Somerset, New Jersey



Somerset is a census-designated place and unincorporated area located at the easternmost section within Franklin Township, in Somerset County, New Jersey. At the 2000 United States Census, the CDP population was 23,040. Somerset housed one of the first Marconi Wireless Stations in the United States.

Demographics
At the 2000 census, there were 23,040 people, 8,238 households and 5,799 families residing in the CDP. The population density was 4,322.7 per square mile (1,669.0/km2). There were 8,424 housing units at an average density of 1,580.5/sq mi (610.2/km2). The racial makeup of the CDP was 43.94% White, 38.55% African American, 0.26% Native American, 8.23% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 6.04% from other races, and 2.94% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.00% of the population.

There were 8,238 households of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.6% were married couples living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.6% were non-families. 22.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78 and the average family size was 3.29.

24.0% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 94.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.9 males.

The median household income was $65,831 and the median family income was $73,040 (these figures had risen to $76,053 and $86,204 respectively in a 2007 estimate ). Males had a median income of $50,309 versus $36,162 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $26,798. About 4.9% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.9% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

Marconi Station
New Brunswick Marconi Station was located at JFK Boulevard and Easton Avenue just a few minutes from the New Brunswick border. Today it is the site of Marconi Park. It was an early radio transmitter facility built in 1913 and operated by the American Marconi Wireless Corporation. After the partial failure of transatlantic telegraph cables, the facility was confiscated by the United States Navy on April 7, 1917, to provide transatlantic communications during World War I. The New Brunswick Naval Radio Station was the principal wartime communication link between the United States and Europe, using the callsign NFF. President Woodrow Wilson's Fourteen Points speech was transmitted from the site in 1918. After the war, ownership of the station, along with Marconi's other US assets, was transferred from the Navy to RCA. The antenna masts were demolished in 1952 to make room for what is now a small mall containing a Kmart, but the buildings on the other side of JFK Boulevard were spared. All but one of the brick buildings were demolished around 2004 to make way for a storage locker facility. The bricks and tiles were saved for use in any future restoration of the spared building, and the Marconi facility in Belmar, New Jersey.

The station used a huge 5000 ft antenna supported by eight 400 ft steel masts, similar to the AT&T long wave telephone transmitter at RCA's Rocky Point, Long Island, transmitter facility. During World War I, the original Marconi spark transmitter was replaced with an Alexanderson alternator, the invention of the famous General Electric engineer, with an output power of 200 kilowatts and looking like an ordinary power station generator. Its frequency was around 17 kHz, which made its wavelength around 17,500 meters.

Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Somerset include:
 * Upendra J. Chivukula (born 1950), represents the 17th legislative district in the New Jersey General Assembly, and has served on the Franklin Township Council since 1997, serving as its Mayor in 2000 and its Deputy Mayor in 1998.
 * Roy Hinson (born 1961), 1st round draft pick of the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1983 who played for eight seasons in the NBA.
 * Joe Pace (born 1953), played for the NBA Washington Bullets from 1976 to 1978.