Tinton Falls is a borough in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Located within the heart of the Jersey Shore region, the borough is a commercial hub of Central Jersey (it is the site of the Jersey Shore Premium Outlets and different corporate headquarters) and is an established bedroom suburb of New York City, in the New York metropolitan area.Cheslow, Jerry. "If You're Thinking of Living In/Tinton Falls, N.J.; An Old Area That Has Bloomed Lately", The New York Times, July 22, 2001. Accessed October 11, 2023. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 19,181, an increase of 1,289 (+7.2%) from the 2010 census count of 17,892, which in turn reflected an increase of 2,839 (+18.9%) from the 15,053 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.
The borough was formed as New Shrewsbury by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on August 15, 1950, based on the results of a referendum held on July 18, 1950, after breaking away from Shrewsbury Township.Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606–1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 183. Accessed May 30, 2024. It was renamed "Tinton Falls" in 1975, to avoid postal errors.Tinton Fall Records , Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed November 9, 2012. "New Shrewsbury was established out of Shrewsbury in 1950 and renamed Tinton Falls in 1975 to avoid postal delivery errors." The name came from Lewis Morris's plantation, Tinton Manor (which employed free white workers and slaves)Cheslow, Jerry. "If You're Thinking of Living In/Tinton Falls, N.J.; An Old Area That Has Bloomed Lately", The New York Times, July 22, 2001. Accessed August 9, 2012. "The split left the old Shrewsbury Township with just the three streets that held the high-density housing. And the sparsely populated breakaway borough adopted the name New Shrewsbury, which it changed to Tinton Falls in 1975 to eliminate postal confusion.... Slavery: The Tinton Iron Works, started in 1674, was nicknamed 'the Iron Plantation' because it owned 60 or more black slaves.... According to a local history, the congregants took Woolman's message to heart. Shrewsbury Township, which included Tinton Falls, led the colonies in the number of slaves emancipated by owners during the pre-Revolutionary period. "Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed September 16, 2015. as it featured a gristmill, making it one of New Jersey's earliest bustling mill towns. The borough is home to the highest waterfall on New Jersey's coastal plain, from which the aforementioned mill generated power.
History The area that is now known as Tinton Falls was originally settled by Europeans in the late 1600s, probably beginning with the initial land purchases from the Lenni Lenape Native Americans in 1664. Water power and iron ore were likely the incentives that encouraged settlement: shortly after [the land was purchased], a man by the name of James Grover had an ironworks built along the river. Grover was likely the founder of the community, which, in the 1600s, was named "New Shrewsbury". At this time, the waterfall was known to be about high;Gabrelan, Randall. The American Century Series: Tinton Falls in the Twentieth Century, Arcadia Publishing, 1999. . Accessed June 7, 2015. erosion and the destruction of the dam near the ironworks have led to its diminishment.
The ironworks Grover's ironworks was the central fixture of the community, and it was one of the oldest built in the country, predated only by buildings in Jamestown and Massachusetts. In 1675, a half-interest in the ironworks company was purchased by Colonel Lewis Morris, [who obtained a title granting him along the Shrewsbury River]. Morris also obtained land owned by Bartholomew Applegate, who had built a corn mill on the other side of the river. Morris, who procured the land for iron mining, named his holdings "Tintern Manor," after his family lands in Monmouthshire, Great Britain.Barrett, William A. (ed.) Historical Scrapbook of Tinton Falls, New Jersey, The Tinton Falls Bicentennial Committee, 1976. Accessed October 12, 2015.Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed October 12, 2015.Gannett, Henry. The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States, p. 300. United States Government Printing Office, 1905. Accessed October 12, 2015. Tintern Abbey, located in Monmouthshire, Wales, is often accepted as the namesake of Tinton Falls. In 1691, Colonel Morris died, leaving the ironworks and Tinton Manor (a corruption of "Tintern Manor") to his nephew of the same name. By 1714, the ironworks had become less profitable, but mention of a Tinton Falls ironworks can be found as late as 1844. Morris brought in dozens of African slaves to mine the ore resulting in the nickname the "Iron Plantation", with the highest number of slaves being in Tinton Falls at that time in the colony of New Jersey, though in the mid-18th century it had the largest number of emancipated slaves in the 13 colonies, as residents followed the preaching of abolitionist John Woolman.
Separation from Shrewsbury Township In 1693, Tinton Manor and the surrounding lands were defined as part of Shrewsbury Township. At this time, Shrewsbury included all of the land in eastern Monmouth County, but lost land due to the creation of a large number of new municipalities over the years, including the borough of Shrewsbury in 1926. In July 1950, Tinton Falls and Wayside left Shrewsbury Township, renaming themselves the Borough of New Shrewsbury. To avoid postal confusion and mix-ups with the surrounding borough and township of Shrewsbury, the residents of New Shrewsbury voted to rename the community as "The Borough of Tinton Falls" in 1975.Phalon, Richard. "Towns Act to End A Mixup on Names; Towns Seek to End Mixup Over Towns", The New York Times, April 20, 1975. Accessed October 28, 2013. "What's in a name? Confusion, if you happen to live in the Monmouth County community of New Shrewsbury (as distinguished from neighboring Shrewsbury Township and the Borough of Shrewsbury) or in the Ocean County community of Dover Township (as distinguished from, Dover, which is in Morris County, well to the north)."
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 15.60 square miles (40.41 km2), including 15.48 square miles (40.08 km2) of land and 0.13 square miles (0.33 km2) of water (0.83%).
Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the borough include Wayside.Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed May 21, 2015. Green Grove, Hockhockson, Macedonia, Pine Brook, Reevytown, West Shrewsbury and Wileys Corner are other unincorporated communities located partly or completely within the borough.
The borough borders the Monmouth County municipalities of Colts Neck Township, Eatontown, Middletown Township, Neptune Township, Ocean Township, Red Bank, Shrewsbury, Shrewsbury Township and Wall Township.Areas touching Tinton Falls, MapIt. Accessed March 11, 2020.Regional Location Map, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Accessed March 11, 2020.New Jersey Municipal Boundaries, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.
Demographics
2020 census As of the 2020 census, Tinton Falls had a population of 19,181. The median age was 48.4 years. 16.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 25.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 80.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 76.9 males age 18 and over.
98.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 1.2% lived in rural areas.
There were 8,500 households in Tinton Falls, of which 21.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 45.0% were married-couple households, 13.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 36.0% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 37.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 22.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 8,972 housing units, of which 5.3% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 9.6%.
+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census Race Number Percent White 14,445 75.3% Black or African American 1,667 8.7% American Indian and Alaska Native 59 0.3% Asian 1,047 5.5% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0 0.0% Some other race 580 3.0% Two or more races 1,383 7.2% Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 1,694 8.8%
2010 census
The 2010 United States census counted 17,892 people, 8,355 households, and 4,462 families in the borough. The population density was . There were 8,766 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 82.39% (14,741) White, 9.34% (1,672) Black or African American, 0.13% (23) Native American, 4.67% (835) Asian, 0.02% (4) Pacific Islander, 1.31% (235) from other races, and 2.14% (382) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.25% (1,118) of the population.
Of the 8,355 households, 21.9% had children under the age of 18; 43.7% were married couples living together; 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present and 46.6% were non-families. Of all households, 42.3% were made up of individuals and 27.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.95.
19.0% of the population were under the age of 18, 4.9% from 18 to 24, 23.2% from 25 to 44, 27.4% from 45 to 64, and 25.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.9 years. For every 100 females, the population had 78.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 74.2 males.
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $78,894 (with a margin of error of +/− $4,470) and the median family income was $99,231 (+/− $8,633). Males had a median income of $72,478 (+/− $8,954) versus $53,956 (+/− $7,492) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $40,149 (+/− $2,077). About 3.2% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.2% of those under age 18 and 3.7% of those age 65 or over.DP03: Selected Economic Characteristics from the 2006–2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates for Tinton Falls borough, Monmouth County, New Jersey , United States Census Bureau. Accessed August 1, 2012.
2000 census As of the 2000 United States census there were 15,053 people, 5,883 households, and 3,976 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 6,211 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 78.80% White, 13.04% African American, 0.24% Native American, 4.96% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.04% from other races, and 1.90% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.70% of the population.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Tinton Falls borough, New Jersey, United States Census Bureau. Accessed August 1, 2012.DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 – Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Tinton Falls borough, Monmouth County, New Jersey , United States Census Bureau. Accessed August 1, 2012.