Somerset County is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

located in the north-central part of 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 sover ...

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 county's population was 345,361, an increase of 21,917 (6.8%) from the 323,444 counted at the 2010 U.S Census, making it the 13th most populous of the state's 21 counties. Somerset County constitutes part of the

New York Metropolitan Area The New York metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the Tri-State area, is the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass, at , and one of the list of most populous metropolitan areas, most populous urban agg ...

. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

is Somerville.New Jersey County Map

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 July 10, 2017. The most populous place in the county was Franklin Township, with 62,300 residents at the time of the 2010 Census, while Hillsborough Township, with , covered the largest total area of any municipality. In 2015, Somerset County had a per capita personal income of $86,468, the second highest in New Jersey and ranked 25th of 3,113 counties in the United States. Somerset County, as of the 2000 Census, was the seventh wealthiest county in the United States by

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 ...

at $76,933 (third in New Jersey behind

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was 128,947, making it the state's 18th-most populous county,Morris County at $77,340), fourth in median family income at $90,655 (second in New Jersey behind Hunterdon County at $91,050) and ranked seventh by per capita income at $37,970 (highest in New Jersey). The

Bureau of Economic Analysis The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) of the United States Department of Commerce is a U.S. government agency that provides official economy of the United States, macroeconomic and industry statistics, most notably reports about the gross domestic ...

ranked the county as having the 11th-highest

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 ...

of all 3,113 counties in the United States (and the highest in New Jersey) as of 2009. In 2012, 49.8 percent of Somerset County residents were college graduates, the highest percentage in the state. Somerset County was recently ranked number 3 of 21 NJ counties as one of the healthiest counties in New Jersey, according to an annual report by County Health Rankings and Roadmaps. Somerset County was created on May 14, 1688, from portions of Middlesex County.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 221. Accessed October 30, 2012. The county is located in the

Central Jersey Central Jersey is the central region of 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, ...

region and encompasses much of the Raritan Valley.

History

Etymology

Somerset County is one of America's oldest counties, and is named after the English county of

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

History

The area was first settled in 1681, in the vicinity of Bound Brook, and the county was established by charter on May 22, 1688. Most of the early residents were Dutch.

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

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 ...

and his troops marched through the county on several occasions and slept in many of the homes located throughout the area. Somerset County also played an important part during both

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

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 ...

with weapons depots and the manufacturing of the army's woolen blankets. For much of its history, Somerset County was primarily an agricultural county. In the late 19th century, the

Somerset Hills The Somerset Hills is known as the northern region of Somerset County located in the U.S. state of New Jersey and includes the municipalities of Bedminster, Bernardsville, Bernards Township, Far Hills, Peapack & Gladstone. The Morris County co ...

area of Somerset County became a popular country home for wealthy industrialists. Into the 21st century, the area is still the home of wealthy businessmen. In 1917, Somerset County, in cooperation with

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 ...

, hired its first agricultural agent to connect local farmers with expert advice. The Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Somerset County, located in Bridgewater, serves residents in the areas of agriculture and natural resources, 4-H youth development and family and community health sciences. In the 1960s, townships that were once exclusively agricultural were quickly transformed into suburban communities. Examples include Bridgewater Township and the Watchung Hills communities of Watchung,

Green Brook Green Brook is a tributary of the Raritan River in central New Jersey in the United States.Gertler, Edward. ''Garden State Canoeing'', Seneca Press, 2002. Course The Green Brook rises in the Watchung Mountains at an elevation of 410 feet in ...

and Warren Township.Sordillo, Victor J
About Warren Township
Warren Township. Accessed October 1, 2013. "Once described as 'the greenest place in New Jersey', Warren Township residents and elected officials are working to keep its rural character and charm while recognizing that there will be growth due to the town's beauty, favorable property taxes and strategic location. Less than 35 miles to Manhattan makes Warren Township a favorite suburb for commuters to New York City." This growth was aided by the development of the county's very strong pharmaceutical and technology presence. Warren Township used to be considered "the greenest place in New Jersey." More recently, there has been an influx of New York City commuters who use

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

Raritan Valley Line The Raritan Valley Line is a commuter rail service operated by New Jersey Transit (NJT) which serves passengers in municipalities in Union, Somerset, and Hunterdon counties in the Raritan Valley region in central New Jersey, United States. Th ...

and

Gladstone Branch The Gladstone Branch (also known as the Gladstone Line) is a commuter rail line operated by NJ Transit from Gladstone station, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, to either Hoboken Terminal or New York Penn Station. It is one of two branches of th ...

or use

Interstate 78 Interstate 78 (I-78) is an east–west Interstate Highway in the Northeastern United States, running from I-81 northeast of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, through Allentown to western and northern New Jersey and terminating at the Holland T ...

. In 1996, Nicholas L. Bissell Jr., then county prosecutor, was charged with

embezzlement Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

tax fraud Tax evasion is an illegal attempt to defeat the imposition of taxes by individuals, corporations, trusts, and others. Tax evasion often entails the deliberate misrepresentation of the taxpayer's affairs to the tax authorities to reduce the taxp ...

, and

abuse of power Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...

. He fled to

Laughlin, Nevada Laughlin is an unincorporated resort town and census-designated place in Clark County, Nevada, United States. It is located on the Colorado River, directly across from the much larger Bullhead City, Arizona. Laughlin lies south of Las Vegas, in ...

, near

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, and took his own life when the federal authorities attempted to arrest him.

Geography

According to the 2010 Census, the county had a total area of , including of land (99.0%) and of water (1.0%).Census 2010 U.S. Gazetteer Files: New Jersey Counties

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 ...

. Accessed May 13, 2015. The high point is on Mine Mountain in Bernardsville, at approximately above sea level. The lowest point is just above sea level on the Raritan River at the Middlesex County line.

Climate and weather

In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Somerville have ranged from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1984 and a record high of was recorded in August 1955. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in February to in July. The county has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

which is hot-summer (''Dfa'') except on Mine Mountain west of Bernardsville where it is warm-summer (''Dfb'').

Demographics

2020 Census

As of the Census of 2020, the county's had 345,361 people, 122,606 households, and 88,540 families. 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 . There were 131,822 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 61.0%

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 ...

, 10.0%

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 ...

, 0.2% Native American, 18.5%

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 ...

, and 2.2% 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 15.2% of the population. Of the 122,606 households, of which 21.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.3% 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, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.3% had a male householder with no wife present and 27.8% were non-families, and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.16. About 21.5% of the population was under age 18, 8.4% was from age 18 to 24, 36.3% was from age 15 to 44, and 16.2% was age 65 or older. The median age was 42.2 years. The gender makeup was 49.2% male and 50.8% female. For every 100 females, there were 96.8 males. The median household income was $111,587, and the median family income was $135,129. About 5.7% 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 8.8% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those age 65 or over.

2010 census

Parks and recreation

Somerset County parks are under the administration of the Somerset County Parks Commission.Somerset County Parks Commission
/ref> General parks are Natirar, Duke Island Park,

Lord Stirling Park Lord Stirling Park is a 925/950 acreSomerset County Parks Commission: Parks, Programs % People, Fall 2008 Edition, page 3 park operated by the Somerset County Park Commission and located in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, and separated from the Great ...

(part of the

Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge The Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge is located in Morris County, New Jersey. Established in 1960, it now is among what has grown to be more than 550 refuges in the United States National Wildlife Refuge System. The initial portion of th ...

), Colonial Park, North Branch Park, Skillman Park, East County Park and a park in development called Raritan River Greenway.

Leonard J. Buck Garden The Leonard J. Buck Garden is a public botanical garden and woodland garden operated by the Somerset County Park Commission, and located at 11 Layton Road, Far Hills, New Jersey, United States. The garden is one of the nation's premier rock ga ...

is a

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

of the county. In addition, the Commission manages natural parks such as the

Washington Valley Park Washington Valley Park is a public park between the first and second Watchung mountain ridge in the Martinsville section of Bridgewater Township, New Jersey that is administered by the Somerset County Park Commission. It contains the Washingt ...

(with biking and hiking trails) and the Sourland Mountain Preserve (hiking and mountain biking trails). The southeastern portion of Somerset County in Franklin Township also includes the

Delaware and Raritan Canal The Delaware and Raritan Canal (D&R Canal) is a canal in central New Jersey, built in the 1830s, that served to connect the Delaware River to the Raritan River. It was an efficient and reliable means of transportation of freight between Philadel ...

State Park, which provides hiking, biking and boating. The Parks Commission operates five public golf courses. Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, an exclusive golf club owned by

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

,Welcome
Trump National Golf Club. Accessed October 6, 2013. "Greetings from Donald J. Trump: When I saw this beautiful piece of property in Bedminster, New Jersey, I knew that it deserved only the best." that he used as a Summer White House during his presidency. The

Somerset Patriots The Somerset Patriots are an American Minor League Baseball team based in Bridgewater Township, New Jersey, that is the Double-A affiliate of the New York Yankees. They compete in the Eastern League, known as the Double-A Northeast in 2021, and ...

are a professional baseball team that plays at the 6,100-seat TD Bank Ballpark, located on the border of Bridgewater and Bound Brook. They played in the independent

Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) is a professional independent baseball league based in the United States. It is an official MLB Partner League based in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States. The Atlantic League's ...

until they became the Double-A affiliate of 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) Amer ...

in 2021.

Government

County Government

Somerset County is governed by a five-member Board of County Commissioners, 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 than ...

to three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats coming up for election each year. At an annual reorganization meeting held on the first Friday of January, the board selects a Director and Deputy Director from among its members. In 2016, commissioners (then known as freeholders) were paid $21,902 and the commissioner director was paid an annual salary of $22,902. The Commissioners employ a full-time County Administrator who manages the day-to-day operations of the county government. The County Administrator is Colleen Mahr. The Clerk of the County Commissioners oversees the work of their offices. Department heads are appointed in accordance with statute and by resolution of the board. Somerset County currently has approximately 1,100 full-time and 130 part-time employees in 52 divisions (including the Library System). , Somerset County's County Commissioners are (with terms for director and deputy director ending every December 31st):''2021 Directory of County & Municipal Offices''
Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed May 1, 2022.2021 General Election Winning Candidates
Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed January 1, 2022.Somerset County General Election November 3, 2020 Final Certified Results
Somerset County, New Jersey, dated December 3, 2020. Accessed January 19, 2021.General Election November 5, 2019 Final Results
Somerset County, New Jersey, updated November 15, 2019. Accessed January 1, 2020. Pursuant to Article VII Section II of the New Jersey State Constitution, each county in New Jersey is required to have three elected administrative officials known as "constitutional officers." These officers are the County Clerk and County Surrogate (both elected for five-year terms of office) and the

County Sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

(elected for a three-year term). Constitutional officers, elected on a countywide basis are: The Somerset County Prosecutor is Michael H. Robertson of the

Basking Ridge Basking Ridge is an Local government in New Jersey#Unincorporated communities, unincorporated community located within Bernards Township, New Jersey, Bernards Township in the Somerset Hills region of Somerset County, New Jersey, Somerset Count ...

section of Bernards Township, who was nominated by the Governor of New Jersey

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician, lawyer, political commentator, lobbyist, and former federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. Christie, who was born in Ne ...

in September 2016. Somerset County is a part of Vicinage 13 of the

New Jersey Superior Court The Superior Court is the state court in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with statewide trial and appellate jurisdiction. The New Jersey Constitution of 1947 establishes the power of the New Jersey courts.Jeffrey S. Mandel, New Jersey Appellate Pra ...

(along with

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was 128,947, making it the state's 18th-most populous county,Warren County Warren County is the name of fourteen counties in the USA. Some are named after General Joseph Warren, who was killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill in the American Revolutionary War: * Warren County, Georgia * Warren County, Illinois * Warren County ...

), which is seated at the Somerset County Courthouse in Somerville; the Assignment Judge for Vicinage 15 is Thomas C. Miller.

Federal representatives

The 7th and 12th

Congressional Districts Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...

cover the county.

State representatives

The 21 municipalities of Somerset County are represented by six legislative districts.

Politics

As of October 1, 2021, there were a total of 262,410 registered voters in Somerset County, of whom 92,921 (35.4%) were registered as Democrats, 66,455 (25.3%) were registered as Republicans and 100,367 (38.2%) were registered as unaffiliated. There were 2,667 voters (1.0%) registered to other parties. Among the county's 2010 Census population, 67.1% were registered to vote, including 75.% of those ages 18 and over.Statewide Voter Registration Summary
,

Division of Elections, as of October 31, 2014. Accessed May 11, 2015. In the

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

became the first Democratic presidential nominee to carry the county since

Lyndon Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...

in 1964, and only the second since 1936. Obama won Somerset by a 6.1% margin over

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two terms ...

, with Obama carrying the state by 15.5% over McCain. Somerset's growing Democratic trend at the presidential level has largely been spurred by the rapid growth of the overwhelmingly Democratic Franklin Township in the county's southeast corner. In the 2012 presidential election, the county was carried by

, winning 52.8% of the vote to

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts f ...

's 47.2%, a 5.6% gap that represented a 0.3% drop off for Obama from his 2008 margin of victory in the county. In 2016, the county voted as Democratic as the state, and in 2020, Joe Biden won the largest share of the vote in the county for a Democrat since 1964, as the county voted more Democratic than the state as a whole for the first time since 1912. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican

received 56% of the vote, defeating 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 fo ...

, who received around 34%. In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican Governor Chris Christie received 67.6% (58,981 votes) to Democrat Barbara Buono's 30.8% (26,913 votes). In the 2017 gubernatorial election, Republican

Kim Guadagno Kimberly Ann Guadagno (; ''née'' McFadden; born April 13, 1959) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the first lieutenant governor and 33rd secretary of state of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. Guadagno was the Republican nominee ...

received 47.9% of the vote (44,231 ballots cast) to Democrat

Phil Murphy Philip Dunton Murphy (born August 16, 1957) is an American financier, diplomat, and politician serving as the 56th governor of New Jersey since January 2018. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the United States ambassador to Germa ...

with 49.8% (45,935 votes), marking the first Democratic win in the county since 1989. In the 2021 gubernatorial election, Republican

Jack Ciattarelli Jack M. Ciattarelli ( ; born December 12, 1961) is an American politician and businessman. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 2011 to 2018, representing the 16th legislative district. He was also t ...

received 47.7% of the vote (54,264 ballots cast) to Democrat Phil Murphy's 51.5% (58,585 votes), this made Somerset, along with neighboring Hunterdon, the only county to shift to the left in this election, despite Ciattarelli representing the county in the state Senate.

Education

School districts

School districts include:New Jersey School Directory for Somerset County

New Jersey Department of Education The New Jersey Department of Education (NJ DOE) administers state and federal aid programs affecting more than 1.4 million public and non-public elementary and secondary school children in the state of New Jersey. The department is headquartered ...

. Accessed August 1, 2022. ;K-12: * Bernards Township School District *

Bound Brook School District The Bound Brook School District is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-Kindergarten through twelfth grade from Bound Brook, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020–21 school yea ...

* Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District * Franklin Township Public Schools *

Hillsborough Township School District The Hillsborough Township School District is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Hillsborough Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. Students fr ...

* Manville School District *

Montgomery Township School District The Montgomery Township School District is a comprehensive public school district, consisting of five school facilities, that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Montgomery Township and Rocky Hill, in Somerset Cou ...

* North Plainfield School District * Somerset Hills Regional School District *

Somerville Public Schools The Somerville Public Schools are a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from Somerville, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2018–19 school year, ...

;Secondary: *

Somerset County Vocational and Technical School District The Somerset County Vocational and Technical School District is a comprehensive vocational education, vocational state school, public school district serving the vocational and training needs of high school students in ninth grade, ninth throug ...

Watchung Hills Regional High School Watchung Hills Regional High School is a regional comprehensive public high school and school district serving students in portions of Somerset and Morris Counties in New Jersey, United States. Students from Warren Township and from the neig ...

;Elementary: * Bedminster Township School District *

Branchburg Township School District The Branchburg Township School District is a community public school district serving students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade from Branchburg, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020–21 school year, the dis ...

* Green Brook School District *

South Bound Brook School District The South Bound Brook School District is a community public school district that serves public school students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade from South Bound Brook, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020–21 ...

* Warren Township Schools * Watchung Borough Schools

Colleges and universities

Somerset County is home to two

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

s: * Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC), North Branch section of Branchburg Township (public).

has a partnership with Raritan Valley Community College which allows students who have an accredited associate degree to complete a bachelor's degree by attending Rutgers classes at RVCC's North Branch campus. The degree completion program is specifically designed to cater to the transfer student looking to complete their bachelor's degree while staying close to home. * Somerset Christian College, now known as Pillar College, is located in the

Zarephath Zarephath may refer to the following : ; Places * Alternative name for Ancient Phoenician city Sarepta, now Sarafand, Lebanon * Zarephath, New Jersey in the United States ;Other * Raising of the son of the widow of Zarephath * Zarephath Wines ...

section of Franklin Township (private).

Alma White College Alma White College was a Bible college in Zarephath, New Jersey from 1921 to 1978. It was an institution of the Pillar of Fire Church. The academic institution is now succeeded by Pillar College. History In June 1917 an elderly German professor ...

(which operated from 1921 to 1978) was a private college located in Zarephath. Beginning in 1931 the college operated WAWZ 1380 on the AM radio dial. The station continued to 1984 after the school closed. The building is now occupied by Somerset Christian College. Somerset Hills Learning Institute, founded in 1998 and now located in Bedminster Township, is a state-of-the-art program dedicated to educating children on the autism spectrum by utilizing the principles of

applied behavior analysis Applied behavior analysis (ABA), also called behavioral engineering, is a psychological intervention that applies empirical approaches based upon the principles of respondent and operant conditioning to change behavior of social significance. ...

Economy

Taxation

Based on

IRS The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory tax ...

data for the 2004 tax year, Somerset County taxpayers had the ninth-highest average federal income tax liability per return in the country. Average tax liability was $16,502, representing 16.8% of

adjusted gross income In the United States income tax system, adjusted gross income (AGI) is an individual's total gross income minus specific deductions. It is used to calculate taxable income, which is AGI minus allowances for personal exemptions and itemized deduc ...

Municipalities

The 21 municipalities in Somerset County (with 2010 Census data for population, housing units, and area) are listed below. Other

unincorporated communities 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 ...

in the county are listed alongside their parent municipality (or municipalities, as the case may be). These areas include

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 ...

s (CDPs), which the

created for enumeration purposes within a

Township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...

. Other communities, historical areas, unincorporated areas, and enclaves that exist within a municipality are also listed.

Transportation

Roads and highways

Somerset County is served by a number of different routes. , the county had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the local municipality, by Somerset 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 transportat ...

. Major county roads that pass through include County Route 512, County Route 514, County Route 518, County Route 523, County Route 525, County Route 527, County Route 529, County Route 531 and County Route 533. The only two state routes that traverse through the county are

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 ...

(only in

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People * Franklin (given name) * Franklin (surname) * Franklin (class), a member of a historical English social class Places Australia * Franklin, Tasmania, a township * Division of Franklin, federal electoral d ...

) and Route 28. U.S. Routes include

U.S. Route 22 U.S. Route 22 (US 22) is a west–east route and is one of the original United States highways of 1926, running from Cincinnati, Ohio, at US 27, US 42, US 127, and US 52 to Newark, New Jersey, at U.S. Route 1/9 in the Newark Airport Intercha ...

U.S. Route 202 U.S. Route 202 (US 202) is a spur route of US 2. It follows a northeasterly and southwesterly direction stretching from Delaware to Maine, also traveling through the states of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massa ...

and U.S. Route 206. The two Interstates that pass through Somerset County are

and

Interstate 287 Interstate 287 (I-287) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US states of New Jersey and New York. It is a partial beltway around New York City, serving the northern half of New Jersey and the counties of Rockland and Westchester in ...

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1, US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between M ...

was planned to run along the ''Somerset Freeway'' from its proposed southern end in Hopewell Township, Mercer County to Franklin Township at I-287 in the 1960s. However, this plan was cancelled in 1983. Route 18 runs at the

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

border of Somerset.

Public transportation

provides train service on the

and the

. Public bus transportation is provided by several transit agencies. NJ Transit provides bus service to the

Port Authority Bus Terminal The Port Authority Bus Terminal (colloquially known as the Port Authority and by its acronym PABT) is a bus station, bus terminal located in Manhattan in New York City. It is the busiest bus terminal in the world by volume of traffic, serving abo ...

Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan and serves as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Buildin ...

, as well as service to major cities in New Jersey and within Somerset County. Ridewise provides three SCOOT shuttles as well as DASH buses and CAT buses.CAT
Ridewise. Accessed January 19, 2015.

References

External links

Somerset County websiteSomerset County Parks CommissionThe Historical Society of the Somerset Hills – Includes Bedminster, Bernardsville, Basking Ridge, Far Hills, Peapack/GladstoneHills List is a local informational website for the Bedminster and Basking Ridge areasRutgers at Raritan Valley Community College
{{authority control 1688 establishments in New Jersey Central Jersey Counties in the New York metropolitan area Populated places established in 1688

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Roads and highways

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