Somerville is a borough in and the county seat of Somerset County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New Jersey County Map, New Jersey Department of State. Accessed December 22, 2022.Somerset County, New Jersey, National Association of Counties. Accessed January 15, 2023. The borough is located in the heart of the Raritan Valley region within the New York Metropolitan Area, located about from Manhattan and from Staten Island.Distance from Somerville, NJ to New York, NY, Distance between cities. Accessed May 31, 2022.Distance from Somerville, NJ to Tottenville, Staten Island, New York, NY, Distance between cities. May 31, 2022.Cheslow, Jerry. "Living In: Somerville, N.J.: A Walkable Suburban Alternative", The New York Times, August 14, 2019. Accessed May 31, 2022. The borough has grown to become a commercial hub for Central Jersey and commuter town of New York City.

As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 12,346, an increase of 248 (+2.0%) from the 2010 census count of 12,098, which in turn reflected a decline of 325 (-2.6%) from the 12,423 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.

Somerville was originally formed as a town on March 25, 1863, within a portion of Bridgewater Township. Somerville was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 16, 1909, based on the results of a referendum held on May 4, 1909, at which point it was fully set off from Bridgewater Township.Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 225. Accessed May 30, 2024. It is home of the oldest competitive bicycle race in the United States.

The borough is named for Somerset in England.Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed August 21, 2015.Gannett, Henry. The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States, p. 286. United States Government Printing Office, 1905. Accessed August 21, 2015. "Somerset; counties in Maine, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, named from the county in England."

History

Early development Somerville was settled in colonial times primarily by the Dutch who purchased land from the English proprietors of the colony. The Dutch established their church near what is today Somerville and a Dutch Reformed minister or Domine lived at the Old Dutch Parsonage from about 1754. The early village grew up around a church, courthouse and a tavern built at a crossroads shortly after the American Revolution. The name "Somerville" was taken from four brothers of the Somerville family, Edward, John and James from Drishane and Castlehaven, County Cork, Ireland, who first founded the town in the 1750s. Somerville was originally a sparsely populated farming community, but rapidly grew after the completion of the railroad in the 1840s and development of water power along the Raritan River in the 1850s. Early industry included brick making from the plentiful red clay and shale on which Somerville is built. While much of the borough features distinctive Victorian architecture in several neighborhoods and along its Main Street, other periods are represented. National Register sites in Somerville include the white marble 1909 Somerville Court House and the wooden and stone colonial Wallace House (today a museum) where George Washington spent a winter during the American Revolutionary War. Near the Wallace House is the Old Dutch Parsonage, where Reverend Jacob Rutsen Hardenbergh, a founder and first president of Rutgers University, then called Queens College, lived. Register listed Victorian structures include the James Harper Smith Estate (privately owned), St. John's Episcopal Church and rectory, and the Fire Museum (a vintage fire house). Other notable, register eligible structures are the Victorian train station (privately owned) and the municipal building, the former Robert Mansion.History , Borough of Somerville. Accessed March 8, 2020.

Originally the center of local commerce, the borough has evolved into a destination for boutique retail and dining. Modern highways today surround and traverse Somerville, including U.S. Route 22, U.S. Route 202, U.S. Route 206 and Route 28 and is within of Interstate 287 and Interstate 78, making it an important hub in central New Jersey.

Tour of Somerville In 1940, the first competitive bicycle race, called the Tour of Somerville was established by bicycle shop owner, Fred Kugler, to showcase his son, Furman, who was a national cycling champion, and who won the initial men's competition. His daughter, Mildred won the women's. The race is held annually and has since become the oldest competitive bicycle race in the U.S.Nieto-Munoz, Sophie. "Tour of Somerville, oldest bike race in U.S., draws thousands as top cyclists compete", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, May 27, 2019. Accessed March 8, 2020. "For the 76th year, thousands of people lined up along Main Street in Somerville to catch a glimpse of the oldest major bike race in the country and one of the most highly anticipated in the world." It carries a purse of $10,000 for each winner of the women's and men's races.

Downtown today

Somerville remains Somerset County's downtown and is the heart of its designated regional center, drawing visitors for shopping and dining. Main Street Somerville maintains most of its historical buildings, although many have been converted for retail uses. Restaurants in Somerville draw people from the surrounding area. Several of the factories in Somerville were abandoned and replaced with modern office buildings or remodeled as apartments. Somerville has had an important African American community, a distinguished member of which was Paul Robeson. Character actor Lee Van Cleef was also a resident. One of the founders of modern American Dance, Ruth St. Denis, made her professional debut at Somerset Hall, once a vaudeville theatre and today a local restaurant.

Future redevelopment The shopping center on the west side of the downtown area was demolished and a new shopping center, town homes and other amenities will be built on the shopping center land and on adjacent land in the former borough landfill to the south. Ground was broken for a new "world class" ShopRite supermarket in March 2011 and opened in November 2011.Mustac, Frank. "Somerville holds groundbreaking for new ShopRite supermarket; Photo gallery", Independent Press, March 22, 2011. Accessed February 3, 2015. Borough planners envision a transit village style redevelopment centered around the Somerville train station.Garlic, Tiffani N. "Somerville named a Transit Village", The Star-Ledger, July 8, 2010. Accessed May 3, 2012. "New Jersey officials hope Somerville being named an official Transit Village community by the state Department of Transportation today will help jump-start the local economy."

Hurricane Floyd Somerville was hit hard by Hurricane Floyd in September 1999, despite its having been downgraded to a tropical storm by the time it impacted the vicinity. The borough received a record of rain over three days during the slow moving storm, causing significant flooding and considerable damage.Post Storm Report...Hurricane Floyd, National Weather Service. Accessed May 3, 2012.

Regulation concerns Numerous local and national media publications reported on how the state of New Jersey had eased regulations allowing for home baked goods to be made and sold from a home, but how Somerville in particular still suffers from, "...[a] draconian ordinance that creates a contradiction between Somerville's zoning policies and New Jersey's home baking law..." making it difficult for a small business owner or entrepreneur to try and earn a living in this fashion in Somerville.Intersimone, Jenna. "NJ home bakers can now sell their goodies, but Somerville is saying no", Courier News, June 22, 2022. Accessed July 2, 2022. "Somerville resident Maria Winter is exactly the type of home baker that New Jersey's new law permitting the sale of home-baked goods was supposed to benefit.... Her application for a home business zoning permit, which would allow her to sell the sugar cookies from her 150-square-foot kitchen, was denied by Somerville for the first time in February. Winter was told by borough officials that she needed a zoning variance, pay a $1,000 application fee, deposit $4,000 into a borough escrow account, publish a public notice in the newspaper and notify all property owners within 200 feet of her home that there would be a public hearing on her application." In order to be able to make her cookies and sell them from her home kitchen was required "... to pay a $1,000 application fee and put $4,000 into a borough escrow account", in addition to notifying neighbors, placing a public notice advertisement and having a public hearing on the application.Harrigan, Fiona. "A New Jersey Town Wants To Charge This Woman $5,000 To Sell Cookies Somerville still has costly regulations on the books even though New Jersey has legalized the sale of home-baked items.", Reason, June 27, 2022. Accessed July 2, 2022.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 2.37 square miles (6.13 km2), including 2.34 square miles (6.06 km2) of land and 0.03 square miles (0.07 km2) of water (1.18%). The borough's territory is flat land. Somerville borders the Raritan River to the south and is crossed by Peters Brook, a tributary.

The borough borders Bridgewater Township, Hillsborough Township and Raritan.Areas touching Somerville, MapIt. Accessed March 8, 2020.Municipalities, Somerset County, New Jersey. Accessed March 8, 2020.New Jersey Municipal Boundaries, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.

Climate Somerville's climate is warm during summer when temperatures tend to be in the 80s and 90s and cold during winter when temperatures tend to be in the 20s and 30s.

The warmest month of the year is July with an average maximum temperature of 84.40 degrees Fahrenheit, while the coldest month of the year is January with an average minimum temperature of .

Temperature variations between night and day tend to be moderate during summer with a difference that can reach 22 degrees Fahrenheit, and fairly limited during winter with an average difference of 19 degrees Fahrenheit.

The annual average precipitation at Somerville is . Rainfall in is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. The wettest month of the year is July with an average rainfall of .

The climate is hot-summer humid continental (Dfa) bordering humid subtropical (Cfa). January averages below freezing, six months average above , and July and August average above . The hardiness zone was changed from 6b to 7a.2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, United States Department of Agriculture. Accessed December 10, 2023.

Demographics

2020 census As of the 2020 census, Somerville had a population of 12,346. The median age was 36.1 years. 19.1% of residents were under the age of 18 and 12.5% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 102.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 102.1 males age 18 and over.

100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.

There were 5,050 households in Somerville, of which 27.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 40.1% were married-couple households, 23.5% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 27.4% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 33.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.