| Lawrence Township, Mercer County, New Jersey |
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Lawrence Township is a Township in Mercer County , New Jersey , United States . As of the United States 2000 Census , the township population was 29,159. GEOGRAPHY According to the United States Census Bureau , the township has a total area of 57.4 Km&2 (22.2 Mi&2 ). 57.3 km&2 (22.1 mi&2) of it is land and 0.1 km&2 (0.04 mi&2) of it (0.18%) is water. Area residents often refer to all of Lawrence Township as Lawrenceville . Lawrenceville is a Census-designated Place and Unincorporated Area located within Lawrence Township. This problem is exacerbated by the fact that the Postal Service (which is in Lawrenceville) instructs many Lawrence Township residents to use Lawrenceville, Princeton or Trenton in their mailing address, and not Lawrence Township. Lawrence Township is located in central Mercer County north of the City of Trenton , which is the county seat and capital of New Jersey. Ewing and Hopewell Townships lie to the west of Lawrence, Princeton and West Windsor Townships to the north and east, and Hamilton Township to the east and south. Lawrence is located midway between New York City and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which is why many commuters choose to live in this area. DEMOGRAPHICS
As of the Census &2 of 2000, there were 29,159 people, 10,797 households, and 7,233 families residing in the township. The Population Density was 508.5/km&2 (1,317.0/mi&2). There were 11,180 housing units at an average density of 195.0/km&2 (504.9/mi&2). The racial makeup of the township was 79.22% White , 9.28% African American , 0.08% Native American , 7.91% Asian , 0.11% Pacific Islander , 1.79% from Other Races , and 1.60% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.61% of the population. There were 10,797 households out of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.9% were Married Couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.0% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 3.05. In the township the population was spread out with 21.7% under the age of 18, 12.4% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 23.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 88.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.4 males. The median income for a household in the township was $67,959, and the median income for a family was $82,704. Males had a median income of $56,681 versus $38,468 for females. The Per Capita Income for the township was $33,120. About 2.6% of families and 4.9% of the population were below the Poverty Line , including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or over. GOVERNMENT Lawrence Township is a Democratic stronghold and they hold the majority on the Township Council Local government The Township of Lawrence is governed by a Board consisting of a Mayor and four Council Members. The Mayor is not elected directly by the people, but is selected by the Council from among its members to serve a term of one year. The Lawrence Township Council consists of Mayor Greg Puliti , Mark W. Holmes, Rick Miller, Pamela Mount and Mike Powers . The Township's Municipal Manager is Richard S. Krawczun. Lawrence Township Council , Lawrence Township. Accessed February 19 , 2007 . Recent mayors of Lawrence Township include:
Federal, state and county representation Lawrence Township is in the Twelfth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 15th Legislative District. 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government , New Jersey League Of Women Voters , p. 59. Accessed August 30 , 2006 . EDUCATION The , and Lawrence High School . Lawrence Township is home to two parochial schools: Notre Dame High School is a Coeducation al, Roman Catholic , College Preparatory School for students in grades 9-12; and Saint Ann School , which serves 341 students in pre-3 through eighth grade. Lawrenceville is home to the Lawrenceville School , a coeducational, independent Boarding School for grades 9-12, founded in 1810. Rider University is a private university with its main campus just south of Lawrenceville. HISTORY What is now Lawrence Township was originally formed as Maidenhead Township on February 20 , 1697 , while the area was still part of Burlington County in West Jersey . The township was named by the early Quaker settlers after Maidenhead , a Thames River village west of London . It became part of the newly-created Hunterdon County on March 11 , 1714 . Maidenhead Township was incorporated as one of New Jersey's initial group of 104 townships by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21 , 1798 ."The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 162-163. On January 24 , 1816 , the municipality was renamed Lawrence Township, in honor of Captain James Lawrence — commander of the frigate '' USS Chesapeake '' and one of the naval heroes of the War Of 1812 — best known for his dying command of "Don't Give up the Ship." Lawrence Township became part of Mercer County at its creation on February 22 , 1838 . Portions of the township were taken to form Millham Township ( February 10 , 1882 , annexed by Trenton in 1888). On '', September 24 , 2003 . BUSINESS AND COMMERCE Lawrence Township is home to the headquarters of:
, 2006 . The business district of Lawrenceville is small, but stable. The Lawrence Shopping Center and other businesses along U.S. Route 1 provide additional commercial clusters in the township. The transmitter for WKXW-FM , better known as New Jersey 101.5, is located near the Quaker Bridge Mall. TRANSPORTATION Two major transportation routes traverse the Township. Part of the Interstate Highway network, in the southern half of the Township, the limited access Trenton Freeway , and the combined road in the northern half that serves as a regional arterial linking the Interstate and the New Jersey Turnpike and Interstate 287 . County Route 533 , County Route 546 and County Route 569 . When it comes to "confusion of the Interstates," Lawrence houses the "abrupt ending" of Interstate 95 . This resulted from politics in Somerset County that eliminated its planned connection of the Somerset Freeway to the 287 Freeway . Motorists are then forced to find an alternate route, either by taking US 1 north, or (are directed by signs) to take the 295 Expressway , to the ''Central Jersey Expressway'' (I-195) to the New Jersey Turnpike . U.S. Route 206 is the main artery within the township itself, running from Trenton to Princeton roughly north-to-south. It is a segment of the historic Lincoln Highway , and before that, it was part of the main New York-Philadelphia Post road. The main Amtrak and New Jersey Transit Northeast Corridor rail line runs on the eastern edge of the township. The nearest stations are at Hamilton and Princeton Junction . A rail spur used to run to Lawrenceville from Trenton, but was discontinued in the 1970's and is now a bicycle trail. From Lawrenceville, a trolley line to Princeton existed from 1900 to 1941, but was dismantled before World War II , and the right-of-way largely has reverted to neighboring landowners. East Meets West (and South) at RCN , ''Lawrence Greenway News'', Fall 2000. The nearest airport with passenger service is Trenton-Mercer Airport , formerly known as the Mercer County Airport, in Ewing . Lawrence Township is roughly equidistant to Philadelphia International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport . POINTS OF INTEREST The Port Mercer Canal House is located at 4378 Quakerbridge Road, along the Delaware And Raritan Canal near the border of West Windsor Township and Princeton Township . The house was built in the 1830s as housing for the bridgetender and his family. The bridgetender was needed to open the swing bridge when canal boats came through, then close it to allow traffic to cross over the canal. The Delaware and Raritan Canal has an intact walking towpath for most of its length. Additional walking trail areas in the township include Shipetaukin Woods, Carson Woods, and part of Rosedale Park. Lawrence Township is part of the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail , currently under development.Professor Pathfinder's Princeton map, Hedberg Maps, Inc. ©2006 Jasna Polana was the home of John Seward Johnson I of Johnson & Johnson . His widow converted it into Tournament Players Club at Jasna Polana golf course. NOTABLE RESIDENTS Notable current and former residents of Lawrence Township include:
REFERENCES EXTERNAL LINKS
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