Ringwood

Ringwood, New Jersey
—  Borough  —
Map of Ringwood in Passaic County. Inset: Location of Passaic County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Ringwood, New Jersey
Coordinates: 41°06′41″N 74°16′28″W / 41.11139°N 74.27444°W / 41.11139; -74.27444Coordinates: 41°06′41″N 74°16′28″W / 41.11139°N 74.27444°W / 41.11139; -74.27444
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Passaic
Incorporated	March 22, 1918
Government [1]
- Type	Faulkner Act (Council-Manager)
- Mayor	Walter Davison (2008)
Area
- Total	28.0 sq mi (72.6 km2)
- Land	25.2 sq mi (65.4 km2)
- Water	2.8 sq mi (7.2 km2)
Elevation [2]	282 ft (86 m)
Population (2007)[3]
- Total	12,704
- Density	491.0/sq mi (189.6/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	07456
Area code(s)	973
FIPS code	34-63150[4][5]
GNIS feature ID	0885370[6]
Website	http://www.ringwoodnj.net

Ringwood is a borough in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 12,396. It is the home of Ringwood State Park which contains the State Botanical Garden, the Shepherd Lake Recreation Area, and Skylands and Ringwood Manors.

The Borough of Ringwood was incorporated by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 23, 1918, from a "portion of the Township of Pompton", as one of three boroughs formed from Pompton Township, joining Bloomingdale and Wanaque, based on the results of a referendum held on March 22, 1918.^[7] The first organizational meeting of the Borough Council took place in the existing Borough Hall on May 6, 1918

History

The original inhabitants of the area were the Lenape and Ramapough Native Americans.

Early in the 18th Century, iron was discovered in the area, and the Ogden family built a blast furnace in Ringwood in 1742. By 1765, Peter Hasenclever used Ringwood as the center of his ironmaking operations which included 150,000 acres (610 km²) in New Jersey, New York and Nova Scotia.

Iron mining was prominent in the area from the 1700s until the Great Depression. Mines such as the London Mine, Roomy Mine, Peters Mine and Hope mine were originally opened by Peter Hesenclever's London Company.

Ringwood Manor was home to a number of well-known ironmasters from the 1740s to the late 19th century. During the American Revolutionary War, Robert Erskine managed ironmaking operations from Ringwood, and became George Washington's first geographer and Surveyor-General, producing maps for the Continental Army; Washington visited the Manor House several times. Ringwood iron was used in the famous Hudson River Chain, and for tools and hardware for the army. One of the Manor's last owners was Abram S. Hewitt, ironmaster, educator, lawyer, U.S. Congressman, and Mayor of New York City. The Manor is part of a National Historic Landmark District.

Geography

Ringwood is located at 41°05′46″N 74°15′36″W / 41.096095°N 74.260124°W / 41.096095; -74.260124 (41.096095, -74.260124).^[8]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 28.0 square miles (72.6 km²), of which, 25.2 square miles (65.4 km²) of it is land and 2.8 square miles (7.2 km²) of it (9.92%) is water.

Climate

Ringwood has a hot summer continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfa).

Demographics

As of the census^[4] of 2000, there are 12,396 people, 4,108 households, and 3,446 families residing in the borough. The population density is 491.0 people per square mile (189.5/km²). There are 4,221 housing units at an average density of 167.2/sq mi (64.5/km²). The racial makeup of the borough is 93.87% White, 1.61% African American, 1.44% Native American, 1.19% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.67% from other races, and 1.21% from two or more races. 4.25% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 4,108 households out of which 42.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 73.5% are married couples living together, 7.8% have a female householder with no husband present, and 16.1% are non-families. 12.1% of all households are made up of individuals and 3.6% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 3.00 and the average family size is 3.28.

In the borough the population is spread out with 27.6% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 27.9% from 45 to 64, and 7.9% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 37 years. For every 100 females there are 100.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 95.3 males.

The median income for a household in the borough is $81,636, and the median income for a family is $85,108. Males have a median income of $60,097 versus $36,005 for females. The per capita income for the borough is $31,341. 2.8% of the population and 2.0% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 3.9% of those under the age of 18 and 2.2% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Law and government

Local government

Ringwood Manor, with a mortar and part of the Hudson River Chain

Ringwood operates under the Faulkner Act (Council-Manager) form of municipal government. Ringwood is governed by a seven-member Borough Council whose members are elected at-large in partisan elections to serve four-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three or four seats coming up for election every other year. After each election, the council selects a Mayor and a deputy mayor from among its members.^[1]

Members of the Ringwood Borough Council are Mayor Walter Davison (term as Mayor ends December 31, 2008, term on council ends 2011), Deputy Mayor Donna S. Anderson (2008 as Deputy Mayor; 2009 on Council), Scott Conley (2011), William E. Marsala (2009), Linda M. Schaefer (2009), John Speer (2011) and Ted Taukus (2011).^[11]

In elections held on November 6, 2007, Republican candidates Walter Davison, Scott Conley, John Speer and Ted Taukus were elected to the Borough Council, unseating Democrats Bill O'Hearn, Tom MacAllen, and Wenke Taule. Joanne Atlas did not stand for re-election. With the newly-elected candidates taking office in January 2008, the council was formally under full Republican control, after two years in which the Democrats held a 4-3 majority, and two years of control by the Republicans and Mayor Atlas, after her split with the Democrats.^[12]

Federal, state and county representation

Ringwood is in the Fifth Congressional District is part of New Jersey's 40th Legislative District.^[13]

New Jersey's Fifth Congressional District, covering the northern portions of Bergen County, Passaic County and Sussex County and all of Warren County, is represented by Scott Garrett (R, Wantage Township). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).

For the 2008-2009 Legislative Session, the 40th District of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Kevin J. O'Toole (R, Cedar Grove) and in the Assembly by Scott Rumana (R, Wayne) and David C. Russo (R, Ridgewood).^[14] The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).^[15]

Passaic County is governed by a seven-member Board of Chosen Freeholders, who are elected to staggered three-year terms on an at-large basis, with two or three seats coming up for election each year.^[16] As of 2008^[update], Passaic County's Freeholders are Freeholder Director Sonia Rosado (2009, Ringwood), Freeholder Deputy Director Tahesha Way (2009, Wayne), Terry Duffy (2010, West Milford), Elease Evans (2008, Paterson), James Gallagher (2009, Paterson) Bruce James (2008, Clifton) and Pat Lepore (2010, Woodland Park).^[17]

Highlands protection

In 2004, the New Jersey Legislature passed the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act, which regulates the New Jersey Highlands region. Ringwood was included in the highlands preservation area and is subject to the rules of the act and the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Council, a division of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.^[18] All of the territory in the protected region is classified as being in the highlands preservation area, and thus subject to additional rules.^[19]

Education

Students in Kindergarten through eighth grade attend the schools of the Ringwood Public School District, which serves a total of about 1,400 students. Schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics^[20]) are two K-3 schools — Peter Cooper, which was built in 1963 (297 students) and Robert Erskine, which was built in 1960 (316 students) — E. G. Hewitt for grades 4-5 was built in 1937 (338 students) and M. J. Ryerson middle school was built in 1970 and serves grades 6 - 8 (482 students).

Students in public school for grades 9 - 12 attend Lakeland Regional High School, which serves students from the Boroughs of Ringwood and Wanaque. The high school is located in Wanaque and is part of the Lakeland Regional High School District.^[21]

Private schools include St. Catherine of Bologna School, a regional Roman Catholic parochial school. Kindergarteners through eighth graders attend St. Catherine School, with part-time or full-time pre-school and pre-kindergarten sessions. Ringwood Christian School serves Kindergarteners through eighth graders, and pre-schoolers can receive part-time sessions.

Ringwood public schools are supported in part with grants from the Ringwood Educational Foundation, Inc., a not-for-profit organization which sponsors among other things an annual Shepherd Lake 5K run.

Community

Ringwood is serviced by a volunteer ambulance corps and three volunteer fire companies, with each fire company covering one section of the borough.

Depending on where they live, Ringwood residents may be entitled to join one of three private lake communities: Cupsaw Lake, Erskine Lakes, or Skyline Lakes.

Each year on the third Saturday in March, Ringwood holds its annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Since 1990, the Parade Committee selects a Grand Marshall and a Citizen of the Year. These chosen outstanding citizens of the community are honored at a Unity Breakfast that precedes the parade. The parade includes bagpipe bands, floats, Irish step dancers, the county sheriff’s department with their equestrian unit, local police, and fire and ambulance departments. Other marchers include Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops, local school groups and other recreational teams. The parade ends at a community center where the celebration continues with live music and entertainment for the whole family

Transportation

Skyline Drive connects Ringwood and Oakland through Ringwood State Park. There are no state, U.S., or Interstate highways in Ringwood. There are also no traffic lights.

New Jersey Transit bus transportation is available at the Ringwood Park and Ride, located adjacent to Ringwood Public Library. The 196 offers express bus service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan, while the 197 route offers local service, including to the Willowbrook Mall and Willowbrook Park and Ride.

Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Ringwood include:

• Robert Erskine, (1735–1780), a Scottish inventor and later an American officer in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.^[22]
• George Martin (born 1953), former defensive end for the New York Giants.^[23]
• Sonia Rosado, has served on the Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders since 2001.^[24]
• Francis Lynde Stetson (1846-1920), lawyer and designer of the Botanical Gardens at Skylands Manor.^[25]

See also

• Ringwood, Illinois
• Ringwood, Oklahoma
• Ringwood, England
• Ringwood, Victoria, Australia
• Ringwood, Ontario, Canada

References

External links

Borough data

• Ringwood Borough website
• Ringwood Chamber of Commerce
• Ringwood Public Schools
• Lakeland Regional High School
• Ringwood Public Schools's 2007–08 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
• Data for the Ringwood Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics

Borough history

• Ringwood Manor History
• Ringwood Manor Association of the Arts
• Peters Mine from Ringwood. Slide show and rare shots of the mining operation, courtesy www.ironminers.com
• Plein Air Painters of the New Jersey Highlands
• Historical Mines of Ringwood New Jersey
• Abandoned mines of Ringwood & the NJ Highlands.

Borough organizations

• Highlands Natural Pool, Community swimming pool.
• Skyline Lake Volunteer Fire Department, Ringwood New Jersey
• Ringwood Ambulance Corps
• Skyline Lakes Property Owners Association-SPLOA
• Ringwood Boro Volunteer Fire Company #1 - Stonetown
• Skyline Lake Fire Department
• Snake Den Road, Local community web site.
• Cupsaw Lake Improvement Association
• Erksine Lakes Property Owners Association
• Skyline Lakes Property Owners Association
• Cub Scout Pack 96
• Cub Scout Pack 140
• Boy Scout Troop 76
• Erskine Lakes Aquatic Club

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