Fairfield Township is a

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to: Australia * Cumberland County, New South Wales * the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia Canada *Cumberland County, Nova Scotia United Kingdom * Cumberland, historic county *Cumberla ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. It is part of the

Vineland ''Vineland'' is a 1990 novel by Thomas Pynchon, a postmodern fiction set in California, United States in 1984, the year of Ronald Reagan's reelection.Knabb 2002 Through flashbacks by its characters, who have lived the sixties in their youth, th ...

- Bridgeton

metropolitan statistical area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally incorporated as a city or tow ...

, which encompasses all of Cumberland County for statistical purposes and which constitutes a part of the Delaware Valley. As of the

2020 United States census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

, the township's population was 5,546, a decline of 749 (-11.9%) from the 2010 census count of 6,295, which in turn reflected an increase of 12 (+0.2%) from the 6,283 counted in the 2000 census. Fairfield Township was formed by

Royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but s ...

on May 12, 1697, from portions of the Cohansey Township area, while still part of

Salem County Salem County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its western boundary is formed by the Delaware River and its eastern terminus is the Delaware Memorial Bridge, which connects the county with New Castle, Delaware. Its cou ...

, and was formed as a precinct in the newly created Cumberland County on January 19, 1748. It was incorporated on February 21, 1798, as one of the initial group of 104 townships in the state by an act of the New Jersey Legislature. Portions of the township were taken to form Downe Township (September 26, 1772), Millville Township (February 24, 1801) and Lawrence Township (February 17, 1885).Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 120. Accessed October 22, 2012. The name Fairfield refers to its original settlers, who were émigrés from Fairfield,

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

who settled in the area in 1697.About Fairfield
Fairfield Township. Accessed October 30, 2019. "In May of 1697, a group of potential settlers from Fairfield, Connecticut purchased a tract of land in Cohansey. The Provincial Assembly voted that the township be called Fairfield and empowered it with the privileges of other townships. It was one of the six original townships of Cumberland County. Originally, the area of Fairfield included what are now Fairfield, Lawrence, Downe, Commercial Townships, and a part Millville, west of the Maurice River." The oldest Presbyterian church in South Jersey is said to date to June 1697. There is a plaque and an old cemetery which indicates the original log building.Laurie, Maxine N.; and Mappen, Marc
"Fairfield"
''

Encyclopedia of New Jersey ''The Encyclopedia of New Jersey'' is edited by Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen and contains around 3,000 original articles, along with 585 illustrations and 130 maps. It was published in 2004 by Rutgers University Press, with . The publication wa ...

'', p. 264. Rutgers University Press; 2004/2005. . Accessed September 8, 2013. When it was first created as one of Cumberland County's original six townships, it included land that would later become Commercial Township, Downe Township, Lawrence Township and Millville.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the township had a total area of 43.82 square miles (113.50 km²), including 41.12 square miles (106.50 km²) of land and 2.70 square miles (7.00 km²) of water (6.17%). Fairton, with a 2010 census population of 1,264,) and Gouldtown are

unincorporated communities An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...

s (CDPs) located within Fairfield Township. Other unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Back Neck, Ben Davis Point, Clarks Pond, Fordville, Lanings Wharf, Mulfords Landing, New England Crossroads,

Sea Breeze A sea breeze or onshore breeze is any wind that blows from a large body of water toward or onto a landmass; it develops due to differences in air pressure created by the differing heat capacities of water and dry land. As such, sea breezes ar ...

and Tindells Landing. The township has three primary population centers: Sea Breeze, Fairton (originally named Bumbridge) and Gouldtown, an old African American community from the segregation period. Fairfield Township borders the Cumberland County municipalities of Bridgeton, Deerfield Township, Greenwich Township, Hopewell Township, Lawrence Township, Millville and Upper Deerfield Township, along with the

Delaware Bay Delaware Bay is the estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the northeast seaboard of the United States. It is approximately in area, the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltwater of the Atlantic Ocean. The bay is bordered inland ...

Demographics

2010 census

Fairfield Township had the highest percentage of Native Americans in any municipality in New Jersey, at 5.10% in the 2010 census. The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars)

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two equal groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways o ...

was $46,895 (with a margin of error of +/− $3,014) and the median family income was $55,286 (+/− $4,900). Males had a median income of $45,333 (+/− $4,287) versus $32,763 (+/− $2,703) for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the borough was $20,619 (+/− $1,444). About 6.7% of families and 10.3% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 17.1% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 6,283 people, 1,751 households, and 1,322 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 1,915 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the township was 41.41%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 47.43%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 5.08% Native American, 0.56%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.03%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 2.39% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 3.10% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 8.87% of the population.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Fairfield township, Cumberland County, New Jersey
,

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

. Accessed October 22, 2012.DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Fairfield township, Cumberland County, New Jersey
,

. Accessed October 22, 2012. There were 1,751 households, out of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% were married couples living together, 18.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.5% were non-families. 20.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78 and the average family size was 3.19. In the township the population was spread out, with 19.8% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 36.4% from 25 to 44, 24.3% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 146.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 161.7 males. The median income for a household in the township was $37,891, and the median income for a family was $41,326. Males had a median income of $31,858 versus $23,931 for females. The

for the township was $17,547. About 6.9% of families and 11.2% of the population were below the

, including 14.9% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

Fairfield Township is governed under the

Township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, C ...

form of New Jersey municipal government, one of 141 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form, the second-most commonly used form of government in the state. The Township Committee is comprised of five members, who are elected directly by the voters at-large in partisan elections to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with either one or two seats coming up for election each year as part of the November general election in a three-year cycle.''2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book'',

Rutgers University Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was ...

Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy The Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy of Rutgers University (The Bloustein School) serves as a center for the theory and practice of urban planning, public policy and public health/health administration scholarship. The sc ...

, March 2013, p. 19. At an annual reorganization meeting, the Township Committee selects one of its members to serve as Mayor and another as Deputy Mayor, each serving a one-year term. , members of the Fairfield Township Committee are

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Tommy Clark Jr. ( D, term on committee ends December 31, 2023; term as mayor ends 2022), Deputy Mayor Benjamin Byrd Sr. (D, term on committee and as deputy mayor ends 2022), Stephen M. Bateman (D, 2024), David F. Gonzalez (D, 2022) and Michael Peterson (D, 2024).Township Committee
Fairfield Township. Accessed July 5, 2022''2021 Directory of Cumberland County, New Jersey''
Cumberland County, New Jersey. Accessed May 1, 2022.Election Summary Report General Election Cumberland County November 2, 2021
Cumberland County, New Jersey, updated November 19, 2021. Accessed January 1, 2022.General Election Results November 3, 2020, Official Results
Cumberland County, New Jersey, updated November 19, 2020. Accessed January 1, 2021.General Election Results November 5, 2019, Official Results
Cumberland County, New Jersey, updated November 14, 2019. Accessed January 1, 2020. JoAnne Servais was appointed to serve the unexpired term ending December 2014 of Dennis Pierce, who had resigned from office in June 2012 citing health issues.

Federal, state, and county representation

Fairfield Township is located in the 2nd Congressional DistrictPlan Components Report

New Jersey Redistricting Commission The New Jersey Redistricting Commission is a constitutional body of the government of New Jersey tasked with redrawing the state's Congressional election districts after each decade's census. Like Arizona, Idaho, Hawaii, Montana, and Washington; t ...

, December 23, 2011. Accessed February 1, 2020. and is part of New Jersey's 1st state legislative district.Municipalities Sorted by 2011-2020 Legislative District
New Jersey Department of State. Accessed February 1, 2020.''2019 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government''
New Jersey League of Women Voters. Accessed October 30, 2019. Prior to the 2011 reapportionment following the 2010 Census, Fairfield Township had been in the 3rd state legislative district.''2011 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government''
, p. 57, New Jersey League of Women Voters. Accessed May 22, 2015.

Politics

As of March 2011, there were a total of 3,639 registered voters in Fairfield Township, of which 1,603 (44.1%) were registered as Democrats, 409 (11.2%) were registered as Republicans and 1,627 (44.7%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were no voters registered to other parties. In the

2012 presidential election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January ...

, Democrat

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

received 76.9% of the vote (1,830 cast), ahead of Republican Mitt Romney with 22.4% (534 votes), and other candidates with 0.6% (15 votes), among the 2,405 ballots cast by the township's 3,739 registered voters (26 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 64.3%. In the 2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 75.9% of the vote (1,860 cast), ahead of Republican John McCain, who received 22.3% (547 votes), with 2,451 ballots cast among the township's 3,707 registered voters, for a turnout of 66.1%. In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party, he ...

received 68.7% of the vote (1,476 ballots cast), outpolling Republican

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

, who received around 29.6% (636 votes), with 2,149 ballots cast among the township's 3,400 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 63.2. In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Democrat

Barbara Buono Barbara A. Buono (born July 28, 1953) is an American politician who served in the New Jersey Senate from 2002 to 2014, where she represented the 18th Legislative District. She served from 2010 to 2012 as the Majority Leader in the Senate, succ ...

received 61.0% of the vote (774 cast), ahead of Republican

Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician, lawyer, political commentator, lobbyist, and former federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. Christie, who was born in N ...

with 37.2% (472 votes), and other candidates with 1.7% (22 votes), among the 1,315 ballots cast by the township's 3,584 registered voters (47 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 36.7%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Democrat

Jon Corzine Jon Stevens Corzine ( ; born January 1, 1947) is an American financial executive and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from New Jersey from 2001 to 2006 and the 54th governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. Corzine ran fo ...

received 65.% of the vote (925 ballots cast), ahead of both Republican

with 27.2% (387 votes) and Independent

Chris Daggett Christopher Jarvis Daggett (born March 7, 1950) is an American businessman who is the president and CEO of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, one of the largest foundations in New Jersey. A former regional administrator of the United States En ...

with 3.9% (56 votes), with 1,424 ballots cast among the township's 3,586 registered voters, yielding a 39.7% turnout.

Education

The Fairfield Township School District serves public school students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. The district opened the new Fairfield Township School in September 2006, consolidating all grades into a single building located at 375 Gouldtown-Woodruff Road in the Gouldtown section of the township. As of the 2019–20 school year, the district, comprised of one school, had an enrollment of 554 students and 54.0 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.3:1.District information for Fairfield Township School District
National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed April 1, 2021. Public school students in ninth through

twelfth grade Twelfth grade, 12th grade, senior year, or grade 12 is the final year of secondary school in most of North America. In other regions, it may also be referred to as class 12 or Year 13. In most countries, students are usually between the ages of 17 ...

s attend

Cumberland Regional High School Cumberland Regional High School is a comprehensive regional public high school and school district, serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from seven communities in Cumberland County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The district ser ...

, which also serves students from Deerfield Township, Greenwich Township, Hopewell Township, Shiloh Borough, Stow Creek Township and Upper Deerfield Township.Shott, Meghan
"Cumberland Regional High School"
''South Jersey'' magazine. Accessed June 5, 2016. "Cumberland Regional High School, located in the northwest part of Cumberland County, serves students from Deerfield Township, Fairfield Township, Greenwich Township, Hopewell Township, Shiloh Borough, Stow Creek Township and Upper Deerfield Township." As of the 2019–20 school year, the high school had an enrollment of 998 students and 78.3 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.7:1. The high school district has a nine-member board of education, with board seats allocated to the constituent municipalities based on population, with each municipality assigned a minimum of one seat; Deerfield Township has one seat on the board. Students are also eligible to attend

Cumberland County Technology Education Center Cumberland County Technology Education Center (CCTEC) is a four-year vocational public high school located in Millville, New Jersey, United States (with a Vineland postal address) that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from acros ...

in Vineland, serving students from the entire county in its full-time technical training programs, which are offered without charge to students who are county residents.

Transportation

Roads and highways

, the township had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality, by Cumberland County and by the

New Jersey Department of Transportation The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) is the agency responsible for transportation issues and policy in New Jersey, including maintaining and operating the state's highway and public road system, planning and developing transporta ...

. Route 49 is the main highway serving Fairfield Township. County Route 553 also traverses the township.

Public transportation

NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit, and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey, along with portions of New York State and Pennsylvania. It operates bu ...

offers service on the

553 __NOTOC__ Year 553 ( DLIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. The denomination 553 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar er ...

route between Upper Deerfield Township and Atlantic City.

Notable people

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Fairfield Township include: * Nathaniel Clark Burt (1825–1874),

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

clergyman *

Harold Gould Harold Vernon Goldstein (December 10, 1923 – September 11, 2010), better known as Harold Gould, was an American character actor. He appeared as Martin Morgenstern on the sitcom ''Rhoda'' (1974–78) and Miles Webber on the sitcom ''The Golden ...

(1924–2012),

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

pitcher with the Philadelphia Stars in the

Negro leagues The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be ...

from 1947 to 1948 * John T. Nixon (1820–1889), represented New Jersey's 1st congressional district in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from 1859 to 1863 *

Theophilus Gould Steward Theophilus Gould Steward (April 17, 1843 – January 11, 1924) was an American author, educator, and clergyman. He was a U.S. Army chaplain and Buffalo Soldier of 25th U.S. Colored Infantry. Life and career Early years Steward was born to Jam ...

(1843–1924), author, educator, and clergyman, who was a U.S. Army chaplain and

Buffalo Soldier Buffalo Soldiers originally were members of the 10th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army, formed on September 21, 1866, at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. This nickname was given to the Black Cavalry by Native American tribes who fought in th ...

of 25th U.S. Colored InfantrySeraile, William. ,

Nebraska State Historical Society History Nebraska, formerly the Nebraska State Historical Society is a Nebraska state agency, founded in 1878 to "encourage historical research and inquiry, spread historical information ... and to embrace alike aboriginal and modern history." I ...

. Accessed December 29, 2016. "Born on April 17, 1843, to James and Rebecca Steward, Theophilus grew up in Gouldtown, a southern New Jersey community that dated to pre-Revolutionary War days."

References

External links

Fairfield Township web siteCumberland County web page for Fairfield Township
{{Authority control 1697 establishments in New Jersey Populated places established in 1697 Township form of New Jersey government Townships in Cumberland County, New Jersey