Seaside Heights, New Jersey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Seaside Heights, New Jersey
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Borough
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Seaside Heights Casino Pier with amusement rides seen at left and the Atlantic Ocean to the right
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| Motto(s):
Your home for family fun since 1913!
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Location of Seaside Heights in Ocean County. Inset: Location of Ocean County in the State of New Jersey.
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Census Bureau map of Seaside Heights, New Jersey
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 Seaside Heights, New Jersey
Location in Ocean County, New Jersey
Seaside Heights, New Jersey
Location in New Jersey
Seaside Heights, 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 | Ocean | |
| Incorporated | February 26, 1913 | |
| Government | ||
| • Type | Borough | |
| • Body | Borough Council | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 0.74 sq mi (1.92 km2) | |
| • Land | 0.62 sq mi (1.60 km2) | |
| • Water | 0.13 sq mi (0.32 km2) 16.89% | |
| Area rank | 526th of 565 in state 29th of 33 in county |
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| Elevation | 3 ft (0.9 m) | |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 2,440 | |
| • Estimate
(2023)
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2,486 | |
| • Rank | 472nd of 565 in state 20th of 33 in county |
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| • Density | 3,952.9/sq mi (1,526.2/km2) | |
| • Density rank | 161st of 565 in state 4th of 33 in county |
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| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST)) | |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT)) | |
| ZIP Code |
08751
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| Area code(s) | 732 exchanges: 793, 830, 854 | |
| FIPS code | 3402966450 | |
| GNIS feature ID | 0885390 | |
| Website | ||
Seaside Heights is a borough situated on the Jersey Shore, within Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 2,440, a decrease of 447 (−15.5%) from the 2010 census count of 2,887, which in turn had reflected a decline of 268 (−8.5%) from the 3,155 counted in the 2000 census. Seaside Heights is located on the Barnegat Peninsula, a long, narrow barrier peninsula that separates the Barnegat Bay from the Atlantic Ocean. During the summer, the borough attracts a crowd largely under the age of 21, drawn to a community with boardwalk entertainment and one of the few shore communities with sizable numbers of apartments, attracting as many as 65,000 people who are often out until early morning visiting bars and restaurants.
Based on the results of a referendum held on March 25, 1913, Seaside Heights was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 26, 1913, from portions of both Berkeley Township and Dover Township (now Toms River). The borough was named for its location on the Atlantic Ocean.
As a resort community, the beach, an amusement-oriented boardwalk, and numerous clubs and bars, make it a popular destination. Seaside Heights calls itself, "Your Home For Family Fun Since 1913!" The beach season runs from March to October, with the peak months being July and August, when the summer population explodes to as many as 30,000 to 65,000. Route 37 in Toms River is routinely gridlocked on Friday afternoons in the summer months as vacationers travel to the barrier islands. The community is also known as the location of the hit MTV show Jersey Shore, with the director of the borough's business improvement district saying in 2010 that "we can't even calculate the economic benefit" to Seaside Heights from the continued presence of the show.
Contents
History
In 1915, Senate Amusement Company of Philadelphia planned to build an ocean-side attraction in Seaside Heights within feet of the border to Seaside Park. Their plan was to build a covered pier to house a carousel. The structure was built in 1915 under the direction of Joseph Vanderslice of Senate Amusement Company. Budget issues stalled the project in 1916, and the amusement ride and building was subsequently sold to Frank Freeman. The combination of the completion of the Toms River Bridge on October 23, 1914, and the DuPont Avenue carousel and boardwalk are what likely led to the 159% population growth shown between the 1920 and 1930 censuses in Seaside Heights.
Disasters
On June 9, 1955, a malfunctioning neon sign component caused a fire at a shop on the corner of Ocean Terrace and DuPont Avenue. The fire was driven by winds estimated at 50 miles per hour (80 km/h), blowing the fire south and engulfing the entire pier. The fire was stopped at Stockton Avenue due in part to the fact that the boardwalk and pier ended there. In what became known as Freeman's Fire, a total of 85 buildings were destroyed with an estimated $4 million in damage.
Beginning on October 29, 2012, substantial portions of the boardwalk were damaged and much of the borough was flooded as a result of Hurricane Sandy. Both the Funtown Pier and Casino Pier suffered major damage, with sections of both piers torn apart by powerful storm surges and waves causing many of the rides to collapse into the ocean. With a curfew set at 4:00 pm to prevent looting, a New Year's Eve party was held at the Beachcomber for hundreds of area residents at which the arrival of 2013 was celebrated at 3:00 in the afternoon. Casino Pier began cleanup attempts soon after, in an attempt to reopen in time for the summer 2013 season. The Star Jet roller coaster that fell into the water with the Casino Pier had become an attraction in itself. It was taken apart by a wrecker from Weeks Marine on May 14, 2013, just a short time after Prince Harry's visit to the site the same day with Governor Chris Christie. Repairs to the boardwalk were completed on June 21, 2013, with New Jersey's First Lady, Mary Pat Christie, hammering the nail into the final board of the project.
On September 12, 2013, a ten-alarm fire swept from the Funtown Pier northward. The fire is believed to have started under the boardwalk, below the Kohr's Custard stand at the southern end of the pier. The wind pushed it northward, and fire crews were able to make a stand at Lincoln Avenue by tearing up the newly replaced boardwalk which had been destroyed less than a year before by Hurricane Sandy. Jack & Bill's Bar and Kohr's Custard were two businesses that were both destroyed in the 1955 and 2013 fires.
Geography
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According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 0.74 square miles (1.92 km2), including 0.62 square miles (1.60 km2) of land and 0.13 square miles (0.32 km2) of water (16.89%).
Seaside Heights borders the Ocean County municipalities of Berkeley Township, Seaside Park and Toms River.
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1920 | 154 | — | |
| 1930 | 399 | 159.1% | |
| 1940 | 549 | 37.6% | |
| 1950 | 862 | 57.0% | |
| 1960 | 954 | 10.7% | |
| 1970 | 1,248 | 30.8% | |
| 1980 | 1,802 | 44.4% | |
| 1990 | 2,366 | 31.3% | |
| 2000 | 3,155 | 33.3% | |
| 2010 | 2,887 | −8.5% | |
| 2020 | 2,440 | −15.5% | |
| 2023 (est.) | 2,486 | −13.9% | |
| Population sources: 1920–2000 1920 1920–1930 1940–2000 2000 2010 2020 |
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2010 census
The 2010 United States census counted 2,887 people, 1,376 households, and 586 families in the borough. The population density was 4,662.9 inhabitants per square mile (1,800.4/km2). There were 3,003 housing units at an average density of 4,850.2 per square mile (1,872.7/km2). The racial makeup was 80.74% (2,331) White, 6.69% (193) Black or African American, 0.59% (17) Native American, 1.52% (44) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 6.96% (201) from other races, and 3.50% (101) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 17.87% (516) of the population.
Of the 1,376 households, 20.5% had children under the age of 18; 21.0% were married couples living together; 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present and 57.4% were non-families. Of all households, 46.0% were made up of individuals and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.10 and the average family size was 3.03.
19.7% of the population were under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 32.5% from 25 to 44, 28.6% from 45 to 64, and 8.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.2 years. For every 100 females, the population had 112.3 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 113.2 males.
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $33,380 (with a margin of error of +/− $12,171) and the median family income was $39,688 (+/− $28,475). Males had a median income of $46,005 (+/− $18,386) versus $18,928 (+/− $13,004) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $19,865 (+/− $4,981). About 37.0% of families and 33.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 73.5% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.
Sports
Seaside Heights hosted the Association of Volleyball Professionals volleyball tournament for two years during the summers of 2006 and 2007 with participants competing for a $200,000 purse.
Parks and recreation
Casino Pier and Funtown Pier (partially located within both Seaside Heights and neighboring Seaside Park) are amusement parks, each situated on a pier extending approximately 300 feet (100 m) into the Atlantic Ocean. Each of the two piers are part of a boardwalk that stretches for 2 miles (3.2 km) and offers many family-friendly attractions ranging from arcades, to games of chance, to beaches, and to the wide variety of foods and desserts, all within walking distance. Breakwater Beach (formerly known as Water Works) is a water park situated across the street from Casino Pier.
Education
The Seaside Heights School District is a public school district for students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade at Hugh J. Boyd Jr. Elementary School. As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of one school, had an enrollment of 222 students and 24.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 9.1:1. The original school facility, Seaside Heights Elementary School, was built in 1926 and later demolished after the opening of a larger school building on the bay front. The current school was built in the late 1960s, and is dedicated to Hugh J. Boyd Jr., its longtime superintendent of schools who died in 1983. The district's Early Childhood Center addition was dedicated in 2007 in the name of longtime Board of Education Member Harry M. Smith III.
Public school students in seventh through twelfth grades attend the schools of the Central Regional School District, which also serves students from the municipalities of Berkeley Township, Island Heights, Ocean Gate and Seaside Park. Schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Central Regional Middle School with 842 students in grades 7 and 8 and Central Regional High School with 1,568 students in grades 9–12. The high school district's board of education is comprised of nine members, who are directly elected by the residents of the constituent municipalities to three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three seats up for election each year. Seaside Heights is allocated one of the board's nine seats.
Transportation
Roads and highways
As of May 2010[update], the borough had a total of 12.52 miles (20.15 km) of roadways, of which 5.20 miles (8.37 km) were maintained by the municipality, 6.39 miles (10.28 km) by Ocean County and 0.93 miles (1.50 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.
Route 35 and Route 37 both pass through Seaside Heights, intersecting at the Pelican Island approach to the Thomas A. Mathis and J. Stanley Tunney Bridges. Route 35 runs up the coast to Point Pleasant and points north and south to Seaside Park and Island Beach State Park. Route 37 crosses the Thomas A. Mathis and J. Stanley Tunney Bridges and heads west through Toms River to intersect the Garden State Parkway at exit 82.
Public transportation
NJ Transit provides seasonal bus service in Seaside Heights on the 137 route to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan and to Newark Penn Station in Newark.
Ocean Ride local service is provided on the OC10 Toms River Connection route.
Climate
According to the Köppen climate classification system, Seaside Heights has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa) with hot, slightly humid summers, cool winters and year-around precipitation. Cfa climates are characterized by all months having an average mean temperature above 32.0 °F (0.0 °C), at least four months with an average mean temperature at or above 50.0 °F (10.0 °C), at least one month with an average mean temperature at or above 71.6 °F (22.0 °C) and no significant precipitation difference between seasons. During the summer months in Seaside Heights, a cooling afternoon sea breeze is present on most days, but episodes of extreme heat and humidity can occur with heat index values at or above 95.0 °F (35.0 °C). During the winter months, episodes of extreme cold and wind can occur with wind chill values below 0.0 °F (−17.8 °C). The plant hardiness zone at Seaside Heights Beach is 7a with an average annual extreme minimum air temperature of 3.7 °F (−15.7 °C). The average seasonal (November–April) snowfall total is between 18 and 24 inches (46 and 61 cm) and the average snowiest month is February which corresponds with the annual peak in nor'easter activity.
| Climate data for Seaside Heights Beach, NJ (1981–2010 Averages) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 40.5 (4.7) |
42.9 (6.1) |
49.6 (9.8) |
59.1 (15.1) |
68.9 (20.5) |
78.1 (25.6) |
83.4 (28.6) |
82.2 (27.9) |
76.2 (24.6) |
65.6 (18.7) |
55.4 (13.0) |
45.6 (7.6) |
62.4 (16.9) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 32.9 (0.5) |
34.8 (1.6) |
41.2 (5.1) |
50.5 (10.3) |
60.3 (15.7) |
69.6 (20.9) |
75.1 (23.9) |
74.0 (23.3) |
67.6 (19.8) |
56.4 (13.6) |
47.2 (8.4) |
37.7 (3.2) |
54.0 (12.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 25.2 (−3.8) |
26.8 (−2.9) |
32.8 (0.4) |
41.8 (5.4) |
51.7 (10.9) |
61.2 (16.2) |
66.8 (19.3) |
65.7 (18.7) |
59.0 (15.0) |
47.2 (8.4) |
38.9 (3.8) |
29.8 (−1.2) |
45.7 (7.6) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 3.66 (93) |
3.06 (78) |
4.27 (108) |
3.88 (99) |
3.54 (90) |
3.65 (93) |
4.51 (115) |
4.51 (115) |
3.53 (90) |
3.73 (95) |
3.80 (97) |
3.92 (100) |
46.06 (1,170) |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 65.2 | 63.3 | 61.3 | 62.6 | 65.8 | 70.5 | 69.6 | 71.5 | 70.6 | 69.6 | 68.1 | 66.1 | 67.0 |
| Average dew point °F (°C) | 22.5 (−5.3) |
23.6 (−4.7) |
28.9 (−1.7) |
38.2 (3.4) |
48.8 (9.3) |
59.6 (15.3) |
64.5 (18.1) |
64.2 (17.9) |
57.7 (14.3) |
46.6 (8.1) |
37.2 (2.9) |
27.4 (−2.6) |
43.4 (6.3) |
| Source: PRISM | |||||||||||||
| Climate data for Sandy Hook, NJ Ocean Water Temperature (36 N Seaside Heights) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 37 (3) |
36 (2) |
40 (4) |
46 (8) |
55 (13) |
62 (17) |
69 (21) |
72 (22) |
68 (20) |
59 (15) |
51 (11) |
43 (6) |
53 (12) |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Ecology
According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. potential natural vegetation types, Seaside Heights would have a dominant vegetation type of Northern Cordgrass (73) with a dominant vegetation form of Coastal Prairie (20).
Popular culture
Seaside Heights was the setting for MTV's reality TV series Jersey Shore. The first season of Jersey Shore was filmed in Seaside Heights and Toms River during August 2009. The show's third season was also filmed in Seaside Heights, during July, August, and September 2010. After New York City officials nixed MTV's plans to hold a "Snooki Drop" at its studios in Times Square alongside the square's own ball drop, the event was moved to Seaside Heights. The show returned to Seaside Heights for its fifth season, which wrapped filming on August 2, 2011 and began airing in January 2012.
Prior to Jersey Shore, the town was also the setting of MTV's True Life: I Have A Summer Share, which was filmed in Seaside Heights, as was MTV's True Life: I'm a Jersey Shore Girl from 2004, which was one of the network's first stories of guidettes looking for the perfect guido. Additionally, MTV selected Seaside Heights as the filming location for its summer programming in both 1998 and 2002.
In 1985, New Jersey rock band Bon Jovi filmed most of their music video for the song "In and Out of Love" in Seaside Heights, mainly on the boardwalk.
Portions of the 2006 movie Artie Lange's Beer League were filmed in Seaside Heights.
The ABC soap opera One Life to Live filmed a portion of its 2008 storyline in Seaside Heights, mainly on the beach and boardwalk.
The song 'Mera Dil Tera Deewana' from the 1999 Hindi film Aa Ab Laut Chalen directed by Rishi Kapoor and starring Akshaye Khanna and Aishwarya Rai was shot at Seaside Heights.
Notable people
People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Seaside Heights include:
- Fred Ashton (1931–2013), politician who served as the mayor of Easton, Pennsylvania, from 1968 to 1976
- Lou Taylor Pucci (born 1985), actor
- Robbie E (born 1983), professional wrestler
- Immanuel Velikovsky (1895–1979), author known for his controversial books reinterpreting the events of ancient history, in particular the bestseller Worlds in Collision
See also
In Spanish: Seaside Heights para niños
