North Branch is an unincorporated community and hamlet located mostly within Branchburg, in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States.[2] A portion of North Branch is located in Bridgewater. The hamlet of North Branch, located on both sides of the North Branch of the Raritan River, brings the ambiance of a small village and charm to the area.
North Branch, New Jersey | |
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Coordinates: 40°36′07″N 74°40′39″W / 40.60194°N 74.67750°W | |
Country | ![]() |
State | ![]() |
County | Somerset |
Township | Branchburg |
Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
GNIS feature ID | 878824 [1] |
The North Branch Volunteer Fire Company provides fire protection to western Bridgewater Township and northern Branchburg Township. The company's 30 volunteers cover almost 12 square miles (31 km2) and 15,000 residents.
Education
editThe Branchburg portion of the area is home to the Midland School, a school serving students with developmental disabilities from a number of public school districts. In 2005, the Bridgewater-Raritan Regional School District opened Milltown School, an elementary school located on the east bank of the North Branch river.
Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) is located north of the intersection of old Route 28 and Lamington Road on a 240-acre (97 ha) site acquired in 1968.[3] Rutgers University has a partnership with Raritan Valley Community College that allows students who have an associate degree to complete a bachelor's degree through the off-campus Rutgers location at Raritan Valley Community College's North Branch campus.[4]
Notable people
editPeople who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with North Branch include:
- Raymond Bateman (1927–2016), politician, who represented Somerset County in the New Jersey Senate in the 1960s and 1970s and was the Republican candidate for Governor of New Jersey in 1977.[5]
- Daniel H. Beekman (1874-1951), Judge of the Somerset County Court of Common Pleas, President of the Second National Bank of Somerville, and Democratic politician.[6]
- Robert Cox (1813–1890), politician who served in the Michigan House of Representatives.[7]
Points of interest
editHistoric district
editThe North Branch Historic District on the western side of the North Branch was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 16, 2012.
Surrounding area
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ "North Branch". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed June 8, 2016.
- ^ History, Mission, Diversity Statement & Core Values, Raritan Valley Community College. Accessed June 26, 2016. "In July of 1968, the College found a permanent home with the purchase of a 240-acre site in North Branch."
- ^ About Raritan Valley, Rutgers at Raritan Valley Community College. Accessed June 26, 2016. "Raritan Valley Community College sits on the north side of Route 28 in North Branch, at the crossroads of Central New Jersey. Routes 22, 202 and 206, and interstates 287 and 78 are just minutes away."
- ^ Deak, Mike; Grzella, Paul. "Raymond Bateman, Somerset County's public servant, has died", Courier News, June 25, 2016. Accessed June 26, 2016. "After retiring from political life, Bateman devoted himself to Raritan Valley Community, which was literally in the backyard of his home in the North Branch section of Branchburg."
- ^ Scannell, John James (1919). Scannell's New Jersey's First Citizens and State Guide (Vol. II ed.). Paterson, NJ: J.J. Scannell. p. 46. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
- ^ Michigan Biographies: Including Members of Congress, Elective State Officers, Justices of the Supreme Court, Members of the Michigan Legislature, Board of Regents of the University of Michigan, State Board of Agriculture and State Board of Education, Volume 1, p. 205. Michigan Historical Commission, 1924. Accessed October 29, 2020. "Robert Cox - Representative from Hillsdale County 1861-2. Was born in North Branch, N. J., Apr. 30 1813."