Cape May County, New Jersey
Cape May County is the southernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Much of the county is located on the Cape May peninsula, bound by the Delaware Bay to its west and the Atlantic Ocean to its south and east. Adjacent to the Atlantic coastline are five barrier islands that have been built up as seaside resorts. A consistently popular summer destination with of beaches, Cape May County attracts vacationers from New Jersey and surrounding states, with the summer population exceeding 750,000. An estimated 11.6 million visitors in 2023 generated annual tourism spending of $7.7 billion, making it the county's single largest industry. The associated leisure and hospitality industries are Cape May's largest employers. Its county seat is the Cape May Court House section of Middle Township. The county is part of both the Jersey Shore and South Jersey regions of the state.
As of the 2020 United States census, the county was the state's second-least populous county, with a population of 95,263, a decrease of 2,002 from the 2010 census count of 97,265, which in turn reflected a decline of 5,061 from the 102,326 counted in the 2000 census. The United States Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program estimated a 2024 population of 93,875, a decrease of 1,388 from the 2020 decennial census. The county is part of the Ocean City, NJ metropolitan statistical area and the Philadelphia-Reading-Camden, PA-NJ-DE-MD combined statistical area, also known as the Delaware Valley.
Before Cape May County was settled by Europeans, the Kechemeche tribe of the Lenape Native Americans inhabited South Jersey. Beginning in 1609, European explorers purchased land from, and contributed to the decline of, the indigenous people. The county was named for Cornelius Jacobsen Mey, a Dutch captain who explored and charted the area from 1620 to 1621, and established a claim for the province of New Netherland. In 1685, the court of Cape May County was split from neighboring Burlington County, although the boundaries were not set until seven years later. In 1690, Cape May was founded, becoming America's oldest seaside resort.
The county was subdivided into three townships in 1798: Lower, Middle, and Upper. The other 16 municipalities in the county, including two no longer in existence, were established between 1827 and 1928. In 1863, the first railroad in the county opened, which carried crops from the dominant farming industry. Railroads later led to the popularity of the county's coastal resorts. The need for improved automotive access to the county led to the development of the Garden State Parkway, which opened in 1956.
The most populous place was Lower Township with 22,057 residents in the 2020 census, and its geographically largest municipality is Middle Township, which covers.
History
Etymology
Before Cape May County was settled by Europeans, the indigenous Kechemeche tribe of the Lenape people inhabited South Jersey, and traveled to the barrier islands during the summer to hunt and fish. During the 17th century, the area that is now Cape May County was claimed as part of New Netherlands, New Sweden, the Province of New Jersey under the British crown, and later West Jersey. On August 28, 1609, English explorer Henry Hudson entered the Delaware Bay and stayed one day on land, north of what is now Cape May Point. As early as 1666, the southern tip of New Jersey was known as Cape Maey, named after Dutch explorer Cornelius Jacobsen May, who sailed the coastline of New Jersey from 1620 to 1621. In 1630, representatives of the Dutch West India Company purchased a tract of land along the Delaware from indigenous people, and bought additional land 11 years later. Due to the large number of whales in the region of Cape May, Dutch explorers founded Town Bank around 1640 along the Delaware Bay as a whaling village. It was the first European settlement in what is now Cape May County, and was populated by descendants of Plymouth County.History
In 1685, the court of Cape May was split from Burlington County, which at that time encompassed all or nearly all of South Jersey. In 1690, a settlement began at Cape Island. As whaling declined due to overpopulation, Town Bank diminished in importance in favor of Cape May, and was largely washed away by 1750. In 1692, Cape May County was designated as one of the original four counties of West Jersey, defined as the land from the most northerly portion of Great Egg Harbor Bay to a point east of the mouth of the Maurice River, south to the tip of Cape May. The limits of the county were adjusted over the next two centuries, mostly the portion near Maurice River Township. The first water mill in the county was constructed in 1699 in Cold Spring. Nearby, the First Baptist Church was built in 1712, and the first Cold Spring Presbyterian Church was built in 1718. Both churches, as well as nearby private homes, functioned as the center of early county government.In 1744, the county chose Romney Marsh – later Cape May Court House – near the county's center to become the county seat. The first jail and courthouse were built in 1764. The county's population was around 1,000 in 1750, isolated from the rest of New Jersey by forests. Cape May grew independently as America's oldest bathing resort by 1765, leading to the city's current motto "The Nation's Oldest Seashore Resort". Amid the British blockade of the Delaware Bay in the American Revolutionary War, two British ships pursued and attacked the American brig Nancy, which fled to the coast at Turtle Gut Inlet. The Nancy was abandoned and sabotaged, killing at least 30 British sailors when the brig exploded after they boarded. The Battle of Turtle Gut Inlet on June 29, 1776, was the only Revolutionary War battle fought in the county.
Cape May County was split into three townships on February 21, 1798 – Lower, Middle, and Upper. The three townships were previously established as precincts on April 2, 1723. During the War of 1812, British forces raided farms in the county for food and fresh water. In retaliation, residents dug canals to the ocean, making the water no longer drinkable. In 1827, Dennis Township was created from portions of Upper Township, 101 years after its namesake Dennisville was founded in 1726. The oldest independent borough in the county was Cape Island Borough in 1848, which became the city of Cape May in 1869. Over the next 60 years as transport to the region improved, most of the current municipalities in the county were created. Sea Grove, later renamed Cape May Point, was founded in 1875. In 1879, Ocean City was founded as a religious retreat. Sea Isle City was founded in 1882, followed by West Cape May in 1884. In 1885, Anglesea and Holly Beach were founded. A land development company established Avalon in 1887. In 1891, Woodbine was founded on the mainland as an agriculture settlement for Russian Jews who fled religious persecution. From 1894 until 1945, South Cape May existed as an independent borough until it was largely destroyed by the 1944 Great Atlantic hurricane. In 1906, the eastern coastal boundary of Cape May County was established at a point east of the coast. The last municipalities to be established were Wildwood Crest, Stone Harbor, and West Wildwood. In 1928, North Cape May was founded, but was dissolved in 1945 after it failed to attract development following the Great Depression.
During World War II, Cape May Canal was built to connect the Delaware Bay and Cape May Harbor, completed in March 1943. The completion of the Garden State Parkway in 1955 brought hundreds of thousands of tourists, as well as a larger year-round population. Since the 1970s, the mainland has become more developed, due to the high cost of building on the barrier islands. Commercial development concentrated along U.S. Route 9 in Rio Grande, Cape May Court House, and Marmora. Concurrent with the 1980 Presidential election, Cape May County residents voted in favor to create a new state of South Jersey along with five other counties in a nonbinding referendum.
Geography and climate
Cape May County is long and at its widest. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of the 2020 Census, the county had a total area of, of which was land and was water. The county is located about south of New York City, southeast of Philadelphia, and east of Washington, D.C. To the south and east of the county is the Atlantic Ocean. The location near water provides milder temperatures than surrounding areas, as well as a continuous breeze, which contribute to the area's tourism-driven economy. Sea level along the coast is the lowest point. The highest elevation is found at three areas in Belleplain State Forest in the county's northern corner, which are approximately above sea level.Overall, the county is flat and coastal. Much of Cape May County lies on the Cape May Peninsula, which is part of the Atlantic coastal plain. The peninsula is bounded to the west by the Delaware Bay, and to the east is of marshes and water channels making up the Intracoastal Waterway. There are over of streams and rivers in the county, with the Great Egg Harbor River and its tributaries covering the northern portion of the county. There are also of ponds, lakes, bays, and reservoirs. There are five barrier islands, measuring in total, that are adjacent to the mainland. The islands have gently sloped beaches and are largely built up. There were only four barrier islands from 1922, when Turtle Gut Inlet was filled in to create Wildwood Crest, until 1945, when Cape May Canal was constructed through the southern portion of the county.
Climate
Given its maritime influence and southernmost location within New Jersey, Cape May County has a more moderate climate than surrounding areas. During the summer, the county is often 3–5 degrees cooler, and 5–10 degrees warmer in the winter. Much of the county is in USDA plant hardiness zone 7a/7b, with a small portion in the county's southeastern extreme in zone 8a. This equates to an average annual minimum temperature of. The average temperatures in the county seat of Cape May Court House range from a low of in January to a high of in July, although a record low of was recorded in January 1942 and a record high of was recorded in July 1993. Average monthly precipitation ranged from in June to in August, and annual precipitation is around. The region typically gets of snowfall each year, much less than the mountains of New Jersey. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Cape May County has a humid subtropical climate. According to the Trewartha climate classification this climate is Do The county has windy conditions throughout the year.Owing to its location along the coast, Cape May County has experienced the effects of tropical cyclones for centuries. In Whale Beach on Ludlam Island, core samples suggested the passage of an intense hurricane sometime between 1278 and 1438. The next significant hurricane in the area was September 3, 1821. Around 1800 UTC, the eye of the hurricane crossed over Cape May, estimated as a Category 4 on the Saffir–Simpson scale. It is estimated that an identical hurricane to the 1821 storm in the 21st century would cause over $1 billion in damage in Cape May County, and $107 billion in damage nationwide. The Gale of 1878 flooded Cape May County and produced winds. During the passage of Hurricane Gloria in 1985, Ocean City recorded a wind gust of. Hurricane Sandy struck the state on October 31, 2012, causing at least $150 million in damage in the county from its high winds and high tides. At the terminal for the Cape May–Lewes Ferry in North Cape May, Sandy produced the highest tide on record at, surpassing the previous record of set by Hurricane Gloria.
Cape May County has experienced a variety of other weather effects. In March 1962, a stalled coastal storm produced several days of extremely high tides along the barrier islands, which damaged the boardwalks of Cape May, Avalon, and Sea Isle City. The 1991 Perfect Storm produced high tides and beach erosion. In January 2016, a blizzard nicknamed "Winter Storm Jonas" produced record high tides in the county, reaching at the terminal for Cape May–Lewes Ferry, surpassing that of Hurricane Sandy. Nearly every municipality in the county reported damage, and in coastal towns, the beaches were severely eroded. Since 1950, ten tornadoes have touched down in the county.