Garfield is a city in Bergen County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 32,655, an increase of 2,168 (+7.1%) from the 2010 census count of 30,487, which in turn reflected an increase of 701 (+2.4%) from the 29,786 counted in the 2000 census.
History
Long the home of the Lenape, Native Americans, European settlement in the area that would become Garfield dates back to 1679, when Jacques Cortelyou acquired more than of land surrounding the Passaic River known as "Acqueyquinonke", that ran from the Saddle River to present day Glen Rock.
When the area that is now Garfield was first developed in 1873 with an initial group of seven homes constructed by Gilbert D. Bogart, it was known as East Passaic.
In 1881, the community's name was changed to Garfield in honor of President of the United States James Garfield. There are two explanations given for the circumstances behind the renaming. According to one, shortly after Garfield was elected to the presidency the founder of East Passaic said, "tell everyone...don't speak of East Passaic anymore; call it 'Garfield' after the man who will lead this great country to prosperity." Seven months later, President Garfield was assassinated but his name remained with the community. The second theory holds that after Garfield's death in 1881, a new train station was named in his honor, which in turn led to the surrounding area becoming associated with his name as well.
Garfield was originally incorporated as a borough on March 15, 1898, from portions of Saddle River Township and Wallington. At the time, the New Jersey Legislature set Garfield's boundaries as they exist today. On April 19, 1917, the borough became the City of Garfield, based on the results of a referendum held two days earlier.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city had a total area of 2.19 square miles (5.67 km2), including 2.11 square miles (5.47 km2) of land and 0.08 square miles (0.21 km2) of water (3.65%).
Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the township include Belmont, Bogart Heights, Dundee Dam and Plauderville.
The city has land borders with adjacent Elmwood Park, Lodi, Saddle Brook and South Hackensack. The Saddle River is a shared border with Wallington. There are three bridges over the Passaic River crossing the municipal and county line to Passaic and Clifton in Passaic County.
Environment
The United States Environmental Protection Agency has identified Garfield as the site of groundwater contaminated hexavalent chromium from a spill in 1983 at the E.C. Electroplating Corporation site. In 2016, the EPA announced a $37 million project to cleanup contamination at the site using Superfund money, as the company responsible for the spill of of chromic acid is no longer in business.
Demographics
Based on data from the 2011–2015 American Community Survey, the city had a median age of 35.4, the lowest median age in the county. Garfield was one of four municipalities with a median age below the national and state average of 37.6, and well below the median age of 41.5 in Bergen County.
The borough is also home to the architecturally prominent Russian Orthodox Church of Three Saints, which serves the growing Ukrainian American community in western Bergen County.
2010 census
The 2010 United States census counted 30,487 people, 11,073 households, and 7,718 families in the city. The population density was . There were 11,788 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 76.73% (23,393) White, 6.50% (1,981) Black or African American, 0.43% (132) Native American, 2.22% (678) Asian, 0.01% (2) Pacific Islander, 10.85% (3,307) from other races, and 3.26% (994) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 32.24% (9,830) of the population.
Of the 11,073 households, 33.4% had children under the age of 18; 45.2% were married couples living together; 17.8% had a female householder with no husband present and 30.3% were non-families. Of all households, 24.7% were made up of individuals and 9.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.29.
23.3% of the population were under the age of 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 30.9% from 25 to 44, 25.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35.5 years. For every 100 females, the population had 91.3 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 89.0 males.