Harding Township, New Jersey
Encyclopedia
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 3,180 people, 1,180 households, and 940 families residing in the township. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 155.6 people per square mile (60.1/km²). There were 1,243 housing units at an average density of 60.8 per square mile (23.5/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 97.20% White, 0.41% African American, 1.07% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.79% of the population.
There were 1,180 households out of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 72.3% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 5.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.3% were non-families. 17.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the township the population was spread out with 25.2% under the age of 18, 3.6% from 18 to 24, 21.9% from 25 to 44, 32.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 93.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $111,297, and the median income for a family was $128,719. Males had a median income of $95,737 versus $57,308 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the township was $72,689. None of the families and 1.1% of the population were living below the poverty line, including none under eighteen and 3.3% of those over 64.
Local government
Harding Township is governed under the TownshipTownship (New Jersey)
A township, in the context of New Jersey local government, refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government. As a political entity, a township is a full-fledged municipality, on par with any town, city, borough, or village, collecting property taxes and providing...
form of government with a five-member Township Committee. The Township Committee is elected directly by the voters in partisan elections to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats coming up for election each year. At an annual reorganization meeting, the Township Committee selects one of its members to serve as Mayor and another as Deputy Mayor.
Eleven standing committees are appointed at the reorganization meeting including planning, zoning and legal; finance and insurance; public safety; public works and building; personnel; recreation commission; freeholder liaison; Glen Alpin Steering liaison; school board liaison; open space liaison; and board of health liaison. Two members of the township committee serve on each standing committee and provide oversight to the departments.
, members of the Harding Township Committee are Committee Chair (Mayor) Marshall P. Bartlett, Committee Vice Chair (Depuuty Mayor) Regina M. Egea, Louis J. Lanzerotti, Nicolas Platt and Ned Ward.
Federal, state and county representation
Harding Township is in the 11th Congressional district and is part of the New Jersey's 21st Legislative District.Politics
On the national and state levels, Harding Township leans very strongly toward the Republican PartyRepublican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. In the 2008 Presidential Election
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...
, Republican John McCain
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III is the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for president in the 2008 United States election....
received 62% of the vote, defeating Democrat Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
, who received around 37%. In the 2009 Gubernatorial Election
New Jersey gubernatorial election, 2009
The New Jersey gubernatorial election of 2009 took place on November 3, 2009. Democratic Governor Jon Corzine was running for a second term and was being challenged by Republican Chris Christie, Independent Christopher Daggett and nine others, in addition to several write-in candidates...
, Republican Chris Christie received 68% of the vote, defeating Democrat Jon Corzine
Jon Corzine
Jon Stevens Corzine is the former CEO of Goldman Sachs and of MF Global, and a one time American politician, who served as the 54th Governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. A Democrat, Corzine served five years of a six-year U.S. Senate term representing New Jersey before being elected Governor...
, who received around 21%.
Education
The Harding Township School DistrictHarding Township School District
The Harding Township School District is a community public school district that serves students in kindergarten through eighth grade from Harding Township, in Morris County, New Jersey, United States....
serves public school students in kindergarten through eighth grade. Harding Township School had an enrollment of 313 (as of the 2009-10 school year).
For grades 9-12, public school students attend Madison High School
Madison High School (New Jersey)
Madison High School is a four-year public high school serving students in grades 9-12 in Morris County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Madison Public Schools. The school is located in the borough of Madison...
in Madison
Madison, New Jersey
Madison is a borough in Morris County, New Jersey, in the United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the population was 16,530. It also is known as "The Rose City".-Geography:Madison is located at ....
, as part of a sending/receiving relationship
Sending/receiving relationship
A sending/receiving relationship is one in which a public school district sends some or all of its students to attend the schools of another district. This is often done to achieve costs savings in smaller districts or continues after districts have grown as part of a historical relationship...
with the Madison Public Schools
Madison Public Schools
The Madison Public Schools are a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in Kindergarten through twelfth grade from Madison, in Morris County, New Jersey, United States....
.
History
After the retreat of the Wisconsin Glacier, a mighty glacial lake called Glacial Lake PassaicGlacial Lake Passaic
Glacial Lake Passaic was a prehistoric proglacial lake that existed in northern New Jersey in the United States at the end of the last ice age approximately 19,000-14,000 years ago...
formed in this area that, about 15,000 to 11,000 years ago, extended for 30 miles (48.3 km) in length and was 10 miles (16.1 km) wide. The lake finally drained when a blockage of the Passaic River
Passaic River
The Passaic River is a mature surface river, approximately 80 mi long, in northern New Jersey in the United States. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburban northern New Jersey,...
reopened. The Great Swamp
Great Swamp
Great Swamp may refer to:* United States:** Great Swamp, New Jersey see Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge and Glacial Lake Passaic until an article is created that features the entire swamp and its nature** Great Swamp...
is the remnant of the lake bottom and portions of the swamp lay in what now is the township. Once the lake drained, higher areas became a wooded area that was used for hunting, fishing, and farming by Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
. At the time of colonization by the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
it belonged to the matrilineal Lenape
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
tribes, but British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
colonists did their best to displace them westward.
Much of what now is known as Harding was an agricultural community with roots stretching as far back as the early 18th century. Bypassed by colonial turnpikes, revolution era canals, and railroads laid in the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
, the area remained a rural backwater. For almost two centuries of European occupation, its open and rolling landscapes reflected its agricultural use, as land had been cleared for cattle pastures, orchards, and fields of grain. The Great Swamp, the wooded slopes of the Watchung Mountains
Watchung Mountains
The Watchung Mountains are a group of three long low ridges of volcanic origin, between 400 ft. and 500 ft. high, lying parallel to each other in northern New Jersey in the United States...
, and those near Jockey Hollow
Jockey Hollow
Jockey Hollow is a unit of Morristown National Historical Park in New Jersey. It was twice used as a winter encampment by the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.-History:...
also were used by local farmers for wood supply. The communities of Green Village, Logansville, New Vernon, and Pleasantville were the village centers in this agricultural community; it was not unusual for villages to have a store and post office, a school of one or two rooms, churches, blacksmiths, and sometimes, a tavern.
Wealthy urban residents from Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
and Newark
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
in search of rural tranquility pushed beyond the natural barrier presented by the Watchung Mountains and bought great swaths of farmland, enlarged old farmhouses, and landscaped the grounds. Several estate owners, desirous of better roads and wishing to deter suburban development, led the movement to form Harding Township.
The township was created in 1922 from the northern half of what was then Passaic Township (present day Long Hill Township
Long Hill Township, New Jersey
-Local government:Long Hill Township is governed under the Township form of government with a five-member Township Committee. The Township Committee is elected directly by the voters in partisan elections to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats coming up for...
) and it was named after the incumbent President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
, Warren G. Harding
Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...
.
The desire to preserve Harding’s rural character was quite evident by 1928. An unusual private land preservation effort was begun with the New Vernon Neighborhood Restrictive Agreement, when several estate owners convinced many others to place restrictive covenant
Restrictive covenant
A restrictive covenant is a type of real covenant, a legal obligation imposed in a deed by the seller upon the buyer of real estate to do or not to do something. Such restrictions frequently "run with the land" and are enforceable on subsequent buyers of the property...
s on their land that would remain as parts of the deeds. This voluntary effort to limit development and save the pastoral qualities of over 1000 acres (4 km²) across Harding Township influenced subsequent zoning codes, which emerged several decades later, and helped preserve the landscape to the present day.
Noted residents
Notable current and former residents of Harding Township include:- William O. BakerWilliam O. BakerWilliam Oliver Baker was a former President of Bell Labs who had advised five Presidents on scientific matters. He received his degree from Washington College and went on to get a doctorate from Princeton University, studying under Charles Phelps Smyth...
(1915–2005), former head of Bell LabsBell LabsBell Laboratories is the research and development subsidiary of the French-owned Alcatel-Lucent and previously of the American Telephone & Telegraph Company , half-owned through its Western Electric manufacturing subsidiary.Bell Laboratories operates its...
. - Ray ChambersRay ChambersRaymond G. Chambers currently serves as United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Malaria. He was appointed to this position by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in February 2008...
(born 1942), UN Special Envoy for Malaria. - Justin GimelstobJustin GimelstobJustin Jeremy Gimelstob is a retired American tennis player. Gimelstob has been a resident of Morristown, New Jersey and as of 2009 resided in Santa Monica, California....
(born 1977), professional tennis player. - Kerry KittlesKerry KittlesKerry Kittles is an American former professional basketball player who last played with the Los Angeles Clippers in the National Basketball Association in 2004-05. He was raised in New Orleans and attended St...
(born 1974), professional basketball player. - Eric ManginiEric ManginiEric Mangini is the former head coach of the Cleveland Browns and New York Jets of the National Football League and current NFL analyst for ESPN.-College:...
(born 1971), former head coachHead coachA head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
of the New York JetsNew York JetsThe New York Jets are a professional football team headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, representing the New York metropolitan area. The team is a member of the Eastern Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. - Bart OatesBart OatesBart Steven Oates is a former American football player in the National Football League for the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers. He played center for the Giants from 1985-93 and with the 49ers from 1994-95...
(born 1958), professional football player. - William E. SimonWilliam E. SimonWilliam Edward Simon was a businessman, a Secretary of Treasury of the U.S. for three years, and a philanthropist. He became the 63rd Secretary of the Treasury on May 8, 1974, during the Nixon administration. He was reappointed by President Ford and served until 1977. Outside of government, he was...
(1927–2000), United States Secretary of the TreasuryUnited States Secretary of the TreasuryThe Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...
for NixonRichard NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
and FordGerald FordGerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...
. - James Weichert, President of Weichert Realtors
External links
- Harding Township website
- Harding Township School
- Data for the Harding Township School, National Center for Education StatisticsNational Center for Education StatisticsThe National Center for Education Statistics is the part of the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences that collects, analyzes, and publishes statistics on education and public school district finance information in the United States...
- Harding Township Civic Association
- Regional area newspaper