Franklin, New Jersey
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Franklin is a Borough in Sussex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 5,160.
Franklin, known as the "Fluorescent Mineral Capital of the World,"[1] is located over a rich ore body containing more than 150 minerals, many of them fluorescent and 25 of which are found no where else on earth. Settled in the 1600s, the village known as Franklin Furnace developed near iron mines and iron smelting operations located along the Wallkill River. In the early 1800s, zinc deposits in the area began to be developed commercially. For most of the century many small companies mined zinc and iron in the Franklin area. In 1897 all zinc mining efforts merged into the New Jersey Zinc Company. The Zinc company was a major controlling factor in the development of Franklin. Immigrants from Russia, Britain, Hungary and Poland joined the work force at the mine. The population, 500 in 1897, swelled to 3,000 by 1913 when the area incorporated as the Borough of Franklin.
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[edit] Geography
Franklin is located at (41.117157, -74.582868)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 11.8 km² (4.6 mi²). 11.6 km² (4.5 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (1.32%) is water.
See also Franklin Furnace regarding the complex mineralogy of the area.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 5,160 people, 1,898 households, and 1,324 families residing in the borough. The population density was 443.7/km² (1,150.2/mi²). There were 1,997 housing units at an average density of 171.7/km² (445.1/mi²). The racial makeup of the borough was 95.10% White, 0.62% African American, 0.35% Native American, 1.47% Asian, 1.22% from other races, and 1.24% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.42% of the population.
There were 1,898 households out of which 36.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% were married couples living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% were non-families. 24.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.22.
In the borough the population was spread out with 27.5% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 31.8% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.9 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $44,985, and the median income for a family was $52,682. Males had a median income of $41,080 versus $26,201 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $19,386. About 5.6% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.1% of those under age 18 and 9.9% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Government
[edit] Local government
Franklin is governed under the Borough form of government. The mayor is elected directly by the voters to serve a four-year term of office. There are six members of the Borough Council, elected to serve three-year terms of office on a staggerred basis, with two seats coming up for election each year.
The Mayor of Franklin Borough is Douglas Kistle (term ends December 31, 2007). Members of the Borough Council are:[2]
- Council President Dayne W. Hill (2008), Chairman - Public Safety & Administrative Ordinance Committee
- Steve V. Oroho (2006), Chairman - Budget Committee
- Gilbert Snyder (2006), Liaison - Recreation Commission
- John Sowden IV (2007), Chairman - Administrative Finance & Personnel
- Jack O. Stoll (2007), Liaison - Board of Public Works
- Jim Williams (2008), Liaison - Planning Board
[edit] Federal, state and county representation
Franklin Borough is in the Fifth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 24th Legislative District.[3]
New Jersey's Fifth Congressional District, covering the northern portions of Bergen County, Passaic County and Sussex County and all of Warren County, is represented by Scott Garrett (R, Wantage Township). New Jersey is represented in the Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Robert Menendez (D, Hoboken).
The 24th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Robert Littell (R, Franklin) and in the Assembly by Guy R. Gregg (R, Flanders) and Alison Littell McHose (R, Sparta). The Governor of New Jersey is Jon Corzine (D, Hoboken).
Sussex County is governed by a five-member Board of Chosen Freeholders. Sussex County's Freeholders are Director Gary R. Chiusano (term ends December 31, 2008), Deputy Director Harold J. Wirths (2007), Steven V. Oroho (2007), Glen Vetrano (2006) and Susan M. Zellman (2006).
[edit] Education
Students in grades K - 8 attend the Franklin Borough School, which serves 557 students. In September 1982, Wallkill Valley Regional High School opened its doors, and Franklin High School closed theirs, making the class of 1981 was the final class to graduate from Franklin High School. Franklin School K-12 then became Franklin Elementary School K-8.
For grades 9 - 12, students attend Walkill Valley Regional High School which is comprised of Franklin Borough, Hardyston Township, Hamburg Borough and Ogdensburg Borough, and is part of the Walkill Valley Regional High School District.
[edit] References
- ^ Fluorescent Minerals, accessed October 20, 2006
- ^ Franklin Borough Mayor and Council, accessed October 20, 2006
- ^ League of Women Voters: 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, p. 57, accessed August 30, 2006
[edit] External links
- Franklin Borough website
- Franklin Borough School
- Franklin Borough School's 2004-2005 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
- National Center for Education Statistics data for the Franklin Borough School
- Walkill Valley Regional High School
- Abandoned Mines of Franklin, New Jersey
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
