Editing Tabernacle Township, New Jersey (section)

==History==
The area now known as Tabernacle was originally inhabited by the [[Lenape]] [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]]. In 1778, John Brainerd established a Christian church called "Tabernacle in the Wilderness," with the aim of converting the local Native American population to [[Christianity]].<ref>Darrow, Chuck. [http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006610190363 "Tabernacle: Community has roots in religion"], ''[[Courier-Post]]'', October 18, 2006. Accessed June 19, 2015.</ref> In 1803, William Wilkins sold land to 28 individuals for the creation of Tabernacle Cemetery, which was located adjacent to the church.<ref name=HomePage>[http://www.townshipoftabernacle-nj.gov/ Home page], Tabernacle Township. Accessed January 22, 2012.</ref>

The church also served as a [[school]]house, but as the community expanded, a one-room schoolhouse was built in 1856 at the future location of Tabernacle Town Hall. A sawmill was constructed in the Friendship area in the early 1700s, and around 1860, Gilbert Knight built the Knight-Pepper House near the Town Hall. The property subsequently passed to the Scott and Pepper families, and upon the death of Clara Pepper in 1987, it was donated to the Tabernacle Historic Society. In the 1880s, the Tabernacle Methodist Episcopal Church was constructed on the original site, where it still stands today.<ref>[http://www.njchurchscape.com/Tabernacle-ME.html Tabernacle Methodist Episcopal Church], The New Jersey Churchscape. Accessed January 22, 2012.</ref>

Tabernacle became an incorporated township on March 22, 1901, through an act of the [[New Jersey Legislature]], incorporating portions of [[Shamong Township, New Jersey|Shamong Township]], [[Southampton Township, New Jersey|Southampton Township]], and [[Woodland Township, New Jersey|Woodland Township]].<ref name="Story" />

On July 13, 1928, [[Emilio Carranza]], known as the "[[Charles Lindbergh|Lindbergh]] of Mexico," tragically crashed in Tabernacle during a storm while flying from New York City to Mexico. The Carranza Memorial was erected in his memory, funded by Mexican schoolchildren, and Hampton Gates Road was subsequently renamed Carranza Road in his honor.<ref name="HomePage" />

In 1909, the one-room schoolhouse was demolished and replaced by a [[two-room school]]house; it was relocated down the road in 1936, and two additional rooms were added.{{Citation needed|date=June 2024}} In the 1950s, the Tabernacle Elementary School was constructed on New Road, and Olson Middle School (previously Tabernacle Middle School) was built across the road in 1968. Following the death of Kenneth R. Olson in 1990, the [[Tabernacle School District]] renamed the school in his honor. In 2003, [[Seneca High School (New Jersey)|Seneca High School]] was established to serve high school students from Tabernacle, Shamong, Southampton, and Woodland Townships.

In 1970, the population of Tabernacle was 2,103. By 1980, the population had nearly tripled to 6,236, reflecting the rapid suburbanization of the [[Delaware Valley]] in [[South Jersey]]. The population peaked at 7,362 in [[1990 United States census|1990]], but has been gradually decreasing since then, with 7,170 residents recorded in [[2000 United States census|2000]], and 6,949 in the [[2010 United States census|2010 census]].