What are the Key Facts of New Jersey?

State	New Jersey
State Capital	Trenton
Largest City	Newark
Coordinates	40°N 74.5°W
Nickname(s)	“The Garden State”
Postal Abbreviation	NJ
Area	8,722.58 sq. mi (22,591.38 sq.km)
Highest Point	High Point, 1,803 ft (549.6 m)
Number of Counties	21
Neighboring States	New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware
Population	8,882,190 (2019)
Date of Entering the Union	December 18, 1787
Governor	Phil Murphy (Democratic Party)
Lieutenant Governor	Sheila Oliver (Democratic Party)
U.S. Senators	Bob Menendez (Democratic Party), Cory Booker (Democratic Party)
U.S. House Delegation	10 Democrats, 2 Republicans
GDP (Millions of Dollars)	622003
Demonym	New Jerseyan (official), New Jerseyite
Time Zones	UTC-05:00 (Eastern), Summer (DST) UTC-04:00 (EDT)

Where is New Jersey?

New Jersey (the third state that was admitted to the union on December 18, 1787) is located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the Northeastern USA. It shares its border with New York (to the east and north), Pennsylvania (to the west), Delaware (to the southwest), the Delaware River (to the west), Delaware Bay (to the southwest), and the Atlantic Ocean (to the south, southeast, and east).

What is the Geography of New Jersey?

New Jersey is spread across a total area of 8,722.58 sq. mi (22,591.38 sq. km), making it the fourth-smallest state out of the total 50 US states. Out of the total area, the land area is spread across 7,354.22 sq. mi (19,047.34 sq. km) and the water area across 1,368.36 sq. mi (3,544.04 sq. km). New Jersey is around 150 miles (241.4 km) long from north to south. From east to west, it is around 70 miles (112.7 km) wide.

Water bodies occupy around 15.7% of the total area. The longest rivers in the state are the Hudson River, Delaware River, Raritan River, Wallkill River, Passaic River, Great Egg Harbor River, Mullica River, South Branch Raritan River, Musconetcong River, and the Hackensack River.

The major lakes in New Jersey are Lake Hopatcong, Round Valley Reservoir, Greenwood Lake, Spruce Run Reservoir, Lake Tappan, Union Lake, Lake Mohawk, Manasquan Reservoir, Merrill Creek Reservoir, Culver Lake, Upper Greenwood Lake, Lake Musconetcong and Lake Owassa.

The mean elevation of New Jersey is 250 ft (76.2 m) above sea level. The aptly named High Point is the highest elevation point at 1,803 ft (549.6 m) above sea level, and the Atlantic Ocean is the lowest elevation point at sea level (0 ft or 0 m).

The major mountains in New Jersey are the Kittatinny Mountain, High Point, Sunrise Mountain, Mount Tammany, Rattlesnake Mountain, Hamburg Mountains, Wawayanda Mountain, Bearfort Mountain, Bowling Green Mountain, and Bearfort Mountain.

The geography of New Jersey can be divided into four landforms: the Atlantic Coastal Plain, Piedmont, the New England Upland, and the Appalachian Ridge and Valley Region

The Atlantic Coastal Plain is the largest landform in the state, covering 3/5^th of the state. Gently rolling hills of less than 100 ft (30.5 m) in elevation from the sea level occupies over half of the Atlantic Coastal Plain landform. Pine forests, as well as salt marshes, occupy most of the eastern part of the landscape. The closer you go to the Atlantic coast, the area is characterized by meadows, shallow lagoons, and more salt marshes. The soil is fertile along the Delaware River, which runs in the west and southwest of the state.

To the northeast of the Atlantic Coastal Plain, the Piedmont landform is situated. It is just 20 miles (32.2 km) wide and covers just 1/5^th of the total area of New Jersey. The industrial cities such as Jersey City, Patterson, Newark, and Elizabeth are located in this landform. Raritan, Remapo, Passaic and Hudson Rivers are found in this the Piedmont area.

The New England Upland mainly includes flat-topped ridges of rock. This landform is located to the west of Piedmont. Among the ridges, many beautiful lakes are found.

The Appalachian Ridge and Valley Region are found in the northwest corner. It is a mountainous region including Kittatinny Mountains as well as the Delaware Water Gap. To the southeast of these mountains, the wide Appalachian Valley is located. In the valley, you’ll find shale and limestone formation.

What is the Climate of New Jersey?

While a humid subtropical climate persists in the southern part of New Jersey, a continental climate persists in the northern part of New Jersey. As elevation is higher in the northwest part of the state, it remains snowiest. Nor’easters also take place during the winter season in New Jersey. However, the warm ocean air brought by storm turns snow to rain. Proximity to the Atlantic Ocean to the state influences the climatic conditions (moisture and temperature) of the place.

While northwestern New Jersey usually remains coolest and the southern New Jersey remains warmest. The temperature differential remains greatest during winter and least during summer. While the highlands get around 163 days of the average number of freeze-free days, the coastal areas get around 217 days. The highest temperature was recorded to be 110 °F (43.3 °C) in Runyon on July 10, 1936. However, the all-time lowest temperature was -34 °F (-36.7 °C), recorded on January 5, 1904.

The average level of annual precipitation varies from 40 inches or 1016 mm (along the southeastern coast) to around 51 inches or 1295.4 mm (in the north-central part of the state). The snowfall in the highlands usually starts from November 5 and continues till April 30. However, in the southern region of New Jersey, the snowfall starts from November 15 and continues till April 15.

What is the Economy of New Jersey?

New Jersey has a diverse economy. It is mainly dependent upon pharmaceuticals, biotechnology-R&D, medical device manufacturing, financial services (including headquarters of Prudential and Chubb, other major banks, many large data centers), advanced manufacturing establishments, technology industry (including oil and gas extraction, communications equipment manufacturing, pharmaceutical manufacturing, chemical manufacturing, petroleum & coal products manufacturing, power, computer systems design, and software publishers) and transportation & logistics.

The total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for New Jersey has increased from US$495,121.8 million in 2008 to US$622,002.8 million in 2018. The total Personal Income in the state had fallen from US$456,607.1 in Q2 2008 to US$432,847.2 in Q1 2009. However, after that, it steadily increased over the years to US$633,899.7 in Q3 2019.

However, the Real Median Household Income in New Jersey has decreased from US$76,352 in 2008 to US$74,176 in 2018. In the last 10 years, it had fallen from US$76,352 in 2008 to US$68,836 in 2013. However, since then it has recovered but fell short of the decade-old level by US$2,176.

The greenhouse (including roses, poinsettias, orchids, chrysanthemums, geraniums, lilies, etc.) and nursery products (including asparagus, eggplant, lettuce, bell peppers, spinach, endive, corn, snap peas, cabbages, etc.) are the major sources of agricultural income in New Jersey.

Blueberries and cranberries are the most valuable fruit crops that are produced in the state. Other fruits produced are strawberries, peaches, and apples. Wheat, corn, and soybeans are the three major field crops produced in New Jersey.

The values of exports and imports in 2018 were US$35,354,227,977 and US$127,851,286,473 respectively, resulting in a trade balance of -$92,497,058,496.

The major exports in New Jersey are Precious Stones & Metals, Industrial Machinery, Electrical Machinery, Precision Instruments, Cosmetics, Plastics, Motor Vehicles & Parts, Chemical Products, Aircraft, and Organic Chemicals.

The major items of imports in the state are Oil & Mineral Fuels, Pharmaceuticals, Industrial Machinery, Electrical Machinery, Precision Instruments, Motor Vehicles and Parts, Organic Chemicals, Plastics, and Non-Knit Apparel.

During the 2007 recession, the unemployment level shot up significantly from 3.9% in October 2007 to 10.3% in February 2010 (almost trebled in two and a half years’ time). However, it has come down to 3.3% in November 2019.

The rate of poverty in New Jersey was 10% (882,673 people lived under the poverty line out of a total population of 8,831,200) in 2018. While just 6.6% of Asian Americans and 7.8% of the Whites were living in poverty, the incidence of poverty was in double figures in the case of Native Americans (20.3%), African Americans (18.1%), and Latino population (17.4%).

What is the Transportation System of New Jersey?

The transportation system in New Jersey includes roadways (US Routes, Interstate Highways, and State Highways), airways, railway, buses, and ferries.

The longest U.S. Routes passing through New Jersey include US 9, US 206, US 130, US 202, US 46, US 1, US 40, US 322, US 22, US 30, etc. There are many Interstate Highways that run through the state and the most important ones are I-95, I-295, I-80, I-78, I-287, I-195, I-280, and I-895.

New Jersey has an intricate network of state highways throughout New Jersey and the longest of them all are Route 444, Route 47, Route 70, Route 60, Route 35, Route 49, Route 23, Route 700, Route 31, Route 94, Route 446, Route 18, Route 33, and Route 55.

Annual Highway Report of 2019 Reason Foundation has found out that New Jersey has the worst highway system (in terms of overall performance and cost-effectiveness of highway system) in the United States.

The major airports in New Jersey are Newark Liberty International Airport (in Newark), Atlantic City International Airport (in Atlantic City), Trenton Mercer Airport (in Trenton), Morristown Municipal Airport (in Morristown), Teterboro Airport (in Teterboro), Monmouth Executive Airport (Belmar, Farmingdale), Princeton Airport (in Princeton, Rocky Hill), Solberg–Hunterdon Airport (in Readington), Essex County Airport (Caldwell), and Cape May Airport (in Wildwood).

Extensive rail and bus services are operated NJ Transit across the state and other US states such as Philadelphia and New York. Around 267 routes are operational. Two divisions are operational currently: Hoboken Division and Newark Division.

Hoboken Division includes Northeast Corridor Line, Princeton Branch, North Jersey Coast Line, Raritan Valley Line, and Atlantic City Line. Hoboken Division includes Main Line (Suffern), Bergen County Line, Pascack Valley Line, Port Jervis Line, Meadowlands Rail Line, Montclair-Boonton Line, Morristown Line, and Gladstone Branch.

In northeastern New Jersey, a 13.8 mile (22.2 km) long rapid transit system called Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) is operational too. Liberty Water Taxi service is available in Jersey City. Cape May–Lewes Ferry is operated by the Delaware River and Bay Authority on the Delaware Bay.

Why is New Jersey called “The Garden State”?

The most popular name of New Jersey is “The Garden State”. As per the two-volume book “Jersey Waggon Jaunts” (written by Alfred Heston), New Jersey was first called by this nickname by Abraham Browning of Camden on New Jersey Day (August 24, 1876) while addressing an audience at the Philadelphia Centennial exhibition. On page 310 of Volume 2 of his book, Heston wrote:

In his address Mr. Browning compared New Jersey to an immense barrel, filled with good things to eat and open at both ends, with Pennsylvanians grabbing from one end and the New Yorkers from the other. He called New Jersey the Garden State, and the name has clung to it ever since.

The problem with this theory is that the idea of a barrel tapped at both ends doesn’t start with Abraham Browning of Camden but much earlier. Its origin dates back to one of the founding fathers of the USA, Benjamin Franklin. So, crediting Browning for coining the term “The Garden State” is not unchallenged.

No matter who’s given the credit of giving the nickname, the state legislature passed a bill in 1954 to add “The Garden State” to license plates. Though Governor Robert Meyner vetoed the bill by saying that “no official recognition of the slogan Garden State as identification of the state of New Jersey,” has been found after investigation, the legislature overrode the veto. “The Garden State” was added to license plates soon after the bill was passed.

Other nicknames of New Jersey were “The Clam State”, “The Camden”, and “Amboy State”, “The Jersey Blue State”, “The Pathway of Revolution”,  “The Mosquito State, New Spain”, and “The Foreigner State”.

What are the Popular Tourist Attractions in New Jersey?

Atlantic City and The Boardwalk, Old Victorian Cape May, Liberty State Park, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, Princeton and the Battlefield State Park, Battleship New Jersey, The Adventure Aquarium, Cape May County Park & Zoo, Thomas Edison National Historical Park, Grounds for Sculpture, Morey’s Piers and Liberty Science Center.

Facts About New Jersey

1) The nickname of New Jersey is “The Garden State”.

2) The capital city of the state is Trenton and the largest city is Newark.

3) Before it gained statehood, NJ was known as the Province of New Jersey. It entered the Union on December 18, 1787 as the 3rd state of the country.

4) New Jersey is bounded by New York, Pennsylvania, Atlantic Ocean, Hudson River, and Delaware.

5) Famous residents of New Jersey are Jon Bon Jovi, Frank Sinatra, Richard Nixon, Bruce Springsteen, Jack Nicholson, and Bruce Willis.

6) The official motto is “Liberty and prosperity”.

7) The official fish is the Brook Trout.

8) The official tree is the Northern Red Oak.

9) North Jersey is nicknamed the Car Theft Capital of the World. The number of vehicles stolen in the city of Newark is more than any other city in the world.

10) The tallest point in the state is the High Point. It is sited at an altitude of 1,803 feet.

11) The official bird is the Eastern Goldfinch.

12) The official anthem is “I’m From New Jersey”.

13) The state has the densest network of railroads and freeways in the country.

14) The state is nicknamed the Diner Capital of the World because of the large number of restaurants it houses.

15) Famous tourist draws like Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty are located in New Jersey.

16) There are more than 50 resort cities in the state. Wildwood, Asbury Park, Seaside heights, Atlantic City, and Cape May are some of the renowned resort cities.

17) The official flower is the Common Meadow Violet.

18) The official mammal is the Horse.

19) The official dance is the Square Dance.

20) Newark, Jersey City, and Paterson are the three biggest cities in the state of New Jersey.