Wharton, New Jersey
Encyclopedia
Wharton is a Borough
in Morris County
, New Jersey
, United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the borough population was 6,298.
What is now Wharton was originally incorporated as the borough of Port Oram by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature
on June 26, 1895, from portions of Randolph Township and Rockaway Township
, subject to the results of a referendum passed on the previous day. The name was changed to Wharton as of April 16, 1902, based on a referendum held that day.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the borough has a total area of 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²), of which, 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it (1.36%) is water.
of 2000, there were 6,298 people, 2,328 households, and 1,599 families residing in the borough. The population density
was 2,882.4 people per square mile (1,110.4/km2). There were 2,394 housing units at an average density of 1,095.6 per square mile (422.1/km2). The racial makeup of the borough was 82.09% White, 4.40% African American, 0.44% Native American, 3.14% Asian, 7.21% from other races
, and 2.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 23.21% of the population.
There were 2,328 households out of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.1% were married couples
living together, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present and 31.3% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.28.
In the borough the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 34.0% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $56,580, and the median income for a family was $64,957. Males had a median income of $42,311 versus $36,016 for females. The per capita income
for the borough was $25,168. About 6.4% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.0% of those under age 18 and 4.2% of those age 65 or over.
, were basically mine camps or housing for blast furnace and silk mill workers. A mayor, six councilmen, an assessor and a collector were elected to govern this new borough which had started life as an ore shipping port on the Morris Canal
. These elected officials—mine superintendents, store owners, a railroad superintendent and a school teacher—represented the leaders of these settlements where iron ore was mined, smelted and shipped.
In 1831 the Morris Canal was completed from Newark
to Phillipsburg
, New Jersey across the Delaware River
from the terminus of the Lehigh Canal
. On the way, it passed through Boonton
, Dover and Port Oram all connected with iron. On this route it tapped the Morris County ore fields and became a carrier for both ore and pig iron
. Its main purpose, however, was as an extension of the Lehigh Canal to furnish a route for anthracite coal
from the Pennsylvania
mines to seaboard. Any local traffic was a gain to supplement the through anthracite freight and iron ore and its products soon became important sources of revenue. Sites on the canal were selected for docks and industry, including iron works
Born in 1826 in Philadelphia
to an old Quaker
family, Joseph Wharton
first studied at a local Friend's school but did not attend college, rather he went to live on a farm because his parents wanted him to mature, and during the winter studied chemistry at the laboratory of Martin Hans Boyè
in Philadelphia. He entered into the manufacture of zinc
and nickel
, and gradually bought a controlling interest in Bethlehem Iron Works. As his business interests expanded he purchased substantial shares of several railroads involved in the coal and iron trade,
also purchasing iron mines and furnaces near Port Oram. After selling his interest in Bethlehem Iron Works in 1901 and his nickel works to CVRD Inco in 1902, he continued to actively acquire and manage a large and diverse business empire that included iron smelting in Wharton until just before his death in January, 1909. Wharton is best known for the namesake school he endowed, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
. The town was named after him at after a referendum in 1902.
form of New Jersey municipal government. The government consists of a Mayor and a Borough Council comprising six council members, with all positions elected at large. 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
of Wharton is Bill Chegwidden, whose term of office ends in 2011. Members of the Borough Council are Council President Vincent Binkoski, Glenn Corbett, Brian Gillen, Scott Hutchins, Tom Yeager and David Young.
Wharton is in the
serves public school students in Kindergarten through eighth grade. Schools in the district (with 2009-10 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics
) are
Marie V. Duffy Elementary School (547 students in grades K - 5) and
Alfred C. MacKinnon Middle School (248 students in grades 6 - 8).
Public school students in grades 9 - 12 attend Morris Hills High School
, located in Rockaway Borough
, and which also serves the residential communities of Rockaway Township
and Wharton. The 2008-09 enrollment at Morris Hills was 1,125 students. The high school is part of the Morris Hills Regional High School District
, which also includes students from Denville Township.
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....
in Morris County
Morris County, New Jersey
Morris County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, about west of New York City. According to the United States 2010 Census, the population was 492,276. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Morristown....
, 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...
, United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the borough population was 6,298.
What is now Wharton was originally incorporated as the borough of Port Oram 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 June 26, 1895, from portions of Randolph Township and Rockaway Township
Rockaway Township, New Jersey
Rockaway Township is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 24,156....
, subject to the results of a referendum passed on the previous day. The name was changed to Wharton as of April 16, 1902, based on a referendum held that day.
Geography
Wharton is located at 40.898098°N 74.580151°W (40.898098, -74.580151).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 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²), of which, 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it (1.36%) is water.
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 6,298 people, 2,328 households, and 1,599 families residing 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...
was 2,882.4 people per square mile (1,110.4/km2). There were 2,394 housing units at an average density of 1,095.6 per square mile (422.1/km2). The racial makeup of the borough was 82.09% White, 4.40% African American, 0.44% Native American, 3.14% Asian, 7.21% 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 2.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 23.21% of the population.
There were 2,328 households out of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.1% 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, 12.0% had a female householder with no husband present and 31.3% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.28.
In the borough the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 34.0% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 93.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $56,580, and the median income for a family was $64,957. Males had a median income of $42,311 versus $36,016 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 was $25,168. About 6.4% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.0% of those under age 18 and 4.2% of those age 65 or over.
Politics
The borough is a swing in a slightly more conservative county. However the borough was carried by Republican candidate Chris Christie, the results were Christie: 808; Corzine: 563; Daggett: 132.History
On June 28, 1895, voters from the settlements of Port Oram, Irondale, Luxemburg, Maryville and Mount Pleasant voted 143 to 51 to incorporate as a town under the name of Port Oram, the largest member of the group. These localities, covering an area of two and a quarter square miles west of Dover, New JerseyDover, New Jersey
Dover is a town in Morris County, New Jersey on the Rockaway River. Dover is west of New York City and west of Newark, New Jersey. As of the United States Census, 2000, the town's population was 18,188.-Geography:...
, were basically mine camps or housing for blast furnace and silk mill workers. A mayor, six councilmen, an assessor and a collector were elected to govern this new borough which had started life as an ore shipping port on the Morris Canal
Morris Canal
The Morris Canal was an anthracite-carrying canal that incorporated a series of water-driven inclined planes in its course across northern New Jersey in the United States. It was in use for about a century — from the late 1820s to the 1920s....
. These elected officials—mine superintendents, store owners, a railroad superintendent and a school teacher—represented the leaders of these settlements where iron ore was mined, smelted and shipped.
In 1831 the Morris Canal was completed from 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...
to Phillipsburg
Phillipsburg, New Jersey
Phillipsburg, known locally as P'burg, is a town in Warren County, New Jersey, in the United States. As of 2010 United States Census, the town's population was 14,950....
, New Jersey across 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...
from the terminus of the Lehigh Canal
Lehigh Canal
The Lehigh Canal was constructed by the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company to carry anthracite from the upper Lehigh Valley to the urban markets of the northeast, especially Philadelphia...
. On the way, it passed through Boonton
Boonton, New Jersey
Boonton is a town in Morris County, New Jersey that was chartered in 1867. As of the 2010 United States Census, the town population was 8,347. The town was originally called "Boone-Towne" in 1761 in honor of the Colonial Governor Thomas Boone....
, Dover and Port Oram all connected with iron. On this route it tapped the Morris County ore fields and became a carrier for both ore and pig iron
Pig iron
Pig iron is the intermediate product of smelting iron ore with a high-carbon fuel such as coke, usually with limestone as a flux. Charcoal and anthracite have also been used as fuel...
. Its main purpose, however, was as an extension of the Lehigh Canal to furnish a route for anthracite coal
Anthracite coal
Anthracite is a hard, compact variety of mineral coal that has a high luster...
from the Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
mines to seaboard. Any local traffic was a gain to supplement the through anthracite freight and iron ore and its products soon became important sources of revenue. Sites on the canal were selected for docks and industry, including iron works
Born in 1826 in Philadelphia
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,...
to an old Quaker
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
family, Joseph Wharton
Joseph Wharton
Joseph Wharton was a prominent Philadelphia merchant, industrialist and philanthropist, who was involved in mining, manufacturing and education...
first studied at a local Friend's school but did not attend college, rather he went to live on a farm because his parents wanted him to mature, and during the winter studied chemistry at the laboratory of Martin Hans Boyè
Martin Hans Boyè
Martin Hans Boyè was a Danish-American chemist.Boyè was born in Copenhagen, Denmark on 6 December 1812, son of a chemist in charge of the works of the Royal Porcelain Manufactury...
in Philadelphia. He entered into the manufacture of zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
and nickel
Nickel
Nickel is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel belongs to the transition metals and is hard and ductile...
, and gradually bought a controlling interest in Bethlehem Iron Works. As his business interests expanded he purchased substantial shares of several railroads involved in the coal and iron trade,
also purchasing iron mines and furnaces near Port Oram. After selling his interest in Bethlehem Iron Works in 1901 and his nickel works to CVRD Inco in 1902, he continued to actively acquire and manage a large and diverse business empire that included iron smelting in Wharton until just before his death in January, 1909. Wharton is best known for the namesake school he endowed, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. The town was named after him at after a referendum in 1902.
Local government
Wharton is governed under the BoroughBorough (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 comprising six council members, with all positions elected at large. 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 Wharton is Bill Chegwidden, whose term of office ends in 2011. Members of the Borough Council are Council President Vincent Binkoski, Glenn Corbett, Brian Gillen, Scott Hutchins, Tom Yeager and David Young.
Federal, state and county representation
Wharton is in the 11th Congressional district.Wharton is in the
Education
The Wharton Borough School DistrictWharton Borough School District
The Wharton Borough School District is a comprehensive community public school district that serves students in kindergarten through eighth grade from Wharton, in Morris County, New Jersey, United States....
serves public school students in Kindergarten through eighth grade. Schools in the district (with 2009-10 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics
National Center for Education Statistics
The 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...
) are
Marie V. Duffy Elementary School (547 students in grades K - 5) and
Alfred C. MacKinnon Middle School (248 students in grades 6 - 8).
Public school students in grades 9 - 12 attend Morris Hills High School
Morris Hills High School
Morris Hills High School is a comprehensive regional four-year public high school located in the borough of Rockaway, serving students in grades 9 - 12 in Morris County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Morris Hills Regional High School District. The other high school in the...
, located in Rockaway Borough
Rockaway, New Jersey
Rockaway is a borough in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 6,438.Rockaway was formed as a borough on June 19, 1894, from portions of Rockaway Township, based on the results of a referendum held the previous...
, and which also serves the residential communities of Rockaway Township
Rockaway Township, New Jersey
Rockaway Township is a township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 24,156....
and Wharton. The 2008-09 enrollment at Morris Hills was 1,125 students. The high school is part of the Morris Hills Regional High School District
Morris Hills Regional High School District
The Morris Hills Regional District is a comprehensive regional public school district that consists of two four-year public high schools serving four suburban communities in Morris County, New Jersey, United States....
, which also includes students from Denville Township.
Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Wharton include:- Kirk AlynKirk Alyn-External links:...
(1910–99), the first on-screen SupermanSupermanSuperman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
, was born in Wharton, the son of Hungarian immigrants. - Bonnie Lee BakleyBonnie Lee BakleyBonnie Lee Bakley was the wife of actor Robert Blake.-Early life:Bonny Lee Bakley was born in Morristown, New Jersey to arborist Edward J. Bakley and his wife, Marjorie Lois Bakley. Bakley had three other siblings: Margerry Lisa Bakley, Joe Bakley, and her half-brother Peter Carlyon from her...
(1956–2001), murdered wife of actor Robert BlakeRobert Blake (actor)Robert Blake is an American actor who starred in the film In Cold Blood and the U.S. television series Baretta. In 2005, he was tried and acquitted for the 2001 murder of his wife, but on November 18, 2005, Blake was found liable in a California civil court for her wrongful death.-Early...
lived at 6 Kossuth Street. - Alan Rowe Kelly (1959), noted genre director and award-winning actor, was born and raised in Wharton at 6 West Dewey Avenue
External links
- Wharton Borough website
- Wharton Borough Public Schools
- Data for the Wharton Borough Public Schools, 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...
- Daily Record: Regional area newspaper
- History of Wharton Borough
- Abandoned Mines of NJ
- WHARTON http://www.arcadiapublishing.com/9780738535685/Wharton