Everything about Passaic County New Jersey totally explained
Passaic County is a
county located in the
U.S. state of
New Jersey. As of the
2000 Census, the population was 489,049. Its
county seat is
Paterson. It is part of the
New York Metropolitan Area.
Passaic County was created on
February 7,
1837, from portions of both
Bergen County and
Essex County.
Geography
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 197
square miles (510
km²), of which, 185 square miles (480 km²) of it's land and 12 square miles (30 km²) of it (5.97%) is water.
The highest point is any one of six areas on Bearfort Ridge in
West Milford Township at approximately 1,480 ft (451 m) above sea level. The lowest elevation is approximately 30 ft (9 m) along the
Passaic River in
Clifton.
The southeastern, more populous half of the county is either flat near the river or mildly hilly. The northwestern section is rugged and mountainous.
Adjacent counties
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 489,049 people, 163,856 households, and 119,614 families residing in the county. The
population density was 2,639 people per square mile (1,019/km²). There were 170,048 housing units at an average density of 918 per square mile (354/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 62.32%
White, 13.22%
Black or
African American, 0.44%
Native American, 3.69%
Asian, 0.04%
Pacific Islander, 16.24% from
other races, and 4.05% from two or more races. 29.95% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race. 16.3% were of
Italian, 6.8%
Irish, 5.3%
German and 5.2%
Polish ancestry according to
Census 2000.
In 2005 Non-Hispanic whites were estimated to constitute 48.9% of Passaic County's population. This included large numbers of Egyptians. 15.3% of the population was African-American. 4.4% of the population was Asian. 33.9% of the population was Latino. The large amount of Hispanics present in Passaic County can be attributed to the fact that the majority of residents in Paterson and Passaic are Hispanic, and a substantial minority are in Clifton. Throughout the other parts of Passaic county, however, there's a relatively low number of Hispanics present. This last number represented an increase of over 15,000 in the Latino population of the county.
As of the 2000 census There were 163,856 households out of which 35.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.50% were
married couples living together, 16.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.00% were non-families. 22.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.92 and the average family size was 3.42.
In the county the population was spread out with 26.10% under the age of 18, 9.30% from 18 to 24, 31.30% from 25 to 44, 21.30% from 45 to 64, and 12.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 94.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.80 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $49,210, and the median income for a family was $56,054. Males had a median income of $38,740 versus $29,954 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $21,370. About 9.40% of families and 12.30% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 17.30% of those under age 18 and 9.20% of those age 65 or over.
Law and government
In Passaic County's commission form of government, the
Board of Chosen Freeholders discharge both executive and legislative responsibilities. Seven Freeholders are elected at-large for three-year terms on a staggered basis. A Freeholder Director and Freeholder Deputy Director are elected from among the seven Freeholders at an annual reorganization meeting in January. The Freeholders select a County Administrator who, in the role of chief administrative officer, supervises the day-to-day operation of county government and its departments.
Passaic County operates through six standing committees of the Board of Chosen Freeholders. They are Administration & Finance; Health, Education and Community Affairs; Public Works and Buildings & Grounds; Law & Public Safety; Human Services and Planning and Economic Development. The Freeholders also appoint individuals to departments, agencies, boards and commissions for the effective administration of county government.
As of 2008, Passaic County's Freeholders are:
Freeholder Director Sonia Rosado (2009, Ringwood)
Freeholder Deputy Director Tahesha L. Way
(2009, Wayne)
Terry Duffy (2010, West Milford)
Elease Evans (2008, Paterson)
James Gallagher (2009, Paterson)
Bruce James (2008, Clifton)
Pat Lepore (2010, West Paterson)
Currently, all seven of Passaic County's Freeholders are Democrats. The party has been the majority party on the Board of Chosen Freeholders since 1998, when current freeholder Jim Gallagher and former freeholder Lois Cuccinello won two of the three seats up for election that year. Two years prior, the Republicans held an 7-0 majority, but those wins combined with the wins of Georgia Scott and Peter Eagler in the 1996 elections gave the Democrats a narrow majority of 4-3. That majority became 5-2 in 2000, when Sonia Rosado took the seat of incumbent Scott Rumana, and became an absolute majority in 2004 when Terry Duffy and Pat Lepore were elected.
Four federal Congressional Districts cover the county, with most of the northern portion of the county in New Jersey's 5th congressional district, represented by Scott Garrett (R) and most of the southern portion of the county in New Jersey's 8th congressional district, represented by Bill Pascrell (D). The borough of Hawthorne is in New Jersey's 9th congressional district, represented by Steve Rothman (D), and a portion of the borough of Bloomingdale is in New Jersey's 11th congressional district, represented by Rodney Frelinghuysen (R).
Municipalities
Bloomingdale (borough)
- Macopin, New Jersey (community)
Clifton (city)
Haledon (borough)
Hawthorne (borough)
Little Falls (township)
North Haledon (borough)
Passaic (city)
Paterson (city)
Pompton Lakes (borough)
Prospect Park (borough)
Ringwood (borough)
Totowa (borough)
Wanaque (borough)
Wayne (township)
West Milford (township)
West Paterson (borough)
Transportation
New Jersey Transit's Main Line serves the eastern part of Passaic County. Numerous New Jersey Transit bus routes serve Passaic County as well.
The major highways that travel through Passaic County are Interstate 287, Interstate 80, US Route 202, US Route 46, Route 23, Route 21, Route 20, Route 19, Route 4, Route 3, and the Garden State Parkway.
Education
Passaic County Community College, founded in 1971, serves students from Passaic County at campuses in Paterson, Wanaque and Wayne.
William Paterson University is a public university located in Wayne. As of Fall 2005, there are 9,110 undergraduate students and 1,860 graduate students enrolled in the university.
Montclair State University is a public university located in Montclair, Little Falls and Clifton. As of Fall 2004, there are about 9,600 full-time and 2,200 part-time undergraduate and 3,800 graduate students.
Points of interest
Garret Mountain Reservation in West Paterson
Great Falls State Park in Paterson
High Mountain Park Preserve in Wayne
Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works in Paterson
Skylands, the New Jersey State Botanical Garden
Yogi Berra Stadium in Little Falls
Ringwood Manor State Park in RingwoodFurther Information
Get more info on 'Passaic County New Jersey'.
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