Riverton, New Jersey
Encyclopedia
Riverton is a Borough
Borough (New Jersey)
A borough in the context of New Jersey local government refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government....

 located in Burlington County
Burlington County, New Jersey
There were 154,371 households out of which 34.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.70% were married couples living together, 10.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.70% were non-families. 22.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.50% had...

, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough had a total population of 2,759.

Riverton was incorporated as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature
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 the Senate...

 on December 18, 1893, from portions of Cinnaminson Township
Cinnaminson Township, New Jersey
Cinnaminson includes within its boundaries the confluence point of longitude 75 degrees west and latitude 40 degrees north, one of only four such confluence points in New Jersey...

, based on the results of a referendum held six days earlier. Portions of the borough were taken to form Palmyra Township
Palmyra, New Jersey
Palmyra is a Borough in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the borough population was 7,091.Palmyra was originally incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 19, 1894, from portions of Cinnaminson Township and Riverton...

 on April 19, 1894.

Riverton is located on the Delaware River
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...

. The town is pedestrian
Pedestrian
A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In some communities, those traveling using roller skates or skateboards are also considered to be pedestrians. In modern times, the term mostly refers to someone walking on a road or footpath, but this was not the case...

-friendly with sidewalks, gas lamps, and Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...

 architecture. Riverton is home to the Riverton Yacht Club, one of the oldest and still active yacht clubs in the country. Many residents' sailboats make their home at this landmark.

Geography

Riverton is located at 40°0'35" North, 75°0'43" West (40.009712, -75.011915).

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the borough has a total area of 0.9 square miles (2.3 km²), 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²) of it land and 0.3 square mile (0.776996433 km²), water. The total area is 30.85% water.

Riverton borders Cinnaminson Township
Cinnaminson Township, New Jersey
Cinnaminson includes within its boundaries the confluence point of longitude 75 degrees west and latitude 40 degrees north, one of only four such confluence points in New Jersey...

, Palmyra
Palmyra, New Jersey
Palmyra is a Borough in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the borough population was 7,091.Palmyra was originally incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 19, 1894, from portions of Cinnaminson Township and Riverton...

, and the Delaware River
Delaware River
The Delaware River is a major river on the Atlantic coast of the United States.A Dutch expedition led by Henry Hudson in 1609 first mapped the river. The river was christened the South River in the New Netherland colony that followed, in contrast to the North River, as the Hudson River was then...

.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
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, 2,759 people, 1,066 households, and 746 families reside in the borough. 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...

 is 4,205.1 people per square mile (1,614.0/km2). There are 1,113 housing units at an average density of 1,696.4 per square mile (651.1/km2). The racial makeup of the borough is 95.83% White, 1.78% African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.29% from other races, and 1.16% from two or more races. 1.09% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 1,066 households out of which 30.7% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.7% are 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, 8.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 30.0% are non-families. Another 25.3% of all households are made up of individuals and 8.1% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.48 and the average family size is 3.00.

In the borough the population is spread out with 21.8% under the age of 18, 4.3% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 24.8% from 45 to 64, and 19.3% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 42 years. For every 100 females there are 90.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 88.8 males.

The median income for a household in the borough is $58,977, and the median income for a family is $68,125. Males have a median income of $50,950 versus $36,042 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 borough is $30,223. 3.1% of the population and 2.0% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 4.5% of those under the age of 18 and 2.4% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

History

Riverton Borough, Riverton, NJ, was established in 1851, along the Delaware River. The town was planned by Philadelphia architect Samuel Sloan. According to architectural historian Henry Russell Hitchcock, Riverton was the first totally planned residential subdivision in America.

In 1916, Japanese beetle
Japanese beetle
The beetle species Popillia japonica is commonly known as the Japanese beetle. It is about long and wide, with iridescent copper-colored elytra and green thorax and head...

s, now a widespread insect pest in the United States, were first discovered in a nursery near Riverton.

Local government

Riverton is governed under the borough
Borough (New Jersey)
A borough in the context of New Jersey local government refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government....

 form of New Jersey municipal government. The government consists of a mayor and a borough council made up of six council members, with all positions elected at large in partisan elections. A mayor is elected directly by the voters to a four-year term of office. The borough council consists of six members elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats coming up for election each year.

The mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 of Riverton Borough is Robert Martin. Members of the Riverton Borough Council are Council President Robert K. Smyth, William C. Brown, Jr., Ron Cesaretti, Joseph N. Daniel, Michael H. Kinzler, and Suzanne Cairns Wells.

Federal, state and county representation

Riverton is in the 1st Congressional district.

Riverton is in the

Education

The Riverton School District
Riverton School District
The Riverton School District is a community public school district that serves students in kindergarten through eighth grade from Riverton, New Jersey, United States....

 serves students in public school in kindergarten through eighth grade. Riverton Elementary School served 229 students as of the 2005-06 school year.

For grades nine through twelve, public school students attend Palmyra High School
Palmyra High School (New Jersey)
Palmyra High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Palmyra in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Palmyra Public Schools...

 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 Palmyra Public Schools
Palmyra Public Schools
The Palmyra Public Schools are a comprehensive community public school district that offers a wide range of educational programs for the residents of Palmyra, in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States...

.

Transportation

The Riverton
Riverton (River LINE station)
Riverton is a station on the River Line light rail system, located on Main Street in Riverton, New Jersey.The station opened on March 15, 2004. Southbound service from the station is available to Camden, New Jersey...

 station on the River Line
River Line (New Jersey Transit)
The River Line is a diesel light rail system in New Jersey, United States, that connects the cities of Camden and Trenton, New Jersey's capital. It is operated for New Jersey Transit by the Southern New Jersey Rail Group , which originally included Bechtel Group and Bombardier...

 light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...

 system, is located on Main Street, offering southbound service to Camden, New Jersey
Camden, New Jersey
The city of Camden is the county seat of Camden County, New Jersey. It is located across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 77,344...

 and the Walter Rand Transportation Center
Walter Rand Transportation Center
The Walter Rand Transportation Center is a transportation hub located at Martin Luther King Boulevard and Broadway in Camden, New Jersey, named for Walter Rand, a former New Jersey State Senator, who specialized in transportation issues while serving in both houses of the New Jersey Legislature...

 (with transfers available to the PATCO Speedline
Port Authority Transit Corporation
The PATCO Speedline, also known colloquially as the High Speed Line, is a rapid transit system operated by the Port Authority Transit Corporation, which runs between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Camden County, New Jersey...

) and northbound service to the Trenton Rail Station
Trenton Rail Station (New Jersey)
Trenton Transit Center, formerly known as Trenton Rail Station, is the main passenger train station in Trenton, New Jersey. It is the southernmost stop in New Jersey on the Northeast Corridor...

 with connections to New Jersey Transit
New Jersey Transit
The New Jersey Transit Corporation is a statewide public transportation system serving the United States state of New Jersey, and New York, Orange, and Rockland counties in New York State...

 trains to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

, SEPTA
Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority is a metropolitan transportation authority that operates various forms of public transit—bus, subway and elevated rail, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolley bus—that serve 3.9 million people in and around Philadelphia,...

 trains to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

, and Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...

 trains.

New Jersey Transit
New Jersey Transit
The New Jersey Transit Corporation is a statewide public transportation system serving the United States state of New Jersey, and New York, Orange, and Rockland counties in New York State...

 provides bus service to Philadelphia on the 419 line.

Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Riverton include:
  • Lloyd Carpenter Griscom
    Lloyd Carpenter Griscom
    Lloyd Carpenter Griscom was an American diplomat.-Biography:He was born on November 4, 1872 in born at Riverton, New Jersey to Clement Griscom. He graduated in 1891 from the University of Pennsylvania and studied law there and then at the New York Law School...

     (1872–1959), American diplomat.
  • Frank A. Mathews, Jr.
    Frank A. Mathews, Jr.
    Frank Asbury Mathews, Jr. was an American Republican Party politician from New Jersey. Mathews represented in the United States House of Representatives from 1945 to 1949....

     (1904–1964), represented in the United States House of Representatives
    United States House of Representatives
    The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

     from 1945 to 1949.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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