About Aberdeen
Aberdeen Township is a Township in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the township population was 18,210.
Aberdeen Township is part of the Bayshore Regional Strategic Plan, an effort by nine municipalities in northern Monmouth County to reinvigorate the area's economy by emphasizing the traditional downtowns, dense residential neighborhoods, maritime history, and the natural beauty of the Raritan Bay coastline.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 7.8 square miles (20.1 km²), of which, 5.5 square miles (14.3 km²) of it is land and 2.2 square miles (5.7 km²) of it (28.61%) is water.
Cliffwood Beach (2010 Census population of 3,194) and Strathmore (6,740) are census-designated places and unincorporated areas located within Aberdeen Township.
Demographics
As of the census of 2010, there were 18,210 people, 6,876 households, and 4,922 families residing in the township. The population density was 3,311 people per square mile (1,216.4/km²). There were 7,102 housing units at an average density of 1,291 per square mile (457.1/km²).There were 6,876 households out of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them.
Local government
On November 3, 1964, the citizens of Aberdeen Township voted to change from the Township Committee form of government, in force since 1857, to the Council-Manager form, under the Faulkner Act. In this Council-Manager form, all policy making power is concentrated in the council. The Mayor is a member of the Council and presides over its meetings. The Manager, appointed by the council and fully accountable to it, is the municipal chief executive and administrative official. Aberdeen Township is one of over forty municipalities in New Jersey with this form of government.
A seven-member Township Council is elected at large for staggered, four-year terms of office in partisan elections held in November.
Education
Aberdeen is part of the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District, together with the neighboring community of Matawan. Schools in the district are Cambridge Park Developmental Learning Center (Preschool ), Cliffwood Elementary School (Grades K-3), Ravine Drive Elementary School (Grades K-3), Strathmore Elementary School (Grades K-3), Lloyd Road Elementary School (Grades 4-5), Matawan Aberdeen Middle School (Grades 6 - 8) and Matawan Regional High School (Grades 9 - 12. Central Offices are located at 1 Crest Way, in Aberdeen.
History
Those who settled in this area developed into the Lenni Lenape Native Americans. About the year 1000, an agricultural society developed, and small villages dotted what was to become New Jersey. The Lenape began a westward retreat in the face of European settlement and disease beginning in the late seventeenth century, beginning in Monmouth County by the mid-eighteenth century. Although the Lenape presently live in Ontario and Oklahoma, their legacy survives in such names as Mohingson, Luppatatong and Matawan Creeks and Raritan Bay.
Cliffwood Beach, located in Aberdeen, New Jersey, was a popular resort until Hurricane Donna destroyed its boardwalk.
The earliest known attempt at European settlement was in 1650 when the south side of Raritan Bay was purchased from the Lenni Lenape by the New Netherland Colony. The Dutch failed to make any permanent settlements of this area.
Aberdeen Township
On November 8, 1977, the residents of Matawan Township voted to change the name of the Township to create a community identity separate from that of Matawan Borough. The residents voted to call their community Aberdeen Township. Officials believed the new name would draw attention to the Township, as it is listed first alphabetically among New Jersey's 566 municipalities.
Today, Aberdeen is a suburban Township of 5.4 square miles containing a mix of residence, light industry and shopping centers. Sections of the Township include Cliffwood, Cliffwood Beach, Freneau, Oakshades, River Gardens, Strathmore and Woodfield. There are three postal ZIP codes which service the Township: 07721, 07735 and 07747.
The Township is served by two volunteer fire companies, the Aberdeen Township Hose and Chemical Co. No. 1, organized in 1918, and the Cliffwood Volunteer Fire Co., organized in 1927. Two volunteer First Aid Squads response to the community's emergency medical needs; the Aberdeen Township First Aid and Rescue Squad, organized in 1954, and the South Aberdeen Emergency Medical Service, organized in 1970. A Full time Police Department was established in 1935.
The Henry Hudson Trail is a 9-mile (14 km) paved trail built on a former Central Railroad of New Jersey right-of-way and extending from Aberdeen Township east to Atlantic Highlands.