Brielle is a Borough located in southern Monmouth County, New Jersey along the Manasquan River. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 4,893.
Brielle was formed as a borough by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 10, 1919, from portions of Wall Township, based on the results of a referendum passed on June 3, 1919.[6]
Geography
Brielle welcome sign at the border with Manasquan on Union Avenue.
Brielle is bordered to the north and east by the borough of Manasquan, to the west by Wall Township and to the south by the borough of Point Pleasant Beach across the Manasquan River. Route 35 runs through the middle of the town and Route 70 runs along its western edge. Its geographic coordinates are 40°06′30″N 74°03′44″W / 40.108433°N 74.062222°W / 40.108433; -74.062222 (40.108433, -74.062222).[7]
The town is primarily a residential community of single homes, with a few condominiums; there are almost no undeveloped lots of land left. There are several businesses located along Union Avenue and Higgins Avenue and some marinas along the Manasquan River. Ripley's Believe It or Not! once stated that Brielle has "16 bars and no churches". It currently has one church, The Church in Brielle (formerly the Dutch Reformed Church) and several restaurants that have a liquor license, but no true bars. There is also a 140 acre 18 hole Manasquan River Golf Club.
The town has approximately 6.4 kilometers (4.0 miles) of waterfrontage along the Manasquan River, Glimmerglass, and Debbie's Creek, all of which are salt water and tidal. Brielle's borders extend to an 8-acre (32,000 m2) island in the Manasquan River. Of the borough's 6.1 square kilometers, (2.4 sq mi), 0.6 square miles (1.5 km2), or 24.9%, is water.
History
Archaeological excavations along what is now Birch Drive reveal temporary Lenape Native American settlements. The Lenape practiced farming in other parts of Monmouth County much of the year, and they visited this wooded area for hunting and fishing.
The area was originally part of Shrewsbury Township and the first settlers were primarily farmers, and the area became know as Union Landing. In colonial times, salt was an important preservative, and before the American Revolutionary War, most of it was imported from Great Britain. The Union Salt Works opened around the outbreak of the war, and on April 5, 1778, several British Loyalists attacked and burned the salt works and other buildings. A year later, the salt works reopened and continued to operate through the duration of the war.
Early in the 19th century, Shrewsbury Township was divided, and the area became part of Howell Township which was further divided in 1851, when the area became part of Wall Township. On July 7, 1881, a group of businessmen purchased several acres of land and formed the Brielle Land Association with the intention of building vacation homes. The quaint riverside charm of the area reminded one of the developers of another pastoral town on a river which he had visited, Brielle, in the Netherlands, near Rotterdam.
Demographics
| Historical populations |
| Census |
Pop. |
|
%± |
| 1930 |
684 |
|
—
|
| 1940 |
961 |
|
40.5% |
| 1950 |
1,328 |
|
38.2% |
| 1960 |
2,619 |
|
97.2% |
| 1970 |
3,594 |
|
37.2% |
| 1980 |
4,068 |
|
13.2% |
| 1990 |
4,406 |
|
8.3% |
| 2000 |
4,893 |
|
11.1% |
| Est. 2007 |
4,879 |
[2] |
−0.3% |
| Population 1930 - 1990.[8] |
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 4,893 people, 1,938 households, and 1,414 families residing in the borough. The population density was 2,754.4 people per square mile (1,061.3/km2). There were 2,123 housing units at an average density of 1,195.1/sq mi (460.5/km2). The racial makeup of the borough was 93.05% White, 3.52% African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.67% Asian, 1.61% from other races, and 1.08% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.31% of the population.
There were 1,938 households out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.0% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.0% were non-families. 23.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the borough the population was spread out with 23.7% under the age of 18, 4.8% from 18 to 24, 24.8% from 25 to 44, 29.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females there were 91.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.8 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $98,368, and the median income for a family was $102,867. Males had a median income of $88,828 versus $72,156 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $85,785. About 2.6% of families and 3.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.9% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Brielle Borough Hall, at the corner of Union Avenue and Union Lane.
Brielle is governed under the Borough 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.[1]
The Mayor of the Borough of Brielle is Thomas B. Nicol. Members of the Brielle Borough Council are Council President Timothy A. Shaak, Richard J. Bolger, Frank A. Garruzzo, Cort Gorham, Paul K. Nolan and Ann D. Scott.[9]
Brielle is in the Fourth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 11th Legislative District.[10]
Education
Brielle Elementary School.
The Brielle School District serves public school students in kindergarten through eighth grade. Brielle Elementary School had an enrollment of 698 students in the 2005-06 school year.[11]
For grades 9-12, public school students attend Manasquan High School in Manasquan, as part of a sending/receiving relationship with the Manasquan Public Schools.[12]
The Brielle Public Library, which is located at 610 South Street, claims to have been the first library in New Jersey to have offered public access to the Internet.[13]
Notes
- ^ a b 2005 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book, Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, April 2005, p. 58.
- ^ a b Census data for Brielle borough, United States Census Bureau. Accessed November 10, 2008.
- ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ A Cure for the Common Codes: New Jersey, Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed July 14, 2008.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 178.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2005-05-03. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ New Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
- ^ Brielle Mayor and Council, Borough of Brielle. Accessed July 23, 2008.
- ^ 2008 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters, p. 55. Accessed September 30, 2009.
- ^ Data for the Brielle Elementary School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed July 9, 2008.
- ^ Brielle School District 2007 Report Card Narrative, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed June 28, 2008. "Brielle Borough is a shore residential community covering 1.78 square miles (4.6 km2) in Monmouth County, New Jersey.... Students in grades 9 through 12 attend Manasquan High School."
- ^ Brielle Public Library at briellenj.com
External links
