Morris County, New Jersey
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| Morris County, New Jersey | |
| Image:Mcflag2.gif | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of New Jersey |
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 New Jersey's location in the USA |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | March 15, 1738 |
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| Seat | Morristown |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
1,247 km² (481 mi²) 1,215 km² (469 mi²) 32 km² (12 mi²), 2.55% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
470,212 387/km² |
| Website: www.co.morris.nj.us | |
Morris County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, about 25 mi (40 km) west of New York City. As of the United States 2000 Census, the population was 470,212. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Morristown6. Morris County ranks 3rd among the highest-income counties in the United States by median household income, and 10th by per capita income.
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[edit] History
Morris County was created on March 15, 1738 splitting it from the large Huntington County and named for the Governor of the Province of New Jersey, Colonel Lewis Morris. In later years Sussex and Warren counties were carved out of Morris.[1]
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,247 km² (481 mi²). 1,215 km² (469 mi²) of it is land and 32 km² (12 mi²) of it (2.55%) is water.
The county rises in elevation and relief from east to west, with only the more developed eastern suburbs in the Passaic River valley being relatively level. The highest point is at 1,395 feet (425 m) above sea level in the Mahlon Dickerson Reservation in Jefferson Township; the lowest point is about 140 feet (42.6 m) in elevation, at Two Bridges, the confluence of the Passaic and Pompton rivers.
- Adjacent counties include
- Sussex County, New Jersey - north
- Passaic County, New Jersey - northeast
- Essex County, New Jersey - east
- Union County, New Jersey - east
- Somerset County, New Jersey - south
- Hunterdon County, New Jersey - southwest
- Warren County, New Jersey - west
[edit] Government
Morris County is governed by a seven-member Board of Chosen Freeholders. The members are elected at large to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with either two or three seats coming up for election each year. The Freeholder Board sets policies for the operation of six super-departments, more than 30 divisions plus authorities, commissions, boards and study committees. Actual day-to-day operation of departments is supervised by the county administrator.
The Board of Chosen Freeholders has been granted broad powers by the state legislature to regulate almost all county property, finances and affairs. The Freeholder Board's duties include preparing and adopting the county budget; authorizing expenditures and bonds; appointing county officials and members to boards, commissions and authorities; passing on all claims against the county, and supervising the administration of county government.
The Freeholders are the center of legislative and administrative responsibility in Morris County and, as such, perform a dual role. As legislators they draw up and adopt a budget, and in the role of administrators they are responsible for spending the funds they have appropriated. Many of these duties in Morris County have been delegated by the Board of Chosen Freeholders to the county administrator.
As of 2007, Morris County's Freeholders are Margaret Nordstrom (Freeholder Director), John Inglesino (Freeholder Deputy Director), Douglas R. Cabana, William J. Chegwidden, Gene F. Feyl, John J. Murphy and Jack Schrier.[2]
The Morris Automated Information Network, which supplies Internet service to area libraries, turned down $10,000 per year in federal funding, starting in 2004. Acceptance of the grants would have required the network to install anti-porn content filters to comply with the Children's Internet Protection Act. As these filters were claimed to have excluded legitimate information — such as pages with the word "breast" in online searches regarding "breast cancer" — the network declined to accept these grants[3].
Another organization having the power to affect the county budget without county governmental control is the Morris County Board of Taxation, a.k.a. the Morris County Tax Board. "[T]he freeholders, and county government in general, do not have control over tax board spending.... [T]he tax board is an entity of state government, even though it submits expense vouchers to county government."[4]
[edit] Business
Fifty-three Fortune 500 businesses have headquarters, offices or a major facility in Morris County. These include AT&T, Honeywell, Colgate-Palmolive, Warner Lambert, Exxon, and American Home Products.[5] Major industries include finance, insurance, real estate, pharmaceuticals, health services, research and development, and technology. There are 13,000 acres set aside for 28 county parks. Three county golf courses and 16 public and private courses are in Morris. Newark Liberty International Airport is located 22.0 miles (35.5 km) from Morristown, the county seat.[6]
[edit] Demographics
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1790 | 16,216 |
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| 1800 | 17,750 | 9.5% | |
| 1810 | 21,828 | 23.0% | |
| 1820 | 21,368 | -2.1% | |
| 1830 | 23,666 | 10.8% | |
| 1840 | 25,844 | 9.2% | |
| 1850 | 30,158 | 16.7% | |
| 1860 | 34,677 | 15.0% | |
| 1870 | 43,137 | 24.4% | |
| 1880 | 50,861 | 17.9% | |
| 1890 | 54,101 | 6.4% | |
| 1900 | 65,156 | 20.4% | |
| 1910 | 74,704 | 14.7% | |
| 1920 | 82,694 | 10.7% | |
| 1930 | 110,445 | 33.6% | |
| 1940 | 125,732 | 13.8% | |
| 1950 | 164,371 | 30.7% | |
| 1960 | 261,620 | 59.2% | |
| 1970 | 383,454 | 46.6% | |
| 1980 | 407,630 | 6.3% | |
| 1990 | 421,353 | 3.4% | |
| 2000 | 470,212 | 11.6% | |
| Est. 2005 | 490,593 | [7] | 4.3% |
| historical census data source: [8][9] | |||
As of the census² of 2000, there were 470,212 people, 169,711 households, and 124,907 families residing in the county. The population density was 387/km² (1,003/mi²). There were 174,379 housing units at an average density of 144/km² (372/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.20% White, 2.80% Black or African American, 0.12% Native American, 6.26% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.01% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races. 7.79% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 169,711 households out of which 35.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.80% were married couples living together, 7.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.40% were non-families. 21.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.30% 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 3.18.
In the county the population was spread out with 24.80% under the age of 18, 6.40% from 18 to 24, 31.90% from 25 to 44, 25.30% from 45 to 64, and 11.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $77,340, and the median income for a family was $89,773. Males had a median income of $60,165 versus $40,065 for females. The per capita income for the county was $36,964. About 2.40% of families and 3.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.70% of those under age 18 and 5.30% of those age 65 or over.
Morris County, New Jersey has a reputation of being one of New Jersey's most homogenous and wealthiest counties. However, there are large Hispanic communities in Dover and Morristown; Parsippany-Troy Hills has a large Asian American population. There are fairly equal numbers of Irish American and German American residents. The Jewish American community is strong in specific areas, such as Randolph. Lincoln Park (26.7%), Montville (26.8%), East Hanover (41.8%), Pequannock Township (29.2%), and Riverdale (33.5%) are dominated by Italian American groups, along with other northern and eastern communities, while the rest of the county is more mixed with populations of Irish and German ancestries. Wharton (20.8%), Denville (25.1%), and Mine Hill (23.5%) are particularly Irish American.
[edit] Education
The County College of Morris is a two-year public community college serving students from Morris County. The school's campus is in Randolph and was founded in 1965. Another two-year college, the private Roman Catholic women's college Assumption College for Sisters, is in Mendham.
The Florham Park-Madison-Convent Station area is also the home of three universities. The College at Florham, a campus of Fairleigh Dickinson University, is located on the border of these three towns. Drew University is a small, private university in Madison. The College of Saint Elizabeth is a private Roman Catholic, four-year, liberal arts women's college located in Convent Station.
[edit] Municipalities
The following is a list of the municipalities in Morris County. Other, unincorporated areas in the county are listed below their parent municipality (or municipalities, as the case may be). Most of these areas are census-designated places that have been created by the United States Census Bureau for enumeration purposes within a township. Other communities and enclaves that exist within a municipality are marked with an asterisk (*) next to the name.
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[edit] References
- ^ http://www.co.morris.nj.us/history/history.asp. Retrieved on March 22, 2007
- ^ [1], accessed January 27, 2007
- ^ The Library's Integrity, editorial, Star-Ledger, September 11, 2004.
- ^ Morris Tax Board Never Gets Bored of Traveling; Members Visited Alaska, Orlando, Other Spots on Public Money , by Lawrence Ragonese, Star-Ledger, October 27, 2006.
- ^ Buying a home in Morris Township
- ^ Morris County Statistics, accessed [{December 24]], 2006
- ^ QuickFacts: Morris County, New Jersey. U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on March 1, 2007.
- ^ New Jersey Resident Population by County: 1880 - 1930.
- ^ Geostat Center: Historical Census Browser. University of Virginia Library. Retrieved on March 2, 2007.
[edit] External links
- Morris County Home Page
- Morris County Economic Development Corporation
- Mining History of Morris County. Abandoned Mine Photos
- Morris County Visitors Center
- The Morris Museum
- Morris County's Newspaper (Daily Record)
- Morris County Chamber of Commerce
- Morris County Library
- History of Morris County, New Jersey
- Landing New Jersey Community Website
- Abandoned Mines, and mining history of Morris County New Jersey and the northeastern U.S.
- Abandoned Mines of Morris County New Jersey
- Historic 1758 Quaker meetinghouse
- Morris County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC)
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(County seat: Morristown) |
||
| Boroughs |
Butler | Chatham | Chester | Florham Park | Kinnelon | Lincoln Park | Madison | Mendham | Morris Plains | Mount Arlington | Mountain Lakes | Netcong | Rockaway | Riverdale | Victory Gardens | Wharton |
 |
| Towns | Boonton | Dover | Morristown | |
| Townships | Boonton | Chatham | Chester | Denville | East Hanover | Hanover | Harding | Jefferson | Long Hill | Mendham | Mine Hill | Montville | Morris | Mount Olive| Parsippany-Troy Hills | Pequannock | Randolph | Rockaway | Roxbury | Washington | |
| CDPs and other communities | Budd Lake | Cedar Knolls | Cedar Lake | Convent Station | Flanders | Green Village | Lake Swannanoa | Landing | Lake Telemark | Long Valley | New Vernon | Port Morris | Stirling | Succasunna-Kenvil | Towaco | Union Hill | Whippany | White Meadow Lake | |
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