Mercer County, New Jersey

Mercer County is a located in the  of. Its is. Since the, Mercer County has been part of the ; before then, it was part of the. Mercer County is its own, which is formally named the Trenton-Ewing MSA. The county is named for , who died at the  in 1777. As of the, the population was 350,761, estimated to have risen to 367,605 as of 2006. Mercer County ranks 79th among the with a per capita income of $27,914.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 593 (229 ). 585 km² (226 sq mi) of it is land and 8 km² (3 sq mi) of it is. The total area is 1.27% water.

The county is generally flat and low-lying on the inner coastal plain with a few hills closer to the. Baldpate Mountain near, is the highest hill, at 480 feet (146.3 m) above sea level. The lowest point is at sea level along the Delaware.

Adjacent Counties

 * - north
 * - northeast
 * - east
 * - south
 * - west
 * - northwest

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 350,761 people, 125,807 households, and 86,303 families residing in the county. The was 599/km² (1,552/sq mi). There were 133,280 housing units at an average density of 228/km² (590/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 68.48%, 19.81% or , 0.20% , 4.94% , 0.10% , 4.29% from , and 2.17% from two or more races. 9.66% of the population were or  of any race. 15.5% were of, 9.7% , 8.2% , 6.7% and 5.7%  ancestry according to.

There were 125,807 households out of which 32.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.60% were living together, 13.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.40% were non-families. 25.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.16.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.00% under the age of 18, 10.20% from 18 to 24, 30.60% from 25 to 44, 22.50% from 45 to 64, and 12.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 94.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $56,613, and the median income for a family was $68,494. Males had a median income of $47,444 versus $34,788 for females. The for the county was $27,914. About 5.90% of families and 8.60% of the population were below the, including 10.60% of those under age 18 and 8.40% of those age 65 or over.

Government
Mercer County has a form of government, in which the County Executive performs executive functions and a Board of Chosen Freeholders acts in a legislative capacity. The County Executive as of 2006 is. Members of the seven-person are elected at-large to serve three-year staggered terms. The Board has a Chair and Vice-Chair, and these positions are rotated amongst board members each year.

The Freeholder Board acts as a formulator of policy and provides a check on the powers of the County Executive. The Board also approves all county contracts and gives advice and consent to the County Executive’s appointments of department heads, and appointments to boards and commissions. After receiving the proposed county budget from the County Executive in January of each year, it is the duty of the Freeholder Board to thoroughly review, make appropriate changes, and then vote on the budget.

Mercer County is one of the New Jersey Democratic Party's strongholds in terms of statewide elections.

As of 2007, Mercer County's Freeholders are:
 * Freeholder Chair Pasquale "Pat" Colavita, Jr. (term ends, ; )
 * Freeholder Vice Chair Lucylle R. S. Walter (2008; )
 * Ann M. Cannon (2009; )
 * Anthony P. Carabelli (2007; )
 * Keith V. Hamilton (2007; )
 * Tony Mack (2008; )
 * Elizabeth Maher Muoio (2006; )

Transportation
Mercer County has a few state routes, as well as U.S. Routes, and Interstates. Mercer also boasts its stations, including, , and. The state routes that pass through Mercer are, , , , and. There are three US Routes that pass through Mercer, which are:, and.

When it comes to "confusion of the Interstates," Mercer County houses the "abrupt ending" of in. This resulted from politics in Somerset County that eliminated its planned connection to I-287. Motorists are then forced to find an alternate route, either by taking US 1 north, or (are directed by signs) to take the, to the to the.

Municipalities
The following municipalities are located in Mercer County. The municipality type is listed in parentheses after the name, except where the type is included as part of the name. s and other are listed under their municipalities.
 * (borough)
 * (borough)
 * (known as Washington Township until November 2007)
 * (city)
 * (borough)
 * (borough)
 * (known as Washington Township until November 2007)
 * (city)
 * (borough)
 * (known as Washington Township until November 2007)
 * (city)
 * (borough)
 * (known as Washington Township until November 2007)
 * (city)
 * (known as Washington Township until November 2007)
 * (city)
 * (known as Washington Township until November 2007)
 * (city)
 * (city)
 * (city)
 * (city)

History
Officially founded in 1838 and carved out of other surrounding counties, Mercer County has a historical impact that reaches back to the pivotal battles of the. On the night of, , General led the American forces across the  to attack  forces in , who did not anticipate an attack near. Washington followed up the assault with a surprise attack on General ' forces in the on the eve of, , eventually retaking the colony. The successful attacks built morale among the pro-independence colonists.

Mercer County also has the dubious distinction of being the famed landing spot for a Martian invasion of the United States. In 1938, in what has become one of the most famous radio plays of all time, acted out his  invasion. Wells landed his imaginary aliens on Mercer County soil, using what is now as the point of first contact. A monument commemorating the "landing" is erected at.

Media

 * The Homesteader - Greater Princeton Edition (magazine)
 * The Homesteader - Greater Princeton Edition (magazine)