Location of Mantua Township in
Gloucester County highlighted in red (right). Inset map: Location of Gloucester County in
New Jersey highlighted in red (left).
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 16.09 square miles (41.67 km2), including 16.01 square miles (41.45 km2) of land and 0.09 square miles (0.22 km2) of water (0.53%).[1][2]
Richwood is an
unincorporated community and
census-designated place (CDP) located within portions of both
Harrison Township and Mantua Township. The CDP had a 2010 population of 3,459, of which 3,400 were in Harrison Township and 59 in Mantua Township.[26][27] Other unincorporated communities, localities, and places located partially or completely within the township include Barnsboro, Boodys Mills,
Carpenter's Landing,[28] Centre City, Eastlack Corner, Jessups, Manunkachunk,
Sewell, and West Landing.[29]
Of the 5,719 households, 33.4% had children under the age of 18; 57.3% were married couples living together; 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present and 27.1% were non-families. Of all households, 22.2% were made up of individuals and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.13.[19]
24.1% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 29.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.3 years. For every 100 females, the population had 92.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 88.8 males.[19]
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010
American Community Survey showed that (in 2010
inflation-adjusted dollars)
median household income was $80,743 (with a margin of error of +/− $4,473) and the median family income was $88,586 (+/− $5,058). Males had a median income of $66,993 (+/− $4,279) versus $49,500 (+/− $7,015) for females. The
per capita income for the borough was $35,073 (+/− $2,942). About 2.7% of families and 4.5% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 8.1% of those under age 18 and 3.6% of those age 65 or over.[42]
2000 census
As of the
2000 census,[15] there were 14,217 people, 5,265 households, and 3,948 families residing in the township. The population density was 894.3 inhabitants per square mile (345.3/km2). There were 5,411 housing units at an average density of 340.4 per square mile (131.4/km2). The racial makeup of the township was 95.81%
White, 2.07%
African American, 0.20%
Native American, 0.86%
Asian, 0.28% from
other races, and 0.78% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 1.26% of the population.[40][41]
There were 5,265 households, out of which 36.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.1% were
married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.0% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.14.[40]
In the township, the population was spread out, with 26.7% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 33.6% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 11.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.5 males.[40]
The median income for a household in the township was $58,256, and the median income for a family was $63,391. Males had a median income of $46,984 versus $32,495 for females. The
per capita income for the township was $24,147. About 2.8% of families and 3.6% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 4.3% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.[40]
Arts and culture
Musical groups from the township include pop punk band
Major League.[43]
Parks and recreation
Tall Pines State Preserve is a 111-acre (45 ha) nature preserve that opened in November 2015 as Gloucester County's first state park and is located along the border of
Deptford Township and Mantua Township. Originally a forest that was turned into an asparagus field and then a golf course, the land was preserved through efforts of South Jersey Land and Water Trust, the Friends of Tall Pines, Gloucester County Nature Club, and the New Jersey Green Acres Program.[44]
Government
Local government
Mantua Township is governed under the
Township form of New Jersey municipal government, one of 141 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form, the second-most commonly used form of government in the state.[45] The Township Committee is comprised of five members, who are elected directly by the voters
at-large in partisan elections to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with either one or two seats coming up for election each year as part of the November general election in a three-year cycle.[7][46] At an annual reorganization meeting, the Township Committee selects one of its members to serve as Mayor and another as Deputy Mayor.[3]
As of 2022[update], members of the Mantua Township Committee are
Mayor Pete Scirrotto (
D, term on committee and as mayor ends December 31, 2022), Deputy Mayor Robert T. Zimmerman (D, term on committee ends 2024; term as deputy mayor ends 2022), Shawn K. Layton (D, 2024), John Legge (D, 2023), and Eileen Lukens (D, 2022).[3][47][48][49][50][51]
Gloucester County is governed by a
board of county commissioners, whose seven members are elected
at-large to three-year terms of office on a staggered basis in partisan elections, with either two or three seats coming up for election each year. At a reorganization meeting held each January, the Board selects a Director and a Deputy Director from among its members. As of 2024[update], Gloucester County's Commissioners are:
Gloucester County's constitutional officers are:
Clerk James N. Hogan (D, Franklin Township; 2027),[68][69]
Sheriff Jonathan M. Sammons (R,
Elk Township; 2024)[70][71] and
Surrogate Giuseppe "Joe" Chila (D,
Woolwich Township; 2028).[72][73][74]
Politics
As of March 2011, there were a total of 10,232 registered voters in Mantua Township, of which 3,493 (34.1%) were registered as
Democrats, 2,020 (19.7%) were registered as
Republicans and 4,712 (46.1%) were registered as
Unaffiliated. There were 7 voters registered as
Libertarians or
Greens.[75]
In the
2012 presidential election, Democrat
Barack Obama received 50.3% of the vote (3,855 cast), ahead of Republican
Mitt Romney with 48.2% (3,692 votes), and other candidates with 1.5% (117 votes), among the 7,731 ballots cast by the township's 10,720 registered voters (67 ballots were
spoiled), for a turnout of 72.1%.[76][77] In the
2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 50.0% of the vote (3,902 cast), ahead of Republican
John McCain with 47.3% (3,687 votes) and other candidates with 1.6% (126 votes), among the 7,800 ballots cast by the township's 10,429 registered voters, for a turnout of 74.8%.[78] In the
2004 presidential election, Republican
George W. Bush received 50.0% of the vote (3,704 ballots cast), outpolling Democrat
John Kerry with 48.7% (3,604 votes) and other candidates with 0.7% (70 votes), among the 7,408 ballots cast by the township's 9,657 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 76.7.[79]
In the
2013 gubernatorial election, Republican
Chris Christie received 66.0% of the vote (2,985 cast), ahead of Democrat
Barbara Buono with 31.9% (1,445 votes), and other candidates with 2.1% (94 votes), among the 4,620 ballots cast by the township's 10,604 registered voters (96 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 43.6%.[80][81] In the
2009 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 48.1% of the vote (2,422 ballots cast), ahead of Democrat
Jon Corzine with 40.8% (2,055 votes), Independent
Chris Daggett with 8.6% (435 votes) and other candidates with 0.8% (40 votes), among the 5,031 ballots cast by the township's 10,357 registered voters, yielding a 48.6% turnout.[82]
Students from across the county are eligible to apply to attend
Gloucester County Institute of Technology, a four-year high school in
Deptford Township that provides technical and vocational education. As a public school, students do not pay tuition to attend the school.[102]
As of May 2010[update], the township had a total of 91.85 miles (147.82 km) of roadways, of which 53.92 miles (86.78 km) were maintained by the municipality, 31.21 miles (50.23 km) by Gloucester County and 6.72 miles (10.81 km) by the
New Jersey Department of Transportation.[105]
Lucinda Florio (1947–2022), teacher and advocate for education and literacy, who, as the wife of former New Jersey Governor
James Florio, served as the First Lady of New Jersey[115]
^
abcTownship Committee, Mantua Township. Accessed July 18, 2022. "Mantua Township operates under the 'Township Committee' form of municipal government and is comprised of five members elected at-large through partisan elections. Members of township committee serve staggered three-year terms and reorganize annually during which the mayor is elected amongst members of township committee."
^Raum, John O.
The History of New Jersey: From Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, Volume 1, p. 257, J. E. Potter and company, 1877. Accessed September 23, 2013. "Mantua township in 1860 contained a population of 1,742, and in 1870, 1,897. Barnsboro and Carpenter's Landing, the latter named from Thomas Carpenter, an old settler, and Harrisonville, formerly called Colestown, are in this township."
^"Tall Pines State Preserve; Gloucester County's First State Park"Archived April 14, 2016, at the
Wayback Machine, Natural Awakenings: South Jersey Edition. Accessed May 19, 2016. "This 111-acre parcel of land that straddles Mantua and Deptford townships was originally forested woodlands, then an asparagus field before it became a golf course named Tall Pines in the early 1950s."
^Full Biography, Congressman Donald Norcross. Accessed January 3, 2019. "Donald and his wife Andrea live in Camden City and are the proud parents of three grown children and grandparents of two."
^Biography of Bob Menendez,
United States Senate, January 26, 2015. "Menendez, who started his political career in Union City, moved in September from Paramus to one of Harrison's new apartment buildings near the town's PATH station.."
^Mantua Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Mantua Township School District. Accessed March 6, 2024. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades preschool through grade 6 in the Mantua Township School District. Composition: The Mantua Township School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Mantua Township."
^District Information, Mantua Township School District. Accessed March 6, 2024. "Students in our township attend one of three schools based on grade. Our Sewell School educates students in grades pre-k and kindergarten, our Centre City School educates students in grades 1 - 3, and our J. Mason Tomlin School educates all of the township's students in grades 4 - 6. As a sending district to the Clearview Regional High School District, all Mantua Township students attend Clearview Regional Middle School for grades 7 and 8, and Clearview Regional High School for grades 9 through 12."
^Clearview Regional Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Clearview Regional High School District. Accessed March 6, 2024. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades seven through twelve in the Clearview Regional High School District. Composition: The Clearview Regional High School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Harrison Township and Mantua Township."
^About Us, Clearview Regional High School District. Accessed March 6, 2024. "The Clearview Regional High School District serves the townships of Harrison and Mantua. The district is comprised of a Middle School (7-8) and High School (9-12), educating approximately 2,450 students."
^Admissions,
Gloucester County Institute of Technology. Accessed November 7, 2019. "There is no charge to attend. GCIT is a public school.... GCIT is the vocational-technical school for Gloucester County residents. You must live in Gloucester County to apply and attend."
^Schools, South Jersey Catholic Schools. Accessed February 21, 2023.
^Contact Information, Guardian Angels Regional School. Accessed February 22, 2023.
^Kephart, Bill; and Kephart, Mary.
"The Kepharts: Thomas Carpenter in the Revolutionary War", NJ Advance Media for
NJ.com, September 11, 2011, updated January 18, 2019. Accessed December 21, 2021. "Carpenter purchased 50 acres on Mantua Creek. Here he also lived, maintained a store and shipped glass up Mantua Creek to Philadelphia. The area became known as Carpenter's Bridge, later as Carpenter's Landing and now Mantua. Thomas Carpenter died on July 7, 1847 at almost 95 years old.... The Carpenter home is still standing in Mantua."
^Berjery, Sheri.
"Ghost Nation team determines source of paranormal activity at South Jersey home", Courier-Post, October 26, 2019. Accessed December 21, 2021. "Hawes and fellow investigators Steve Gonsalves and Dave Tango — all of whom starred on the SyFy channel's Ghost Hunters — responded to help the Cerrito family in Mantua. The episode was called 'The Novelist's Nightmare,' a nod to Mario Cerrito III's profession as a horror writer and filmmaker."
^Lawrence, Ryan.
"Movie Magic: Mantua filmmaker gets horror movie vet to direct his script", Mantua News, September 25, 2020. Accessed January 26, 2022. "Born and bred in South Jersey, Cerrito grew up in Audubon and went to high school in Woodstown before settling in Mantua five years ago with his wife, Charmaine, and their now 4-year-old son, Mario Cerrito IV, and his 11-year-old stepdaughter, Summer Schaefer."
^Orr, Conor.
"Giants FB Ryan D'Imperio, a former Rutgers standout, retires", The Star-Ledger, August 13, 2013. Accessed September 8, 2013. "Giants fullback Ryan D'Imperio, the only true healthy fullback on the roster, told the team he was retiring this morning and was placed on their reserve/retired list.... But according to a person familiar with D'Imperio's situation, the Sewell native wanted to explore some career opportunities outside of the NFL."
^Turner, Elizabeth.
"Meet Lucinda Florio", Asbury Park Press, April 22, 1990. Accessed July 24, 2023, via
Newspapers.com. "Florio's concentration was fully focused on motherhood and homemaking. But when their son neared school age, the couple settled down and bought a house in Barnesboro, Mantua Township, and Mrs. Florio redirected her energy."