Raritan Township is a

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

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

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 23,447, an increase of 1,262 (+5.7%) from the 2010 census count of 22,185, which in turn reflected an increase of 2,376 (+12.0%) from the 19,809 counted in the 2000 census. The township is located within the heart of the

Amwell Valley The Amwell Valley is a small valley in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, between the Hunterdon Plateau and the Sourlands. It comprises Stockton, parts of Delaware Township, West Amwell, East Amwell, Flemington and Raritan Township. The regio ...

and Raritan Valley regions, as the South Branch of the Raritan River (along with the

Neshanic River The Neshanic River is a tributary of the South Branch Raritan River in central New Jersey in the United States.Gertler, Edward. ''Garden State Canoeing'', Seneca Press, 2002. It is 11 miles long. See also *List of rivers of New Jersey This is ...

) flows through the center of the township. The northwestern portion of the township is located on the

Hunterdon Plateau Hunterdon Plateau is a plateau in western Hunterdon County, New Jersey. It borders the higher Musconetcong Mountain to the northwest, the Delaware River to the west, Amwell Valley to the south and the lower lying areas of the Newark Basin to the ...

. Raritan was incorporated as a township 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 April 2, 1838, from portions of the now-defunct Amwell Township. Flemington was formed within the township on March 14, 1870, and became an independent borough on April 7, 1910. Portions of the township were ceded to East Amwell Township in 1854 and 1897.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 157. Accessed May 30, 2024. The township's name is derived from the

Raritan tribe The Raritan were two groups of Lenape people who lived around the lower Raritan RiverIves Goddard, "Delaware," p. 213. and the Raritan Bay, in what is now northeastern New Jersey, in the 16th century. Name The name ''Raritan'' likely came fro ...

, a Native American band of

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

people that inhabited

Central New 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 division, administrative toponymy, toponym. While New Jersey is often divided into North Je ...

. The name of the tribe is said to mean "forked river", "stream overflows" or "point on a tidal river".

Geography

According to the

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 ...

, the township had a total area of 37.65 square miles (97.52 km²), including 37.48 square miles (97.08 km²) of land and 0.17 square miles (0.44 km²) of water (0.46%). Raritan Township completely surrounds Flemington, making it part one of 21 pairs of "doughnut towns" in the state, where one municipality entirely surrounds another. It borders the municipalities of Clinton Township, Delaware Township, East Amwell Township, Franklin Township and Readington Township in Hunterdon County; and Hillsborough Township in Somerset County.

Unincorporated communities An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include:

Cloverhill Cloverhill may refer to: * Cloverhill, New Jersey, unincorporated community in the United States *Cloverhill Prison Cloverhill Prison () is a remand prison in Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Irelan ...

, Copper Hill, Croton, Flemington Junction, Klinesville, Larisons Corners, Muirhead, Reaville, as well as Bartles Corners, Gary Corner, Mount Carmel, Rockefellows Mills, Thachers Hill and Voorhees Corner. Raritan Township is located east of

Allentown Allentown may refer to: Places * Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California * Allentown, Georgia, a city in four counties in Georgia * Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Tazewell County * Allentown, New Jersey, a boroug ...

, north of

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 ...

, and southwest of

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 ...

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 22,185 people, 8,056 households, and 6,058 families in the township. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was 591.2 per square mile (228.3/km²). There were 8,288 housing units at an average density of 220.9 per square mile (85.3/km²). The racial makeup was 89.57% (19,870)

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 ...

, 2.07% (459) Black or African American, 0.10% (23) Native American, 5.95% (1,319) Asian, 0.04% (9)

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.83% (185) from other races, and 1.44% (320) from two or more races.

Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While many use the terms interchangeably, for example, the United States Census Bureau ...

of any race were 5.13% (1,138) of the population. Of the 8,056 households, 37.6% had children under the age of 18; 64.9% were married couples living together; 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present and 24.8% were non-families. Of all households, 20.7% were made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.19. 26.2% of the population were under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 22.7% from 25 to 44, 33.2% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.4 years. For every 100 females, the population had 94.8 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 89.8 males. The Census Bureau's 2006–2010

American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...

showed that (in 2010

inflation-adjusted In economics, nominal value refers to value measured in terms of absolute money amounts, whereas real value is considered and measured against the actual goods or services for which it can be exchanged at a given time. Real value takes into acco ...

dollars)

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...

was $109,941 (with a margin of error of +/− $7,543) and the median family income was $130,514 (+/− $10,612). Males had a median income of $95,123 (+/− $8,996) versus $62,229 (+/− $3,584) for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the borough was $48,782 (+/− $2,900). About 2.0% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States census there were 19,809 people, 6,939 households, and 5,391 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 7,094 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 93.22%

, 1.23%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.09% Native American, 3.50% Asian, 0.01%

, 0.68% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 2.79% of the population.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Raritan township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey

. Accessed July 20, 2012.DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Raritan township, Hunterdon County, New Jersey
,

. Accessed July 20, 2012. There were 6,939 households, out of which 43.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.3% were non-families. 18.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.24. In the township the population was spread out, with 29.3% under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.0 males. The median income for a household in the township was $85,996, and the median income for a family was $96,336. Males had a median income of $69,485 versus $41,911 for females. The

for the township was $38,919. About 1.2% of families and 2.0% of the population were below the

, including 1.6% of those under age 18 and 2.9% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

Raritan Township is governed under the

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

form of government, one of 141 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use the Township form. The Township Committee is comprised of five members, who are elected directly by the voters

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...

in partisan elections to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with either one or two seats coming up for election each year as part of the November general election in a three-year cycle.''2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book'',

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

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

, March 2013, p. 103. At an annual reorganization meeting, the Township Committee selects one of its members to serve as Mayor and another as Deputy Mayor. The mayor presides at Township Committee meetings and votes as a member of the committee, but has no other special powers under the township form of government law. All legislative and executive powers, including the power of appointments, are exercised by the committee as a whole. , the members of the Raritan Township Committee are

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

Bob King ( R, term on committee ends December 31, 2025; term as mayor ends December 31, 2025), Deputy Mayor Bradford Perry (R, term on committee ends 2026; term as deputy mayor ends 2025), Robyn Fatooh (R, 2026), Scott R. MacDade (R, 2025) and Scott Sipos (R, 2027).Township Committee
Township of Raritan. Accessed April 19, 2025. "Raritan Township has the Township form of government which, designed to parallel the New England Township Meeting, is one of the oldest forms of government in New Jersey. The governing body is a Township Committee of five members who are elected for three-year staggered terms in partisan elections from the Township at large. There is an election of at least one member every year. The mayor is elected by the Township Committee for a one year term." In June 2022, Jeff Kuhl resigned from the seat he had held expiring in December 2024 in order to fill a vacant seat on the

Board of County Commissioners A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the county government in some states of the United States. A county usually has three to five ...

. The Township Committee appointed Bob King to fill Kuhl's vacant committee seat; King served on an interim basis until the November 2022 general election, when voters chose King to serve the balance of the term of office.

Federal, state and county representation

Raritan Township is located in the 7th Congressional DistrictPlan Components Report

New Jersey Redistricting Commission The New Jersey Redistricting Commission is a constitutional body of the government of New Jersey tasked with redrawing the state's Congressional election districts after each decade's census. Like Arizona, Idaho, Hawaii, Montana, and Washington ...

, December 23, 2011. Accessed February 1, 2020. and is part of New Jersey's 16th state legislative district.Municipalities Sorted by 2011-2020 Legislative District

New Jersey Department of State The secretary of state of New Jersey oversees the Department of State, which is one of the original state offices. The Secretary is responsible for overseeing New Jersey State Council on the Arts, artistic, cultural, and New Jersey Historical Com ...

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

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV) is a nonpartisan American nonprofit political organization. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include Voter registration, registering voters, providing voter information, boosting voter turnout and adv ...

. Accessed October 30, 2019. Prior to the 2010 Census, Raritan Township had been part of the , a change made by the

that took effect in January 2013, based on the results of the November 2012 general elections.''2011 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government''
, p. 63, New Jersey

. Accessed May 22, 2015.

Politics

As of September 2023, there were a total of 19,626 registered voters in Raritan Township, of which 5,600 (28.5%) were registered as Democrats, 7,113 (36.2%) were registered as

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

and 6,758 (34.4%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 78 voters registered as

Libertarians Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

or Greens and 77 registered to other parties. In the

2012 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January: ...

, Republican

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American businessman and retired politician. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Utah from 2019 to 2025 and as the 70th governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 ...

received 57.8% of the vote (6,798 cast), ahead of Democrat

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

with 41.2% (4,843 votes), and other candidates with 1.0% (118 votes), among the 11,834 ballots cast by the township's 16,049 registered voters (75 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 73.7%. In the 2008 presidential election, Republican

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...

received 54.7% of the vote (6,705 cast), ahead of Democrat

with 43.5% (5,339 votes) and other candidates with 1.0% (121 votes), among the 12,261 ballots cast by the township's 15,254 registered voters, for a turnout of 80.4%. In the 2004 presidential election, Republican

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

received 59.7% of the vote (6,727 ballots cast), outpolling Democrat

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...

with 39.7% (4,470 votes) and other candidates with 0.7% (97 votes), among the 11,265 ballots cast by the township's 13,693 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 82.3. In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...

received 74.1% of the vote (5,504 cast), ahead of Democrat

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

with 24.5% (1,818 votes), and other candidates with 1.5% (109 votes), among the 7,595 ballots cast by the township's 16,003 registered voters (164 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 47.5%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 64.8% of the vote (5,440 ballots cast), ahead of Democrat

Jon Corzine Jon Stevens Corzine ( ; born January 1, 1947) is an American financial executive and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from New Jersey from 2001 to 2006, and the 54th governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. Corzine ran f ...

with 25.9% (2,173 votes), Independent

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

with 7.4% (618 votes) and other candidates with 0.6% (47 votes), among the 8,396 ballots cast by the township's 14,991 registered voters, yielding a 56.0% turnout.

Education

Students in public schools for

pre-kindergarten Pre-kindergarten (also called pre-K or PK) is a voluntary classroom-based preschool program for children below the age of five in the United States, Canada, Turkey and Greece (when kindergarten starts). It may be delivered through a preschool ...

through eighth grade attend the Flemington-Raritan Regional School District, which also serves children from the neighboring community of Flemington. As of the 2023–24 school year, the district, comprised of six schools, had an enrollment of 3,174 students and 335.3 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a

student–teacher ratio The student–teacher ratio or student–faculty ratio refers to the number of students who attend a school or university divided by the number of teachers or staff in the institution. For example, a student–teacher ratio of 10:1 indicates that ...

of 9.5:1.District information for Flemington-Raritan Regional School District

National Center for Education Statistics The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the principal federal agency responsible for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data on education in the United States. Established under , it operates within the Institute of Education S ...

. Accessed December 15, 2024. The district is comprised of four PreK/K to 4 elementary schools, one intermediate school for grades 5 and 6 and a middle school for grades 7 and 8. Schools in the district (with 2023–24 enrollment data from the

) are Barley Sheaf School with 363 students in grades K–4 (located in Flemington), Copper Hill School with 602 students in grades PreK–4 ( Ringoes), Francis A. Desmares School with 420 students in grades K–4 (Flemington), Robert Hunter School with 394 students in grades K–4 (Flemington), Reading-Fleming Intermediate School with 702 students in grades 5–6 (Flemington) and J. P. Case Middle School with 675 students in grades 7–8 (Flemington).''2024-2025 Public School Directory''

Department of Education. Accessed January 1, 2025. Raritan Township is allocated seven of the nine seats on the regional district's board of education. Public school students in

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

through

twelfth grade Twelfth Grade (also known as Grade 12, Senior Year, Standard 12, 12th Standard, 12th Class, or Class 12th or Class 12) is the twelfth and final Educational stage, year of Formal education, formal or compulsory education. It is typically the final ...

s attend

Hunterdon Central Regional High School Hunterdon Central Regional High School is a comprehensive high school, comprehensive, four-year state school, public Secondary education in the United States, high school, and regional school district that serves students from five municipaliti ...

, part of the Hunterdon Central Regional High School District, which serves students in central Hunterdon County from Raritan Township and from Delaware Township, East Amwell Township, Flemington and Readington Township. As of the 2023–24 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 2,408 students and 226.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a

of 10.6:1. Seats on the high school district's nine-member

board of education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional area, ...

are allocated based on the population of the five constituent municipalities who participate in the school district, with four seats allocated to Raritan Township, an increase of one seat based on the results of the 2020 Census.Board of Education
Hunterdon Central Regional High School. Accessed January 12, 2025. Eighth grade students from all of Hunterdon County are eligible to apply to attend the high school programs offered by the Hunterdon County Vocational School District, a county-wide vocational school district that offers career and technical education at its campuses in Raritan Township and at programs sited at local high schools, with no tuition charged to students for attendance.

Transportation

, the township had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality, by Hunterdon 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 transport ...

. Several major roads in Raritan Township. These include Route 12, Route 31 and

U.S. Route 202 U.S. Route 202 (US 202) is a spur route of U.S. Route 2, US 2. It follows a northeasterly and southwesterly direction stretching from Delaware in the south to Maine in the north and traveling through the states of Pennsylvania, N ...

(the latter two run

concurrent Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

for about in the southern part of the township). Major county roads that go through the township include CR 514 (which runs along the southeastern border), CR 523 and CR 579 (which runs along the southwestern border). The closest

Interstate highway The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...

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

in neighboring Clinton and Franklin Townships.

Public transportation

The Hunterdon County LINK provide local bus service on Route 14 between Lambertville and Flemington; Route 15 between Flemington and

Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia * Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria ** Hampton railway station, Melbour ...

; Routes 16 / 19 / 21 which operate to / from Flemington; Route 17 / 18 between

Milford Milford may refer to: Place names Canada * Milford (Annapolis), Nova Scotia * Milford (Halifax), Nova Scotia * Milford, Ontario England * Milford, Derbyshire * Milford, Devon, a place in Devon * Milford on Sea, Hampshire * Milford, Shro ...

and

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has also been used as a given nam ...

; and Route 23 between Flemington and

Bridgewater Commons Mall Bridgewater Commons is a fully enclosed shopping mall located in Bridgewater Township, New Jersey. The mall is located at the intersection of U.S. Route 22 in New Jersey, Route 22 and U.S. Route 202 in New Jersey, Route 202/U.S. Route 206#New J ...

Somerville Somerville may refer to: Places Australia *Somerville, Victoria, a town **Somerville railway station * Somerville, Western Australia, a suburb of Kalgoorlie, Australia New Zealand * Somerville, New Zealand, a suburb of Manukau City, New Zea ...

Rail service

Black River and Western 50th Anniversary 138

The

Black River and Western Railroad The Black River and Western Railroad is a freight railroad, freight and heritage railroad operating in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, between Flemington, New Jersey, Flemington, Lambertville, New Jersey, Lambertville and Ringoes, New Jersey, Ring ...

is a historic

short-line railroad A shortline railroad is a small or mid-sized railroad company that operates over a relatively short distance relative to larger, national railroad networks. The term is used primarily in the United States and Canada. In the former, railroads are ...

that passes through the township. It operates today as a

heritage railway A heritage railway or heritage railroad (U.S. usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) ...

. The

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

's Lehigh Line (formerly the mainline of the

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

), runs through most of the northeast part of Raritan Township close to its northeast boundary.

Points of interest

On December 14, 1776, during 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 ...

, local militia led by Captain John Schenck ambushed a party of British dragoons returning from a raid on Flemington. The British leader, Cornet Francis Geary, was killed during this skirmish, known as the

Ambush of Geary The Ambush of Geary, also known as the Amwell Skirmish, was a skirmish of the American Revolutionary War fought on 14 December 1776 in Amwell Township of Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Cornet Francis Geary, the leader of a company of dragoons, w ...

, that took place between Copper Hill and Larison's Corners. On December 14, 1976, as part of the

United States Bicentennial The United States Bicentennial was a series of celebrations and observances during the mid-1970s that paid tribute to historical events leading up to the creation of the United States as an independent republic. It was a central event in the memo ...

, Raritan Township dedicated a monument to the Amwell Militia at the site along US 202 and Route 31 northbound. A memorial monument to Geary is located nearby along with a historical information plaque describing the Amwell Skirmish. The John Reading Farmstead, built in 1760 for John Reading, former governor of the

Province of New Jersey The Province of New Jersey was one of the Middle Colonies of Colonial history of the United States, Colonial America and became the U.S. state of New Jersey in 1776. The province had originally been settled by Europeans as part of New Netherla ...

, is listed on the

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

. It is also a contributing property of the Raritan–Readington South Branch Historic District.

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Raritan Township include: * Marcia A. Karrow (born 1959), member of 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 ...

who served on the Raritan Township Committee, including in 1998 as its mayor * Orlie Pell (1900–1975), pacifist, philosopher and activist. *

Miles Ross Miles Ross (April 30, 1827 – February 22, 1903) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party politician and businessman who represented New Jersey's New Jersey's 3rd congressional district, 3rd congressional district ...

(1827–1903), represented

New Jersey's 3rd congressional district New Jersey's 3rd congressional district is a suburban district in southern and central New Jersey. Centrally located on the I-95 corridor in the Northeast Megalopolis, at the cross-roads between the Delaware Valley region in the greater Phi ...

in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from 1875 to 1883 * Alex Shaffer (born 1993), actor who appeared in the 2011 film '' Win Win''Staff
"Hunterdon Central wrestling champ Alex Shaffer has major role in a movie"
''

Hunterdon County Democrat The ''Hunterdon County Democrat'' is a weekly newspaper that serves Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Currently owned by Penn Jersey Advance, Inc., its offices are in Raritan Township. It is one of the largest paid weekly newspapers in New Jerse ...

'', March 29, 2010. Accessed September 21, 2015. "His parents are Michael and Gina Shaffer and the family lives in Raritan Township."

References

External links

Raritan Township websiteHunterdon County webpage for Raritan TownshipFlemington-Raritan Regional School District
*
School Data for the Flemington-Raritan Regional School District

Hunterdon Central Regional High School District
*
School Data for the Hunterdon Central Regional High School

Hunterdon Land Trust Alliance
{{Authority control 1838 establishments in New Jersey Populated places established in 1838 Township form of New Jersey government Townships in New Jersey Townships in Hunterdon County, New Jersey