Community Profile: Ocean County, NJ

Historical Information

Ocean County was created from lands that were originally part of Monmouth County in 1850. It consisted of six original townships: Brick, Dover, Jackson, Plumsted, Stafford, and Union (now Barnegat). For much of its early history, the agriculture and fishing industries made up Ocean County’s principal economic activities. The area’s transformation into a summer tourism and resort destination began in the latter part of the 19th century. The opening of the Garden State Parkway in 1954, which provided access to a large amount of undeveloped and inexpensive land within commuting distance of New York, spurred significant population growth in the county during the latter part of the 20th century. Since 1960, Ocean County has been New Jersey’s fastest growing county, going from little more than 100,000 to over 500,000 in 40 years, with large-scale commuter-oriented development in the northern townships of Brick, Dover, and Lakewood. Since construction of New Jersey’s first retirement community in Lakewood in 1963, the county has come to contain the state’s largest concentration of retirement communities.

While Ocean County’s renowned beach towns (which include Surf City, Long Beach, and Seaside Heights) are the backbone of its principal economic engine, tourism, the area’s economy has diversified along with its growing year-round population. The area’s health-care industry, in particular, has experienced significant growth in recent years and is now among its top employers, reflecting in large part the county’s concentration of retirement communities.

Historical data for Ocean County, NJ can be found at the following websites:

Last updated: Monday, October 29, 2007

Report Sections

Introduction

Historical Information

Demographics and Economic Data

Financial Institutions and Market Share Data

Community Organizations

Funding Sources

Map Your Community

Print All Data

Community Profiles Main Page

Contact Us

Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia
Community Development Studies and Education Department
Ten Independence Mall
Philadelphia, PA 19106-1574

(215) 574-6458 – phone
(215) 574-2512 – fax
info.communitydevelopment
@phil.frb.org

View All Contacts