- Roosevelt, New Jersey
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- For the former Roosevelt in Middlesex County, see Carteret, New Jersey.
Roosevelt, New Jersey — Borough — Map of Roosevelt in Monmouth County. Inset: Location of Monmouth County highlighted in the State of New Jersey.
Census Bureau map of Roosevelt, New Jersey
Coordinates: 40°13′6″N 74°28′15″W / 40.21833°N 74.47083°WCoordinates: 40°13′6″N 74°28′15″W / 40.21833°N 74.47083°W Country United States State New Jersey County Monmouth Incorporated May 29, 1937 as Jersey Homesteads Renamed November 9, 1945 as Roosevelt Government[1] - Type Borough (New Jersey) - Mayor Beth Battel Area - Total 2.0 sq mi (5.1 km2) - Land 2.0 sq mi (5.1 km2) - Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2) Elevation 154 ft (47 m) Population (2010)[2] - Total 882 - Density 447.9/sq mi (172.9/km2) Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4) ZIP code 08555 Area code(s) 609 FIPS code 34-64410[3][4] GNIS feature ID 0879779[5] Website http://www.web2sons.org/ Roosevelt is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 882.[2]
The borough was established as Jersey Homesteads by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on May 29, 1937, from portions of Millstone Township. The name was changed to Roosevelt as of November 9, 1945, based on the results of a referendum held three days earlier, in honor of Franklin D. Roosevelt, who had died on April 12, 1945.[6]
New Jersey Monthly magazine ranked Roosevelt as its 12th best place to live in its 2008 rankings of the "Best Places To Live" in New Jersey.[7]
Contents
History
Jersey Homesteads Historic DistrictNRHP Reference#: 83004053 NJRHP #: 2052[8] Significant dates Added to NRHP: December 5, 1983 Designated NJRHP: October 14, 1983 
Jersey Homesteads, late 1930s
Roosevelt was originally called Jersey Homesteads, and was created during the Great Depression as part of President Roosevelt's New Deal. The town was home to a cooperative farming and manufacturing project. The project fell under the discretion of the Resettlement Administration, but was conceived and largely planned out by Benjamin Brown[9] and Hyman Alef.
Farmland in Central Jersey was purchased by Brown. Construction started around 1936. Soon after there were 150 homes and various public facilities in place. The plan was to construct 50 more homes eventually. The economy of the town consisted of a garment factory and a farm.[9]
Albert Einstein gave the town his political and moral support. Artist Ben Shahn lived in the town and painted a fresco mural viewable in the current Roosevelt Public School. The three panels show the history of the Jersey Homesteads, starting with the eastern European origins of its Jewish residents, their passage through Ellis Island and making plans for the community in Roosevelt.[9][10]
Objectives of the community were to help residents escape poverty, to show that cooperative management can work, and as an experiment in government intervention.
David Dubinsky and the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union opposed the project, arguing that the factory town would cause unions to lose their power over wages. Political opposition came from those who thought too much money was being spent on the project, as well as those opposed to the New Deal in general.
The Jersey Homesteads cooperative didn't last through World War II. It failed for a number of reasons.
Roosevelt is a historic landmark and is the subject of the 198 documentary, Roosevelt, New Jersey: Visions of Utopia. The Jersey Homesteads Historic District was added to the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
Geography
Roosevelt is located at 40°13′06″N 74°28′15″W / 40.218296°N 74.470786°W (40.218296, -74.470786).[11]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 2.0 square miles (5.2 km2), all of it land.
Demographics
Historical populations Census Pop. %± 1940 698 — 1950 720 3.2% 1960 764 6.1% 1970 814 6.5% 1980 835 2.6% 1990 884 5.9% 2000 933 5.5% 2010 882 −5.5% Population 1930 - 1990.[12] As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 933 people, 337 households, and 258 families residing in the borough. The population density was 477.0 people per square mile (183.8/km2). There were 351 housing units at an average density of 179.4 per square mile (69.1/km2). The racial makeup of the borough was 88.96% White, 2.57% African American, 2.04% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 2.25% from other races, and 4.07% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.50% of the population.
There were 337 households out of which 39.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.1% were married couples living together, 7.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.4% were non-families. 18.7% 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 2.77 and the average family size was 3.17.
In the borough the population was spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 27.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 92.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.7 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $61,979, and the median income for a family was $67,019. Males had a median income of $50,417 versus $38,229 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $24,892. About 3.9% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 18.4% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Local government
Roosevelt is governed under the Borough form of New Jersey municipal government by a mayor and a six-member Borough Council. The mayor is directly elected by the voters to a four-year term of office. The six members of the Borough Council are elected in partisan elections to three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats coming up for election each year.[1]
The Mayor of Roosevelt is Beth Battel.[13]
Federal, state and county representation
Roosevelt is in the 4th Congressional district. New Jersey's Fourth Congressional District is represented by Christopher Smith (R). New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).
Roosevelt is in the 30th District of the New Jersey Legislature, which is represented in the New Jersey Senate by Robert Singer (R, Lakewood Township) and in the New Jersey General Assembly by Ronald S. Dancer (R, New Egypt) and Joseph R. Malone (R, Bordentown).[14]
Monmouth County is governed by a Board of Chosen Freeholders consisting of five members who are elected at-large to serve three year terms of office on a staggered basis, with one or two seats up for election each year. [15] As of 2011, Monmouth County's Freeholders are Freeholder Director Robert D. Clifton (R, Matawan; term ends December 31, 2013)[16], Freeholder Deputy Director John P. Curley (R, Red Bank; 2012)[17], Thomas A. Arnone (R, Neptune City; 2013), Lillian G. Burry (R, Colts Neck Township; 2011)[18] and Amy A. Mallet (D, Fair Haven, 2011).[19][20][21]
Education
Students in Kindergarten through 6th grade attend the Roosevelt Public School District. The school had an enrollment of 74 students as of the 2005-06 school year.[22]
For grades 7 - 12, public school students attend the East Windsor Regional School District, a comprehensive public school district serving students from East Windsor Township and Hightstown Borough, along with students in grades 7 - 12 from Roosevelt Borough as part of a sending/receiving relationship.[23] The schools in the East Windsor Regional School District attended by students from Roosevelt Borough are Melvin H. Kreps School which covers grades 6 - 8 and has a total of 1,139 students and Hightstown High School with 1,370 students in grades 9 - 12.
Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Roosevelt include:
- Benjamin Appel (1907–77), crime novelist.[24]
- Benjamin Brown (1885–1939), poultry trader who developed Roosevelt.[25]
- John Stanley Grauel (1917–86), Methodist minister and Zionist leader.[26]
- Lois Hunt (1925–2009), soprano opera singer who toured for decades with baritone Earl Wrightson.[27]
- Irwin Lachman (born 1930), one of the inventors of the catalytic converter.[28]
- Jacob Landau (1917–2001), printmaker, painter, and humanist.[29]
- David Stone Martin (1913–92), artist best known for his designs for jazz album covers.[25]
- Gregorio Prestopino (1907–84), Social realist painter of the New Deal era.[30]
- Louise Rosskam (1910–2003), documentary photographer.[31]
- Ben Shahn (1898–1969), Social realist painter.[32]
- Bernarda Bryson Shahn (1903–2004), painter and wife of Ben Shahn.[33]
- Jonathan Shahn (born 1938), noted sculptor and son of Ben and Bernarda Shahn.[34]
- Silent lotus, spiritual adviser.[35]
References
- ^ a b 2005 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book, Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, April 2005, p. 135.
- ^ a b "Race, Hispanic or Latino, Age, and Housing Occupancy: 2010 Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171) Summary File (QT-PL), Roosevelt borough, New Jersey". U.S. Census Bureau, American FactFinder 2. http://factfinder2.census.gov. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
- ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ A Cure for the Common Codes: New Jersey, Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed July 14, 2008.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 184 re Roosevelt, p. 180 re Jersey Homesteads.
- ^ "Best Places To Live - The Complete Top Towns List 1-100", New Jersey Monthly, February 21, 2008. Accessed February 24, 2008.
- ^ "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Monmouth County". NJ DEP - Historic Preservation Office. March 1, 2011. p. 12. http://www.state.nj.us/dep/hpo/1identify/lists/monmouth.pdf. Retrieved April 26, 2011.
- ^ a b c History Of Roosevelt, New Jersey, Rutgers University Library, accessed April 11, 2007.
- ^ http://www.newyorker.com/archive/1962/09/29/1962_09_29_031_TNY_CARDS_000270116
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
- ^ New Jersey Resident Population by Municipality: 1930 - 1990, Workforce New Jersey Public Information Network. Accessed March 1, 2007.
- ^ Boro Hall, Borough of Roosevelt. Accessed November 11, 2008. Web site does not list council members as of date accessed.
- ^ "Legislative Roster: 2010-2011 Session". New Jersey Legislature. http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/members/roster.asp. Retrieved 2010-02-08.
- ^ Monmouth County Government, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 5, 2011.
- ^ Freeholder Director Robert D. Clifton, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Deputy Director Freeholder John P. Curley, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Freeholder Lillian G. Burry, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Freeholder Amy A. Mallet, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Board of Chosen Freeholders, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Rizzo, Nina. "Monmouth County freeholders sworn into office", Asbury Park Press, January 6, 2011. Accessed January 7, 2011.
- ^ Data for the Roosevelt Public School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed April 15, 2008.
- ^ East Windsor Regional School District 2007 Report Card Narrative, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2008. "The East Windsor Regional School District, located in central New Jersey at New Jersey Turnpike Exit 8, is a growing K-12 public school district serving the communities of the East Windsor Township and the Borough of Hightstown as well as Roosevelt Borough students grades 7 through 12."
- ^ Jamieson, Wendell. "CITY LORE; Hard-Boiled Tales, Told by a Gentleman", The New York Times, January 1, 2006. Accessed August 11, 2009. "BENJAMIN APPEL was an author of more than 25 novels from 1934 to 1977, many of them set in New York. He was raised in Hell's Kitchen in Manhattan and lived much of his life in Roosevelt, N.J., but after he moved he still came back to New York often."
- ^ a b Staff. "History Of Roosevelt, New Jersey", Rutgers University Libraries. Accessed February 14, 2011.
- ^ Staff. "Rev. J. S. Grauel, 68, A Supporter of Israel", The New York Times, September 10, 1986. Accessed February 14, 2011. "The Rev. John Stanley Grauel, a Methodist minister who was an activist for the Jewish people and Israel, died Friday at his home in Roosevelt, N.J."
- ^ Cheslow, Jerry. "If You're Thinking of Living In/Roosevelt, N.J.; A New Deal Enclave Friendly to the Arts", The New York Times, February 3, 2002. Accessed July 28, 2009.
- ^ Staff. "Research Team from Corning Incorporated Earn Nation’s Highest Honor for Accomplishments", University of Utah press release, March 14, 2005. Accessed February 14, 2011. "Irwin M. Lachman was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1930, but raised in Roosevelt, New Jersey. He graduated in 1948 from Upper Freehold Township High School, now called Allentown High School."
- ^ [1]
- ^ Staff. Gregorio Prestopino (1907-1984), Richard Stockton College of New Jersey. Accessed February 14, 2011. "In 1949 the artist and his family moved to Roosevelt, New Jersey, a town known for its artist-residents."
- ^ Staff. "Roosevelt featured in new exhibit", Allentown Examiner, August 27, 2009. Accessed February 14, 2011. "On Oct. 7, photo-historian and Monmouth County Archivist Gary Saretzky will give a lecture on the late Edwin and Louise Rosskam, who lived in Roosevelt for many years."
- ^ Ben Shahn. Ben Shahn.
- ^ Fox, Margalit. "Bernarda Bryson Shahn, Painter, Dies at 101", The New York Times, December 16, 2004. Accessed February 14, 2011. "Bernarda Bryson Shahn, the widow of the painter Ben Shahn, who won her own recognition as an artist late in life, died on Sunday at her home in Roosevelt, N.J., her son, Jonathan Shahn, said. She was 101."
- ^ [2]
- ^ "Authors In Issue Three", Tiferet (magazine). Accessed November 11, 2008.
External links
- Borough of Roosevelt official website
- Roosevelt Public School
- Roosevelt Public School's 2009–10 School Report Card from the New Jersey Department of Education
- Data for the Roosevelt Public School, National Center for Education Statistics
- East Windsor Regional School District
- Electronic New Jersey, with historical material on Homesteads
- Notes on the History of Jersey Homesteads Historic District and the Jersey Homesteads Historic District Advisory Council, by Arthur Shapiro, Ed.D.
- Notes for an Intellectual History of Jersey Homesteads (Roosevelt, New Jersey) -- a Successful Experiment in Democracy and Creation of Community, by Pearl Seligman
- Monmouth County Historical Association Coll. 70 Sol Axelrod Collection
- Bibliographic References Cited In Nomination Form for National Register of Historic Places Inventory, Jersey Homesteads National and State Historic District
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Categories:- Boroughs in Monmouth County, New Jersey
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