Basking Ridge is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within Bernards Township in the Somerset Hills region of Somerset County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.
Settled during colonial times, Basking Ridge is in the Raritan Valley and is a commercial hub for northern-central New Jersey and is a commuter town of New York City. It was home to the old AT&T Headquarters, now operated by Verizon. Basking Ridge is the current headquarters for Collabera, Verizon Wireless, Peraton Labs, Lawyer.com, and Barnes & Noble College Booksellers. The community also hosts a train station along the Gladstone Branch (one of the two branches of the Morris & Essex Lines), which connects to Hoboken Terminal and New York Penn Station.
The community of Basking Ridge is part of greater Bernards Township, which also includes the neighborhoods of Liberty Corner, Lyons and West Millington.
It was first listed as a CDP in the 2020 census with a population of 7,196.
History
Basking Ridge was originally settled in the 1720s by British Presbyterians escaping religious persecution. The land was bought from the Lenape Native Americans.
Bernards Township was officially chartered on May 21, 1760, granted by King George II and granted to Sir Francis Bernard, first governor of the noted section which includes Basking Ridge.
On the morning of December 13, 1776, General Charles Lee was captured by the British at Widow White's tavern. Lee had ranked next to Washington in command.
A referendum to create an independent borough of Basking Ridge failed in June 1921. Voters rejected the proposed borough by a more than 4–1 margin.
The downtown area of Bernards Township known as Basking Ridge was added to the New Jersey and National Registries as a Historic District. on August 8, 1974.
Demographics
2020 census
Prior to 2020, demographic data was based on the United States Census Bureau figures for the ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA) for the 07920 ZIP Code. As of the 2010 census, the population for the ZIP Code Tabulation Area (ZCTA) 07920 was 26,747.
2000 census
As of the 2000 United States census there were 24,600 people, 9,300 households, and 6,517 families residing in the ZCTA. The population density was . There were 9,537 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the ZCTA was 89.2% Caucasian, 1.4% African American, 0.1% Native American, 7.8% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.4% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. 2.6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 9,300 households, out of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.8% were married couples living together, 5.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.9% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.15.
In the ZCTA the population was spread out, with 27.3% under the age of 18 , 3.2% from 18 to 24 , 31.2% from 25 to 44 , 25.4% from 45 to 64 , and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.3 years.
The median income for a household in the ZCTA was $105,471, and the median income for a family was $131,618. Males had a median income of $93,436 versus $60,101 for females. The per capita income for the ZCTA was $54,753. 1.4% of the population and 0.6% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 1.2% of those under the age of 18 and 2.8% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Arts and culture
Cultural events
Basking Ridge has an annual event in May called Charter Day. Many rides are set up in the Oak Street field—a bounce house, inflatable race tracks, and spinning rides. Also, in the center of the town hundreds of stands are set up mostly promoting school sports, but there are also many kettle corn stands, which is a traditional food children eat during Charter Day. At night, the traditional Battle of the Bands takes place, which many teenagers sign up for to play their favorite songs.