Victory Gardens is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various 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 the Middle Ag ...

in Morris County, in the U.S. state of

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 ...

. As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, the borough's population was 1,582, an increase of 62 (+4.1%) from the 2010 census count of 1,520, which in turn reflected a decline of 26 (−1.7%) from the 1,546 counted in the 2000 census. The borough is the fourth-smallest municipality by area in the state. Victory Gardens is Morris County's smallest municipality, measured both by size and population, and its most densely populated.

History

The origins of the borough began in 1941, when the federal government acquired in Randolph Township as the site of a 300-unit housing project for war industry employees. The borough's name is derived from the

victory garden Victory gardens, also called war gardens or food gardens for defense, were vegetable, fruit, and herb gardens planted at private residences and public parks in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Germany during World War I ...

s planted at homes and parks during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

to provide additional supplies of fruits and vegetables. Streets are named for U.S. Presidents. Randolph Township residents approved a referendum as part of a September 1951 special election in which voters were asked if the township's Victory Gardens neighborhood should be removed from the township and created as an independent municipality for its 1,300 residents covering . Residents of other areas of Randolph Township argued that the compensation paid by the federal government for the more than 250 students attending the Randolph Township Schools did not adequately cover the cost of their public education, that the housing and other structures in Victory Gardens was out of compliance with the Township's building and zoning ordinances and that the overwhelming

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

political leanings of residents of Victory Gardens were out of sync with the largely

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

township. Victory Gardens was incorporated 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 the ...

on June 20, 1951, from portions of Randolph Township, based on the results of the referendum passed on September 18, 1951.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 197. Accessed July 19, 2012. The small town made news on November 16, 1958, when 262 members of its 297 families participated voluntarily as "refugees" in a civil defense exercise, while other residents of the town — "school boys with Geiger counters, staff men with fancy helmets, girls with typewriters, Explorer Scouts, police and fire crews, medical teams and the dozens who just washed pots and pans and ladled stew" — volunteered to assist. "Those who remained home," ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' wrote, "were restricted in their movements by guards who patrolled the town." A project approved in 1973 brought the construction of 184 units of garden apartments on a site covering , providing additional rateables and offering permanent housing for an estimated 400 people, that would contrast with the temporary original structures built in the 1940s that had long passed their expected lifespan.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), 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 Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the borough had a total area of 0.15 square miles (0.38 km²), all of which was land. The borough borders the Morris County municipalities of

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

and

Randolph Randolph may refer to: Places In the United States * Randolph, Alabama, an unincorporated community * Randolph, Arizona, a populated place * Randolph, California, a village merged into the city of Brea * Randolph, Illinois, an unincorporated commun ...

Demographics

2010 census

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is a demographics survey program conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the decennial census, such as ancestry, citizenship, educati ...

showed that (in 2010

inflation-adjusted In economics, nominal value is measured in terms of money, whereas real value is measured against goods or services. A real value is one which has been adjusted for inflation, enabling comparison of quantities as if the prices of goods had not c ...

dollars)

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two equal 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 ...

was $53,269 (with a margin of error of +/− $3,599) and the median family income was $52,500 (+/− $6,885). Males had a median income of $34,063 (+/− $5,135) versus $33,750 (+/− $9,755) for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the borough was $18,340 (+/− $1,640). About 11.9% of families and 16.3% 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 t ...

, including 26.6% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the

2000 United States census The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 ce ...

there were 1,546 people, 564 households, and 381 families residing in the borough. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 10,582.6 people per square mile (3,979.4/km²). There were 588 housing units at an average density of 4,025.0 per square mile (1,513.5/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 51.36%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 21.41%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.06% Native American, 5.43%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 15.27% from other races, and 6.47% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 50.65% of the population.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Victory Gardens borough, New Jersey
,

. Accessed July 19, 2012.DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Victory Gardens borough, Morris County, New Jersey
,

. Accessed July 19, 2012. 15.27% of Victory Gardens residents identified themselves as being of

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

n ancestry in the 2000 Census, the highest percentage of the population of any municipality in the United States. There were 564 households, out of which 39.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.3% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 17.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.3% were non-families. 25.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 2.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.21. In the borough the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 39.3% from 25 to 44, 19.2% from 45 to 64, and 5.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.3 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $44,375, and the median income for a family was $43,594. Males had a median income of $32,841 versus $24,875 for females. The

for the borough was $20,616. About 8.9% of families and 8.4% of the population were below the

, including 10.4% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

Victory Gardens, NJ municipal building (2), Sept 2022

Victory Gardens is governed under the

Borough A borough is an administrative division in various 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 the Middle Ag ...

form of New Jersey municipal government, which is used in 218 municipalities (of the 564) statewide, making it the most common form of government in New Jersey. The governing body is comprised of the Mayor and the Borough 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 than ...

on a partisan basis as part of the November general election. The Mayor is elected directly by the voters to a four-year term of office. The Borough Council is comprised of six members elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats coming up for election each year in a three-year cycle.''2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book'',

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

Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy The Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy of Rutgers University (The Bloustein School) serves as a center for the theory and practice of urban planning, public policy and public health/health administration scholarship. The sc ...

, March 2013, p. 116. The Borough form of government used by Victory Gardens is a "

weak mayor Weak may refer to: Songs * "Weak" (AJR song), 2016 * "Weak" (Melanie C song), 2011 * "Weak" (SWV song), 1993 * "Weak" (Skunk Anansie song), 1995 * "Weak", a song by Seether from '' Seether: 2002-2013'' Television episodes * "Weak" (''Fear t ...

/ strong council" government in which council members act as the legislative body with the mayor presiding at meetings and voting only in the event of a tie. The mayor can

veto A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president or monarch vetoes a bill to stop it from becoming law. In many countries, veto powers are established in the country's constitution. Veto ...

ordinances subject to an

override Override may refer to: * Dr. Gregory Herd, a Marvel Comics character formerly named Override * Manual override, a function where an automated system is placed under manual control * Method overriding, a subclassing feature in Object Oriented progr ...

by a two-thirds majority vote of the council. The mayor makes committee and liaison assignments for council members, and most appointments are made by the mayor with the advice and consent of the council. , the

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a 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 responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Victory Gardens is

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

David L. Holeman Jr., whose term of office ends December 31, 2024. Members of the Borough Council are Vera C. Cheatham (D, 2022), Ondria Garcia-Montes (D, 2024), James R. Glass (D, 2022), Stuart Hale (D, 2022), Kendyll Hedgepath (D, 2024) and Ismael Lorenzo Sr. (D, 2023).Borough Government
Borough of Victory Gardens. Accessed April 12, 2022. "The Borough form remains the single most popular form of local government in New Jersey. This form dates back to the Borough Act of 1878 and was revised in 1897 and by the Borough Act of 1987. The Borough mayor is elected at-large to a four-year term. Six council members are elected at-large to staggered three-year terms. The Borough form is often referred to as a 'weak mayor-strong council' form." Note that as of date accessed, members are all listed with term-end dates that are years out of date.''Morris County Manual 2022''

Morris County, New Jersey Morris County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, about west of New York City. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the county's population was enumerated at 509,285,

Clerk. Accessed April 12, 2022.''Morris County Municipal Elected Officials For The Year 2020''

Clerk, updated March 3, 2022. Accessed April 12, 2022.General Election Winners For November 2, 2021

Clerk. Accessed January 1, 2022.General Election Winners List For November 3, 2020

Clerk. Accessed January 1, 2021.General Election November 5, 2019, Official Results

, updated November 15, 2019. Accessed January 31, 2020. Joan Cegelka won election in November 2013 to serve the balance of the term expiring in 2014 that had been held by David Holeman before he took office as mayor, with Vera Cheatham winning re-election to a full three-year term and

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

Hector Lorenzo Jr. knocking off incumbent Sonia Hall for terms starting January 1, 2014. In December 2010, Councilmember Ondria Garcia-Montes was placed on probation for 12 months after an incident in which she falsely told police that a criminal suspect who was the subject of a search warrant was not in her apartment.

serves as the lead agency operating a joint municipal court that include Victory Gardens and the neighboring municipalities of Mine Hill Township, Mount Arlington and

Wharton Wharton may refer to: Academic institutions * Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania * Wharton County Junior College * Paul R. Wharton High School * Wharton Center for Performing Arts, at Michigan State University Places * Wharton, Ch ...

. Established in 2009, the joint municipal court was forecast to offer annual savings in excess of $250,000 over the 10-year life of the agreement. In 2018, the borough had an average property tax bill of $4,417, the lowest in the county, compared to an average bill of $10,480 in Morris County and $8,767 statewide.

Federal, state and county representation

Victory Gardens is located in the 11th 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; t ...

, December 23, 2011. Accessed February 1, 2020. and is part of New Jersey's 25th 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 artistic, cultural, and historical programs within the U.S. state of New Jersey, as we ...

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

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV or the League) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan political organization in the United States. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include registering voters, providing voter information, and advocating for vot ...

. Accessed October 30, 2019. Morris County is governed by a

Board of County Commissioners A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the county government in some states of the United States; such commissions usually comprise ...

comprised of seven members who are elected

in partisan elections to three-year terms on a staggered basis, with either one or three seats up for election each year as part of the November general election. Actual day-to-day operation of departments is supervised by County Administrator, John Bonanni.''Morris County Manual 2022''
Morris County Clerk. Accessed June 1, 2022. , Morris County's Commissioners are Commissioner Director Tayfun Selen ( R, Chatham Township, term as commissioner ends December 31, 2023; term as director ends 2022), Commissioner Deputy Director John Krickus (R, Washington Township, term as commissioner ends 2024; term as deputy director ends 2022), Douglas Cabana (R, Boonton Township, 2022), Kathryn A. DeFillippo (R, Roxbury, 2022), Thomas J. Mastrangelo (R, Montville, 2022), Stephen H. Shaw (R,

Mountain Lakes A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...

, 2024) and Deborah Smith (R,

Denville Denville Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in Morris County, New Jersey, Morris County, New Jersey, located west of Manhattan. As of the 2010 United States census, 2010 U.S. census, the township's population was 16,635, reflecting ...

, 2024). The county's constitutional officers are the

County Clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keeping, filing, staffing service ...

and County Surrogate (both elected for five-year terms of office) and the County Sheriff (elected for a three-year term). , they are County Clerk Ann F. Grossi (R, Parsippany–Troy Hills, 2023), Sheriff James M. Gannon (R, Boonton Township, 2022) and Surrogate Heather Darling (R, Roxbury, 2024).

Politics

Every Democratic Party nominee for president since at least

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

has carried Victory Gardens. As of March 23, 2011, there were a total of 523 registered voters in Victory Gardens, of which 234 (44.7%) were registered as Democrats, 58 (11.1%) were registered as

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

and 231 (44.2%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were no voters registered to other parties. In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie and 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 ...

each received 48.4% of the vote (90 cast), ahead of other candidates with 3.2% (6 votes), among the 224 ballots cast by the borough's 556 registered voters (38 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 40.3%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Democrat Jon Corzine received 58.4% of the vote (118 ballots cast), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 27.2% (55 votes), Independent

Chris Daggett Christopher Jarvis Daggett (born March 7, 1950) is an American businessman who is the president and CEO of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, one of the largest foundations in New Jersey. A former regional administrator of the United States En ...

with 8.4% (17 votes) and other candidates with 0.5% (1 votes), among the 202 ballots cast by the borough's 544 registered voters, yielding a 37.1% turnout.

Education

Victory Gardens is a non-operating school district, with all public school students in

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...

through

twelfth grade Twelfth grade, 12th grade, senior year, or grade 12 is the final year of secondary school in most of North America. In other regions, it may also be referred to as class 12 or Year 13. In most countries, students are usually between the ages of 17 ...

in Victory Gardens attending the schools of the Dover School District in

, which has been consolidated between the two municipalities since 2010. As of the 2021–22 school year, the district, comprised of five schools, had an enrollment of 3,448 students and 244.6 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a

student–teacher ratio Student–teacher ratio or student–faculty ratio is the number of students who attend a school or university divided by the number of teachers in the institution. For example, a student–teacher ratio of 10:1 indicates that there are 10 students ...

of 14.1:1.District information for Dover Public School District

National Center for Education Statistics The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance ...

. Accessed December 1, 2022. Schools in the district (with 2021–22 enrollment from the

) are Academy Street Elementary School with 470 students in grades K-6, East Dover Elementary School with 389 students in grades K-6, North Dover Elementary School with 658 students in grades PreK-6, Dover Middle School with 524 students in grades 7-8 and Dover High School with 1,094 students in grades 9-12. Public school students in grades 7–12 from Mine Hill Township attend Dover Middle School and Dover High School 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

Mine Hill School District The Mine Hill School District is a community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade from Mine Hill Township, in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2018–19 school year, the distri ...

. The high school was recognized with the National Blue Ribbon School Award in 2013.

Transportation

Roads and highways

, the borough had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality and by Morris County. County Route 665 (South Salem Street) runs through the northwest corner of the borough, connecting Randolph on both sides.

Public transportation

NJ Transit offers local bus service on the 875 route. NJ Transit had previously offered service in the borough on the

MCM2 DNA replication licensing factor MCM2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''MCM2'' gene. Function The protein encoded by this gene is one of the highly conserved mini-chromosome maintenance proteins (MCM) that are involved in the ini ...

and MCM7 routes.Private Carrier Bus Service reductions
NJ Transit. Accessed August 3, 2015.

References

External links

Victory Gardens Borough website

Dover School District
*
School Data for the Dover School District

''Daily Record'' regional area newspaper
{{authority control Colombian-American culture 1951 establishments in New Jersey Borough form of New Jersey government Boroughs in Morris County, New Jersey New Jersey District Factor Group none Populated places established in 1951