Hamilton Township, Mercer County, New Jersey


Hamilton Township is a township and the most populous municipality in Mercer County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is the largest suburb of Trenton, the state's capital, which is located to the township's west. The township is situated within the New York metropolitan area as defined by the United States Census Bureau but directly borders the Philadelphia metropolitan area and is part of the Federal Communications Commission's Philadelphia Designated Market Area. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 92,297, its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 3,833 from the 2010 census count of 88,464, which in turn reflected an increase of 1,355 from the 2000 census count of 87,109. The township was the state's ninth-largest municipality in 2010 and 2020, after having been ranked 10th in 2000.
Hamilton was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 11, 1842, from portions of the now-defunct Nottingham Township. Portions of the township were taken to form Trenton, New Jersey|Chambersburg] on April 1, 1872, and annexed by Trenton in 1888, and by Wilbur on April 24, 1891, and annexed by Trenton in 1898. Hamilton Township derives its name from the village of Hamilton Square, which might have been named for Alexander Hamilton.
In 2006, Hamilton Township was ranked by Morgan Quitno Press as the 18th-safest city in the United States, out of 369 cities nationwide. In the company's 2005 survey, the Township was ranked 15th safest of 354 cities surveyed nationwide.
WWW Official Site

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 40.31 square miles, including 39.44 square miles of land and 0.87 square miles of water.
Although Hamilton is one of the largest townships in New Jersey it doesn't have a true "downtown", but a number of settlements within the township form smaller commercial centers. Groveville, Hamilton Square, Mercerville, White Horse and Yardville are all census-designated places and unincorporated communities located within the township.
Other unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Briar Manor, Broad Street Park, Bromley, Chewalla Park, Creston, DeCou Village, Deutzville, Duck Island, East Trenton Heights, Edgebrook, Extonville, Golden Crest, Gropps Lake, Haines Corner, Hutchinson Mills, Lakeside Park, Maple Shade, North Crosswicks, Nottingham, Oil City, Pond Run, Mercer County, New Jersey|Quaker Bridge], Quaker Gardens, Rosemont, The Orchards, Trenton Gardens, Warner Village, White City and Yardville Heights.
Van Nest Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife management area operated by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection's Division of Fish and Wildlife.
The township borders the municipalities of Lawrence Township, Robbinsville Township, Trenton and West Windsor in Mercer County; Bordentown City, Bordentown Township, Chesterfield Township and North Hanover Township in Burlington County; Upper Freehold Township in Monmouth County; and Falls Township in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, across the Delaware River in Pennsylvania.

Demographics

2020 census

Race / Ethnicity Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010% 1990% 2000% 2010
White alone 78,33172,11864,53055,19990.50%82.79%72.94%59.81%
Black or African American alone 4,2796,90710,04211,7244.94%7.93%11.35%12.70%
Native American or Alaska Native alone 818693670.09%0.10%0.11%0.07%
Asian alone 1,8052,2262,8904,1212.09%2.56%3.27%4.46%
Pacific Islander alone N/A224114N/A0.03%0.05%0.02%
Other race alone 511041113480.06%0.12%0.13%0.38%
Mixed race or Multiracial N/A1,1751,1442,545N/A1.35%1.29%2.76%
Hispanic or Latino 2,0064,4719,61318,2792.32%5.13%10.87%19.80%
Total86,55387,10988,46492,297100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 88,464 people, 34,534 households, and 23,759 families in the township. The population density was. There were 36,170 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup was 78.38% White, 11.78% Black or African American, 0.17% Native American, 3.29% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 4.27% from other races, and 2.02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.87% of the population.
Of the 34,534 households, 28.0% had children under the age of 18; 51.3% were married couples living together; 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present and 31.2% were non-families. Of all households, 26.3% were made up of individuals and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.09.
21.2% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 29.6% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.8 years. For every 100 females, the population had 91.8 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 88.6 males.
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that median household income was $72,026 and the median family income was $87,512. Males had a median income of $58,674 versus $45,661 for females. The per capita income for the township was $32,344. About 3.5% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States census there were 87,109 people, 33,523 households, and 23,667 families residing in the township. The population density was. There were 34,535 housing units at an average density of. The racial makeup of the township was 85.15% White, 8.16% African American, 0.14% Native American, 2.56% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.19% from other races, and 1.76% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.13% of the population.
There were 33,523 households, out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.3% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.4% were non-families. 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.8% 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 3.10.
In the township the population was spread out, with 23.2% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.0 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $57,110, and the median income for a family was $66,986. Males had a median income of $46,360 versus $33,673 for females. The per capita income for the township was $25,441. About 2.8% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.4% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

As of late 2005, much of the new residential development in Hamilton has been geared to accommodating the aging baby boomer generation. New retirement communities and assisted-living facilities outpace that of new traditional residential communities. Such construction has been spurred by several factors. The first being that the public is skeptical of growing school budgets due to its already large size. Hamilton voters have often rejected increases in school budgets in their yearly elections to keep already high taxes from growing higher. As a result, the planning board has been reluctant to authorize construction of housing that will increase the student population. Another reason is a series of improvements to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, Hamilton. It is situated next to where most of the under-developed land in the township used to be, land that is now home to the active older-adult communities.
As of October 2016, significant construction has been done to further build up the Hamilton Township area. Multiple new retirement communities have been constructed, as well as multiple new restaurants, banks, gas stations and convenience stores along Route 33. Hamilton Township continues to expand rapidly to accommodate the increase in citizens residing in the community.

Parks and recreation

Hamilton hosts one of the largest recreational parks in the state, and borders another. The municipal Veterans Park is and is housed entirely in the township. Mercer County Park borders the township to the North and encompasses of land that was shared from Hamilton Township along with neighboring Lawrence Township and West Windsor. The park contains Mercer Lake, one of the largest man-made lakes in the state, which was built as a result of a federal flood control project to prevent flooding in Trenton along Assunpink Creek, with gravel removed to deepen the lake basin used as part of the construction of Interstates 95 and 195.
The Grounds for Sculpture is a sculpture park which houses more than 270 sculptures, gardens, water features, and other nature scenes. The organization's mission is to promote the appreciation of arts and sculpture.
Sayen Park Botanical Garden is named after Fredrick Sayen because it was originally his land and his home.
George Washington used Quakerbridge Road on his famous night march from the Second Battle of Trenton on his way to the Battle of Princeton.

Festivals and events

Hamilton Township hosts 6 events total per year, The St. Patrick's Day parade, is hosted in the Hamilton-Square-Sayen area during sometime in March. Then, the Memorial Day parade is hosted during Memorial Day, sharing the route of the St. Patrick's day parade. Later that month, is the azalea festival hosted around mothers day in Sayen House & Gardens. In July, the town hosts a fireworks show usually on the 3rd or 2nd. In october, is the largest festival in Hamilton, Oktoberfest. It is hosted at Veterans Park South, and contains Food from local restaurants, Activities, Arts, Crafts, and Live Music. It is hosted in mid-october. In December, comes Winter Wonderland, hosted in Kuser Park & Mansion. Containing lights, decor, and a christmas theme.

Historic places

  • The Isaac Watson House was built in 1708 on a bluff overlooking Watson's Creek near the present-day community of White Horse; the property totaled. Located at 151 Westcott Avenue, it is the oldest house in Mercer County. The house serves as the headquarters of the New Jersey State Society DAR. The house is on the National Register of Historic Places.
  • The John Abbott II House was built in 1730 by John Abbott. It is located at 2200 Kuser Road a mile south of Mercerville near Veterans Park. The house is noted as having been used as a secret repository for funds hidden from British as they advanced on Trenton in 1776. The funds were stored by John Abbott II for state treasurer Samuel Tucker inside a tub containing broken crockery. In 1969 the house was to be razed to the ground but was saved by the Hamilton Township Historical Society. The house is listed on the National Register.
  • The Isaac Pearson House was built in 1733. Isaac Pearson was elected several times to the state assembly, served on the General Committee of Correspondence appointed by the Provincial Assembly on July 21, 1774, and the first Committee of Safety in October 1775. Pearson was killed by robbers, or was suspected as having collaborated with the British and killed by Continentals. Located in White Horse in the southern part of the township, the house is listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places.

Government

Local government

Hamilton Township has been governed under the Faulkner Act Mayor-Council system of New Jersey municipal government since January 1, 1976, based on the recommendations of a Charter Study Commission. The township is one of 71 municipalities statewide governed under this form. The township's government is comprised of the Mayor and the five-member Township Council, with all elected representatives chosen at-large on a partisan basis as part of the November general election in odd-numbered years and serving four-year terms of office. Elections alternate in a four-year cycle, with the mayor and two township council members up for election and then the three other township council seats coming up for vote two years later. At an annual reorganization meeting, the council selects a president and vice president from among its members for a one-year term.
, the Mayor of Hamilton Township is Democrat Jeffrey S. Martin, serving a term of office that ends December 31, 2027. Members of the Township Council are Council President Richard L. Tighe, Council Vice President Pasquale "Pat" Papero Jr., Anthony P. Carabelli Jr., Nancy Phillips and Charles F. "Chuddy" Whalen III.
In January 2020, the Township Council chose Charles Whalen from a list of three candidates nominated by the Democratic municipal committee to fill the seat expiring in December 2021 that had been held by Jeffrey Martin until he stepped down to take office as mayor. Whalen served on an interim basis until the November 2020 general election, when he was chosen to serve the balance of the term of office.

Emergency services

Starting in January 2021, fire protection is provided by a consolidated professional fire department, which replaced eight separate fire districts each of which served a separate of the township and had its own tax assessments. The new combined department operates on an annual budget of $28 million, with 135 firefighters in four engine companies, two ladder companies and two squad companies.

Mayoral history

On April 27, 2012, Mayor John Bencivengo was charged by the U.S. Attorney's office for corruption in the extortion of payments in exchange for influencing the awarding of a health insurance contract for the Township's Board of Education. On June 22, 2012 he was indicted by a federal grand jury on five criminal counts including extortion, attempted extortion, money laundering and two counts related to the federal travel act.
On June 29, 2012, Rob Warney, a former Hamilton Township Director in Mayor John Bencivengo's cabinet, pleaded guilty before US District Court Judge Peter Sheridan to laundering money related to the federal bribery indictment against Mayor Bencivengo. Warney also admitted to accepting a bribe in 2006 in exchange for his vote and influence over a health insurance broker's contract.
On November 19, 2012, Bencivengo was found guilty on all counts of corruption, extortion and bribery. He submitted his resignation effective November 21, 2012. Councilman Kevin J. Meara was sworn in as Acting Mayor, replacing Bencivengo following his resignation. On March 24, 2013, Bencivengo was sentenced to a 38-month prison term, which he served at a minimum security federal prison at Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. On September 23, 2013, his attorney filed an appeal with the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, which was denied in April 2014. He was released to a half-way house in December 2014, and completed his sentence while under house arrest in June 2015.

Federal, state, and county representation

Hamilton Township is part of New Jersey's 3rd congressional district and 14th state legislative district.

Politics

Hamilton Township has historically been considered a bellwether for state and national political trends. In 2009, Republican candidate for governor Chris Christie made both his first and last campaign stops at the Golden Dawn diner in Hamilton and held a question-and-answer session at Steinert High School after his victory. In 2024, a Hamilton Township voter was photographed topless on Election Day, after she was asked to remove or cover a pro-Donald Trump shirt and hat at her polling station. The incident went viral on social media, and vice presidential candidate JD Vance shared the photograph with the caption, "What a patriot." As of March 2011, there were a total of 56,202 registered voters in Hamilton Township, of which 18,266 were registered as Democrats, 10,402 were registered as Republicans and 27,508 were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 26 voters registered to other parties.

Education

The Hamilton Township School District serve students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. The district is one of the state's ten largest and consists of 17 elementary schools, three middle schools and three high schools along with an alternative program. As of the 2021–22 school year, the district, comprised of 23 schools, had an enrollment of 11,816 students and 969.4 classroom teachers, for a student–teacher ratio of 12.2:1. Schools in the district are
Alexander Elementary School,
Greenwood Elementary School,
Kisthardt Elementary School,
Klockner Elementary School,
Kuser Elementary School,
Lalor Elementary School,
Langtree Elementary School,
McGalliard Elementary School,
Mercerville Elementary School,
Morgan Elementary School,
Robinson Elementary School,
Sayen Elementary School,
Sunnybrae Elementary School,
University Heights Elementary School,
George E. Wilson Elementary School,
Yardville Elementary School,
Yardville Heights Elementary School,
Richard C. Crockett Middle School,
Albert E. Grice Middle School,
Emily C. Reynolds Middle School,
Nottingham High School,
Hamilton High School West,
Steinert High School and
Hamilton Educational Program High School.
Pace Charter School of Hamilton is a charter school serving students in Kindergarten through fifth grade, operating under a charter granted by the New Jersey Department of Education. The school was one of 11 in the state to be recognized in 2014 by the United States Department of Education's National Blue Ribbon Schools Program.
Eighth grade students from all of Mercer County are eligible to apply to attend the high school programs offered by the Mercer County Technical Schools, a county-wide vocational school district that offers full-time career and technical education at its Health Sciences Academy, STEM Academy and Academy of Culinary Arts, with no tuition charged to students for attendance.
St. Gregory the Great Academy is a Catholic school serving students in preschool through eighth grade that operates under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton. The school was also recognized in 2014 by the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program.

Transportation

Roads and highways

Situated next to the New Jersey state capital of Trenton, and New Jersey's eighth-largest municipality, Hamilton Township is away from New York City and away from Philadelphia. Hamilton is also close to most points along the Jersey Shore. By car, Hamilton is about 80 minutes from New York City and 50 minutes from Philadelphia. The train ride to New York is slightly shorter than the drive into New York while the train ride to Philadelphia is slightly longer than the drive into Philadelphia. With nearly 90,000 residents and of land, it offers modern train station and major roads passing through.
, the township had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality, by Mercer County and by the New Jersey Department of Transportation and by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority.
Several major roads and highways traverse the township. These include the New Jersey Turnpike, Interstate 295, Interstate 195, U.S. Route 130, U.S. Route 206, Route 29, Route 33 and Route 156. Hamilton is the only municipality in the state that hosts Interstate 95 and both of its auxiliary routes, Interstates 195 and 295.
Major county routes that traverse through include CR 524, CR 533 and CR 535.
The Turnpike's Woodrow Wilson service area is located between Interchanges 7 and 7A northbound at milepost 58.7. The Richard Stockton service area is located between Interchanges 7A and 7 southbound at milepost 58.7. No turnpike interchange is located in the township, but the closest exit is at Interchange 7A along I-195 in neighboring Robbinsville Township.
The New Jersey Turnpike Authority widened the turnpike between Exit 6 in Mansfield Township, Burlington County and Exit 8A in Monroe Township, Middlesex County. Two new carriageways were built to accommodate the outer roadway. In Hamilton, new sound barriers and overpasses were built, as well as new entrance & exit ramps to the service areas. The project was announced in December 2004 and completed in early November 2014.

Public transportation

[Image:Hamilton train stationnjfullview.jpg|thumb|200px|Hamilton, NJ station]
With the addition in 1999 of the Hamilton train station located on Sloan Avenue just off Interstate 295 at Exit 65B, the township has attracted more New York City-based commuters to the area. The station offers service on NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line to New York Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan and to Trenton station where the SEPTA Trenton Line Regional Rail line provides service to and from Philadelphia.
NJ Transit provides public bus service between the township and Philadelphia on the 409 route and to Trenton on the 601, 603, 606, 607, 608 and 609 routes.
The Greater Mercer Transportation Management Association offers service between Hamilton and Matrix Business Park on the ZLine route to the Amazon sorting center in Robbinsville Township on the ZLine2; and on the Route 130 Connection between the Trenton Transit Center and South Brunswick.
OurBus offers intercity bus service between Hamilton and Tysons, Virginia.

In the news

  • The Megan Kanka case, for whom Megan's Law was named, occurred in Hamilton Township in 1994.
  • Some letters involved in the 2001 anthrax attacks were processed through the United States Postal Service Regional Mail Facility in Hamilton Township. The building was closed for more than four years while it was decontaminated at a cost of $65 million, but an improvised post office was made from tents and canopies in the building's vicinity.
  • The annual Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree chosen for 2008 was grown in Hamilton. It was a 77-year-old Norway Spruce weighing 8 tons and rising that was located off the side of Klockner Road at the Tree King Tree Mart.

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Hamilton Township has a Humid subtropical climate.

Ecology

According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. potential natural vegetation types, Hamilton Township would have a dominant vegetation type of Appalachian Oak with a dominant vegetation form of Eastern Hardwood Forest.

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Hamilton Township include: