Atco is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...

(CDP) in Waterford Township in Camden County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. It is part of the

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

- Camden metropolitan area, located southeast of Camden. Though generally considered part of Waterford Township, a small section of the southern edge of Atco is located in Winslow Township. Atco was first listed as a CDP prior to the 2020 census with a population of 9,058. Atco is the home of the

Atco Raceway Atco Dragway' is a 1/4 mile dragstrip located in the Atco section of Waterford Township, New Jersey. History Built in 1959, The first racers (Motor Masters hot rod club ) started at the top end racing towards the starting line. They then helped ...

, and served as the location for the movie ''

Eddie and the Cruisers ''Eddie and the Cruisers'' is a 1983 American musical drama film directed by Martin Davidson with the screenplay written by the director and Arlene Davidson, based on the novel by P. F. Kluge. The sequel '' Eddie and the Cruisers II: Eddie Lives! ...

''. In 2005, an episode of ''

Viva La Bam ''Viva La Bam'' is an American reality television series that stars Bam Margera and his friends and family. The show is a spin-off from MTV's '' Jackass'', in which Margera and most of the main cast appeared. Each episode had a specific theme, ...

'' was shot at the raceway. The area is served as

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...

ZIP Code 08004.

History

Atco's name originates from the Atlantic Transport Company, although alternative origins have been proposed, including an indigenous term meaning "Land of many deer." The Atlantic Transport Company of West Virginia placed a substantial order for four large ships with the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, located in Camden, New Jersey, between 1902 and 1903. This event may have contributed to the adoption of the name "Atco" around that time. Camden and Atlantic Railroad was founded in 1854; it crossed the Pinelands from Camden to Atlantic City. The

Raritan and Delaware Bay Railroad New Jersey Southern RR and connections The New Jersey Southern Railroad was a railroad that started in 1854. It would continue under this name until the 1870s as a separate company and the lines that it had constructed or run continued to be run i ...

was established soon after, linking Atco to communities such as Toms River, Waretown, Atsion and

Vineland ''Vineland'' is a 1990 novel by Thomas Pynchon, a postmodern fiction set in California, United States in 1984, the year of Ronald Reagan's reelection.Knabb 2002 Through flashbacks by its characters, who have lived the sixties in their youth, th ...

. The story of the Atco Ghost is popular in Atco. Legend has it that a young boy was killed by a drunk driver while chasing a ball, and his ghost can now be seen playing on Burnt Mill Road, the same street where the accident occurred, after a motorist honks their horn.

Geography

The town is at the western edge of

Wharton State Forest Wharton State Forest is the largest state forest in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the largest single tract of land in the state park system of New Jersey, encompassing approximately of the Pinelands northeast of Hammonton. Its protected ...

and the

Pine Barrens Pine barrens, pine plains, sand plains, or pineland areas occur throughout the U.S. from Florida to Maine (see Atlantic coastal pine barrens) as well as the Midwest, West, and Canada and parts of Eurasia. Perhaps the most well known pine-barre ...

Atco Lake Atco Lake is a man-made lake located in the Atco section of Waterford Township, New Jersey. The lake is located withiAtco Lake Park which is and is owned by Camden County. The lake is located on U.S. Route 30 (White Horse Pike). Atco Lake h ...

is a lake in Atco.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Atco has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Education

Atco was the site of Assumption School, an elementary school that operated under the auspices of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden The Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden is a Roman Catholic diocese of the Latin Church in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It consists of 62 parishes and about 475,000 Catholics in the Southern Jersey counties of Atlantic, Camden, Cape May, Cum ...

until it was closed at the end of the 2012–13 school year. Atco public schools, operated by Waterford Township School District, serve K-6 grade. Atco Elementary (grades to K-1), Thomas Richards Elementary (grades 2–3) and Waterford Elementary (grades 4–6) serve students from Atco. Junior high school and high school students from Atco are served by Hammonton Public Schools or parochial schools of their choice.

Transportation

Atco has a

train station A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing s ...

on the

Atlantic City Line The Atlantic City Line (ACL) is a commuter rail line operated by NJ Transit (NJT) in the United States between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Atlantic City, New Jersey, operating along the corridor of the White Horse Pike. It runs over trackage ...

, which is operated by

NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit, and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey, along with portions of New York State and Pennsylvania. It operates bu ...

. The station is accessible from Route 73 and the White Horse Pike (

U.S. Route 30 U.S. Route 30 or U.S. Highway 30 (US 30) is an east–west main route in the system of the United States Numbered Highways, with the highway traveling across the northern tier of the country. With a length of , it is the third longest ...

Demographics

2020 census

Breweries and wineries

*Brotherton Brewing Company *

Amalthea Cellars Amalthea Cellars ( Toms, Charles"Amalthea Cellars Review"in ''American Winery Guide'' (16 November 2013). Retrieved 5 December 2013.) is a winery in the West Atco section of Winslow in Camden County, New Jersey. The vineyard was first planted ...

Notable people

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

Kellyanne Conway Kellyanne Elizabeth Conway (née Fitzpatrick; born January 20, 1967) is an American political consultant and pollster, who served as Senior Counselor to the President in the administration of Donald Trump from 2017 to 2020. She was previous ...

(born 1967),

strategist A strategist is a person with responsibility for the formulation and implementation of a strategy. Strategy generally involves setting goals, determining actions to achieve the goals, and mobilizing resources to execute the actions. A strategy ...

, and

pollster An opinion poll, often simply referred to as a survey or a poll (although strictly a poll is an actual election) is a human research survey of public opinion from a particular sample. Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions ...

who was campaign manager for Republican presidential candidate

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

in 2016. * Rey Ramsey (born 1960), social justice entrepreneur, author and former CEO of the One Economy Corporation. * Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka (1943-2017), former professional wrestler born in Fiji. * Sally Starr (1923–2013), 1950s celebrity television personality.Sally Starr
Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia. Accessed September 2, 2015. "Sally was instrumental in the resurrection of the "Wilson Line Show Cruises." She was a survivor, having had a heart attack in 1993. She lived in her home in Atco, New Jersey."

References

External links

National Dragster Records shattered, history made in Atco
{{Authority control Census-designated places in Camden County, New Jersey Census-designated places in New Jersey Unincorporated communities in Camden County, New Jersey Unincorporated communities in New Jersey Waterford Township, New Jersey Winslow Township, New Jersey