Woodbury was originally formed as a borough on March 27, 1854, within Deptford Township based on the results of a March 22, 1854, referendum. On January 2, 1871, Woodbury was reincorporated as a city based on the results of a referendum held that day.[25]
Inspira Health Network is based in Woodbury.[26] The now-defunct Woodbury Country Club operated in Woodbury from 1897 to 2010, closing due to declining membership and mounting debt that led to its 2013 bankruptcy filing.[27]
The city had the 14th-highest property tax rate in New Jersey with an equalized rate of 4.582% as of 2020 compared to 3.212% in the county as a whole and a statewide average of 2.279%.[28]
History
As recounted by historian William McMahon, the Native Americans called the place where the city of Woodbury is now located "Piscozackasing", or "place of the black burrs".[29]
Woodbury was founded in 1683 by Henry Wood, a Quaker from North West England who left Great Britain due to religious persecution. Wood was incarcerated in Lancaster for practicing as a Quaker and left his home in Tottington near Bury, Lancashire in a boat to set up a community in the new world where he and his family could practice his religion freely. His surname and hometown inspired naming the city that he founded Woodbury.[30][31][32]
In 2000, Bury, England, and Woodbury were twinned as part of millennium celebrations in both countries. The twinning ceremony was the culmination of a week where more than 300 school children and college students, local dignitaries, and local residents from Bury took part in sporting and cultural events held in and around Woodbury. During the week, there was a symbolic meeting and reconciliation of the Vicar of Henry Wood's former church in Tottington and the Quaker meeting house in Woodbury and an ecumenical service attended by many of the residents and visitors.[33]
Paleontological discovery
In 1787, a fossil bone recovered in Woodbury from local Cretaceous strata was discussed by the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia.[34] The remains were only retrospectively identified as dinosaurian,[34] as dinosaurs would not be scientifically recognized as a distinct group of reptiles until August 1841.[35]
Recycling
Woodbury was the first city in the United States to mandate recycling. This effort was led by then-councilman and later mayor Donald P. Sanderson in the 1970s, and an ordinance was finally passed in December 1980. The idea of towing a recycling trailer behind a trash collection vehicle to enable the collection of trash and recyclable material at the same time emerged. Sanderson was asked to speak in municipalities throughout the country and other towns and cities soon followed suit.[36]
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city had a total area of 2.10 square miles (5.45 km2), including 2.02 square miles (5.23 km2) of land and 0.08 square miles (0.22 km2) of water (3.95%).[1][2]
The 2010 United States census counted 10,174 people, 4,088 households, and 2,420 families in the city. The population density was 5,064.0 inhabitants per square mile (1,955.2/km2). There were 4,456 housing units at an average density of 2,217.9 per square mile (856.3/km2). The racial makeup was 66.01% (6,716) White, 24.91% (2,534) Black or African American, 0.23% (23) Native American, 1.28% (130) Asian, 0.28% (28) Pacific Islander, 3.19% (325) from other races, and 4.11% (418) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.66% (1,085) of the population.[22]
Of the 4,088 households, 27.9% had children under the age of 18; 36.6% were married couples living together; 17.4% had a female householder with no husband present and 40.8% were non-families. Of all households, 35.3% were made up of individuals and 16.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.10.[22]
23.5% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 25.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.0 years. For every 100 females, the population had 93.1 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 90.3 males.[22]
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $58,629 (with a margin of error of +/− $4,598) and the median family income was $74,276 (+/− $7,880). Males had a median income of $57,019 (+/− $3,425) versus $37,363 (+/− $6,910) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $28,845 (+/− $2,571). About 7.8% of families and 11.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.7% of those under age 18 and 15.0% of those age 65 or over.[51]
2000 census
As of the 2000 United States census,[17] there were 10,307 people, 4,051 households, and 2,588 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,961.4 inhabitants per square mile (1,915.6/km2). There were 4,310 housing units at an average density of 2,074.7 per square mile (801.0/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 72.45% White, 22.83% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.99% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 1.28% from other races, and 2.10% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.94% of the population.[49][50]
There were 4,051 households, out of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.4% were married couples living together, 18.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.1% were non-families. 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.08.[49][50]
In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.8% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 16.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.7 males.[49][50]
The median income for a household in the city was $41,827 and the median income for a family was $53,630. Males had a median income of $40,429 versus $30,570 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,592. About 11.2% of families and 13.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.7% of those under age 18 and 15.4% of those age 65 or over.[49][50]
Government
Local government
Woodbury is governed under the City form of New Jersey municipal government, which is used in 15 municipalities (of the 564) statewide.[52] The governing body is comprised of the mayor and the city council. A mayor is elected at-large directly by the voters for a two-year term of office. The city council is comprised of nine members, three from each of three wards, elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with one seat from each ward coming up for election each year as part of the November general election in a three-year cycle.[7][53][54]
As of 2022[update], the mayor of Woodbury is Democrat Peg Sickel, whose term ends December 31, 2022. Members of the Woodbury City Council are Council President Philip Haggerty (D, 2024; Ward 3), Danielle Carter (D, 2022; Ward 1), William H. Fleming Jr. (D, 2024; Ward 2), Frances Harwell (D, 2023; Ward 2), Reed Merinuk (D, 2022; Ward 3), Donna Miller (D, 2023; Ward 1), Kyle Miller (D, 2023; Ward 3), Karlene O'Connor (D, 2022; Ward 2) and Thomas Pisarcik (D, 2024; Ward 1).[3][55][56][57][58][59]
In April 2017, the city council selected Karlene O'Connor from a list of three candidates nominated by the Democratic municipal committee to fill the Second Ward seat expiring in December 2019 that had been held by David Trovato until he resigned from office earlier in the month.[60]
At the January 2017 reorganization meeting, the city council chose Kenneth McIlvaine from three candidates nominated by the Democratic municipal committee to fill the Third Ward seat expiring in December 2017 that was vacated by Jessica Floyd when she took office as mayor.[61]
The Democratic sweep in November 2012 of the three council seats and mayor gave the party a 6–3 majority on the 2013 council.[62]
Federal, state and county representation
Woodbury is located in the 1st Congressional District[63] and is part of New Jersey's 5th state legislative district.[64][65][66]
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),[81][82]
Sheriff Jonathan M. Sammons (R, Elk Township; 2024)[83][84] and
Surrogate Giuseppe "Joe" Chila (D, Woolwich Township; 2028).[85][86][87]
Politics
As of March 2011, there were a total of 6,368 registered voters in Woodbury, of which 2,255 (35.4%) were registered as Democrats, 1,162 (18.2%) were registered as Republicans and 2,948 (46.3%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 3 voters registered as Libertarians or Greens.[88]
In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 67.7% of the vote (2,972 cast), ahead of Republican Mitt Romney with 30.9% (1,356 votes), and other candidates with 1.5% (65 votes), among the 4,430 ballots cast by the city's 6,623 registered voters (37 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 66.9%.[89][90] In the 2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 66.9% of the vote (3,216 cast), ahead of Republican John McCain with 30.9% (1,487 votes) and other candidates with 1.2% (58 votes), among the 4,806 ballots cast by the city's 6,829 registered voters, for a turnout of 70.4%.[91] In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat John Kerry received 60.1% of the vote (2,735 ballots cast), outpolling Republican George W. Bush with 38.3% (1,742 votes) and other candidates with 0.7% (43 votes), among the 4,547 ballots cast by the city's 6,521 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 69.7.[92]
In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican Chris Christie received 58.6% of the vote (1,499 cast), ahead of Democrat Barbara Buono with 39.4% (1,007 votes), and other candidates with 2.0% (51 votes), among the 2,608 ballots cast by the city's 6,370 registered voters (51 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 40.9%.[93][94] In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Democrat Jon Corzine received 51.8% of the vote (1,416 ballots cast), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 36.4% (995 votes), Independent Chris Daggett with 8.5% (232 votes) and other candidates with 1.2% (34 votes), among the 2,732 ballots cast by the city's 6,649 registered voters, yielding a 41.1% turnout.[95]
Students from across Gloucester 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.[104]
Holy Angels Catholic School is a Catholic school serving students in PreK–8, operated by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Camden and located in the building built originally as St. Patrick's School in 1944.[105][106] It was established in 2017 by the Bishop of Camden as the successor to Holy Trinity Regional School, which was created as part of the 2007 merger of the parish catholic schools of St. Patrick's, St. Matthew's of National Park and Most Holy Redeemer of Westville Grove.[107]
As of May 2010[update], the city had a total of 36.26 mi (58.35 km) of roadways, of which 29.15 mi (46.91 km) were maintained by the municipality, 5.04 mi (8.11 km) by Gloucester County and 2.07 mi (3.33 km) by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.[108]
Several roadways pass through the city.[109][110]Route 45, also known as Mantua Avenue and Broad Street at various points, enters the city at its southernmost point from West Deptford Township and proceeds for 1.8 mi (2.9 km) before heading along the Deptford Township/West Deptford Township border at the north end of the city.[111]County Route 551 (Salem Avenue) enters from West Deptford Township in the southwest and proceeds for 0.5 mi (0.80 km) before beginning a concurrency with Route 45.[112]
Two stops, at Red Bank Avenue and Woodbury station, on the proposed Glassboro–Camden Line, an 18 mi (28.97 km) diesel multiple unit (DMU) light rail system, are planned.[116] Originally projected for completion in 2019, the line has since been delayed until at least 2025.[117]
Samuel Gibbs French (1818-1910), Confederate Major General whose summer home in Woodbury was stormed after residents found out about his service for the South[140]
^Conaboy, Chelsea. "Plan would put houses on defunct Woodbury Country Club"Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, The Philadelphia Inquirer, August 23, 2010. Accessed November 12, 2013. "The country club, which was founded in 1897, filed for bankruptcy last summer, citing about $2.88 million in debt, then closed in October. Membership had been declining for years and couldn't support debt from a 1991 renovation."
^"Here are the 30 N.J. towns with the highest property tax rates"Archived January 19, 2022, at the Wayback Machine, NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, March 15, 2021. Accessed January 19, 2022. "The average equalized tax rate in New Jersey was 2.279 in 2020, according to data from the Department of Community Affairs. Here is the list of 30 New Jersey towns with the highest property tax rates.... 14. Woodbury Equalized tax rate in Woodbury, Gloucester County, was 4.582 in 2020 Average equalized tax rate in Gloucester County: 3.212"
^Stulpin, Caitlyn. "Woodbury council president resigns"Archived November 12, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, April 20, 2017, updated January 16, 2019. Accessed November 11, 2019. "Democrat Councilman David Trovato, who joined the council in 2015, resigned from his position on April 4, citing personal reasons as why, according to Woodbury Administrator Mike Theokas.... At the April 11 city council meeting, council chose Karlene O'Connor from three candidates to fill his seat."
^146th Annual Re-Organization Meeting of the Mayor and City Council of the City of Woodbury January 3, 2017Archived March 23, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, City of Woodbury. Accessed March 22, 2017. "The City Clerk explained that since Councilwoman Floyd resigned from Council in order to be sworn in as Mayor, there is a vacancy on Council for the remainder of her unexpired term.... On motion of Councilman Swanson, seconded by Councilwoman Parker and unanimously approved, Ken McIlvaine was appointed for the term expiring December 31, 2017."
^Bautista, Jessica. "Woodbury municipal election swept by Democrats"Archived November 13, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, South Jersey Times, November 6, 2012. Accessed November 12, 2013. "Volk was among the four victorious Democrats that swept the city's municipal race Tuesday. Once the new year begins, the county seat's political make-up will be 6-3 Democrat with a Democratic mayor — a vast difference from this past year's 5-4 Republican edge with a Republican mayor."
^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.."
^AdmissionsArchived May 22, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, 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.
^Sánchez, Peter G. "New location, new name: Holy Angels, Woodbury"Archived September 4, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, Catholic Star Herald, February 2, 2017. Accessed September 3, 2017. "Holy Trinity Regional School in Westville Grove, formed 10 years ago after a three-school consolidation, will move to Woodbury this fall and be renamed Holy Angels Catholic School. The former Saint Patrick's School, which closed in 2007 when it, Saint Matthew's in National Park and Most Holy Redeemer in Westville Grove, merged into Holy Trinity, will serve as the educational center for preK-8 students."
^Duhart, Bill. "18-mile light rail in South Jersey is coming, but not for another 6 years, at least"Archived September 24, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, February 17, 2019. Accessed November 11, 2019. "The 18-mile commute time by light rail from Glassboro to Camden looks like it’s coming in now at just under six more years. That’s because a long-planned commuter rail project connecting a growing population hub in South Jersey with mass transit into Philadelphia still appears to be a few more years away, despite an old timeline that still says it’d be up and running in 2019."
^Chappelear, Scott. "Alabama's Nick Saban visits Anthony Averett at Woodbury High School"Archived January 10, 2018, at the Wayback Machine, South Jersey Times, January 25, 2013. Accessed September 18, 2017. "Nick Saban came to Woodbury High School last week to visit with Thundering Herd standout Anthony Averett, who’s verbally committed to play football for the University of Alabama and is scheduled to sign his National Letter of Intent on Signing Day Feb. 6. But while the visit was about Averett, it was very much for his family as well — his relatives and his Woodbury family."
^John Boyd AvisArchived June 13, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, The Historical Society of the US District Court for the District of New Jersey. Accessed April 3, 2012. "He read law from 1890 to 1894 with John S. Mitchell and from 1897 to 1898 with David O. Watkins in Woodbury, New Jersey."
^Wroblewski, Joseph. "'He Was Above All a Jerseyman'; Commodore Robert Field Stockton, Garden State Legacy. Accessed January 17, 2023. "A fellow New Jerseyman Eli Ayers, from Woodbury, NJ, accompanied Stockton as an agent of the American Colonization Society."
^Jones, Gordis. "Are 16-seeds closing gap?"Archived November 13, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, The Morning Call, March 18, 2006. Accessed November 12, 2013. "Catching flak: Kenny, a native of Spring Lake, N.J., was booed during introductions after saying during a news conference Thursday that he and the team's other Northern Jersey types have to constantly remind Calloway -- a native of Woodbury, N.J. -- how much better New York City is than Philadelphia."
^Bob Shryock: One of Woodbury's finest leaves lasting legacyArchived June 5, 2011, at the Wayback Machine. "Colone, 85, one of many educators from the Berwick, Pa., area who migrated to Woodbury to take teaching positions a half-century ago, died July 1 after many years of courageously fighting various illnesses." Accessed July 7, 2009.
^John Cooper House / Headquarters of Lord CornwallisArchived November 13, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, The Village Green Preservation Society, May 10, 2013. Accessed November 12, 2013. "John Cooper was born on January 5, 1729 in Deptford Township, Gloucester County.... Around 1767 he moved to Woodbury and had a fine red brick mansion with large fireplaces and fine paneled woodwork built on Broad Street."
^The Irish American Who's Who, p. 167. Accessed September 15, 2016. "Dalton, Daniel Joseph New Jersey state senator; born in Woodbury, New Jersey on August 8, 1949; son of William Lawrence Dalton and Margaret Mary Dalton (both born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)"
^Surden, Matt. "Gloucester County football players learn to lead the Jaws way"Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, The Gloucester County Times, August 6, 2009. Accessed April 3, 2012. "The participants were treated to some of the top knowledge of the game today. Besides Jaworski, participants included Joe Russo, who works on NFL films with Jaworski; Mark Chmielinski of NFL Films; and Woodbury native Joe Fields, a former offensive lineman for the New York Jets."
^Wilk, Tom. "Civil Service", Inside Jersey, March 22, 2011. Accessed February 3, 2023. "Samuel Gibbs French, a Gloucester County native and hero of the Mexican War, married a Mississippi woman. He moved to her home state and joined the Confederate Army, rising to the rank of general. During this time, French maintained a summer residence in Woodbury. When residents learned French was fighting for the South, they hanged him in effigy and attempted to burn the home down in 1863."
^Riordan, Kevin. "Woodbury landmark needs a tonic"Archived October 17, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, The Philadelphia Inquirer, September 4, 2011. Accessed April 3, 2012. "Perhaps someone like Col. George Gill Green himself will step in to save the derelict downtown landmark that bears his name. The patent-medicine tycoon put Woodbury on the map in the late 1800s, but the G.G. Green Building, the massive commercial edifice he built at Broad and Centre Streets, could soon disappear."
^George KnappArchived May 7, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, KLAS-TV. Accessed July 9, 2012. "George Knapp was born in Woodbury, N.J., and raised mostly in Northern California"
^Tom Kovach, The Washington Times. Accessed December 11, 2020. "Tom Kovach was born in Woodbury, N.J., and grew up in northern Delaware, becoming an Eagle Scout."
^Shyrock, Bob. "Quartet to perform Woodbury resident's work"Archived February 17, 2020, at the Wayback Machine, NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, May 27, 2010, updated January 18, 2019. Accessed February 17, 2020. "Laganella has resided in Woodbury for two years with his wife, Hillary, a speech therapist, and their 14-month-old son, Lucas, observing that he 'fell in love with the neighborhood.'"
^Staff. "Home Grown Freshmen", Hartford Courant, January 3, 1965. Accessed November 10, 2012. "They are tackles Bill Lenkaitis of Youngstown, Ohio; Mike McBath of Woodbury, NJ, and Frank Iinski of Newark, NJ, and Russ Minkowitz, a guard from Canton, Mass."
^David MillerArchived March 9, 2019, at the Wayback Machine, The Baseball Cube. Accessed December 26, 2018. "Born Date: August 25,1966 [52.123] Place: Woodbury, New Jersey; High School: Highland Regional (Blackwood, NJ)"
^Bengals.comArchived June 6, 2009, at the Wayback Machine. "Was this the same son that came home at 3 in the morning after mopping floors at Wendy's and woke three hours later to finish off his 4.0 run at Woodbury High School and help keep the family afloat?" Accessed June 5, 2009.
^DeLuca, Dan. "Woodbury's Patti Smith Takes Charge In Camden"Archived March 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine, The Philadelphia Inquirer, September 30, 1997. Accessed November 4, 2015. "It was an informal evening in which the punk-rock godmother and Woodbury native cracked jokes, recalled her first apartment in Pitman ('I had water beetles so big they scared the mice') and mixed selections from Peace (Arista **1/2) with older tunes and readings from her poetry collection Early Work."
^D. K. (Donald Keith) UlrichArchived November 13, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, Legends of NASCAR. Accessed November 12, 2013. "At one time, Ulrich, who was born in Woodbury, N.J., and moved to the Concord area in the late 1960s from California to be closer to NASCAR racing, had Sandy Jones, Peter Sospenzo and Jimmy Long working on the same crew."
^Roncace, Kelly. "Kelly Roncace: What's in a name? Whitall House"Archived December 25, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Gloucester County Times, October 24, 2011. Accessed July 9, 2012. "Ann Whitall is known mostly for her involvement with the Battle of Red Bank on Oct. 21, 1777. Whitall, born Ann Cooper in 1716 in Woodbury, married James Whitall and the couple built their home on the Delaware River in what is now National Park in 1748."
^Kephart, Bill; and Kephart, Mary. "The Kepharts: John Mickle Whitall"Archived October 10, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Gloucester County Voices, January 16, 2011. Accessed July 9, 2012. "James Mickle Whitall, son of John Seddon Whitall and Sarah Mickle Whitall, was born into the Quaker family on Nov. 4, 1800 at Woodbury Creek, Gloucester County.... Between voyages, John Whitall courted Mary Tatum. The Tatum family had also lived in Woodbury."
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