White Horse is an

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

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a 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 counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP) located within Hamilton Township, in Mercer County,

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 ...

, United States.New Jersey: 2010 - Population and Housing Unit Counts - 2010 Census of Population and Housing (CPH-2-32)

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 ...

, August 2012. Accessed January 13, 2013. As of the

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

, the CDP's population was 9,494.DP-1 - Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data for White Horse CDP, New Jersey

. Accessed November 20, 2012.

History

The community's name derives from a local tradition that holds that

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

rode through the area on a white horse on his journey from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

for his first presidential inauguration in 1789.Fair, Matt
"Washington rode here - White horse installed at circle"
''

The Times (Trenton) ''The Times'' is a daily newspaper owned by Advance Publications that serves Trenton and the Mercer County, New Jersey area, with a strong focus on the government of New Jersey. The paper had a daily circulation of 77,405, with Sunday circulati ...

'', May 30, 2010. Accessed April 7, 2013. "Finally, the White Horse Circle in Hamilton Township has been given a monument worthy of its name and, in the process, a vision that businessman Michael McGrath spent nearly a decade nurturing has been satisfied.... As the story goes, Washington passed through the crossroads on a white steed in 1789 as he made his way from his native Virginia to New York to be inaugurated as the first president of the United States."

Geography

According to the

, the CDP had a total area of 3.138 square miles (8.129 km²), including 3.074 square miles (7.963 km²) of land and 0.064 square miles (0.167 km²) of water (2.05%).US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990

. Accessed September 4, 2014.

Demographics

Census 2010

Census 2000

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 9,373 people, 3,722 households, and 2,687 families living in the CDP. 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 1,134.5/km² (2,941.8/mi²). There were 3,818 housing units at an average density of 462.1/km² (1,198.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 91.80%

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 ...

, 3.82%

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, 1.66%

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 ...

, 1.48% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.17% 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 3.97% of the population.DP-1 - Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 from the Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for White Horse CDP, New Jersey
,

. Accessed November 21, 2012. There were 3,722 households, out of which 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.5% 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, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.8% were non-families. 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.00. In the CDP the population was spread out, with 20.6% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 24.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.3 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $60,061, and the median income for a family was $67,050. Males had a median income of $47,176 versus $34,710 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 CDP was $25,480. About 1.6% of families and 3.9% 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 t ...

, including 4.9% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.

White Horse Circle

White Horse Circle is a

traffic circle A roundabout is a type of circular intersection (road), intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The N ...

locally known by name, in the southwest part of White Horse. Up until 2018 it was not a true traffic circle, because it was bisected by northbound U.S. Route 206, which made a left turn in the circle. This intersection connects South Broad Street (US 206 north and Route 524 east), White Horse-Mercerville Road ( Route 533 north) and Bordentown Road (US 206 south). Only Route 533 had a

stop sign A stop sign is a traffic sign designed to notify drivers that they must come to a complete stop and make sure the intersection is safely clear of vehicles and pedestrians before continuing past the sign. In many countries, the sign is a red oc ...

at the circle, while Route 524 and the southern part of Route 206 have

traffic signal Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic. Traffic light ...

s some distance from the circle. To allow cars to move in a safe fashion, there were six yield-signed road segments allowing cars to get to Route 206 and from the highway to Route 533. Route 206, when the light allowed, had no yield sign restrictions. Since the completion of Interstate 195 and Interstate 295, which intersect southwest of the circle, much of the traffic that would have passed through the circle is able to use the wider, faster

freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...

s, reducing the traffic load at the circle. Hamilton Township approved a construction project under which the modifications at the circle were completed by 2018, at a site that the township's engineer described as having an average of an accident a week. The new circle operates as a roundabout with two concentric lanes and many arrows to help drivers navigate the circle. The biggest change was the new requirement to yield to traffic in the circle, rather than yielding to traffic on the major roads. Accidents have decreased since this new roundabout was finished. In the 1927 New Jersey state highway renumbering, Route 37 was legislated to run from

Route 27 Route 27, or Highway 27, may refer to: Australia * Burke Developmental Road (Queensland) * Zeehan Highway (Tasmania) Canada * Alberta Highway 27 * British Columbia Highway 27 * Manitoba Highway 27 * Prince Edward Island Route 27 * Saskatchew ...

and Route 30 (now U.S. Route 1 Business, U.S. Route 206, and Route 31) in Trenton continuing through the White Horse Circle and on to

Seaside Heights Seaside Heights is a borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the borough's population was 2,887,1927 New Jersey Road Map
State of New Jersey. Accessed April 7, 2013. The western end of Route 37 was once planned to be at White Horse Circle, though that section of the planned route was eventually built as Interstate 195, with other portions returned to the counties as part of Route 524. A tall statue of a white horse was constructed on the circle in 2010, commemorating the local tradition that George Washington rode through the area on a white horse while traveling to New York City in 1789.

References

{{Mercer County, New Jersey Census-designated places in Mercer County, New Jersey Hamilton Township, Mercer County, New Jersey