Mercer County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located 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 ...

. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Trenton, also the

state capital Below is an index of pages containing lists of capital city, capital cities. National capitals *List of national capitals *List of national capitals by latitude *List of national capitals by population *List of national capitals by area *List of ...

,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 New Jersey State Council on the Arts, artistic, cultural, and New Jersey Historical Com ...

. Accessed December 22, 2022. prompting its nickname The Capital County. Mercer County alone constitutes the Trenton–Princeton metropolitan statistical area and is considered part of the New York combined statistical area by 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 ...

,(Note: Mercer County, NJ is NOT part of the Philadelphia CSA according to this original source.
"Revised Delineations of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, and Combined Statistical Areas, and Guidance on Uses of the Delineations of These Areas", OMB Bulletin no. 18-04, The White House, Office of Management and Budget, September 4, 2018
/ref> but also directly borders the

Philadelphia metropolitan area Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and is included within the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, internet, wi-fi, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains j ...

's Philadelphia Designated Media Market Area.- Philadelphia Market Area Coverage Maps
,

. Accessed December 28, 2014. The county is part of the

Central Jersey Central Jersey, or Central New Jersey, is the middle region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The designation Central Jersey is a distinct administrative toponym. While New Jersey is often divided into North Jersey and South Jersey, many resi ...

region of the state. As of the 2020 United States census, the county retained its position as the state's 12th-most-populous county,Table 1. New Jersey Counties and Most Populous Cities and Townships: 2020 and 2010 Censuses

New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The New Jersey Civil Service Commission is an independent body within the New Jersey state government under the auspices of ...

. Accessed December 1, 2022. with a population of 387,340, its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 20,827 (+5.7%) from the 366,513 recorded at the 2010 census, which in turn had reflected an increase of 15,752 (+4.5%) from the 350,761 enumerated at the 2000 censusDP-1 - Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000; Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Mercer County, New Jersey

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 January 21, 2013.NJ Labor Market Views
,

, March 15, 2011. Accessed October 6, 2013. The most populous municipality in Mercer County at the 2020 census was Hamilton Township, with 92,297 residents, while Hopewell Township was the largest in area. The county was formed by an act of the

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

on February 22, 1838, from portions of Burlington County ( Nottingham Township, now Hamilton Township), Hunterdon County ( Ewing Township, Lawrence Township, Trenton, and portions of Hopewell Township), and Middlesex County ( West Windsor Township and portions of East Windsor Township).Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 161. Accessed October 1, 2013. The former Keith Line bisects the county and is the boundary between municipalities that previously had been separated into

West Jersey West Jersey and East Jersey were two distinct parts of the Province of New Jersey. The political division existed for 28 years, between 1674 and 1702. Determination of an exact location for a border between West Jersey and East Jersey was often ...

and

East Jersey The Province of East Jersey, along with the Province of West Jersey, between 1674 and 1702 in accordance with the Quintipartite Deed, were two distinct political divisions of the Province of New Jersey, which became the U.S. state of New Jersey. ...

. Trenton–Mercer Airport in Ewing Township is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * (adjective for) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and services ** (adjective for) trade, the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information or money * a dose of advertising ...

and

corporate aviation Commercial aviation is the part of civil aviation that involves operating aircraft for remuneration or hire, as opposed to private aviation. Definition Commercial aviation is not a rigorously defined category. All commercial air transport and ae ...

airport serving Mercer County and its surrounding vicinity. Princeton is home to

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

, one of the world’s most acclaimed

research Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...

universities, and to Drumthwacket, the official residence of the

governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The ...

. Mercer County contains 12 municipalities, the fewest of any county in New Jersey, and equal to

Hudson County Hudson County is a List of counties in New Jersey, county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the North River (Hudson River), Hudson River, the No ...

Etymology

The county was named for

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

General Hugh Mercer, who died as a result of wounds received at the Battle of Princeton on January 3, 1777. Continental Army Brigadier General

Hugh Mercer Hugh Mercer (January 16, 1726 – January 12, 1777) was a Scottish brigadier general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He fought in the New York and New Jersey campaign and was mortally wounded at the Battle of Pri ...

served in the Continental Army during the

Battle of Trenton The Battle of Trenton was a small but pivotal American Revolutionary War battle on the morning of December 26, 1776, in Trenton, New Jersey. After General George Washington's George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River, crossing of the ...

and the Battle of Princeton in 1777. A Scotsman that fled to British North America after the failed Jacobite Rebellion, he worked closely with George Washington in the American Revolution. On January 3, 1777, Washington's army was en route to Princeton, New Jersey. While leading a vanguard of 350 soldiers, Mercer's brigade encountered two British regiments and a mounted unit. A fight broke out at an orchard grove and Mercer's horse was shot from under him. Getting to his feet, he was quickly surrounded by British troops who mistook him for George Washington and ordered him to surrender. Outnumbered, he drew his saber and began an unequal contest. He was finally beaten to the ground, bayoneted repeatedly (seven times), and left for dead. Legend has it that a beaten Mercer, with a bayonet still impaled in him, did not want to leave his men and the battle and was given a place to rest on a white oak tree's trunk, and those who remained with him stood their ground. The Mercer Oak, against which the dying general rested as his men continued to fight, appears on the county seal and stood for 250 years until it collapsed in 2000.

History

Founded February 22, 1838, from portions of surrounding counties, Mercer County has a historical impact that reaches back to the pivotal battles of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

. On the night of December 25–26, 1776, General

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

led American forces across the Delaware River to attack the Hessian forces in the

on the morning of December 26, also known as the First Battle of Trenton. After the battle, Washington crossed back to Pennsylvania. He crossed a third time in a surprise attack on the forces of General

Charles Cornwallis Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis (31 December 1738 – 5 October 1805) was a British Army officer, Whig politician and colonial administrator. In the United States and United Kingdom, he is best known as one of the leading Britis ...

at the

Battle of the Assunpink Creek The Battle of the Assunpink Creek, also known as the Second Battle of Trenton, was a battle between Thirteen Colonies, American and Kingdom of Great Britain, British troops that took place in and around Trenton, New Jersey, on January 2, 1 ...

, on January 2, 1777, also known as the Second Battle of Trenton, and at the Battle of Princeton on January 3. The successful attacks built morale among the pro-independence colonists. Ewing Church Cemetery in Ewing is one of the oldest cemeteries in the area, having served the Ewing community for 300 years. It is home to the burial places of hundreds of veterans from The Revolutionary War to the Vietnam War. Since 1790, Trenton has served as the state's capital, earning the county the name "the Capital County." After the Legislature relocated to Trenton from Perth Amboy in 1790, it purchased land for £250 and 5 shillings and constructed a new state house, designed by Philadelphia-based architect Jonathan Doane, beginning in 1792. The Doane building was covered in stucco, measured , and housed the Senate and Assembly chambers in opposite wings. To meet the demands of the growing state, the structure was expanded several times during the 19th century. New Jersey, along with Nevada, is the only state to have its capital be located at the border with another state, as Trenton is across the Delaware River from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. The

official residence An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of th ...

of the

, known as Drumthwacket, is located in Princeton, and is listed on both the

U.S. National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of sites, buildings, structures, districts, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

and the

New Jersey Register of Historic Places The New Jersey Register of Historic Places is the official list of historic resources of local, state, and national interest in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The program is administered by the New Jersey's state historic preservation office wit ...

. The county experienced rapid urbanization and population growth during the first half of the 20th century due to the growth of industrialization in places such as Trenton. Mercer County was the landing spot for a fictional

Martian Mars, the fourth planet from the Sun, has appeared as a setting in works of fiction since at least the mid-1600s. Trends in the planet's portrayal have largely been influenced by advances in planetary science. It became the most popular celes ...

invasion of the United States. In 1938, in what has become one of the most famous American radio plays of all time,

Orson Welles George Orson Welles (May 6, 1915 – October 10, 1985) was an American director, actor, writer, producer, and magician who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is among the greatest and most influential film ...

acted out his ''

The War of the Worlds ''The War of the Worlds'' is a science fiction novel by English author H. G. Wells. It was written between 1895 and 1897, and serialised in '' Pearson's Magazine'' in the UK and ''Cosmopolitan'' magazine in the US in 1897. The full novel was ...

'' invasion. His imaginary aliens first "landed" at what is now West Windsor. A commemorative monument is erected at Grovers Mill park. There were 27 Mercer County residents killed during the

September 11 terrorist attacks The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...

. A long steel beam weighing one ton was given to the county by the

Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, (PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ) is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate c ...

in March 2011 and is now displayed at Mercer County Park.

Geography and climate

According to the

, as of the 2020 Census, the county had a total area of , of which was land (98.1%) and was water (1.9%).2020 Census Gazetteer File for Counties in New Jersey

. Accessed April 1, 2023. The county is generally flat and low-lying on the inner coastal plain, which extends up to the Route 1 corridor. Further northwest, terrain rises as it ascends the

Piedmont Plateau The Piedmont ( ) is a plateau region located in the Eastern United States. It is situated between the Atlantic Plain and the Blue Ridge Mountains, stretching from New York in the north to central Alabama in the south. The Piedmont Province i ...

, with The Sourlands encompassing the far northwestern portion of the county. Baldpate Mountain, in the western part of Hopewell Township, is the highest point in the county, at above sea level. The lowest elevation is sea level, spread out along the shores of the tidal portions of 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 ...

, Crosswicks Creek and the smaller waterways within the Trenton-Hamilton Marsh in Hamilton Township and the city of Trenton.

Climate

Most of Mercer has a hot-summer

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 cold ...

(''Dfa'') except for the southern portion of the county near and including Trenton where a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

(''Cfa'') exists. The

hardiness zone A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most widely ...

s are 6b and 7a.

Ecology

According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. potential natural vegetation types, most of Mercer County would have a dominant vegetation type of Appalachian

Oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

(''104'') with a dominant vegetation form of Eastern

Hardwood Hardwood is wood from Flowering plant, angiosperm trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostl ...

Forest (''25'') with a dominant section of Northeastern Oak/Pine (''110'') Southern Mixed Forest (''26'') in the far east near Hightstown.U.S. Potential Natural Vegetation, Original Kuchler Types, v2.0 (Spatially Adjusted to Correct Geometric Distortions)
Data Basin, Accessed June 24, 2023.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 United States census, Mercer County has a population of 387,340, making it the 12th most populous county in the state. The racial makeup of the county is quite diverse with 62.3% of the population identifying as white (and 46.7% as non-Hispanic whites), 21.6% of the population being black/African American, and 12.6% of the county's population identifying as Asian. 19.4% of Mercer County is Hispanic/Latino, 0.9% of the population is American Native/Alaskan Native/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, and 2.6% identify as two or more races. 5.4% of Mercer County is under the age of 5, while 21.2% are under the age of 18, and 16.0% are over the age of 65. The female population of the county stands at 50.8%, which is in line with the state as a whole. There are 150,657 housing units in Mercer County, with 63.5% of them being owned by the occupiers. There are 131,440 households with an average of 2.67 persons per household.

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 366,513 people, 133,155 households, and 89,480 families in the county. 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 1,632.2 per square mile (630.2/km²). There were 143,169 housing units at an average density of 637.6 per square mile (246.2/km²). The racial makeup was 61.39% (225,011)

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 ...

, 20.28% (74,318) Black or African American, 0.33% (1,194) Native American, 8.94% (32,752) Asian, 0.08% (295)

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 ...

, 6.24% (22,856) from other races, and 2.75% (10,087) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.09% (55,318) of the population. Of the 133,155 households, 31.4% had children under the age of 18; 48.2% were married couples living together; 14.2% had a female householder with no husband present and 32.8% were non-families. Of all households, 26.9% were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.16. 22.6% of the population were under the age of 18, 10.9% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 26.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.8 years. For every 100 females, the population had 95.5 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 93 males.

Economy

Based on data from 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 macroeconomic and industry statistics, most notably reports about the gross domestic product (GDP) of the United ...

, the county had a

gross domestic product Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the total market value of all the final goods and services produced and rendered in a specific time period by a country or countries. GDP is often used to measure the economic performanc ...

of $36.0 billion in 2021, ranked seventh in the state and a 6.7% increase from the prior year. In 2015, the county had a per capita personal income of $63,720, the sixth-highest in New Jersey, and ranked 121st of 3,113 counties in the United States. Mercer County stands among the

highest-income counties in the United States There are 3,144 County (United States), counties and county-equivalents in the United States. The source of the data is the U.S. Census Bureau and the data is current as of the indicated year. Independent city (United States), Independent cities ...

, with the

having ranked the county as having the 78th-highest

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 ...

of all 3,113 counties in the United States (and the sixth-highest in New Jersey) as of 2009. Trenton's role as New Jersey's state capital contributes significantly to Mercer County's economic standing. 9.5% of the population is considered at or below the poverty line. The median household income in Mercer County is $83,306. 89.6% of the population has a high school diploma, and 43.5% of the county's population has a bachelor's degree or higher, one of the highest rates in the state, as of the 2020 census.

Government

County government

Mercer County has a county executive form of government, in which the Mercer County Executive performs executive functions, administering the operation of the county, and a Board of County Commissioners acts in a legislative capacity. The county executive is directly elected to a four-year term of office. The seven-member Board of County Commissioners, previously known as the Board of Chosen Freeholders, is elected at-large to serve three-year staggered terms of office on a staggered basis, with either two or three seats up for election each year. The Board is led by a Commissioner Chair and vice-chair, selected from among its members at an annual reorganization meeting held in January. The Commissioner Board establishes policy and provides a check on the powers of the County Executive. The Board approves all county contracts and gives advice and consent to the County Executive's appointments of department heads, and appointments to boards and commissions. The Commissioner Board votes to approve the budget prepared by the Executive after review and modifications are made. In 2016, freeholders were paid $29,763 and the freeholder director was paid an annual salary of $31,763. That year, the county executive was paid $164,090 per year. , the Mercer County Executive is Daniel R. Benson ( D, Hamilton Township) whose term of office ends December 31, 2027. Mercer County's Commissioners are (with terms for chair and vice chair ending every December 31): 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 A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts record keeping as well as general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keepin ...

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, the , which is commonly ...

(elected for a three-year term). Mercer County's constitutional officers are: No Republican has won countywide office since 2000. Law enforcement on the county level is provided by the Mercer County Sheriff's Office and the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office. The Mercer County Prosecutor is Angelo J. Onofri of Hamilton Township, who took office in December 2016 after being nominated by

Governor of New Jersey The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The ...

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) ...

and being confirmed by the

New Jersey Senate The New Jersey Senate is the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature by the Constitution of 1844, replacing the Legislative Council. There are 40 legislative districts, representing districts with an average population of 232,225 (2020 figure ...

. Mercer County constitutes Vicinage 7 of the

Superior Court of New Jersey 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: under Article Six of the State Constitu ...

.Mercer Vicinage
, New Jersey Courts. Accessed October 21, 2017. The vicinage is seated at the Mercer County Criminal Courthouse, located at 400 South Warren Street in Trenton. The vicinage has additional facilities for the Civil, Special Civil, General Equity, and Family Parts at the Mercer County Civil Courthouse, located at 175 South Broad Street, also in Trenton. The Assignment Judge for Mercer County is Mary C. Jacobson.

Federal representatives

Portions of the 3rd and 12th

Congressional Districts Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional body. Countries with congressional districts includ ...

cover the county.

State representatives

The 12 municipalities of Mercer County are covered by three legislative districts.

Politics

Mercer County is a reliably Democratic county; it has gone for Republicans only three times (in

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan after 57 years. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, E ...

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

) since

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King Edward VIII, following the death of his father, George V, at Sandringham House. * January 28 – Death and state funer ...

. In each presidential election of the 21st century, the Democratic candidate earned at least 60% of the vote. Since the 2008 election, every municipality has voted for the Democratic candidate, and in the 2024 election, it was the 2nd most Democratic county in the state. This comes after

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

won the county by 40.0% in

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

, the widest margin for anyone since

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...

. As of October 1, 2021, there were a total of 265,703 registered voters in Mercer County, of whom 121,653 (45.8%) were registered as Democrats, 41,701 (15.7%) were registered as Republicans and 98,343 (37.0%) were registered as unaffiliated. There were 4,006 voters (1.5%) registered to other parties.

Transportation

Roads and highways

Mercer County has county routes, state routes, U.S. Routes and Interstates that all pass through. , the county had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the local municipality, by Mercer 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 ...

, 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 ...

and by the

New Jersey Turnpike Authority The New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA) is a state agency responsible for maintaining the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway, which are two toll roads in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The agency is headquartered in Woodbridge Town ...

. Mercer County is served by the following major roadways: * U.S. Route 1 (Which bisects the county) * U.S. Route 1 Business * Route 27 (Only in Princeton) * Route 29 * Route 31 * Route 33 * Route 64 (A small state-maintained bridge located in West Windsor) *

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 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

(

New Jersey Turnpike The New Jersey Turnpike (NJTP) is a system of controlled-access highway, controlled-access toll roads in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The turnpike is maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority (NJTA).The Garden State Parkway, although ma ...

) * Route 129 *

U.S. Route 130 U.S. Route 130 (US 130) is a United States Numbered Highway System, U.S. Highway that is a spur route of U.S. Route 30 in New Jersey, U.S. Route 30, located completely within the state of New Jersey. It is signed with north and south cardinal di ...

* Route 133 (Only in East Windsor) * Interstate 195 * U.S. Route 206 * Interstate 295 I-295 functions as a partial ring-road around the Trenton area, while I-195 serves as an east–west expressway from Trenton to the

Jersey Shore The Jersey Shore, commonly called the Shore by locals, is the coast, coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The term encompasses about of shore, oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy, New Jersey, Perth Amboy in the n ...

. The New Jersey Turnpike (I-95) passes through the southeastern section of the county, and serves as a major corridor to

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

to the south, and

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

and

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

towards the north. Two turnpike interchanges are located within Mercer County: Exit 7A in Robbinsville Township and Exit 8 in East Windsor Township. Before 2018, Interstate 95 abruptly ended at the interchange with US 1 in Lawrence Township, and became I-295 south. Signs directed motorists to the continuation of I-95 by using I-295 to I-195 east to the New Jersey Turnpike. This was all due in part to the cancellation of the Somerset Freeway that was supposed to go from Hopewell Township in Mercer County up to Franklin Township in Somerset County. The section of I-95 west of the US 1 interchange in Lawrence was re-numbered as part of I-295 in March 2018, six months before a direct interchange with

Interstate 95 in Pennsylvania Interstate 95 (I-95) is a major north–south Interstate Highway that runs along the East Coast of the United States from Miami, Florida, north to the Canada–United States border at Houlton, Maine. In the state of Pennsylvania, it runs ...

and the

Pennsylvania Turnpike The Pennsylvania Turnpike, sometimes shortened to Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike, is a controlled-access toll road which is operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in Pennsylvania. It runs for across the southern part of the st ...

opened. This planned interchange indirectly prompted another project: the New Jersey Turnpike Authority extended the 'dual-dual' configuration (inner car lanes and outer truck / bus / car lanes) to Interchange 6 in Mansfield Township, Burlington County from its former end at Interchange 8A in Monroe Township, Middlesex County. This widening was completed in early November 2014. The county roads that traverse through are County Route 518 (only in the Hopewells), County Route 524, County Route 526, County Route 533, County Route 535, County Route 539, County Route 546, County Route 569, County Route 571, and County Route 583.

Public transportation

Mercer hosts several

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

stations, including Trenton,

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

and Princeton Junction on the

Northeast Corridor Line The Northeast Corridor Line is a commuter rail service operated by NJ Transit between the Trenton Transit Center and New York Penn Station on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor in the United States. The service is the successor to Pennsylvania Railroad ...

, as well as Princeton on the

Princeton Branch The Princeton Branch, also known as the Dinky, or the Princeton Junction and Back (PJ&B), is a commuter rail line and service owned and operated by New Jersey Transit (NJT) in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The line is a short branch of the Northe ...

SEPTA SEPTA, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people througho ...

provides rail service to Center City

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

from Trenton and West Trenton. Long-distance transportation is provided by

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

train service along the

Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston in the north to Washington, D.C., in the south, with major stops in Providence, Rhod ...

through the Trenton Transit Center. NJ Transit's

River Line The River Line (stylized as River LINE) is a hybrid rail (light rail with some features similar to commuter rail) service in South Jersey, southern New Jersey that connects the cities of Camden, New Jersey, Camden and Trenton, New Jersey, Trento ...

connects Trenton to Camden, with three stations in the county, all within Trenton city limits, at Cass Street, Hamilton Avenue and at the Trenton Transit Center. Mercer County's only

commercial airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

, and one of three in the state, is Trenton–Mercer Airport in Ewing Township, which is served by

Frontier Airlines Frontier Airlines, Inc. is a major American ultra low-cost airline headquartered in Denver, Colorado. It operates flights to over 120 destinations in the United States, Caribbean, Mexico and Central America, and employs more than 5,000 staff. ...

, offering nonstop service to and from points nationwide.

Municipalities

The 12 municipalities in Mercer County (with 2010 Census data for population, housing units and area) are:

Historical Municipalities

* Nottingham Township (1688–1856) * Princeton Township (1838–2013) * Borough of Princeton (1813–2013) *Washington Township (renamed Robbinsville Township in 2008)

Sports

Mercer County has a number of large parks. The largest, Mercer County Park is the home for the US Olympic Rowing Team's training center. Mercer County is also the home of the

Trenton Thunder The Trenton Thunder are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Trenton, New Jersey, and play their home games at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. From 1994 to 2020, it was a Minor League Baseball team of the D ...

baseball team, playing in the MLB Draft League, and the Jersey Flight of the

National Arena League The National Arena League (NAL) is a professional indoor football league that began play in 2017. As of the end of the 2024 season, the league consisted of five teams. A team's typical payroll budget is $600,000 per season, but as of the 2022 ...

. The Thunder were formerly 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) Am ...

playing in the Eastern League before the 2021 Minor League reorganization. The minor league hockey team, the Trenton Titans, established in 1999 and operating as the ECHL affiliate of the

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

and the AHL's Adirondack Phantoms, disbanded before the start of the 2013–14 season.

Collegiate athletics

Mercer County is also home to several college athletic programs, including two

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

DI schools.

Rider University Rider University is a private university in Lawrence Township, New Jersey, United States. It consists of three academic units: the Norm Brodsky College of Business, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, which includes Westminster Choir Coll ...

competes as the Rider Broncs in the MAAC. In

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

, Rider is a member of the Eastern Wrestling League. The Princeton Tigers compete in the

Ivy League The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...

The College of New Jersey The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) is a public university in Ewing Township, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Established in 1855 as the New Jersey State Normal School, TCNJ was the first normal school, ...

Lions compete in the

DIII as a member of the

New Jersey Athletic Conference The New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC), formerly the New Jersey State Athletic Conference, is an intercollegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division III. All of its current full members are public universities in New Jers ...

and the

Eastern College Athletic Conference The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) is a college athletic conference comprising schools that compete in 15 sports (13 men's and 13 women's). It has 220 member institutions in NCAA Divisions I, II, and III, ranging in location from ...

Mercer County Community College Mercer County Community College (MCCC) is a Public university, public, community college in Mercer County, New Jersey, Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. More than 7,000 students enroll in one or more credit courses each year. Esta ...

competes as the Mercer Vikings as a member of the

Garden State Athletic Conference The Garden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) is a junior college conference in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) for many technical and community colleges in New Jersey. And it is one conference in the Region 19 of the NJCAA ...

and the

National Junior College Athletic Association The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) is the governing association of community college, state college, and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 separate regions across 24 states ...

Education

School districts in the county include:New Jersey School Directory for Mercer 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 * East Windsor Regional School District * Ewing Public Schools * Hamilton Township School District * Hopewell Valley Regional School District * Lawrence Township Public Schools * Mercer County Special Services School District * Princeton Public Schools * Robbinsville Public School District * Trenton Public Schools *

West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District The West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District is a comprehensive high achieving regional public school district in the U.S. state of New Jersey, serving students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade from West Windsor Township (in ...

;9-12 * Mercer County Technical Schools ;Special There is a state-operated school, Marie H. Katzenbach School for the Deaf.

Higher education

Mercer County is home to

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a Private university, private seminary, school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Establish ...

, the

Institute for Advanced Study The Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) is an independent center for theoretical research and intellectual inquiry located in Princeton, New Jersey. It has served as the academic home of internationally preeminent scholars, including Albert Ein ...

, Westminster Choir College,

, and Thomas Edison State University.

is a county-run community college located in West Windsor.

Points of interest

* Drumthwacket, The official residence of the Governor of New Jersey located in Princeton * New Jersey State House, The capitol complex of New Jersey and the meeting point of the state legislature, located at the state capital in Trenton * Mercer County Park, in West Windsor * Hamilton Veterans Park * Mercer County Park September 11 Memorial * Swaminarayan Akshardham in Robbinsville, the largest Hindu temple outside Asia * Assunpink Creek (part) *

Mercer Lake Mercer Lake, also known as Lake Mercer, is a man-made lake within Mercer County Park in West Windsor Township, New Jersey, West Windsor, Mercer County, New Jersey, Mercer County, New Jersey, United States. History The lake came into being with ...

at Mercer County Park * Griggstown Native Grassland Preserve (part) *

Princeton Battlefield The Princeton Battlefield in Princeton, Mercer County, New Jersey, United States, is where American and British troops fought each other on January 3, 1777, in the Battle of Princeton during the American Revolutionary War. The battle ended w ...

* Mercer Oaks Golf Course * Washington Crossing State Park, in Hopewell Township * Colonial Memorial Park in Trenton *

Lower Trenton Bridge The Lower Trenton Toll Supported Bridge, commonly called the Lower Free Bridge, Warren Street Bridge or Trenton Makes Bridge, is a two-lane Pennsylvania (Petit) through truss bridge that crosses over the Delaware River between Trenton, New J ...

* Trenton War Memorial * Trenton Thunder Ballpark * Grounds for Sculpture, in Hamilton Township

Wineries

* Hopewell Valley Vineyards * Working Dog Winery, in East Windsor Township

Notes

References

External links

Official County Website

Mercer County Library System
{{authority control 1838 establishments in New Jersey Central Jersey Counties in the New York metropolitan area Majority-minority counties in New Jersey Populated places established in 1838

Etymology

History

Geography and climate

Climate

Ecology

Demographics

2020 census

2010 census

Economy

Government

County government

Federal representatives

State representatives

Politics

Transportation

Roads and highways

Public transportation

Municipalities

Historical Municipalities

Sports

Collegiate athletics

Education

Higher education

Points of interest

Wineries

See also

Notes

References

External links