Nutley is a township in Essex County of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 30,143, an increase of 1,773 (+6.2%) from the 2010 census count of 28,370, which in turn reflected an increase of 1,008 (+3.7%) from the 27,362 counted in the 2000 census.Table 7. Population for the Counties and Municipalities in New Jersey: 1990, 2000 and 2010, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, February 2011. Accessed May 1, 2023.
What is now Nutley was originally incorporated as Franklin Township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 18, 1874, from portions of Belleville Township. Nutley was incorporated as a town on March 5, 1902, replacing Franklin Township.Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606–1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 130 for Nutley, p. 128 for Franklin Township. Accessed May 30, 2024.Honeyman, Abraham Van Doren. Index-analysis of the Statutes of New Jersey, 1896–1909: Together with References to All Acts, and Parts of Acts, in the 'General Statutes' and Pamphlet Laws Expressly Repealed: and the Statutory Crimes of New Jersey During the Same Period, p. 209. New Jersey Law Journal Publishing Company, 1910. Accessed September 12, 2015. In 1981, the town was one of seven Essex County municipalities to pass a referendum to become a township, joining four municipalities that had already made the change, of what would ultimately be more than a dozen Essex County municipalities to reclassify themselves as townships in order take advantage of federal revenue sharing policies that allocated townships a greater share of government aid to municipalities on a per capita basis."Chapter VI: Municipal Names and Municipal Classification", p. 73. New Jersey State Commission on County and Municipal Government, 1992. Accessed September 24, 2015."Removing Tiering From The Revenue Sharing Formula Would Eliminate Payment Inequities To Local Governments", Government Accountability Office, April 15, 1982. Accessed September 24, 2015. "In 1978, South Orange Village was the first municipality to change its name to the 'township' of South Orange Village effective beginning in entitlement period 10 (October 1978 to September 1979). The Borough of Fairfield in 1978 changed its designation by a majority vote of the electorate and became the 'Township of Fairfield' effective beginning entitlement period 11 (October 1979 to September 1980).... However, the Revenue Sharing Act was not changed and the actions taken by South Orange and Fairfield prompted the Town of Montclair and West Orange to change their designation by referendum in the November 4, 1980, election. The municipalities of Belleville, Verona, Bloomfield, Nutley, Essex Fells, Caldwell, and West Caldwell have since changed their classification from municipality to a township."Narvaez, Alfonso A. "New Jersey Journal", The New York Times, December 27, 1981. Accessed September 24, 2015. "Under the Federal system, New Jersey's portion of the revenue sharing funds is disbursed among the 21 counties to create three 'money pools.' One is for county governments, one for 'places' and a third for townships. By making the change, a community can use the 'township advantage' to get away from the category containing areas with low per capita incomes."Karcher, Alan J. New Jersey's Multiple Municipal Madness, pp. 119–120. Rutgers University Press, 1998. . Accessed September 24, 2015.
Nutley derived its name from the estate of the Satterthwaite family, established in 1844, which stretched along the Passaic River and from an artist's colony in the area.Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed August 25, 2015.
History
Nutley grew slowly as Newark developed. The first European settler in the area, recorded in the minutes of a Newark town meeting in 1693, was a Dutch planter named Bastian Van Giesen. His son had a home constructed after inheriting the property in 1751 and is now known as Vreeland Homestead. It still stands today on Chestnut Street and was the location of the Nutley Women's Club from 1912 until 2012 when it was sold to the township. The Van Riper House is another building from the era. During the revolutionary war, the Continental Army, under the command of General George Washington, retreated from New York through Essex County and what is now Nutley.Frazza, Al. https://patch.com/new-jersey/belleville/remembering-george-washington-s-retreat-through-essex-county "Remembering George Washington's Retreat Through Essex County "
The first brownstone quarry in Nutley is believed to have been in operation by the early 18th century and was the town's first major industry. Jobs at the brownstone quarry in the Avondale section of Nutley provided work for many Italian and Irish immigrants. Mills situated along the Third River in the area now known as Memorial Park I became Nutley's second major industry.
John and Thomas Speer, Joseph Kingsland, and Henry Duncan all operated mills in the town during the 1800s. Current streets in Nutley are named after these mill owners. Henry Duncan built several mills throughout the town and established the village of Franklinville consisting of 30 homes and a few small businesses which later became the center of Nutley. One of Duncan's buildings has been modified and now serves as the town hall. Kingsland Manor is a national historic place.
During the late 1880s, painter Frank Fowler founded an artists' colony on The Enclosure, a dead-end street that is near the Third River, a stream that runs through the town's parks. Later artist residents of the street included Frederick Dana Marsh, Reginald Marsh and muralist Michael Lenson.Bailinson, Frank. "Paving a Major Issue in Nutley; Muralist's Home", The New York Times, October 21, 1973. Accessed October 28, 2013.Frank Fowler (1852–1910 ), Stockton University Art and Architecture of New Jersey, backed up by the Internet Archive as of July 19, 2011. Accessed February 3, 2017.
Nutley's town historian, John Demmer, is the author of the book in the "Images of America" series titled Nutley; Demmer is also part of The Nutley Historical Society, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to serve the educational, cultural and historical needs of the community. The Nutley Historical Society manages the operation of The Nutley Historical Museum, housed in a former town schoolhouse at 65 Church Street.History, Nutley Historical Society. Accessed November 6, 2019.
Several other historical works on Nutley have been written by local historians, notably the late Ann Troy's Nutley: Yesterday – Today; "Nutley" by Marilyn Peters and Richard O'Connor in the "Then and Now" series; and books about the Nutley Velodrome. The board track racing facility was used in the 1930s for racing midget cars. Local resident Chris Economaki wrote extensively about the Nutley Velodrome in his autobiographical racing history Let Them All Go! as the Velodrome was the first racetrack he had visited as a child.
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the township had a total area of 3.42 square miles (8.86 km2), including 3.37 square miles (8.74 km2) of land and 0.05 square miles (0.12 km2) of water (1.37%).
Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Avondale, Franklin, Glendale and Yanticaw.Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed May 21, 2015.
The township borders the municipalities of Belleville and Bloomfield in Essex County; Lyndhurst in Bergen County; and Clifton in Passaic County.Areas touching Nutley, MapIt. Accessed March 1, 2020.Municipalities, Essex County, New Jersey Register of Deeds and Mortgages. Accessed March 1, 2020.New Jersey Municipal Boundaries, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.
Demographics
2020 census +Nutley township, Essex County, New Jersey – Racial and Ethnic Composition (NH = Non-Hispanic)Race / EthnicityPop 2010Pop 2020% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)21,19618,86474.71%62.58%Black or African American alone (NH)5419281.91%3.08%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)12380.04%0.13%Asian alone (NH)2,7893,5189.83%11.67%Pacific Islander alone (NH)1130.00%0.04%Some Other Race alone (NH)841780.30%0.59%Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH)3937461.39%2.47%Hispanic or Latino (any race)3,3545,85811.82%19.43%Total28,37030,143100.00%100.00%
2010 census The 2010 United States census counted 28,370 people, 11,314 households, and 7,660 families in the township. The population density was 8,384.1 per square mile (3,237.1/km2). There were 11,789 housing units at an average density of 3,484.0 per square mile (1,345.2/km2). The racial makeup was 82.50% (23,405) White, 2.21% (628) Black or African American, 0.13% (36) Native American, 9.95% (2,824) Asian, 0.01% (4) Pacific Islander, 2.97% (842) from other races, and 2.22% (631) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.82% (3,354) of the population.
Of the 11,314 households, 29.6% had children under the age of 18; 52.8% were married couples living together; 11.1% had a female householder with no husband present and 32.3% were non-families. Of all households, 27.5% were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.10.
20.7% of the population were under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 28.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.7 years. For every 100 females, the population had 88.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 86.0 males.
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $76,167 (with a margin of error of +/− $3,896) and the median family income was $98,042 (+/− $4,394). Males had a median income of $64,736 (+/− $4,840) versus $52,410 (+/− $3,558) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $37,706 (+/− $1,918). About 3.1% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.9% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over.DP03: Selected Economic Characteristics from the 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates for Nutley township, Essex County, New Jersey , United States Census Bureau. Accessed May 29, 2012.
2000 census As of the 2000 United States census, there were 27,362 people, 10,884 households, and 7,368 families residing in the township. The population density was . There were 11,118 housing units at an average density of 1, 273.8/km2 (3,300.6/sq mi). The racial makeup of the township was 87.95% White, 1.87% African American, 0.05% Native American, 7.10% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.75% from other races, and 1.24% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.69% of the population.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Nutley township, Essex County, New Jersey , United States Census Bureau. Accessed June 1, 2012.DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 – Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Nutley township, Essex County, New Jersey , United States Census Bureau. Accessed July 15, 2013.
As of the 2000 Census, 36.0% of town residents were of Italian ancestry, the 12th-highest percentage of any municipality in the United States, and fifth-highest in New Jersey, among all places with more than 1,000 residents identifying their ancestry.Italian Communities , EPodunk. Accessed June 9, 2007.