Cherry Hill Township, New Jersey
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Cherry Hill Township is a township located in Camden County, New Jersey. As of the 2000 census, the township had a total population of 69,965, making it the sixth-largest municipality in the Delaware Valley. The area now known as Cherry Hill was originally settled by the Leni Lenape Native Americans who coexisted peacefully with the first settlers from Britain, Quaker followers of William Penn who arrived in the late 1600s. Cherry Hill Township was founded on February 25, 1844 as Delaware Township from half of the area of Waterford Township. Delaware Township was renamed Cherry Hill Township (after the Cherry Hill cherry farm) on November 7, 1961. (There is a famous story that the town was actually named after Cherry Hill Mall because of its widespread popularity as the nation's first large-scale enclosed shopping center. This widely-held anecdote is not acknowledged by the town's official website.) Cherry Hill underwent explosive growth in the post World War II era with the advent of subdivisions and tract housing. Cherry Hill Township is presently governed under the Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council) system of municipal government. The current Mayor of Cherry Hill is Bernie Platt.
Cherry Hill was the scene of the Neulander murder.
Subaru of America, Commerce Bancorp, Commerce National Insurance, and Commerce Capital Markets are headquarted in Cherry Hill. The Cherry Hill Mall, a principal shopping center in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, was the first enclosed shopping mall in the eastern United States.
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Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 63.1 km² (24.4 mi²). 62.8 km² (24.2 mi²) of it is land and 0.3 km² (0.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.45% water.
Cherry Hill is separated from Burlington County by the Pennsauken Creek to the east. Cherry Hill's western border is the Cooper River which it shares with Haddon Township, Haddonfield, and Lawnside. On land, Cherry Hill borders Merchantville and Pennsauken to the north, and Voorhees to the south.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there are 69,965 people, 26,227 households, and 19,407 families residing in the township. The population density is 1,114.0/km² (2,884.9/mi²). There are 27,074 housing units at an average density of 431.1/km² (1,116.4/mi²). The racial makeup of the township is 84.67% White, 4.46% African American, 0.10% Native American, 8.87% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.70% from other races, and 1.16% from two or more races. 2.54% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 26,227 households out of which 32.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.8% are married couples living together, 8.3% have a female householder with no husband present, and 26.0% are non-families. 22.5% of all households are made up of individuals and 11.0% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.61 and the average family size is 3.08.
In the township the population is spread out with 23.5% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 18.0% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 42 years. For every 100 females there are 91.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 87.2 males.
The median income for a household in the township is $69,421, and the median income for a family is $80,766. Males have a median income of $54,894 versus $37,282 for females. The per capita income for the township is $32,658. 4.0% of the population and 2.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 3.7% of those under the age of 18 and 5.4% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
Famous residents
Trivia
- Cherry Hill is the location of the White Castle franchise in the movie Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. While no White Castle has ever existed in Cherry Hill, there was one located in neighboring Pennsauken, NJ that has since closed. Corporate insiders, however, have suggested that a new White Castle is definitely planned for the township, presumably due to the movie reference, at Garden State Park along Route 70 (Marlton Pike). The company will not officially acknowledge this suggestion.
See also
External links
- Cherry Hill Township site http://www.cherryhill-nj.com
- Definition of township and other forms of government in New Jersey http://www.njslom.org/types.html