Pohatcong Township is a

township A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...

in Warren 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 township's population was 3,241, a decrease of 98 (−2.9%) from the 2010 census count of 3,339, which in turn reflected a decline of 77 (−2.3%) from the 3,416 counted in the 2000 census. The name Pohatcong is thought to be derived from the

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 American term meaning "stream between split hills".

History

Pohatcong Township was officially established in 1881. On March 24, 1881, Chapter 145 of the Acts of the New Jersey General Assembly was published defining and creating Pohatcong Township. The act to form Pohatcong had been introduced by Assemblyman William Fritts and, once law, was to take effect January 1 of the following year. Pohatcong was incorporated on January 1, 1882. It was divided off of Greenwich Township. Pohatcong township's name comes from

Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historica ...

Native Americans, who called the area "split hills stream outlet". The industrialized center of the township was separated to form Alpha borough, on April 27, 1911.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 248. Accessed May 30, 2024.

Geography

According to the

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

, the township had a total area of 13.76 square miles (35.63 km²), including 13.37 square miles (34.63 km²) of land and 0.39 square miles (1.00 km²) of water (2.81%).US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990

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 ...

. Accessed September 4, 2014. Finesville (with a 2010 Census population of 175) and Upper Pohatcong (2010 population of 1,781) are unincorporated communities 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 counte ...

s (CDPs) located within the township.New Jersey: 2010 - Population and Housing Unit Counts - 2010 Census of Population and Housing (CPH-2-32)

, p. III-5, August 2012. Accessed June 14, 2013. Other unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Carpentersville, Hughesville, Huntington, Kennedys, Riegelsville, Springtown, Warren and Warren Glen. Pohatcong Township borders the municipalities of Greenwich Township, Lopatcong Township and Phillipsburg in Warren County; and Bethlehem Township,

Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London, part of the London Borough of Camden in England. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural institution, cultural, intellectual, and educational ...

and Holland Township in

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a County (United States), county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the county was the state's List of counties in New Jersey, 4th-least populous ...

. The borough of

Alpha Alpha (uppercase , lowercase ) is the first letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of one. Alpha is derived from the Phoenician letter ''aleph'' , whose name comes from the West Semitic word for ' ...

is completely surrounded by Pohatcong Township, making it part of 21 pairs of "doughnut towns" in the state, where one municipality entirely surrounds another.

Demographics

The township's economic data (as is all of Warren County) is calculated by the US Census Bureau as part of the

Lehigh Valley The Lehigh Valley () is a geography, geographic and urban area, metropolitan region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh and Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton counties in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a co ...

/ Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ Metropolitan Statistical Area.

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 3,339 people, 1,310 households, and 942 families in the township. 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 1,420 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 95.24% (3,180)

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 ...

, 1.59% (53) Black or African American, 0.03% (1) Native American, 0.90% (30) Asian, 0.00% (0)

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 ...

, 0.69% (23) from other races, and 1.56% (52) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.47% (116) of the population. Of the 1,310 households, 29.8% had children under the age of 18; 58.8% were married couples living together; 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present and 28.1% were non-families. Of all households, 23.4% were made up of individuals and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.01. 22.6% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 31.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.8 years. For every 100 females, the population had 100.2 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 97.3 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 $84,318 (with a margin of error of +/− $14,047) and the median family income was $95,982 (+/− $2,028). Males had a median income of $56,705 (+/− $13,134) versus $35,481 (+/− $1,974) 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 $34,781 (+/− $7,346). About 3.9% of families and 4.9% 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 2.2% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States census,U.S. Census website

. Accessed September 4, 2014. there were 3,416 people, 1,341 households, and 989 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 1,411 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 98.01%

, 0.44%

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 ...

, 0.03% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.64% from other races, and 0.59% 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 2.02% of the population.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Pohatcong township, New Jersey
,

. Accessed June 14, 2013.DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Pohatcong township, Warren County, New Jersey
,

. Accessed June 14, 2013. There were 1,341 households, out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.6% 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, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.2% were non-families. 22.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.99. In the township, the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 30.5% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males. The median income for a household in the township was $52,188, and the median income for a family was $60,208. Males had a median income of $44,327 versus $32,316 for females. The

for the township was $24,754. About 3.4% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the

, including 5.5% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

The Phillipsburg Mall is located on the border of Pohatcong and Lopatcong Township. of the mall is located in Pohatcong, with the portion of the property in the township being assessed for $39.8 million, one of the highest valuations in the municipality.

Government

Local government

Pohatcong Township is governed by the

Faulkner Act (small municipality) The Optional Municipal Charter Law or Faulkner Act (, et seq.) provides New Jersey municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jur ...

form of government. The Faulkner Act, formally known as the Optional Municipal Charter Law, allows municipalities to adopt a Small Municipality form of government only for municipalities with a population of under 12,000 at the time of adoption. The township is one of 18 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form of government. The government is comprised of the Mayor and the four-member Township Council, with all positions 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 ...

on a

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., ...

basis. The Mayor is elected directly by the voters to a four-year term of office. Council members serve a term of three years, which are staggered so that either one or two seats come up for election each year as part of the November general election.''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. 103. In May 2011, the township council submitted an ordinance to shift the non-partisan elections from May to November. The shift, which took effect in November 2012, was intended to save the municipality $8,000 a year in costs associated with conducting the election. , the

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of Pohatcong Township is David S. Slack, whose term of office expires on December 31, 2023. Members of the Township Council are Stephen Babinsky (2024), Ingrid Gray (2023), Kevin J. Melvin (2022) and John S. Stillo (2022).Directory
Pohatcong Township. Accessed May 10, 2022.Summary Results Report 2021 General Election November 2, 2021 Official Results
Warren County, New Jersey, updated November 18, 2021. Accessed January 1, 2022.Warren County 2020 General Election November 20, 2020 Official Results
Warren County, New Jersey, updated November 20, 2020. Accessed January 1, 2021.General Election November 5, 2019, Warren County Official Tally

Warren County, New Jersey Warren County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. According to the 2020 census, the county was the state's 19th-most populous county,Plan 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 23rd state legislative district.Municipalities Sorted by 2023-2031 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 September 1, 2023.

Politics

As of March 2011, there were a total of 2,162 registered voters in Pohatcong Township, of which 583 (27.0% vs. 21.5% countywide) were registered as Democrats, 595 (27.5% vs. 35.3%) were registered as Republicans and 983 (45.5% vs. 43.1%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There was one voter registered to another party.Voter Registration Summary - Warren

Division of Elections, March 23, 2011. Accessed June 14, 2013. Among the township's 2010 Census population, 64.7% (vs. 62.3% in Warren County) were registered to vote, including 83.7% of those ages 18 and over (vs. 81.5% countywide). In the 2012 presidential election, 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 ...

received 802 votes (54.1% vs. 56.0% countywide), ahead of 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 ...

with 634 votes (42.8% vs. 40.8%) and other candidates with 22 votes (1.5% vs. 1.7%), among the 1,482 ballots cast by the township's 2,158 registered voters, for a turnout of 68.7% (vs. 66.7% in Warren County). 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 813 votes (51.5% vs. 55.2% countywide), ahead of Democrat Barack Obama with 707 votes (44.8% vs. 41.4%) and other candidates with 24 votes (1.5% vs. 1.6%), among the 1,578 ballots cast by the township's 2,178 registered voters, for a turnout of 72.5% (vs. 73.4% in Warren County). 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 863 votes (53.8% vs. 61.0% countywide), ahead of 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 712 votes (44.4% vs. 37.2%) and other candidates with 23 votes (1.4% vs. 1.3%), among the 1,605 ballots cast by the township's 2,141 registered voters, for a turnout of 75.0% (vs. 76.3% in the whole county). 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 69.7% of the vote (688 cast), ahead of Democrat

Barbara Buono Barbara A. Buono (born July 28, 1953) is an American politician who served in the New Jersey Senate from 2002 to 2014, where she represented the 18th Legislative District. She served from 2010 to 2012 as the Majority Leader in the Senate, succ ...

with 27.9% (275 votes), and other candidates with 2.4% (24 votes), among the 1,001 ballots cast by the township's 2,180 registered voters (14 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 45.9%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 619 votes (57.9% vs. 61.3% countywide), 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 297 votes (27.8% vs. 25.7%), Independent Chris Daggett with 117 votes (10.9% vs. 9.8%) and other candidates with 14 votes (1.3% vs. 1.5%), among the 1,069 ballots cast by the township's 2,115 registered voters, yielding a 50.5% turnout (vs. 49.6% in the county).

Education

The Pohatcong Township School District serves 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 eighth grade at Pohatcong Township Elementary School.''Warren County 2022-2023 Public School Directory''

Warren County, New Jersey Warren County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. According to the 2020 census, the county was the state's 19th-most populous county,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 10.0:1.District information for Pohatcong Township 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. Public school students in

ninth In music, a ninth is a compound interval consisting of an octave plus a second. Like the second, the interval of a ninth is classified as a dissonance in common practice tonality. Since a ninth is an octave larger than a second, its ...

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 ...

s attend Phillipsburg High School in Phillipsburg, which serves students from the Town of Phillipsburg as part of a

sending/receiving relationship A sending/receiving relationship is one in which a public school district sends some or all of its students to attend the schools of another district. This is often done to achieve costs savings in smaller districts or continues after districts hav ...

with the Phillipsburg School District. The high school also serves students from four other sending communities:

(in

), Greenwich Township and Lopatcong Township. As of the 2018–19 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 1,650 students and 126.5 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a

of 13.0:1. Students from the township and from all of Warren County are eligible to attend Ridge and Valley Charter School in Frelinghuysen Township (for grades K–8) or Warren County Technical School in Washington borough (for 9–12), with special education services provided by local districts supplemented throughout the county by the Warren County Special Services School District in Oxford Township (for PreK–12).

Transportation

Roads and highways

, the township had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality, by Warren County, 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 ...

and by the

Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission The Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission (DRJTBC) is a bistate, public agency that maintains and operates river crossings connecting the U.S. states of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The agency's jurisdiction stretches roughly along the D ...

Interstate 78 Interstate 78 (I-78) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Northeastern United States that runs from I-81 northeast of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, through Allentown to western and North Jersey, terminating at the Holland Tunnel entra ...

is the most significant highway in Pohatcong. It passes through in the central region of the township. U.S. Route 22 runs along the eastern border before running concurrent with I-78. Route 122 passes through the northern portions of the township. The most significant county road in the township is CR 519. The

Riegelsville Bridge The Riegelsville Bridge is a suspension bridge crossing the Delaware River at Riegelsville, Pennsylvania, connecting it with Riegelsville, New Jersey, United States. History Traffic across the Delaware River at Riegelsville, Pennsylvania, was ...

is a suspension bridge crossing the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

connecting Pohatcong to Riegelsville, Pennsylvania, that is owned and operated by the

. The current bridge on the site opened in 1904.

Public transportation

Trans-Bridge Lines operates the

New Jersey 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. It ...

890 and 891 bus routes, which connect Pohatcong Township with

Easton, Pennsylvania Easton is a city in and the county seat of Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River and the Delawa ...

Rail- the Lehigh Line

The

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

's Lehigh Line (formerly the mainline of the

Lehigh Valley Railroad The Lehigh Valley Railroad was a railroad in the Northeastern United States built predominantly to haul anthracite, anthracite coal from the Coal Region in Northeastern Pennsylvania to major consumer markets in Philadelphia, New York City, and ...

), runs through Pohatcong Township on its way to

Phillipsburg, New Jersey Phillipsburg is a town located along the Delaware River that is the most populous municipality in Warren County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is part of the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ metropolitan statistical area. As of the 202 ...

Points of interest

The

George Hunt House The George Hunt House is a historic farmhouse located southwest of the borough of Alpha at 135 Warren Glen Road in Pohatcong Township in Warren County, New Jersey. It was built around 1825 near the confluence of the Musconetcong River with th ...

was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1979 for its significance in architecture. The Hixson–Skinner Mill Complex, also known as Cole's Grist Mill Complex, near Springtown, was added to the NRHP in 1982 for its significance in commerce and industry. The Finesville–Seigletown Historic District was added to the NRHP in 2010 for its significance in architecture, engineering, and industry. The Hixson–Mixsell House, also known as the Springtown Stagecoach Inn, was added to the NRHP in 2014 for its significance in architecture. File:GEORGE HUNT HOUSE, WARREN COUNTY.jpg,

File:HIXSON-SKINNER MILL COMPLEX, WARREN COUNTY.jpg, Hixson–Skinner Mill Complex File:181–191 Mount Joy Road, Finesville, NJ.jpg, Finesville–Seigletown Historic District

Wineries

* Alba Vineyard * Villa Milagro Vineyards

References

External links

Pohatcong Township Official website
{{Authority control 1882 establishments in New Jersey Faulkner Act (small municipality) Populated places established in 1882 Townships in New Jersey Townships in Warren County, New Jersey New Jersey populated places on the Delaware River