Whitehouse Station, New Jersey

Whitehouse Station, New Jersey
Census-designated place
Whitehouse Train Station & Readington Library
Map of Whitehouse Station highlighted within Hunterdon County. Right: Location of Hunterdon County in New Jersey.
Whitehouse Station Location in Hunterdon County Show map of Hunterdon County, New Jersey Whitehouse Station Location in New Jersey Show map of New Jersey Whitehouse Station Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 40°36′55″N74°46′14″W / 40.61528°N 74.77056°W / 40.61528; -74.77056 [1]
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Hunterdon
Township	Readington
Area [2]
• Total	2.57 sq mi (6.65 km2)
• Land	2.52 sq mi (6.52 km2)
• Water	0.05 sq mi (0.13 km2)  3.20%
Elevation [3]	174 ft (53 m)
Population  (2020) [4]
• Total	3,152
• Density	1,251.29/sq mi (483.14/km2)
Time zone	UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT))
ZIP Code	08889 [5]
Area code	908
FIPS code	34-80720 [6] [7] [8]
GNIS feature ID	881799, [1] 2390505 [3]

Whitehouse Station, also spelled White House Station, is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Readington Township, in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. ^{[9] [10]} At the 2010 United States Census, the CDP's population was 2,089. ^[11] Whitehouse Station takes its name from Whitehouse and Abraham Van Horne's 18th century tavern. ^[12]

New Jersey Transit offers service on the Raritan Valley Line at White House Station. ^[13]

History

The area, which is now served only by New Jersey Transit's Raritan Valley Line, used to be a railroad junction, serving as the endpoint of the ill-fated Rockaway Valley Railroad, which ceased operation in 1913. ^[14]

Whitehouse Station was home to the global headquarters of pharmaceutical giant Merck, which was housed in the modernist Merck Headquarters Building for more than two decades. Merck has shifted its base of operations to Rahway. ^[15]

On April 5, 2024, at 10:23 AM, the community was struck by a magnitude 4.8 earthquake. The quake saw no major damage and no injuries. At 5:59 PM, on the same day, a second earthquake recorded at magnitude 3.8 struck east of the community in Gladstone, New Jersey. ^[16]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP had a total area of 1.346 square miles (3.49 km²), including 1.303 square miles (3.37 km²) of land and 0.043 square miles (0.11 km²) of water (3.20%). ^{[6] [17]}

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1990	1,287		—
2000	1,951		51.6%
2010	2,089		7.1%
2020	3,152		50.9%
Population sources: 2000 [18] 2010 [11] [4]

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 2,089 people, 963 households, and 553 families in the CDP. The population density was 1,602.7 people per square mile (618.8 people/km²). There were 989 housing units at an average density of 758.8 units per square mile (293.0 units/km²). The racial makeup was 91.53% (1,912) White, 2.82% (59) Black or African American, 0.05% (1) Native American, 3.06% (64) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 1.15% (24) from other races, and 1.39% (29) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.27% (110) of the population. ^[11]

Of the 963 households, 23.2% had children under the age of 18; 46.0% were married couples living together; 8.9% had a female householder with no husband present and 42.6% were non-families. Of all households, 37.1% were made up of individuals and 17.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.87. ^[11]

19.6% of the population were under the age of 18, 4.3% from 18 to 24, 23.1% from 25 to 44, 31.5% from 45 to 64, and 21.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.6 years. For every 100 females, the population had 82.6 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 77.3 males. ^[11]

2000 census

At the 2000 United States Census ^[7] there were 1,951 people, 878 households and 531 families living in the CDP. The population density was 583.9 people/km² (1,512 people/sq mi). There were 905 housing units at an average density of 270.9 units/km² (702 units/sq mi). The racial makeup of the CDP was 96.05% White, 0.87% African American, 0.97% Asian, 0.56% from other races, and 1.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.56% of the population. ^[18]

There were 878 households, of which 24.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.4% were married couples living together, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.22 and the average family size was 2.86. ^[18]

Age distribution was 19.9% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 33.5% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.7 males. ^[18]

The median household income was $75,111, and the median family income was $92,793. Males had a median income of $60,673 versus $43,438 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $38,627. None of the families and 1.4% of the population were living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 2.9% of those over 64. ^[18]

Points of interest

There are several nearby points of interest.

• The Rockaway Reformed Church is the third building of the congregation founded in Whitehouse. ^[19]
• Memorial Park Cemetery in Whitehouse is near the site of Abraham Van Horne's "White House" tavern. It is maintained by the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. ^[20]
• The Whitehouse–Mechanicsville Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2015 for its significance in architecture and community development. ^[19]

• 
  The Rockaway Reformed Church
• 
  Memorial Park Cemetery
• 
  Whitehouse United Methodist Church

Notable people

See also: Category:People from Readington Township, New Jersey

People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Whitehouse Station include:

• Taissa Farmiga (born 1994), actress. ^[21]
• Robyn Kenney (born 1979), field hockey player. ^[22]
• Tom Malloy (born 1974), actor and filmmaker. ^[23]
• Ed Martin, politician who served as Chair of the Missouri Republican Party. ^[24]
• James N. Pidcock (1836–1899), represented New Jersey's 4th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1885 to 1889. ^[25]

References

1. "Whitehouse Station". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
2. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
3. "White House Station Census Designated Place". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
4. "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
5. Look Up a ZIP Code for Whitehouse Station, NJ, United States Postal Service,. Accessed April 26, 2012.
6. Gazetteer of New Jersey Places, United States Census Bureau. Accessed July 21, 2016.
7. U.S. Census website, United States Census Bureau. Accessed September 4, 2014.
8. Geographic Codes Lookup for New Jersey, Missouri Census Data Center. Accessed June 9, 2023.
9. New Jersey: 2010 - Population and Housing Unit Counts - 2010 Census of Population and Housing (CPH-2-32), United States Census Bureau, August 2012. Accessed November 15, 2012.
10. Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed April 19, 2015.
11. DP-1 - Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data for White House Station CDP, New Jersey Archived 2020-02-12 at archive.today , United States Census Bureau. Accessed November 20, 2012.
12. Staff. "Living history in Whitehouse", Courier News , March 6, 2005. Accessed November 16, 2012. "About 1750 Abraham Van Horne built the first tavern in the area. It was on the road from Clinton to Somerville where it crossed Rockaway Creek (now Route 22). Because the building had white plastered walls it became known as the 'White House'. The name also was given to the village which sprang up around the tavern."
13. Hunterdon County Bus / Rail Connections, New Jersey Transit, backed up by the Internet Archive as of July 26, 2010. Accessed November 14, 2012.
14. Wright, Terry. "Rockaway Valley Railroad memorabilia displayed by Tewksbury Historical Society", Hunterdon County Democrat , December 22, 2012. Accessed September 5, 2014.
15. Dunleavy, Kevin. "Merck consolidates New Jersey operations at 'reimagined' headquarters in Rahway", Fierce Pharma, June 21, 2023. Accessed January 6, 2024. "After being headquartered for eight years seven miles to the north in Kenilworth and before that for 23 years in Whitehouse Station, 35 miles to the west, Merck has returned to its 'reimagined' Rahway facility."
16. Millman, Jennifer; Maroney, Lauren; Peltz • •, Jennifer (April 5, 2024). "WATCH LIVE: Magnitude 4.8 earthquake hits NJ, rattles entire tri-state; no injuries reported". NBC New York. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
17. US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990, United States Census Bureau. Accessed September 4, 2014.
18. DP-1 - Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 from the Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for White House Station CDP, New Jersey Archived 2020-02-12 at archive.today , United States Census Bureau. Accessed November 20, 2012.
19. Bertland, Dennis (January 2013). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Whitehouse–Mechanicsville Historic District". National Park Service.
20. "Old White House Chapter". Daughters of the American Revolution.
21. The Cast: Taissa Farmiga, Higher Ground (film) , Sony Classics. Accessed April 26, 2012. "Named one of the breakout stars of the Sundance Film Festival in 2011 by The Daily Beast, Taissa Farmiga is, at sixteen years old, at the beginning of what promises to be an outstanding career.... Farmiga resides in Whitehouse Station, NJ."
22. Robyn Kenney, USA Field Hockey. Accessed December 20, 2007.
23. "Tom Malloy; A Prominent Figure in the Indie Film Scene", Talker of the Town, April 22, 2017. Accessed July 2, 2018. "I was born in Red Bank, NJ, and grew up in farm country NJ, in Hunterdon county in a little town called Whitehouse Station."
24. Wagman, Jake. "Chris Christie hears it — from Ed Martin's mom", St. Louis Post Dispatch , October 6, 2011. Accessed July 9, 2018. "She questioned why Christie would support Wagner when 'Ed is a native born New Jerseyan,' the product of Readington Township Public Schools and St. Peter's Prep in Jersey City."
25. James Nelson Pidcock, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress . Accessed September 3, 2007.

External links

• Media related to Whitehouse Station, New Jersey at Wikimedia Commons
• "White House Station. Date: 1892. Bradford L. Gilbert, Architect". The Historical Marker Database.