West Orange, New Jersey

Main Street in West Orange

West Orange is a suburban[1] township in central Essex County, New Jersey, United States.

History

Former Governor of New Jersey Brendan Byrne was born here in 1924.[2] West Orange was initially a part of Newark township, and remained so until November 27, 1806. It was detached from Orange, New Jersey.

The township is named either after William III of England[3] or William IV, Prince of Orange [4]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 12.125 square miles (31.40 km2), including 12.003 square miles (31.09 km2) of land and 0.122 square miles (0.32 km2) of water (1.0%). It is located about 5 miles (8.0 km) west of downtown Newark and 13 miles (21 km) west of New York City.

Population

As of the 2020 United States Census, the township's population was 48,843, an increase from the 46,207 counted in the 2010 Census.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Jacobs, Andrew. "Back From the Abyss", The New York Times, March 1, 2001. Accessed March 28, 2016. "It was 1997 and despite the region's revved-up economy, West Orange looked as if it were sliding into the abyss.Perched at the edge of New Jersey's most distressed urban places, this classic postwar suburb of 45,000 people faced a welter of seemingly intractable problems."
  2. ↑ Haddon, Heather. "Brendan Byrne, 90 Years Old and Still in the Mix; New Jersey's Oldest-Living Governor Makes the Rounds with a New Biography", The Wall Street Journal, December 19, 2014. Accessed March 28, 2016. "Mr. Bryne hails from the Irish-American Democratic establishment that was once a driving force of New Jersey politics. His father, Francis, spent 50 years in local politics in West Orange, a suburb 20 miles from New York City."
  3. ↑ Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed September 16, 2015.
  4. ↑ Gannett, Henry. The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States, p. 23. United States Government Printing Office, 1905. Accessed September 16, 2015.
  5. ↑ "QuickFacts: West Orange township, Essex County, New Jersey". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 13, 2024.