one school, had an enrollment of 165 students and 18.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 8.9:1. During the 2016–17 school year, Saddle River was tied for the 28th-smallest enrollment of any school district in the state, with 150 students.

Public school students from Saddle River attend the Ramsey Public School District's middle school and then have the option of attending either Ramsey High School or Northern Highlands Regional High School as part of sending/receiving relationships with each of the respective districts. As of the 2018–19 school year, Northern Highlands High School had an enrollment of 1,377 students and 110.4 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.5:1. while Ramsey High School had an enrollment of 870 students and 80.4 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8:1. One of under ten districts with a dual send-receive relationship, three quarters of Saddle River's high school students attend Northern Highlands and about a quarter attend Ramsey High School.

All students in 8th grade from the borough, and all of Bergen County, are eligible to attend the secondary education programs offered by the Bergen County Technical Schools, which include the Bergen County Academies in Hackensack, and the Bergen Tech campus in Teterboro or Paramus. The district offers programs on a shared-time or full-time basis, with admission based on a selective application process and tuition covered by the student's home school district.

Saddle River Day School is a K–12 private school that was founded in 1957.

Transportation

Route 17 northbound in Saddle River

As of May 2010^[update], the borough had a total of 39.23 miles (63.13 km) of roadways, of which 26.40 miles (42.49 km) were maintained by the municipality, 10.88 miles (17.51 km) by Bergen County and 1.95 miles (3.14 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.

Route 17 passes through Saddle River. Other main roads include West Saddle River Road, East Saddle River Road, Allendale Road, and Chestnut Ridge Road.

Saddle River is served mainly by Route 17, which runs directly through the borough, but certain portions are served by locations in Ho-Ho-Kus, Waldwick, Upper Saddle River, and Allendale. The Garden State Parkway is within a short distance of the borough at exit 171 in Woodcliff Lake.

Notable people

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

See also

In Spanish: Saddle River (Nueva Jersey) para niños