Forked River, New Jersey

Forked River (pronounced fork'id river) is a census-designated place and unincorporated area located within Lacey Township, in Ocean County, New Jersey. As of the United States 2000 Census, the CDP population was 4,914.

Many Ocean County residents commonly refer to all of Lacey Township as Forked River with the first word pronounced with two syllables (FOR-ked or FORK-ed). Pronouncing the first word with one syllable is a sign of a new resident.

Geography

Forked River is located at (39.825842, -74.183422).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 26.7 km² (10.3 mi²). 7.5 km² (2.9 mi²) of it is land and 19.2 km² (7.4 mi²) of it (71.97%) is water.

Forked River is located on US Route 9 south of Toms River.

Nearby Forked River is a stream that empties into Barnegat Bay.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 4,914 people, 1,927 households, and 1,383 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 656.5/km² (1,700.3/mi²). There were 2,468 housing units at an average density of 329.7/km² (853.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 97.37% White, 0.73% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.83% from other races, and 0.51% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.38% of the population.

There were 1,927 households out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.8% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the CDP the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 97.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.2 males.

The median income for a household in the CDP was $55,433, and the median income for a family was $59,830. Males had a median income of $46,179 versus $30,987 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $25,696. About 6.3% of families and 7.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.9% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those age 65 or over.

In the News

On October 11, 1989, 3 aides of New York business mogul Donald Trump were killed in a helicopter crash near the Garden State Parkway in Forked River. Five people, including three high-level executives of Donald J. Trump's three casinos in Atlantic City, were killed yesterday when their helicopter crashed in pine woodlands on the Garden State Parkway near Forked River, N.J.

Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Forked River include:

• Christopher J. Connors (1956-), represents the 9th legislative district in the New Jersey General Assembly.
• Scott Palguta (1982-), Professional soccer player.

References

External links