Woolwich Township, New Jersey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Woolwich Township, New Jersey
Township
Township of Woolwich
Moravian Church
Woolwich Township highlighted in Gloucester County. Inset map: Gloucester County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Woolwich Township, New Jersey
Woolwich Township, New Jersey Location in Gloucester County, New Jersey Show map of Gloucester County, New Jersey Woolwich Township, New Jersey Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Woolwich Township, New Jersey Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Gloucester
Royal charter	March 7, 1767
Incorporated	February 21, 1798
Named for	Woolwich, England
Government
• Type	Township
• Body	Township Committee
Area
• Total	21.39 sq mi (55.41 km2)
• Land	21.07 sq mi (54.58 km2)
• Water	0.32 sq mi (0.83 km2)  1.50%
Area rank	132nd of 565 in state 5th of 24 in county
Elevation	66 ft (20 m)
Population  (2010 Census)
• Total	10,200
• Estimate  (2019)	12,960
• Rank	241st of 566 in state 9th of 24 in county
• Density	487.8/sq mi (188.3/km2)
• Density rank	444th of 566 in state 20th of 24 in county
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	08085 - Swedesboro
Area code(s)	856 Exchanges: 241, 467
FIPS code	3401582840
GNIS feature ID	0882144
Website

Woolwich Township is a township in Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 10,200, reflecting an increase of 7,168 (+236.4%) from the 3,032 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 1,573 (+107.8%) from the 1,459 counted in the 1990 Census.

Woolwich was formed by royal charter on March 7, 1767, from portions of Greenwich Township, and was incorporated as one of New Jersey's initial 104 townships by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21, 1798. Portions of the township were taken to form Franklin Township (January 27, 1820), Spicer Township (March 13, 1844, now known as Harrison Township), West Woolwich Township (March 7, 1877, now known as Logan Township) and Swedesboro (April 9, 1902). The township was named for Woolwich, England.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 21.227 square miles (54.978 km²), including 20.909 square miles (54.154 km²) of land and 0.318 square miles (0.824 km²) of water (1.50%).

Swedesboro is an independent municipality entirely surrounded by the township, making it part one of 21 pairs of "doughnut towns" in the state, where one municipality entirely surrounds another.

Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Asbury, Dilkes Mills, Lippencott, Porches Mill, Robbins, Rulons and Scull.

Demographics

Census 2010

As of the census of 2010, there were 10,200 people, 3,141 households, and 2,730 families residing in the township. The population density was 487.8 per square mile (188.3/km²). There were 3,275 housing units at an average density of 156.6 per square mile (60.5/km²)^*. The racial makeup of the township was 81.14% (8,276) White, 9.97% (1,017) Black or African American, 0.13% (13) Native American, 6.02% (614) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 0.78% (80) from other races, and 1.96% (200) from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.58% (365) of the population.

There were 3,141 households out of which 54.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 78.0% were married couples living together, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.1% were non-families. 9.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 2.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.21 and the average family size was 3.46.

In the township, the population was spread out with 33.5% under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 31.8% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 6.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35.7 years. For every 100 females there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and old there were 95.6 males.

The Census Bureau's 2006-2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $109,360 (with a margin of error of +/- $6,043) and the median family income was $117,708 (+/- $6,397). Males had a median income of $82,370 (+/- $5,125) versus $52,083 (+/- $6,470) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $36,898 (+/- $2,081). About 3.6% of families and 3.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.7% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

Census 2000

As of the 2000 United States Census there were 3,032 people, 959 households, and 838 families residing in the township. The population density was 144.8 people per square mile (55.9/km²). There were 1,026 housing units at an average density of 49.0 per square mile (18.9/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 91.13% White, 4.55% African American, 1.12% Asian, 1.95% from other races, and 1.25% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 3.89% of the population.

There were 959 households, out of which 49.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 77.4% were married couples living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 12.6% were non-families. 8.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.13 and the average family size was 3.35.

In the township the population was spread out, with 31.4% under the age of 18, 5.2% from 18 to 24, 38.0% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 6.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.6 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $83,790, and the median income for a family was $87,111. Males had a median income of $54,200 versus $38,571 for females. The per capita income for the township was $29,503. About 1.9% of families and 2.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including none of those under age 18 and 19.6% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

The New Jersey Turnpike southbound at Exit 2 for US 322 in Woolwich Township

Roads and highways

As of May 2010^[update], the township had a total of 93.31 miles (150.17 km) of roadways, of which 51.93 miles (83.57 km) were maintained by the municipality, 32.05 miles (51.58 km) by Gloucester County and 3.62 miles (5.83 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation and 5.71 miles (9.19 km) by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.

U.S. Route 322 passes through the center of the municipality while the New Jersey Turnpike passes through the southeastern part of the township for about 5.75 miles (9.25 km) and connects to Route 322 at Interchange 2.

Major county roads that pass through include CR 538 and CR 551.

Interstate 295 is accessible outside the municipality in neighboring Logan, Oldmans and Greenwich Townships.

Public transportation

NJ Transit bus service between Salem and Philadelphia is available on the 401 route.

Community

In its April 2006 issue listing the Top Places to Live in New Jersey, New Jersey Monthly magazine rated Woolwich as the worst place to live in all of New Jersey, placing 566th out of 566 municipalities. As of February 2008, the municipality is ranked as 547 out of 566 municipalities. Meanwhile, its population has grown a staggering 185% from 2000-2006.

The community was labeled the "Number 1 Area Boomtown" in 2005.

Historic sites

The Gov. Charles C. Stratton House was built in 1791 and added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 29, 1973. The house was the home of New Jersey Governor Charles C. Stratton.

Moravian Church is a historic church building built in 1786 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

Mount Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church and Mount Zion Cemetery is a historic church built in 1834 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001. It played an important role in the Underground Railroad in South Jersey.

Economy

Along U.S. Route 322 at New Jersey Turnpike exit 2, plans call for almost 1,500,000 square feet (140,000 m²) of retail and commercial space and an equal amount of office and flex park. Partnering with the state Office of Smart Growth, a major component of any development along Route 322 will include the use of transfer of development rights (TDR).

Education

Public school students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade attend the Swedesboro-Woolwich School District, a consolidated school district that serves students from both Swedesboro and Woolwich Township. As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of four schools, had an enrollment of 1,495 students and 138.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.8:1. Schools in the district (with 2019–20 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Margaret C. Clifford School with 230 students in grades PreK-K (located in Swedesboro), Governor Charles C. Stratton School with 402 students in grades 1-2 (Woolwich Township), General Charles G. Harker School with 653 students in Grades 3-5 (Woolwich Township) and Walter H. Hill School with 210 students in Grade 6 (Swedesboro).

Public school students in seventh through twelfth grades are educated by the Kingsway Regional School District, which also serves students from East Greenwich Township, South Harrison Township and Swedesboro, with the addition of students from Logan Township who attend the district's high school as part of a sending/receiving relationship in which tuition is paid on a per-pupil basis by the Logan Township School District. Woolwich Township accounts for one third of district enrollment. As of the 2020–21 school year, the high school district, comprised of two schools, had an enrollment of 2,868 students and 207.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 13.8:1. The schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Kingsway Regional Middle School with 1,023 students in grades 7-8 and Kingsway Regional High School with 1,802 students in grades 9-12. Under a 2011 proposal, Kingsway would merge with its constituent member's K-6 districts to become a full K-12 district, with various options for including Logan Township as part of the consolidated district.

Students from across the county are eligible to apply to attend Gloucester County Institute of Technology, a four-year high school in Deptford Township that provides technical and vocational education. As a public school, students do not pay tuition to attend the school.

As of 2020^[update] Guardian Angels Regional School (Pre-K-Grade 3 campus in Gibbstown CDP and 4-8 campus in Paulsboro) takes students from Woolwich Township. It is under the Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden.

Notable people

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

• Jason Babin (born 1980), defensive end for the Philadelphia Eagles
• Marlon Byrd (born 1977), baseball outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies
• Hank Fraley (born 1977), offensive lineman for the Cleveland Browns
• Ellis Hobbs (born 1983), former cornerback for the Philadelphia Eagles
• Michael McCary (born 1971), former bass singer of the R&B group Boyz II Men
• Jason Peters (born 1982), offensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles
• Jimmy Rollins (born 1978), Major League Baseball shortstop especially known for his time with the Philadelphia Phillies
• Adam Taliaferro (born 1982), paralyzed former college football player who has served in the New Jersey General Assembly

See also

In Spanish: Municipio de Woolwich (Nueva Jersey) para niños