Somerset County, NJ

Somerset County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. In 2010, the population was 323,444. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Somerville.

Somerset County is the ninth-wealthiest county in the United States by per capita income and the highest in New Jersey.  Somerset County has the tenth-highest personal per capita income of any U.S. county and the second-highest in New Jersey.  The county also ranks sixth in the United States in terms of median income.

Somerset County was created on May 14, 1688, from portions of Middlesex County.

At the 2000 census, there were 297,490 people, 108,984 households and 78,359 families residing in the county. The population density was 976 per square mile (377/km²). There were 112,023 housing units at an average density of 368 per square mile (142/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 79.34% White, 7.53% Black or African American, 0.13% Native American, 8.38% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 2.74% from other races, and 1.83% from two or more races. 8.68% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.6% were of Italian, 11.4% Irish, 9.3% German and 7.5% Polish ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 108,984 households of which 36.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.60% were married couples living together, 8.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.10% were non-families. 22.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.00% 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 3.19.

Age distribution was 25.50% under the age of 18, 5.90% from 18 to 24, 33.80% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 11.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 95.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males.

The median household income was $76,933 and the median family income was $90,605. (These figures had risen to $94,036 and $109,488 respectively in 2007 estimates. Males had a median income of $60,602 versus $41,824 for females. The per capita income for the county was $37,970. The poverty rate is 1.7%, the lowest of any county in the United States with 250,000 or more people. Of the total population, 3.80% of those under the age of 18 and 4.90% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Somerset County is one of America’s oldest counties, and is named after the English county of Somerset. The area was first settled in 1681, in the vicinity of Bound Brook, and the county was established by charter on May 22, 1688. Most of the early residents were Dutch. General George Washington and his troops marched through the county on several occasions and slept in many of the homes located throughout the area. Somerset County also played an important part during both World War I and World War II with weapons depots and the manufacturing of the army’s woolen blankets.

For much of its history, Somerset County was primarily an agricultural county. In the late 19th century, the Somerset Hills area of Somerset County became a popular country home for wealthy industrialists. The area is still the home of wealthy pharmaceutical industrialists.

In the 1960’s, townships that were once exclusively agricultural were quickly transformed into suburban communities. Examples include Bridgewater Township and the Watchung Hills communities of Watchung, Green Brook and Warren Township.  This growth was aided by the development of the county’s very strong pharmaceutical and technology presence. Indeed, Warren Township used to be considered “the greenest place in New Jersey.”  More recently, there has been an influx of New York City commuters who use New Jersey Transit’s Raritan Valley Line and Gladstone Branch or use Interstate 78.