Keansburg ( )Felzenberg, Alvin
''Governor Tom Kean: From the New Jersey Statehouse to the 9-11 Commission''
p. 5.

Rutgers University Press Rutgers University Press (RUP) is a nonprofit academic publishing house, operating in New Brunswick, New Jersey under the auspices of Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Pub ...

, 2006. . Accessed July 25, 2012. "In 1884, after congressman and future U.S. senator John Kean, Tom Kean's great-uncle, obtained a post office for a growing Monmouth County community in his district, the village named itself Keansburg in his honor. By the time it incorporated as a borough in 1917, local residents had taken to pronouncing it ''Keensburg''." is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

in Monmouth 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 so ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 9,755, a decrease of 350 (−3.5%) from the 2010 census count of 10,105, which in turn reflected a decline of 627 (−5.8%) from 10,732 in the 2000 census. Keansburg was formed as a borough by an act of the

New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and ...

on March 26, 1917, from portions of both Middletown Township and Raritan Township (now Hazlet), based on the results of a referendum held on April 17, 1917.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 180. Accessed May 29, 2024. Keansburg was part of the Bayshore Regional Strategic Plan, an effort by nine municipalities in northern Monmouth County to reinvigorate the area's economy by emphasizing its traditional downtowns, dense residential neighborhoods,

maritime history Maritime history is the study of human interaction with and activity at sea. It covers a broad thematic element of history that often uses a global approach, although national and regional histories remain predominant. As an academic subject, it ...

, and the natural beauty of the

Raritan Bay Raritan Bay is a bay located at the southern portion of Lower New York Bay between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey and is part of the New York Bight. The bay is bounded on the northwest by New York's Staten Island, on the west b ...

coastline. The plan has since been integrated into th
2016 Monmouth County Master Plan

History

The land that is now Keansburg was earlier home to

Lenni Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historical territory included present-day northeastern Del ...

Native Americans. On September 3, 1609, the '' Half Moon'', captained by

Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the Northeastern United States. In 1607 and 16 ...

, is said to have landed on the shores of present-day Keansburg (although some historians argue that the landing and forthcoming explained events took place at the tip of Sandy Hook). Crewmen of the ship were attacked by the Native Americans when they departed the ship, and John Colman was killed, making him what is said to be the first European to be murdered by a Native American. He is believed to have been buried in the area that is today the intersection of Carr Avenue and Beachway in an area known as "Colman's Point". In the time between 1609 and the early 18th century, the land was gradually purchased from the Lenni Lenape, together with other surrounding areas. The area was inhabited by Dutch, English, and Scottish settlers. In the 18th century, farming proved to be successful on Keansburg's land, with specialties being pears, apples and corn (maize). In this time, the settlement took on the name of Waackaack (pronounced "Way-kay-ack"), which came from the term "Wakioak" in the

Lenape language The Delaware languages, also known as the Lenape languages (), are Munsee and Unami, two closely related languages of the Eastern Algonquian subgroup of the Algonquian language family. Munsee and Unami were spoken aboriginally by the Lenape ...

meaning "Land of Plenty". The area was also widely known as Tanner's Landing from the early 18th century until approximately 1820, so named for the pier at the end of what was Tanner's Landing Road (now Main Street). Tanner's Landing was a principal port for the area for many years. The area adopted its second official name of Granville, which derived from the importance of the Phillips Mill, and the grain-producing farms in the region. The name held until the 1880s. During the century, Granville became home to its own church, two lighthouses and small businesses. Roadways were beginning to form from repeated use of horse and buggies. The beach was already a favorite to visitors. Population was about 300 people, who mostly farmed and clammed for a living. On Sunday, March 22, 1877, at "half past 9 o'clock," Granville welcomed the newly assigned pastor of the Granville Methodist Episcopal Church, William W. Ramsay. He later stated: "I arrived at the Granville Methodist Episcopal Church in Keansburg as pastor for the ensuing year. I soon learned that the hamlet consisted of about 300 inhabitants, whose occupations were mainly devoted to clamming & farming." At 19 years of age, Ramsay was slated to serve in the church for just one year. His success at the helm of church led to another year in Granville, after which he decided to make the village his permanent home. Ramsay and his wife, Eliza S. Wood, purchased the land that is 69 Church Street and opened a general store in 1881. In the coming years, Ramsay took greater and greater interest in Granville and eventually arranged a petition to establish a post office. The list of 132 names was passed on to John Kean of Elizabeth, a candidate for Congress. His efforts led to the opening of the post office in 1884, with Mrs. Ramsay serving as its first postmaster. That year, the name Keansburg was adopted in Kean's honor. A school was built at the cost of $30,000 in 1890 and sat on what is today the corner of Myrtle Avenue and Church Street (now Fallon Manor). Further development continued with the creation of postcards depicting the village and land purchases, including acquisitions by William A. Gehlhaus and the Keansburg Beach Company. The Keansburg Steamboat Company was founded in 1910 primarily by Gelhaus as a means of providing transportation for New Yorkers who were interested in buying homes in Keansburg. In 1893, Gelhaus purchased a bakery business in Atlantic Highlands which he operated with his brothers until 1905. At that time he entered the real estate business in Keansburg. He was president of the New Point Comfort Beach Company which he formed with Jesse Sculthorp and Howard Roberts. The company owned a large real estate development in Keansburg and in 1906 laid out the Beachway. On June 18, 1909, the New Point Comfort Beach Company bought the steamboat ''Accomack'' in Norfolk, Virginia, and started a scheduled run from New York to Keansburg on July 1 that was intended as a way to bring prospective property buyers to Keansburg. Another real estate developer, Keansburg Heights Development Co., bought several thousand tickets. By July 21, more than $1,500 worth of tickets had been sold at $0.35 each. As the town became more populated, the Keansburg Beach Company sold off most of the surrounding land on Beachway Ave., keeping "just the boardwalk and amusement area." Tourists from New York City would ferry over and spend the weekend or summer vacation to escape the city heat, until

Hurricane Donna Hurricane Donna, known in Puerto Rico as Hurricane San Lorenzo, was the strongest hurricane of the 1960 Atlantic hurricane season, and caused severe damage to the Lesser Antilles, the Greater Antilles, and the East Coast of the United States, ...

wiped out much of the waterfront area in 1960.Graham, Mollie F
"Keansburg and Union Beach: A brief history"
''

Asbury Park Press The ''Asbury Park Press'', formerly known as the ''Shore Press'', ''Daily Press'', ''Asbury Park Daily Press'', and ''Asbury Park Evening Press'', is the third largest daily newspaper in the state of New Jersey. Established in 1879, it has been o ...

'', September 3, 2007. Accessed August 24, 2013. In 1969, the borough spent $7.9 million on the Bayshore Hurricane Protection Plan, which had been developed with state and federal funding from The New Jersey Bureau of Navigation and the

United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...

. The redevelopment plan increased the size of the beaches to protect against future storms. A number of fires in the 1980s destroyed several structures on the North side of Beachway Avenue. The Dance Hall Auditorium, Keansburg Bowling Alley and the Casino Theater were destroyed by fire during this time. The Gelhaus family re-acquired the Keansburg Amusement Park in 1995, following a 20-year absence after Henry Gelhaus had sold the property in 1972. The return of the Gelhaus family as proprietors of the amusement park sparked a resurgence of interest in the town. Upgrades were made to the amusement park grounds and a water park was constructed. Runaway rapids was opened in 1996 on the site of the former Crystal Pool. The Keansburg Waterfront Public Library, founded in 2004, was the result of a concerted effort on the part of townspeople and the borough government to provide a high quality library with resources that address the needs and interests of the community. In 2012, the town added a $3 million

desalination Desalination is a process that removes mineral components from saline water. More generally, desalination is the removal of salts and minerals from a substance. One example is Soil salinity control, soil desalination. This is important for agric ...

plant with Federal Stimulus Funds and a low interest loan from the N.J. Environmental Infrastructure Trust, which greatly improved the quality of the water supply. The town had previously stopped providing well water, as

saltwater intrusion Saltwater intrusion is the movement of saline water into freshwater aquifers, which can lead to groundwater quality degradation, including drinking water sources, and other consequences. Saltwater intrusion can naturally occur in coastal aquifers, ...

into the aquifer had exceeded environmental protection standards. The new facility removes contaminants from the water supply through

reverse osmosis Reverse osmosis (RO) is a water purification process that uses a partially permeable membrane, semi-permeable membrane to separate water molecules from other substances. RO applies pressure to overcome osmotic pressure that favors even distribu ...

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the borough had a total area of 16.79 square miles (43.47 km²), including 1.07 square miles (2.78 km²) of land and 15.71 square miles (40.70 km²) of water (93.59%). Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the borough include Beacon Beach, Point Comfort and Tiltons Corner. The borough has land borders with the Monmouth County municipalities of Hazlet Township, Middletown Township and has maritime borders with Union Beach; Aberdeen Township and Keyport, and the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

borough of

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

across Raritan Bay. A small piece of Middletown Township measuring is an exclave completely surrounded by Keansburg.

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 10,105 people, 3,805 households, and 2,409 families in the borough. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 4,318 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 84.17% (8,505)

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 6.57% (664) Black or African American, 0.23% (23) Native American, 1.70% (172) Asian, 0.08% (8)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 4.04% (408) from other races, and 3.22% (325) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 14.77% (1,493) of the population. Of the 3,805 households, 29.7% had children under the age of 18; 36.8% were married couples living together; 19.2% had a female householder with no husband present and 36.7% were non-families. Of all households, 30.1% were made up of individuals and 8.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.24. 23.4% of the population were under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 10.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36.8 years. For every 100 females, the population had 95.6 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 90.8 males. The Census Bureau's 2006–2010

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars)

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...

was $39,206 (with a margin of error of +/− $6,629) and the median family income was $52,128 (+/− $8,098). Males had a median income of $43,125 (+/− $8,899) versus $33,098 (+/− $4,163) for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the borough was $21,246 (+/− $1,964). About 14.4% of families and 16.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 21.3% of those under age 18 and 22.0% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States census there were 10,732 people, 3,872 households, and 2,563 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 4,269 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 93.31%

, 2.13%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.10% Native American, 1.23% Asian, 0.07%

, 1.74% from other races, and 1.42% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 7.95% of the population.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Keansburg borough, New Jersey
,

. Accessed July 26, 2012.DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Keansburg borough, Monmouth County, New Jersey
,

. Accessed July 26, 2012. There were 3,872 households, out of which 35.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 17.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.8% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.35. In the borough the population was spread out, with 27.2% under the age of 18, 9.5% from 18 to 24, 31.2% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.3 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $36,383, and the median income for a family was $45,438. Males had a median income of $37,229 versus $28,398 for females. The

for the borough was $17,417. About 15.5% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the

, including 23.5% of those under age 18 and 18.4% of those age 65 or over.

Parks and recreation

* Keansburg Amusement Park * Runaway Rapids Waterpark * Henry Hudson Trail * Raritan Bayshore Waterfront Park * John Donohue III Park * Keansburg Firemen's Memorial Park was established in May 1938 * Forest Park * St. John's Park * World War II Memorial Park * Friendship Park * James Sidoti Skate Park

Government

Local government

Keansburg operates within the Faulkner Act, formally known as the Optional Municipal Charter Law, under the Council-Manager form of municipal government. The borough is one of 42 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form of government. Keansburg's governing body is comprised of the five-member Borough Council, whose members are elected

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...

non-partisan Nonpartisanship, also known as nonpartisanism, is a lack of affiliation with a political party and a lack of political bias. While an ''Oxford English Dictionary'' definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., ...

voting as part of the May municipal election to four-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with either two or three seats coming up for election in even-numbered years.''2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book'',

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, March 2013, p. 67. In March 1974, voters passed a referendum by 1,508 to 1,142 that expanded the council from three members to its current five. At a reorganization meeting after each election, the council selects a mayor and deputy mayor from among its members for a two-year term. , members of the Keansburg Borough Council are Mayor George F. Hoff (term on council and as mayor ends June 30, 2026), Deputy Mayor Thomas M. Foley (term on council and as deputy mayor ends 2026), James Cocuzza Sr. (2026), Michael W. Donaldson (2026) and Sean D. Tonne (2026)Borough Council
Borough of Keansburg. Accessed January 28, 2025.May 14, 2024 Municipal Elections - Allenhurst, Deal, Keansburg and Loch Arbour Unofficial Results

Monmouth County, New Jersey Monmouth County () is a county located in the central portion of the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is bordered to its west by Mercer and Middlesex Counties, to its south by Ocean County, to its east by the Atlantic Ocean, and to its north ...

, updated June 3, 2024. Accessed July 1, 2024.May 10, 2022 Municipal Elections - Keansburg & Long Branch Official Results

Clerk, updated May 31, 2022. Accessed March 26, 2023.May 12, 2020, Municipal Elections - Allenhurst, Deal, Keansburg, Loch Arbour Unofficial Results

, updated May 15, 2020. Accessed August 23, 2020.

Federal, state and county representation

Keansburg is located in the 6th Congressional DistrictPlan Components Report

New Jersey Redistricting Commission The New Jersey Redistricting Commission is a constitutional body of the government of New Jersey tasked with redrawing the state's Congressional election districts after each decade's census. Like Arizona, Idaho, Hawaii, Montana, and Washington ...

, December 23, 2011. Accessed February 1, 2020. and is part of New Jersey's 13th state legislative district.Municipalities Sorted by 2011-2020 Legislative District

New Jersey Department of State The secretary of state of New Jersey oversees the Department of State, which is one of the original state offices. The Secretary is responsible for overseeing New Jersey State Council on the Arts, artistic, cultural, and New Jersey Historical Com ...

. Accessed February 1, 2020.''2019 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government''
New Jersey

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV) is a nonpartisan American nonprofit political organization. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include Voter registration, registering voters, providing voter information, boosting voter turnout and adv ...

. Accessed October 30, 2019.

Politics

As of March 2011, there were a total of 5,435 registered voters in Keansburg, of which 1,429 (26.3%) were registered as Democrats, 742 (13.7%) were registered as Republicans and 3,262 (60.0%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were two voters registered as

Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...

. In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

received 59.4% of the vote (1,604 cast), ahead of Republican

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American businessman and retired politician. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Utah from 2019 to 2025 and as the 70th governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 ...

with 39.1% (1,056 votes), and other candidates with 1.6% (42 votes), among the 2,733 ballots cast by the borough's 5,673 registered voters (31 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 48.2%. In the 2008 presidential election, Republican

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...

received 48.5% of the vote (1,782 cast), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 48.1% (1,769 votes) and other candidates with 1.4% (53 votes), among the 3,677 ballots cast by the borough's 6,248 registered voters, for a turnout of 58.9%. In the 2004 presidential election, Republican

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

received 52.1% of the vote (1,995 ballots cast), outpolling Democrat

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...

with 46.6% (1,783 votes) and other candidates with 0.5% (36 votes), among the 3,827 ballots cast by the borough's 6,588 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 58.1. In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...

received 71.0% of the vote (1,106 cast), ahead of Democrat Barbara Buono with 27.3% (426 votes), and other candidates with 1.7% (26 votes), among the 1,592 ballots cast by the borough's 5,368 registered voters (34 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 29.7%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 59.3% of the vote (1,169 ballots cast), ahead of Democrat

Jon Corzine Jon Stevens Corzine ( ; born January 1, 1947) is an American financial executive and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from New Jersey from 2001 to 2006, and the 54th governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. Corzine ran f ...

with 32.6% (643 votes), Independent Chris Daggett with 6.0% (118 votes) and other candidates with 1.5% (30 votes), among the 1,970 ballots cast by the borough's 5,738 registered voters, yielding a 34.3% turnout.

Emergency services

The current Keansburg Police Department was created under an ordinance adopted in November 1926 which consisted of five members. The area known as Keansburg was under the authority of a Police Marshal prior to 1926. Before 1917, the area was patrolled by both Raritan Township (now Hazlet) and Middletown Township. The borough's first Police Marshal was James Gilligan, who was appointed in 1917 who served until his retirement in August 1943. The Chief of Police is Andrew Gogan. Keansburg is served by two volunteer fire companies, Keansburg Fire Company No. 1 and New Point Comfort Fire Company No. 1. Keansburg Fire Company #1, located on the corner of Main Street and Manning Place, was incorporated on October 13, 1912, making it the first fire company in the community. New Point Comfort Volunteer Fire Company was organized in 1912 and incorporated on August 2, 1913 at the New Point Comfort Hotel located on Beachway Avenue. The company was first named the New Point Comfort Chemical Engine Company, and was later renamed the New Point Comfort Fire Company #1 in 1921. Having its first building on Oak Street, it later moved to a larger property at 192 Carr Avenue in 1959, where it is currently located.Some History of our Fire Company
, New Point Comfort Volunteer Fire Co No. 1. Accessed July 26, 2012. "It wasn't until 1923 when the Fire Department was officially formed and the command structure of one Fire Chief originated. On the even years, the Keansburg Fire Company #1 (est 1912) holds the Chief's position and on the odd years New Point Comfort has the Chief. Each fire company has their own Chief, who is known as the Asst Fire Chief on their opposite years." The borough's two volunteer companies make up the Keansburg Fire Department, which was established in 1923. The chiefs of the two companies rotate as Chief and Assistant Chief of the Keansburg Fire Department. In even years the Chief of the Keansburg Fire Company #1 serves as Chief of the Keansburg Fire Department and the Chief of the New Point Comfort Volunteer Fire Company serving as Assistant Chief, while the roles are reversed in odd-numbered years. In November 1998, the fire company established the Keansburg EMS and housed it on their property, where it is now a separate organization, responding to over 1,600 calls each year in only a one-square-mile area.

Education

Students in

pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten (also called pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...

through

twelfth grade Twelfth Grade (also known as Grade 12, Senior Year, Standard 12, 12th Standard, 12th Class, or Class 12th or Class 12) is the twelfth and final Educational stage, year of Formal education, formal or compulsory education. It is typically the final ...

are served by the Keansburg School District. The district is one of 31 former

Abbott district ''Abbott'' districts are school districts in New Jersey that are provided remedies to ensure that their students receive public education in accordance with Constitution of New Jersey, the state constitution. They were created in 1985 as a resul ...

s statewide that were established pursuant to the decision by the

New Jersey Supreme Court The Supreme Court of New Jersey is the supreme court, highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, the Supreme Court of New Jersey is the final judicial authority on all cases in the state court system, including cases cha ...

in ''Abbott v. Burke'' which are now referred to as "SDA Districts" based on the requirement for the state to cover all costs for school building and renovation projects in these districts under the supervision of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority. As of the 2018–19 school year, the district, comprised of four schools, had an enrollment of 1,642 students and 185.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a

student–teacher ratio The student–teacher ratio or student–faculty ratio refers to the number of students who attend a school or university divided by the number of teachers or staff in the institution. For example, a student–teacher ratio of 10:1 indicates that ...

of 8.9:1.District information for Keansburg School District

National Center for Education Statistics The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the principal federal agency responsible for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data on education in the United States. Established under , it operates within the Institute of Education S ...

. Accessed April 1, 2020. Schools in the district (with 2018–19 enrollment data from the

) are: Keansburg Preschool with 199 students in grade Pre-K, Joseph C. Caruso School with 668 students in grades K–4, Joseph R. Bolger Middle School with 348 students in grades 6–8 and Keansburg High School with 384 students in grades 9–12. At the start of the 2016–17 school year, the Port Monmouth Road School (which had 501 students in grades Pre-K–2) was closed with the opening of the new Joseph C. Caruso School for grades K–4. The school was constructed at a cost of $51 million.

Transportation

Roads and highways

, the borough had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality, by Monmouth County and by the

New Jersey Department of Transportation The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) is the agency responsible for transportation issues and policy in New Jersey, including maintaining and operating the state's highway and public road system, planning and developing transport ...

. Route 36 runs along the borough's southern border. The

Garden State Parkway The Garden State Parkway (GSP) is a Controlled-access highway, controlled-access toll road that stretches the north–south length of eastern New Jersey from the state's southernmost tip near Cape May, New Jersey, Cape May north to the New York ...

is accessible via Route 36 in neighboring Hazlet.

Public transportation

NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. I ...

offers local bus service on the 817 route.

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Keansburg include: * Eugene J. Bedell (1928–2016), politician who served in the

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

from 1972 to 1982 * James Coonan (born 1946), leader of the Irish gang known as the Westies * Ken Croken (born 1950), member of the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

* Frank H. Field (1922–2013), chemist and mass spectrometrist known for his work in the development of

chemical ionization Chemical ionization (CI) is a ionization, soft ionization technique used in mass spectrometry. This was first introduced by Burnaby Munson and Frank H. Field in 1966. This technique is a branch of gaseous ion-molecule chemistry. Reagent gas molec ...

* James P. Maher (1865–1946), New York City Congressman from 1911 to 1921 who was elected Mayor of Keansburg in 1926 *

Jason Mewes Jason Edward Mewes (born June 12, 1974) is an American actor, comedian, film producer, and podcaster. He is best known for playing Jay, the vocal half of the duo Jay and Silent Bob, in longtime friend Kevin Smith's View Askewniverse franchise. E ...

(born 1974), actor primarily known for his role as Jay, of the duo

Jay and Silent Bob Jay and Silent Bob are fictional characters portrayed by American actors Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith, respectively. They appear in the View Askewniverse, a fictional universe used in most of the films, comics, and television programs written and ...

, in films directed by longtime friend,

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. He came to prominence with the low-budget buddy comedy film ''Clerks (film), Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co-produced, and acted i ...

* John Montefusco (born 1950), ex-major league baseball player who played for the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...

* Donald Nash (1935–2016), criminal, who in 1982 committed two murders for hire and also killed three bystanders, and later killed a fellow prison inmate *

Lou Taylor Pucci Lou Taylor Pucci (born July 27, 1985) is an American actor who first appeared on film in Rebecca Miller's '' Personal Velocity: Three Portraits'' in 2002. Pucci had his breakthrough leading role in '' Thumbsucker'' (2005), for which he won a Spec ...

(born 1985), actor * Horace M. Thorne (1918–1944), awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

for valor during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

* Roger "Hurricane" Wilson (born 1963), electric blues guitarist, singer and songwriterHicks, Robert
"Roger 'Hurricane' Wilson"

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

. Accessed February 9, 2016. "Roger 'Hurricane' Wilson is just overwhelmed by the transformative power of the blues.... He began playing guitar at age nine in Keansburg, NJ, where he attended public school and performed in the school band."

References

External links

Borough of Keansburg official website

Keansburg School District

Keansburg Historical Society

Sources

*Gabrielan, Randall
''Images of America: Keansburg''

Arcadia Publishing Arcadia Publishing is an American Publishing, publisher of neighborhood, local history, local, and regional history of the United States in pictorial form.(analysis of the successful ''Images of America'' series). Arcadia Publishing also runs th ...

, 1997. . {{Authority control 1917 establishments in New Jersey Boroughs in New Jersey Boroughs in Monmouth County, New Jersey Faulkner Act (council–manager) Populated places established in 1917 Raritan Bayshore