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Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey

Encyclopedia : F : FR : FRA : Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey

for other New Jersey townships with the same name see Franklin Township, New Jersey

Franklin Township is a Township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 50,903.

Contents

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 121.3 km² (46.8 mi²). 121.1 km² (46.8 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (0.15%) is water.

Franklin Township borders New Brunswick, North Brunswick Township, Piscataway Township, South Brunswick, Princeton Township, Rocky Hill, Millstone, Montgomery Township, Hillsborough Township, South Bound Brook, Manville and Bridgewater Township.

The following are census-designated places, unincoporated enclaves, and historical communities located within Franklin Township. While they have their own separate identities, they are all unincorporated areas.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 50,903 people, 19,355 households, and 12,987 families residing in the township. The population density was 420.2/km² (1,088.3/mi²). There were 19,789 housing units at an average density of 163.4/km² (423.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the township was 55.11% White, 25.98% African American, 0.18% Native American, 12.74% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 3.56% from other races, and 2.39% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.11% of the population.

There were 19,355 households out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.1% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.9% were non-families. 25.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.8% 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 3.14.

In the township the population was spread out with 22.7% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 36.9% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 91.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $67,923, and the median income for a family was $78,177. Males had a median income of $52,351 versus $41,101 for females. The per capita income for the township was $31,209. About 3.1% of families and 5.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.3% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

The Township of Franklin is chartered under the Faulkner Act as Council-Manager, Plan D. The Township Council consists of nine members - one Mayor elected from the Township at large, one elected for each of the five wards and three elected from the Township at large.

The Mayor is the Chief Legislative Officer of the Township and is elected by the voters to serve for a four-year term. The Township Manager is the Chief Executive Officer of the Township, provides for the administration of the Township's daily operations, and is hired by and serves at the pleasure of the Township Council. Council elections are held at the June Primary and November General Elections in odd numbered years.

Members of the Township Council are:

Federal, state and county representation

Franklin Township is in the Twelfth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 17th Legislative District.

New Jersey's Twelfth Congressional District, covering all of Hunterdon County and portions of Middlesex County, Monmouth County, Morris County, and Somerset County, is represented by Rush D. Holt Jr. (D). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Robert Menendez (D, Union City).

The 17th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Bob Smith (D, Piscataway) and in the Assembly by Upendra J. Chivukula (D, Somerset) and Joseph V. Egan (D, New Brunswick). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).

Somerset County is governed by a five-member Board of Chosen Freeholders. Somerset County's Freeholders are: Freeholder Director Rick Fontana, Freeholder Deputy Director Ken Scherer, Denise Coyle, Peter S. Palmer and Robert Zaborowski.

Culture and history

It has been unclear if the Township was named for founding father Benjamin Franklin or for his illegitimate son William Franklin, a Loyalist and the last Royal Governor of New Jersey (from 1763 to 1776). In 2000, after considering the evidence set forth in Franklin Township, Somerset County, NJ: A History (William B. Brahm, Commissioned by the Franklin Township Library, 1998, Chapter 12, Municipal Government, The Case for William Franklin and The Case for Benjamin Franklin), the Township Council chose the theory that the Township was indeed named for Benjamin Franklin.

Franklin Township was very much a part of Revolutionary War history and the scene of many raiding parties along Route 27, then known as the King's Highway. In fact, two British generals, Cornwallis and DeHeister, tried to lure General George Washington into battle on the plains of Middlebush and East Millstone. Washington, however, kept his troops at Chimney Rock, just north of Franklin, until the British withdrew. Several of the prosperous Middlebush farms were destroyed by the British soldiers during their retreat. Washington's farewell address was delivered to his army in Rocky Hill in 1783.

One of the most important developments for Franklin was the building of the Delaware & Raritan Canal in 1834. Twenty-two miles of this continuous water route from New York to Philadelphia run through the Township. During the Civil War, up to 200,000 tons of freight were hauled by mule and horse-drawn barges, a great economic boon for the area. The building of the railroads led to the decline of this once successful mode of transportation. Today the canal is the source of drinking water and provides recreation for area residents and visitors to the Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park.

The Van Wickle House, located next to the Delaware and Raritan Canal in the Somerset section of the township, in between New Brunswick and South Bound Brook, was built in 1722 by Dutch settlers and is now owned and maintained by The Meadows Foundation. The lovely old home sits peacefully next to Rutgers Preparatory School, away from busy Easton Avenue behind some trees and a Revolutionary War-era graveyard.

Franklin Township enjoyed passenger and freight railroad service during the later half of the 19th cenutry via the Millstone and New Brunswick Railroad (M&NB) which opened in 1854. The railroad was built and operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), from a junction with the PRR mainline at Jersey Avenue in New Brunswick, New Jersey to East Millstone, New Jersey. The M&NB is now known as the Conrail Millstone Secondary Branch. The branch line is still operated by Conrail up to just west of Clyde Road in Somerset, New Jersey, serving local industry in the industrial section of Somerset. [A pictorial account concerning the current condition and history of the Millstone Branch]

Education

The Franklin Township Public Schools serve students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. Schools in the district consist of six K-4 elementary schools ( [Conerly Road School], [Elizabeth Avenue School], [Franklin Park School], [Hillcrest School], [MacAfee Road School], [Pine Grove Manor School]), [Sampson G. Smith School] (grades 5&6), [Franklin Middle School] (grades 7&8) and Franklin High School (grades 9-12).

References

External links

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