PLAINSBORO TOWNSHIP, NEW JERSEY

'Plainsboro Township' is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2000 Census, the township population was 20,215.
Plainsboro was incorporated as a township on May 6, 1919.^[2] Prior to that date, all lands north of Plainsboro Road and Dey Road were part of South Brunswick Township and all lands south of Plainsboro Road and Dey Road were part of Cranbury Township. Inadequate school facilities were the catalyst for creating the township.^[3]
Plainsboro Center (2000 Census population of 2,209) and Princeton Meadows (13,436) are census-designated places and unincorporated areas located within Plainsboro Township.

Contents

History

Geography

Demographics

Government

Local government

Federal, state and county representation

Education

Transportation

Trivia

Notable residents

References

External links

History

The original residents of Plainsboro were the Unami Native Americans. In the 1600s, the Dutch settled the area for its agricultural properties.
The oldest developed section of Plainsboro is at the intersection of Dey and Plainsboro Roads. It is thought that the road was named after a Dutch built tavern that sat at the intersection, called "The Planes Tavern," in the early 1700s or earlier. The building still stands and was featured on HGTV's "If These Walls Could Talk" along with the historic Plainsboro Inn building (circa 1790) which was built adjacent to "Planes Tavern" at Plainsboro Road and Dey Road.
In 1897, The Walker Gordon Dairy Farm opened up, which, among many other things, contributed Elsie the Cow, the most famous cow ever, and The Walker Gordon Diner, which has since been closed.
Other family farms moved in the first three quarters of the 20th Century, notably the Parker, Simonson, Stults, and Groendyke farms. The Parker Farm was eventually integrated into the Groendyke farm, which both became part of Walker-Gordon's Dairy Farm, which is now a housing development. The Simonson and Stults Farms still stand and thrive in Plainsboro.
Plainsboro was officially founded on May 6, 1919 and was formed from sections of Cranbury and South Brunswick townships. Plainsboro Township was created in response to Cranbury and South Brunswick refusing to build a new fireproof and larger school in Plainsboro Village. Every year, the date is celebrated with a parade, festival, and a concert.
In 1971, Princeton University (which owned most of the town) and Lincoln Properties, Inc., together developed the area into what it is now, a large suburban town still holding on to its rural past. In response to the development, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South was opened in nearby Princeton Junction, then just called WWP High. To accommodate the additional growth, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North was opened in Plainsboro in September of 2000, beginning the young but heated North-South rivalry, between the Pirates and the Knights.
The latest addition to Plainsboro includes the long awaited Village Center, which is adjacent to the historic village area.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 31.7 km² (12.2 mi²). 30.7 km² (11.8 mi²) of it is land and 1.1 km² (0.4 mi²) of it (3.35%) is water. Plainsboro borders South Brunswick Twp, Cranbury Twp, and Princeton Twp, West Windsor Twp, East Windsor Twp in Mercer County.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 20,215 people, 8,742 households, and 5,122 families residing in the township. The population density was 659.2/km² (1,707.7/mi²). There were 9,133 housing units at an average density of 297.8/km² (771.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the township was 58.20% White, 7.58% African American, 0.10% Native American, 30.51% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.36% from other races, and 2.24% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.64% of the population.
As part of the 2000 Census, 16.97% of Plainsboro Township residents identified themselves as being Indian American. This was the second highest percentage (behind Edison) of Indian American people in any municipality in the United States with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry.^[4] In the 2000 census, 8.55% of Plainsboro Township's residents identified themselves as being of Chinese ancestry. This was the second highest percentage (behind Holmdel Township) of people with Chinese ancestry in any municipality in New Jersey with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry.^[5]
There were 8,742 households out of which 33.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% were married couples living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.4% were non-families. 33.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the township the population was spread out with 24.6% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 45.2% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 4.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 102.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.8 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $72,097, and the median income for a family was $88,783. Males had a median income of $62,327 versus $44,671 for females. The per capita income for the township was $38,982. About 1.4% of families and 3.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.7% of those under age 18 and 2.3% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

Plainsboro Township is governed by a Township Committee form of local government. The governing body is composed of five members elected at large for staggered three-year terms. Every January 1, the Township Committee re-organizes and selects a mayor and deputy mayor from among its membership. The Township Committee meets on the second and fourth Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Municipal Complex, 641 Plainsboro Road. Meetings are open to the public.³
The professional staff is headed by a Township Administrator appointed by the Township Committee. The Township organization provides municipal services in the following major areas, each area supervised by a department head: Administration, Township Clerk, Finance, Recreation/Cultural Affairs, Municipal Court, Public Safety, Public Works, Planning/Zoning, and Building Inspections.
Members of the Plainsboro Township Committee are Mayor Peter Cantu, Deputy Mayor http://www.plainsboronj.com/lewis.html Neil J. Lewis], Ginger Gold Schnitzer, Michael Weaver and Edward Yates.^[6]

Federal, state and county representation

Plainsboro Township is in the Twelfth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 14th Legislative District.^[7]

Education

Plainsboro and West Windsor are part of a combined school district, the West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District. There are four K-3 elementary schools: Dutch Neck Elementary School, Maurice Hawk Elementary School, Town Center Elementary School and J.V.B. Wicoff Elementary School; two upper elementary schools (4 - 5): Millstone River Elementary School and Village Elementary School; two middle schools (6 - 8): Community Middle School and Thomas Grover Middle School; and two high schools (9 - 12): West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North and West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South.
In 2005, Community Middle School received first place at the national "Science Olympiad" competition. The Community Middle School "Science Olympiad" team took first place for a second time in 2007. In 2004, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North was ranked #1 in the state of New Jersey by ''New Jersey Monthly'' magazine, and West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South was ranked #3. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South was the 9th ranked public high school, and North was 18th-ranked, in New Jersey out of 316 schools statewide, in ''New Jersey Monthly'' magazine's September 2006 cover story on the state's ''Top Public High Schools''^[8].
Three of the district's schools have been recognized by the Blue Ribbon Schools Program. West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South was recognized during the 1992-93 school year and Maurice Hawk Elementary School was recognized in 1993-94Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized 1982-1983 through 1999-2002 (PDF), United States Department of Education. Accessed May 11, 2006., while West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North was recognized in the 2006-07 school year.^[9]

Transportation

U.S. Route 1 is a major transportation route through the township.

Trivia

★ Plainsboro is the namesake of the ''Fox'' TV series House's fictional hospital, the Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital. In a case of fact following fiction, the area's real hospital, University Medical Center at Princeton, has announced plans to move to Plainsboro by 2010.^[10]

★ Plainsboro is referenced in Tim Curry's song "Paradise Garage" from his album ''Fearless''.^[11]

★ Plainsboro is mentioned in the description of the battle area in Orson Welles' 1938 radio broadcast The War of the Worlds when the radio announcer describes the aftermath of the Martian invasion at nearby Grover's Mill, NJ.^[12]

Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Plainsboro Township include:

★ Andrew Bynum, professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association, was born in Plainsboro.

★ Linda R. Greenstein (1950-), represents the 14th legislative district in the New Jersey General Assembly.^[13]

★ Actor Ethan Hawke attended West-Windsor Plainsboro High School (South).

★ Director Bryan Singer also attended West-Windsor Plainsboro High School (South), and was a a schoolmate of Ethan Hawke.

References

1. , Geographic Names Information System, accessed April 15, 2007.
2. "The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968", John P. Snyder, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 172.
3. Plainsboro Township Government, Plainsboro Township. Accessed June 8, 2006.
4. Asian Indian Communities, Epodunk. Accessed June 28, 2006.
5. Chinese Communities, Epodunk. Accessed August 23, 2006.
6. Plainsboro Mayor & Township Committee, Plainsboro Township. Accessed March 18, 2007.
7. 2006 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters, p. 62. Accessed August 30, 2006.
8. Top Public High Schools in New Jersey, ''New Jersey Monthly'', September 2006
9. Blue Ribbon Schools Program: Schools Recognized in 2006, United States Department of Education. Accessed April 16, 2007.
10. Hospital reassures Borough Council residents will have access to clinic, ''Princeton Packet'', October 6, 2006.
11. "Paradise Garage" lyrics, accessed November 2, 2006.
12. ''War of the Worlds'' radio script, Mercury Theatre, October 30, 1938, accessed April 28, 2007. "One hundred and twenty known survivors. The rest strewn over the battle area from Grovers Mill to Plainsboro, crushed and trampled to death under the metal feet of the monster, or burned to cinders by its heat ray."
13. Assembly Member Linda R. Greenstein, Project Vote Smart. Accessed August 10, 2007.

External links

★ Official Plainsboro web site

★ West Windsor-Plainsboro School District

★ Plainsboro Fire Company

★ Plainsboro Historical Society

★ Plainsboro Public Library

★ Plainsboro Rescue Squad

★ West Windsor/Plainsboro Today: local online news and chat site