Hopewell Township, Cumberland County, New Jersey

Coordinates: 39°26′31″N 75°16′15″W / 39.44194, -75.27083
Hopewell, New Jersey
Hopewell Township highlighted in Cumberland County. Inset map: Cumberland County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Cumberland
Area
- Township	sq mi (km²)
- Land	sq mi ( km²)
- Water	sq mi ( km²)
Elevation	ft ( m)
Population (2000)
- Township
- Density	/sq mi (/km²)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
FIPS code	34-33120²
GNIS feature ID	0882056³

Hopewell Township is a township in Cumberland County, New Jersey, in the United States. It is part of the Vineland-Millville- Bridgeton Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area for statistical purposes. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 4,434.

Hopewell Township was first formed as a precinct on January 19, 1748, and was incorporated as one of New Jersey's initial 104 townships by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21, 1798. Portions of the township have been taken to form Columbia Township (March 12, 1844, returned to Hopewell Township on March 11, 1845), Cohansey Township (March 6, 1848) and Shiloh borough (April 9, 1929).^[1]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 79.7 km² (30.8 mi²). 77.4 km² (29.9 mi²) of it is land and 2.3 km² (0.9 mi²) of it (2.86%) is water.

Hopewell Township borders Upper Deerfield Township, Bridgeton, Fairfield Township, Greenwich Township, Stow Creek Township, Shiloh, and Salem County

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1930			—
1940			16.1%
1950			20.1%
1960			45.8%
1970			10.7%
1980			9.9%
1990			-3.4%
2000			5.2%
Est. 2006		^[2]	7.3%
Population 1930 - 1990.^[3]

As of the census² of 2000, there were 4,434 people, 1,628 households, and 1,206 families residing in the township. The population density was 57.3/km² (148.3/mi²). There were 1,683 housing units at an average density of 21.7/km² (56.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the township was 87.10% White, 6.90% African American, 2.32% Native American, 0.56% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.44% from other races, and 1.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.59% of the population.

There were 1,628 households out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.6% were married couples living together, 9.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.9% were non-families. 22.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the township the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 20.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 90.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.0 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $49,767, and the median income for a family was $59,675. Males had a median income of $40,774 versus $30,402 for females. The per capita income for the township was $22,783. About 3.8% of families and 6.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.3% of those under age 18 and 17.7% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

The Township Committee is the governing body of Hopewell Township. Five committee members are elected by the voters of the Township. At the annual reorganization meeting, the Township Committee votes to select one of its members to serve as Chair of the Township Committee and Mayor and another to serve as Vice Chairman and Deputy Mayor.

Members of the Hopewell Township Committee are Mayor Harold (Hal) Bickings, Jr., Deputy Mayor Bruce Hankins, Duane Cruzan, Paul Ritter, III and Joseph Shoemaker, Jr.^[4]

Federal, state and county representation

Hopewell Township is in the Second Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 3rd Legislative District.^[5]

New Jersey's Second Congressional District, covering all of Atlantic County, Cape May County, Cumberland County and Salem County and portions of Burlington County, Camden County and Gloucester County, is represented by Frank LoBiondo (R, Ventnor). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).

The 3rd legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Stephen M. Sweeney (D, Thorofare) and in the Assembly by John J. Burzichelli (D, Thorofare) and Douglas H. Fisher (D, Thorofare). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).

Cumberland County is governed by a seven-member Board of Chosen Freeholders, who are elected at large in partisan elections to serve staggered three-year terms in office, with two (or three) seats coming up for election each year. As of 2007, Cumberland County's Freeholders are Douglas M. Rainear (term ends December 31, 2007), Freeholder Deputy Director Bruce T. Peterson (2008), Jane Yetman Christy (2008), Dr. Mary L. Gruccio (2007), Louis N. Magazzu (2009), Joseph P. Riley (2009) and Jeffrey M. Trout (2008).^[6]

Education

The Hopewell Crest School serves public school students in Kindergarten through eighth grade.

Public school students in grades 9-12 attend Cumberland Regional High School, which serves students from Deerfield Township, Fairfield Township, Greenwich Township, Hopewell Township, Shiloh Borough, Stow Creek Township and Upper Deerfield Township. The school is located in Upper Deerfield Township and is part of the Cumberland Regional High School District.

References

^ "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 120.
^ Census data for Hopewell township, United States Census Bureau. Accessed August 25, 2007
^ Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
^ Howell Township Committee, Hopewell Township. Accessed March 8, 2007.
^ 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters, p. 59. Accessed August 30, 2006.
^ Cumberland County Freeholders, accessed August 25, 2007.

External links

Municipalities and communities of Cumberland County, New Jersey
County seat: Bridgeton
Borough	Shiloh
Cities	Bridgeton \| Millville \| Vineland
Townships	Commercial \| Deerfield \| Downe \| Fairfield \| Greenwich \| Hopewell \| Lawrence \| Maurice River \| Stow Creek \| Upper Deerfield
CDPs	Cedarville \| Fairton \| Laurel Lake \| Port Norris \| Rosenhayn \| Seabrook Farms
Unincorporated communities	Delmont \| Dorchester \| Fortescue \| Leesburg \| Mauricetown \| Port Elizabeth

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