Bergen County, New Jersey
U.S. County|
county = Bergen County|
state = New Jersey |
seal = Bergen_County_Seal.png |
map = Map of New Jersey highlighting Bergen County.svg|
map size = 100|
founded = 1675|
seat =
Hackensack | area = 639
km² (247
mi²) |
area land = 606 km² (234 mi²) |
area water = 33 km² (13 mi²) |
area percentage = 5.12% |
census yr = 2000|
pop = 884,118 |
density = 1,458|
web = www.co.bergen.nj.us|}}
Bergen County is the most populous
county of the
state of
New Jersey,
United States. As of the
2000 Census, the population is 884,118. It is part of the
New York Metropolitan Area. Its
county seat is
Hackensack6. Bergen County ranks as the 21st among the
highest-income counties in the United States with a per capita income of $33,638.
|
Bergen and Passaic counties, 1872 |
Bergen County was established in 1675 while the territory was called
East Jersey, a proprietary colony (as opposed to a royal colony). East Jersey was partitioned into four counties for administrative purposes: Bergen County,
Essex County,
Middlesex County and
Monmouth County. At the time of its creation, Bergen County's territory also included the current territory of
Hudson County (formed in 1840), and portions of
Passaic County (formed in 1837).
Bergen saw several battles and troop movements during the
American Revolutionary War.
Fort Lee's location atop the
New Jersey Palisades, opposite
Fort Washington in
Manhattan, made it a strategic position during the war in the November 1776
Battle of Fort Lee, as part of the
Continental Army's futile attempts to keep British forces from sailing up the
Hudson River. After these defensive positions were hastily abandoned, the American forces staged a ragged retreat through present-day
Englewood and
Teaneck, and across the
Hackensack River at
New Bridge Landing, one of the few sites where the river was crossed by a bridge. With the British in pursuit, this ignominious retreat allowed American forces to escape capture and regroup for subsequent successes against the British elsewhere in New Jersey later that fateful winter. The
Baylor Massacre took place in 1778 in
River Vale, resulting in severe losses for the Americans.
Camp Merritt was created in eastern Bergen County for troop staging in
World War I.
Bergen County is one of the last remaining areas of the country in which
blue laws are still in effect. This means that nearly all businesses in the county are closed on Sundays.
In 2005, Bergen County, along with neighboring
Passaic County, was listed by
Forbes.com as the sixth most overpriced place in the nation. In 2004, the two counties were ranked second.
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 639
km² (247
mi²). 606 km² (234 mi²) of it is land and 33 km² (13 mi²) of it (5.12%) is water.
The highest elevation is
Bald Mountain near the
New York state line in
Mahwah, at 1,164 feet (355 m) above sea level. The lowest point is sea level, along the
Hudson River.
The sharp cliffs of the
New Jersey Palisades lift much the county up from the river along the eastern boundary with the Hudson River, but then relief remains relatively minimal across the county as much of it is in the
Hackensack River valley. Only in the northwestern portion of the county are any serious hills found, leading to the
Ramapo Mountains. The damming of the Hackensack River (and tributaries) produced three
reservoirs in the county,
Woodcliff Lake Reservoir,
Lake Tappan and
Oradell Reservoir, which provide drinking water to much of northern New Jersey.
Bergen County is bordered by
Rockland County, New York to the north, by
Westchester County,
the Bronx, and
Manhattan in New York, across the
Hudson River to the east,
Hudson County to the south, a small border with
Essex County also to the south and
Passaic County to the west.
County Government
Bergen has had a
County Executive form of government since 1986. The current County Executive is
Democrat Dennis McNerney. The executive, along with the
Board of Chosen Freeholders administer all county business. Bergen County's Freeholders (reflecting the results of the
2006 Regorganization meeting on
January 4,
2006) are:
*Freeholder Chairwoman
Bernadette P. McPherson of
Rutherford*Freeholder Vice-Chairman
David L. Ganz of
Fair Lawn*
Elizabeth Calabrese of
Wallington*
James M. Carroll of
Demarest*
Tomas J. Padilla of
Park Ridge*
Elizabeth Randall of
Westwood*
Valerie Vainieri Huttle of
EnglewoodState representatives
The seventy municipalities of Bergen County are represented by seven separate legislative districts. Three of these districts (the 37th, 38th and 39th) are situated entirely within the county, the others cross county boundaries.
>| District | Senator | Assembly | 2002
Pop.!Municipalities |
|---|
| 32nd | Nicholas Sacco (D) | Vincent Prieto (D)
Joan M. Quigley (D) | 13,363 | Fairview |
|---|
| 35th | John Girgenti (D) | Nellie Pou (D)
Alfred E. Steele (D) | 11,527 | Glen Rock |
|---|
| 36th | Paul Sarlo (D) | Frederick Scalera (D)
Gary Schaer (D) | 119,146 | Carlstadt, East Rutherford, Garfield, Lyndhurst, Moonachie, North Arlington, Rutherford, Wallington, Wood-Ridge |
|---|
| 37th | Loretta Weinberg (D) | Valerie Huttle (D)
Gordon M. Johnson (D) | 217,255 | Bergenfield, Bogota, Englewood, Englewood Cliffs, Hackensack, Leonia, Maywood, Palisades Park, Ridgefield Park, Rochelle Park, Teaneck, Tenafly |
|---|
| 38th | Joseph Coniglio (D) | Robert M. Gordon (D)
Joan Voss (D) | 218,991 | Cliffside Park, Edgewater, Elmwood Park, Fair Lawn, Fort Lee, Hasbrouck Heights, Little Ferry, Lodi, Paramus, Ridgefield, Saddle Brook, South Hackensack, Teterboro |
|---|
| 39th | Gerald Cardinale (R) | John E. Rooney (R)
Charlotte Vandervalk (R) | 217,434 | Allendale, Alpine, Closter, Cresskill, Demarest, Dumont, Emerson, Harrington Park, Haworth, Hillsdale, Ho-Ho-Kus, Montvale, New Milford, Northvale, Norwood, Old Tappan, Oradell, Park Ridge, Ramsey, River Edge, River Vale, Rockleigh, Saddle River, Upper Saddle River, Waldwick, Washington Township, Westwood, Woodcliff Lake |
|---|
| 40th | Henry McNamara (R) | Kevin J. O'Toole (R)
David C. Russo (R) | 97,375 | Franklin Lakes, Mahwah, Midland Park, Oakland, Ridgewood, Wyckoff |
|---|
Congressional representatives
Two federal
Congressional Districts cover the county, with the northern portion of the county in
New Jersey's 5th district, represented by
Scott Garrett (
R) and the southern portion of the county in
New Jersey's 9th district, represented by
Steve Rothman (
D).
Blue Laws
One of the last remaining
blue laws in the United States that covers virtually all selling is found in Bergen County. It has produced the ironic situation that one of the largest and most popular commercial shopping cores of the
New York metropolitan area is almost completely closed on Sunday (grocery stores are allowed to operate). Furthermore, Bergen County has significant Jewish and Muslim populations whose observant members would not be celebrating their Sabbath on Sunday with most of their Christian brethren. The substantial Orthodox Jewish minority is placed in the position of being unable to shop either on Sunday (due to the blue laws) or on Saturday (due to religious observance).
However, repeated attempts to lift the law have failed as voters either see keeping the law on the books as a protest against the growing trend toward increasing hours and days of commercial activity in American society or enjoy the sharply reduced traffic on major roads and highways on Sunday that is normally seen the other days of the week. In fact, a large part of the reason for maintaining the laws has been a desire for relative peace and quiet one day of the week by many Bergen County residents.
This desire for relative peace is most apparent in Paramus, where most of the county's largest shopping malls are located, along the intersecting highways of Route 4 and Route 17, which are jam-packed on many Saturdays. Paramus has blue laws of its own that are even more restrictive than those enforced by Bergen County.
Bergen county has a well-developed road network, including the northern termini of the
New Jersey Turnpike (a portion of
Interstate 95) and the
Garden State Parkway, the eastern terminus of
Interstate 80 and a portion of
Interstate 287. US Highways
46,
202,
9,
9W, and New Jersey state highways
4,
17,
3,
120,
208, and the
Palisades Interstate Parkway also serve the region.
Access to
New York City is primarily available for motorists through the
George Washington Bridge in
Fort Lee and the
Lincoln Tunnel in
Hudson County. Train service is available on three lines from
New Jersey Transit: the
Bergen County Line, the
Erie Main Line and the
Pascack Valley Line. They run north-south to
Hoboken Terminal with connections to the
PATH train. New Jersey Transit also offers connecting one-stop service to
New York Penn Station via the
Secaucus Junction transfer station. Connections are also available at the
Hoboken Terminal to
New York Waterways ferry service to the
World Financial Center and other destinations. The
Hudson-Bergen Light Rail will connect the county with
Hudson County in the near future. There is also bus service, available from
New Jersey Transit and private companies such as
Red and Tan Lines and DeCamp Bus Lines, offering transport within Bergen County, elsewhere in New Jersey and to the
Port Authority Bus Terminal and
George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal in New York City.
The only airport in the county is
Teterboro Airport in
Teterboro, which is operated by the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Most commercial air traffic is handled by nearby
Newark Liberty International Airport in
Essex County.
>Census
Year | Total
Population | Population
Change | Percent
Change |
|---|
1880 | 36,786 | | |
1890 | 47,226 | 10,440 | 28.4% |
1900 | 78,441 | 31,215 | 66.1% |
1910 | 138,002 | 59,561 | 52.6% |
1920 | 210,643 | 72,641 | 52.6% |
1930 | 364,977 | 154,334 | 73.3% |
1940 | 409,646 | 44,669 | 12.2% |
1950 | 539,139 | 129,493 | 31.6% |
1960 | 780,255 | 241,116 | 44.7% |
1970 | 897,148 | 116,893 | 15.0% |
1980 | 845,385 | -51,763 | -5.8% |
1990 | 825,380 | -20,005 | -2.4% |
2000 | 884,118 | 58,738 | 7.1% |
As of the
census² of 2000, there were 884,118 people, 330,817 households, and 235,210 families residing in the county. The
population density was 1,458/km² (3,776/mi²). There were 339,820 housing units at an average density of 560/km² (1,451/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 78.41%
White, 5.27%
Black or
African American, 0.15%
Native American, 10.67%
Asian, 0.02%
Pacific Islander, 3.22% from
other races, and 2.26% from two or more races. 10.34% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race.
There were 330,817 households out of which 32.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.90% were
married couples living together, 9.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.90% were non-families. 24.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.17.
In the county the population was spread out with 23.00% under the age of 18, 6.60% from 18 to 24, 30.60% from 25 to 44, 24.50% from 45 to 64, and 15.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 92.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.40 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $65,241, and the median income for a family was $78,079. Males had a median income of $51,346 versus $37,295 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $33,638. About 3.40% of families and 5.00% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 4.90% of those under age 18 and 5.90% of those age 65 or over.
Bergen is the most populous of the counties in New Jersey, leading
Essex County by approximately 90,000 people. It is also fairly diverse.
Fort Lee,
Palisades Park, and other communities along the Hudson River have high
Korean-American and
Chinese-American populations of varying affluence. The southern and central portions have a fast-growing
Italian-American community, who are also growing quickly in the more affluent northern portions.
Bergenfield has become a center for
Filipino-American and
Indian-American immigrants, and
Filipino-Americans have settled across the suburbs of Bergen County, notably in
Englewood where they lead Asian representation with about 2 percent of the population.
Hackensack,
Fairview,
Cliffside Park, and
Teaneck have large
Hispanic, particularly
Colombian and
Cuban communities, and Cliffside Park and Teaneck have many
Arab-American residents.
Fair Lawn,
Englewood,
Tenafly,
Englewood Cliffs, Fort Lee,
Woodcliff Lake, and
Franklin Lakes have substantial
Jewish-American and
Russian-American communities.
Wallington and
Garfield are particularly
Polish-American. There are significant
African American communities in
Englewood,
Teaneck and
Hackensack. There are also significant Croatian and Indian populations in Westwood and Emerson.
Bergen has several colleges and universities:
*
Bergen Community College -
Paramus*
Berkeley College -
Paramus*
Dover Business College -
Paramus*
Fairleigh Dickinson University -
Teaneck, and
Hackensack*
Felician College -
Lodi and
Rutherford*
Ramapo College -
MahwahBergen has some 45
public high schools, see
this list. It also has at least 18
private high schools, see
this list.
|
labeled outline map of municipalities |
Historical municipalities
Over the history of the county, there have been various municipality secessions, annexations, and renamings. The following is a partial list of former municipalities, ordered by year of incorporation.
*
Bergen Township, 1693
*
Hackensack Township, 1693
*
New Barbadoes Township, 1710
*
Saddle River Township, 1716
*
Franklin Township, 1771
*
Harrington Township, 1775
*
Lodi Township, 1825
*
Washington Township, 1840
*
Hohokus Township, 1849
*
Union Township, 1852
*
Midland Township, 1871
*
Englewood Township, 1871
*
Palisades Township, 1871
*
Ridgefield Township, 1871
*
Ridgewood Township, 1876
*
Orvil Township, 1885
*
Boiling Springs Township, 1885
*
Overpeck Township, 1892
*
Bergen Township, 1893
*
Eastwood Borough, 1894
Educational/Cultural
*
New Jersey Naval Museum, Hackensack — There the
USS Ling is moored in the
Hackensack River and is available for tours as a
museum ship.
Commercial/Entertainment
*
Giants Stadium, East Rutherford
*
Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford
*
Meadowlands Racetrack, East Rutherford
*
Garden State Plaza, shopping mall, Paramus
County parks
*
Belmont Hill County Park, Garfield
*
Campgaw Mountain Reservation, Mahwah
*
Dahnert's Lake County Park, Garfield
*
Darlington County Park, Mahwah
*
McFaul Environmental Center, Wyckoff
*
Ramapo Mountain Reservation, Mahwah
*
Overpeck County Park, Leonia, Palisades Park, Ridgefield Park
*
Riverside County Park, Lyndhurst, North Arlington
*
Pascack Brook County Park, Westwood
*
Saddle Ridge Riding Area, Franklin Lakes
*
Saddle River County Park, Paramus, Glen Rock, Rochelle Park, Saddle Brook, Ridgewood
*
Samuel Nelkin County Park, Wallington
*
Van Saun County Park, Paramus
*
Wood Dale County Park, Woodcliff Lake
*
Bergen County Zoological Park, Paramus
County-owned historical sites
*
Baylor Massacre site, River Vale
*
Camp Merritt, Cresskill
*
Campbell Christie House, River Edge
*
Easton Tower, Paramus
*
Garretson Farm, Fair Lawn
*
Gethsemane Cemetery, Little Ferry
*
Washington Spring Garden, Paramus
*
Wortendyke Barn, Park Ridge
State parks
*
Ramapo Mountain State Forest, Mahwah
*
Palisades Interstate Park, Fort Lee, Englewood Cliffs, Tenafly, Alpine
State-owned historical sites
*
New Bridge Landing, New Milford, River Edge and Teaneck
*
Steuben House, River Edge (at New Bridge Landing)
*
The Hermitage, Ho-Ho-Kus
*
Bergen County official website*
History of Bergen County, NJ*
Meadowlands Liberty Convention & Visitors Bureau*
Meadowlands Regional Chamber of Commerce*
Stay in the Meadowlands
