Highland Park, New Jersey

Template:Short description Template:Use American English Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox settlement Highland Park is a borough in Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, in the New York City metropolitan area. The borough is located on the northern banks of the Raritan River, in the Raritan Valley region. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 15,072,<ref name=Census2020/><ref name=LWD2020/> an increase of 1,090 (+7.8%) from the 2010 census count of 13,982,<ref name=Census2010/><ref name=LWD2010/> which in turn reflected a decline of 17 (−0.1%) from the 13,999 counted in the 2000 census.<ref>Table 7. Population for the Counties and Municipalities in New Jersey: 1990, 2000 and 2010, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, February 2011. Accessed May 1, 2023.</ref>

Highland Park was formed as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 15, 1905, when it broke away from what was then known as Raritan Township (present-day Edison).<ref name=Story>Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 170. Accessed May 28, 2024.</ref> The borough was named for its location above the Raritan River.<ref>Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed September 1, 2015.</ref>

History

The earliest settlers of the land that would become Highland Park were the Lenape Native Americans, who hunted in the hills along the Raritan River and had trails that crisscrossed the area, providing a link between the Delaware River and Hudson River areas.<ref name=NYT2000>Cheslow, Jerry. "If You're Thinking of Living In/Highland Park, N.J.; Small in Size but Large in Diversity", The New York Times, October 8, 2000. Accessed December 4, 2019. "Raritan Avenue was originally part of the Leni Lenape Indian Assunpink Trail, a path that connected the Hudson and Delaware River Valleys."</ref> In 1685, John Inian bought land on both shores of the Raritan River and built two new landings downstream from the Assunpink Trail's fording place, which was later developed as Raritan Landing. He established a ferry service and the main road then was redirected to lead straight to the ferry landing. This river crossing was run by generations of different owners and a ferry house tavern operated for many years in the 18th century.<ref name=BoroughofHomes>Kolva, Jeanne; and Pisciotta, Joanne. Highland Park; Borough of Homes, pp. 18–19. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2005. Template:ISBN. Accessed May 1, 2012.</ref> A toll bridge replaced the ferry in 1795. The wood plank Albany Street Bridge was dismantled in 1848 and reconstructed in 1853. The present day seven-span stone arch road bridge was built in 1892 and stretches Template:Convert across the Raritan River to New Brunswick.<ref>Richman, Steven M. The Bridges of New Jersey: Portraits of Garden State Crossings, p. 24. Accessed December 15, 2019. "Originally built in 1892, the Albany Street Bridge in New Brunswick was altered in 1924, widened in 1929 and 1954, and fitted with a new deck and railings in 1985.... The seven spans of this 595-foot-long bridge carry Albany Street, with its portion of Route 27 (also known as the Lincoln Highway), through New Brunswick and across the Raritan River to Highland Park."</ref> It became the Lincoln Highway Bridge in 1914 and was widened in 1925.<ref>Hatala, Greg. "Glimpse of History: A crossing spot that spans centuries", The Star-Ledger, February 12, 2012, updated March 30, 2019. Accessed December 15, 2019. "A stone-arch bridge was built in 1892 and widened in 1925. The Albany Street Bridge has undergone many renovations, but the stone base constructed in 1892 still serves as its foundation."</ref>

In the late 17th century, Henry Greenland became one of the area's first European settlers; he owned nearly Template:Convert of land on the Mill Brook section of the Assunpink Trail, where he operated an inn for travelers. Others early settlers included Captain Francis Drake and other members of the Drake family, relatives of the famous explorer. In the early 18th century, a few wealthy Europeans including the Van Horns and Merrills settled on large tracts of land establishing an isolated farmstead pattern of development that would continue for the next 150 years.<ref>Ducca Sr., William F. "Highland Park - Its Beginnings", Rutgers University. Accessed May 1, 2012.</ref>

The Reverend John Henry Livingston of the famous Livingston family, newly chosen head of Queen's College (now Rutgers University), purchased a Template:Convert plot of land in 1809, which would hereafter be known as the Livingston Manor. A gracious Greek Revival house built around 1843 by Robert and Louisa Livingston stands on this property, which remains Highland Park's most prominent historic house. The Livingston Homestead, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, was owned by the Waldron family throughout most of the 20th century.<ref>Spies, Stacy. National Register nomination for Livingston Homestead (Washington, D.C., National Park Service, 2001).</ref>

In the early 19th century, both the Delaware & Raritan Canal and a railroad were constructed largely to serve the commercial center of New Brunswick across the river.Template:Citation needed In 1836, the New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Company built a rail line that terminated on the Highland Park side of the Raritan River and established a station named "East New Brunswick."<ref name=History>Kolva, Jeanne. History of Highland Park, Borough of Highland Park. Accessed February 24, 2024. "The native Lenape people inhabited this hilly land aside the gently flowing Raritan River and their trails crisscrossed the land. One of the earliest recorded European settlers in the Highland Park area was Henry Greenland who owned 384 acres of land and operated an inn along the Mill Brook section of the Assunpink Trail during the late 1600s. "</ref> The Camden and Amboy Railroad built a wood, double-deck bridge which eliminated the station stop in 1838. It was destroyed by a suspicious fire in 1878.<ref name=BoroughofHomes/> A replacement iron truss bridge was constructed on the existing enlarged stone piers, which in turn was replaced in 1902 by the current twelve-span stone arch bridge encased in concrete in the 1940s.<ref>A Brief History of Highland Park, NJ, The Highland Park Historical Society. Accessed December 4, 2019.</ref>

Despite the canal and the railroad, Highland Park's land continued to be used for agriculture. Residential development slowly began 30 years later, with several stately houses constructed on Adelaide Avenue and more modest houses constructed on Cedar, First, and Second Avenues and Magnolia, Benner, and Johnson Streets. In the 1870s, the small hamlet became better known as "Highland Park", a name derived from the suburban housing development although the area adjacent to the railroad tracks continued to be called "East New Brunswick."<ref name=BoroughofHomes/> 1870 was also the year in which Highland Park was annexed to the newly formed township now called Edison, but at the time called Raritan Township.<ref name=Story/>

File:Dougboy Highland Park.jpg

The Doughboy statue in downtown Highland Park

Highland Park had its own school district and on March 15, 1905, the Borough of Highland Park was formed.<ref name=Story/> Highland Park's drive for independence from Raritan Township arose over the issue of public schooling. Residents wanted an independent school system and there was a related dispute over school taxes. The fire department, which had formed in 1899, also wanted more local control over their affairs. The 1905 New Jersey census counted 147 dwellings in the new borough. In 1918, Robert Wood Johnson II was appointed to the Highland Park Council and became mayor in 1920. His summer house and estate was located on River Road, just north of the railroad tracks.

Since its establishment as a borough, Highland Park's lands have been parceled into ever-smaller suburban residential plots. Planned developments included Watson Whittlesey's Livingston Manor development begun in 1906; the Viehmann Tract, also on the north side; Riverview Terrace on the south side; Raritan Park Terrace in the triangle between Raritan and Woodbridge Avenues; and East New Brunswick Heights in the Orchard Heights neighborhood. It has taken years of continuously constructing houses and apartment buildings to create the largely residential borough.

Highland Park's industrial development in the 19th and 20th centuries included such businesses as a brewery, Johnson & Johnson, The John Waldron Machine Company, Turner Tubes, and the Janeway & Carpender Wallpaper factory. The borough is the birthplace of the Band-Aid.<ref name=BoroughofHomes/> and Flako Products packaged mixes for baked goods. However, the industrial nature of the borough completely declined by the 1960s. The commercial zones along both Raritan and Woodbridge Avenues continue to thrive with "mom & pop" shops, many that have lasted for generations.Template:Citation needed

Throughout the 20th century, Highland Park's religious institutions, educational facilities, and municipal governance have kept pace with the growth of the borough. The trends of local autonomy and control that shaped Highland Park in the past continue to this day.Template:Citation needed

In 2012, Highland Park became the first municipality in the state to contract a home performance company to help residents consume less energy. The program is a one-of-a-kind program that can offer up to a 30% energy savings for homeowners.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2016, Highland Park became the state's first registered HeartSafe community.<ref>Staff. "Highland Park—New Jersey's First HeartSafe Municipality", Jewish Link of New Jersey, May 19, 2016. Accessed June 20, 2017. "On April 5, the Council of the Borough of Highland Park designated the municipality as the first HeartSafe Community in the state of New Jersey."</ref>

Livingston Manor Historic District

Livingston Manor was a subdivision built upon the lands surrounding the Livingston Homestead. This subdivision was the brainchild of Watson Whittlesey (1863–1914), a real estate developer born in Rochester, New York. Whittlesey was more than a typical land speculator; he was a community builder, which was noted by his residency in various Livingston Manor houses from 1906 to 1914, and by his active involvement in the municipal affairs of Highland Park. Instead of auctioning lots like his 19th century predecessors, Whittlesey sold subdivided lots with either a house completely built by his company or with the promise of providing a company-constructed house similar to those previously constructed.<ref>Livingston Manor Historic District, Highland Park Historical Society. Accessed October 6, 2014.</ref>

The suburban development grew between 1906 and 1925, when Whittlesey's company, the Livingston Manor Corporation and its successor, the Highland Park Building Company, constructed single-family houses from plans produced by a select group of architects. While a variety of building types and styles are present on each block, the buildings in the district are distinguished by the use of specific building plans found nowhere else in Highland Park and by the embellishments that are typical of the Craftsman philosophy, which emphasized the value of the labor of skilled artisans who showed pride in their abilities.

In the first years of this development, the houses were constructed one entire block at a time beginning with the southeast side of Grant Avenue between Lawrence Avenue and North Second Avenue. The next block to be developed was the northwest side of Lincoln Avenue between Lawrence Avenue and North Second Avenue. Six stucco bungalows were then constructed on the southern side of Lawrence east of Lincoln Avenue. As the housing development grew in popularity, houses were constructed less systematically by block, and more often on lots that individual homeowners selected from the remaining available properties. Whittlesey used plans from architects George Edward Krug and Francis George Hasselman, as well as plans generated by several local architects including John Arthur Blish and William Boylan.<ref name=BoroughofHomes/> Several of Livingston Manor's Tudor Revival houses were designed by Highland Park's eminent architect Alexander Merchant. Merchant created numerous buildings in New Brunswick and Highland Park (see list below). Like other early-20th century architects, he was active during the period of early American modernism, but, having trained at the firm of Carrère and Hastings, Merchant developed and maintained a classical design vocabulary.

Many workers in the building trades, such as Harvey E. Dodge, the carpenter Frederick Nietscke and the contractor Harold Richard Segoine, have also been identified as Livingston Manor Corporation employees as well as Livingston Manor residents. Whittlesey, with his wife Anna, also lived in several Livingston Manor houses, including the Spanish Colonial style house at 35 Harrison Avenue designed specifically for them.

On December 1, 1906, the first deeds were transferred to two individual homeowners. Many prominent New Brunswick and Highland Park residents bought houses in this new neighborhood. They included Rutgers College professors, school teachers, bank employees, factory owners, and store owners. Census data show that most of the women were housewives and mothers. There were many extended families. Some families took in boarders and several households included live-in servants.<ref>US Census 1910, 1920, and New Jersey Census of 1915.</ref> Sixty-two houses had been constructed in Livingston Manor by 1910.

In 1912, Watson Whittlesey hired a sales agent, John F. Green, and began selling bungalow lots. These properties were smaller and less expensive, and a set of plans for a bungalow was given to any purchaser. By 1913, 120 houses had been constructed in Livingston Manor.

Dubbed "Lord of the Manor", Whittlesey created a neighborhood spirit by giving receptions for the residents, by providing playgrounds for the children, and by encouraging the men to take a more active part in public affairs. After his death on April 8, 1914, Manor residents turned out in the hundreds to attend a memorial service at his house.<ref>Daily Home News, April 10, 1914.</ref>

The Highland Park Building Company was incorporated in 1914 by long-standing members of his company including builder Robert Lufburrow and engineer Harold Richard Segoine. In 1916, Mrs. Whittlesey, who was president of the Livingston Manor Corporation, turned over the privately owned streets, sidewalks, and curbs to the borough. Remarkably, there were no provisions for the borough to accept public ownership of the sewers. That required an act of legislation at the statehouse in Trenton, which was accomplished by Senator Florance and Assemblyman Edgar and signed by Governor Walter Evans Edge the following year. Anna Wilcox Whittlesey, "Lady of the Manor", died on August 16, 1918. She was remembered as "a woman of rare refinement and culture, and the soul of hospitality."<ref>Daily Home News, August 17, 1918 Obituary.</ref>

Highland Park's identity as a streetcar suburb was transformed to that of an automobile suburb during the 1920s. By 1922, there had been 210 dwellings constructed in Livingston Manor. The Livingston Manor Corporation continued to have transactions into the 1960s, but the area's significant development had taken place by 1925.

The Livingston Manor is an important neighborhood in Highland Park. The Livingston Manor Historic District was listed in the New Jersey Register of Historic Places on April 1, 2004, and in the National Register of Historic Places on July 7, 2004.<ref name=BoroughofHomes/>

Buildings designed by Alexander Merchant

Alexander Merchant (1872–1952) designed the following buildings:

• 55 South Adelaide Avenue (1909)
• Lafayette School on South Second Avenue and Benner Street (original school-1907 and Second Avenue wing-1915). The third wing on Second Avenue was designed by Merchant's son Alexander Merchant Jr. in 1952. The Lafayette School is now condominiums and no longer a school.
• Reformed Church of Highland Park on South Second Avenue (original church-1897 and auditorium wing Template:Circa)
• Irving School on Central Avenue (original building-1914)
• The Center School on North Third Avenue (formerly the Hamilton School–opened 1915)<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Open access</ref>
• The Pomeranz Building on Raritan Avenue and South Third Avenue (1920)
• 82 Harrison Avenue (1913)
• Two houses on Cliff Court (1914)
• Several houses on South Adelaide Avenue near Cliff Court (1910–1914)
• The Highland Park High School (original building-1926)
• The Masonic Temple on Raritan Avenue at North Fourth Avenue (1923) It remains as a one-story commercial building after a fire on March 10, 1965, destroyed the upper levels of the auditorium and offices.<ref>Template:Cite news Template:Open access</ref>
• The Brody House at corner of Raritan and North Adelaide Avenues (built 1911–demolished 1997)
• The former Police Station at 137 Raritan Avenue (demolished).
• Anshe Emeth Memorial Temple on Livingston Avenue in neighboring New Brunswick (1929)

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 1.83 square miles (4.74 km²), including 1.82 square miles (4.72 km²) of land and 0.01 square miles (0.02 km²) of water (0.44%).<ref name=CensusArea/><ref name=GR1 />

The borough received its name for its "park-like" setting, on the "high land" of the banks of the Raritan River, overlooking New Brunswick. Highland Park borders the Middlesex County municipalities of Edison, New Brunswick, and Piscataway.<ref>Areas touching Highland Park, MapIt. Accessed February 24, 2020.</ref><ref>Municipalities, Middlesex County, New Jersey. Accessed August 8, 2024.</ref><ref>New Jersey Municipal Boundaries, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.</ref>

Demographics

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 13,982 people, 5,875 households, and 3,267 families in the borough. The population density was 7,728.1 per square mile (2,983.8/km²). There were 6,203 housing units at an average density of 3,428.5 per square mile (1,323.8/km²). The racial makeup was 68.26% (9,544) White, 7.83% (1,095) Black or African American, 0.14% (20) Native American, 17.84% (2,495) Asian, 0.03% (4) Pacific Islander, 3.28% (458) from other races, and 2.62% (366) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.95% (1,252) of the population.<ref name=Census2010/>

Of the 5,875 households, 26.0% had children under the age of 18; 43.2% were married couples living together; 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present and 44.4% were non-families. Of all households, 31.4% were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.10.<ref name=Census2010/>

21.1% of the population were under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 32.9% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.8 years. For every 100 females, the population had 92.0 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 91.0 males.<ref name=Census2010/>

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $78,821 (with a margin of error of +/− $8,312) and the median family income was $103,316 (+/− $6,807). Males had a median income of $72,533 (+/− $8,231) versus $55,591 (+/− $3,873) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $41,300 (+/− $3,714). About 5.4% of families and 8.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.4% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.<ref>DP03: Selected Economic Characteristics from the 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates for Highland Park borough, Middlesex County, New Jersey Template:Webarchive, United States Census Bureau. Accessed May 1, 2012.</ref>

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States census<ref name="GR2" /> there were 13,999 people, 5,899 households, and 3,409 families residing in the borough. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 6,071 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the borough was 72.06% White, 7.94% African American, 0.11% Native American, 13.63% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 3.59% from other races, and 2.59% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.18% of the population.<ref name=Census2000>Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Highland Park borough, New Jersey Template:Webarchive, United States Census Bureau. Accessed May 1, 2012.</ref><ref name=Census2000SF1>DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Helmetta borough, Middlesex County, New Jersey Template:Webarchive, United States Census Bureau. Accessed November 23, 2012.</ref>

Of residents reporting their ancestry, 9.8% were of Italian, 9.1% Irish, 8.1% German, 7.8% Russian, 7.5% Polish.<ref name=Census2000/> 66.2% spoke English, 7.2% Spanish, 6.4% Chinese, 2.2% Hebrew, 1.8% Russian, 1.2% Hungarian, 1.1% French and 1.1% Hindi as their language spoken at home.<ref>QT-P16: Language Spoken at Home: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 3 (SF 3) - Sample Data for Highland Park borough, Middlesex County, New Jersey Template:Webarchive, United States Census Bureau. Accessed May 1, 2012.</ref>

There were 5,899 households, out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% were married couples living together, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.2% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 3.06.<ref name=Census2000/><ref name=Census2000SF1/>

In the borough the population was spread out, with 21.7% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 37.1% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.4 males age 18 and over.<ref name=Census2000/><ref name=Census2000SF1/>

The median income for a household in the borough was $53,250, and the median income for a family was $71,267. Males had a median income of $47,248 versus $36,829 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $28,767. About 5.3% of families and 8.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 9.6% of those age 65 or over.<ref name=Census2000/><ref name=Census2000SF1/>

Community

Highland Park has at times been a bedroom community for nearby Rutgers University and Johnson & Johnson in New Brunswick, with a resulting academic flair to the community. Nobel laureate Selman Waksman (Medicine, 1952) lived in the borough until he moved to Piscataway in 1954, and laureate Arno Penzias (Physics, 1978) lived in the borough until the 1990s.<ref>Lurie, Maxine N.; Mappen, Marc. "Highland Park", Encyclopedia of New Jersey, p. 363, Rutgers University Press, 2004. Template:ISBN. Accessed June 27, 2011. "In addition, the borough was home at various times to two Nobel Laureates, Selman Waksman and Arno Penzias."</ref>

There is a new state-of-the-art environmental center on River Road, just a few hundred feet upstream from the Albany Street Bridge. The borough's Environmental Commission envisions this center as a stop along a riverbank walking trail that would link Johnson Park with Donaldson Park and beyond, to the Meadows environmental area on the Edison border.<ref>Highland Park Environmental News 2007 Template:Webarchive, accessed January 3, 2007.</ref>

In 1978, Highland Park became the first municipality in New Jersey to have an eruv, a symbolic enclosure that allows Orthodox Jews to perform certain activities outdoors on the Sabbath that would be otherwise prohibited.<ref>Selinger, Janice. "Highland Park: Site of State's First Eruv",The New York Times, December 17, 1978. Accessed July 19, 2022. "This transition came about through the establishment of an eruv — New Jersey's first — by Rabbi Pesach Raymon of Ahavas Achim Congregation in New Brunswick."</ref> Through an arrangement with New Jersey Bell (now Verizon), a continuous wire was strung from pole to pole around portions of the borough. Eventually this expanded and includes portions of Edison and connects with New Brunswick. The wires are inspected every Friday to ensure that the connections are complete. When intact, this eruv satisfies most Orthodox Jewish religious requirements allowing residents to carry objects during the Sabbath.<ref>Map, Highland Park Eruv. Accessed July 19, 2022.</ref>

Government

Local government

File:Highland Park, NJ Borough Hall, Nov. 2024.jpg

Highland Park Borough Hall

Highland Park is governed under the borough form of New Jersey municipal government, which is used in 218 (of the 564) municipalities statewide, making it the most common form of government in New Jersey.<ref>Inventory of Municipal Forms of Government in New Jersey, Rutgers University Center for Government Studies, July 1, 2011. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref> The governing body is comprised of a mayor and a borough council, with all positions elected at-large on a partisan basis as part of the November general election. A mayor is elected directly by the voters to a four-year term of office. The borough council includes six members elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats coming up for election each year in a three-year cycle.<ref name=DataBook>2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book, Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, March 2013, p. 81.</ref> The borough form of government used by Highland Park is a "weak mayor / strong council" government in which council members act as the legislative body with the mayor presiding at meetings and voting only in the event of a tie. The mayor can veto ordinances subject to an override by a two-thirds majority vote of the council. The mayor makes committee and liaison assignments for council members, and most appointments are made by the mayor with the advice and consent of the council.<ref>Cerra, Michael F. "Forms of Government: Everything You've Always Wanted to Know, But Were Afraid to Ask" Template:Webarchive, New Jersey State League of Municipalities. Accessed November 30, 2014.</ref><ref>"Forms of Municipal Government in New Jersey", p. 6. Rutgers University Center for Government Studies. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref><ref>Government Template:Webarchive, Borough of Highland Park. Accessed December 4, 2019. It has a Mayor and Council form of government in which the Mayor and Borough Council have separate executive and legislative powers. This provides a system of checks and balances by avoiding a large concentration of power in either the Council or the Office of Mayor. The Mayor votes only in case of a tie."</ref>

The borough operates through Committees of the Council: Administration, Finance, Public Works, Public Safety, Community Affairs, Public Utilities, and Health, Welfare and Recreation. The various departments, boards and commissions report to the council through these committees. All elected positions are part-time; the mayor and council members typically hold outside jobs, and receive small salaries from their elected offices.

Template:As of, the mayor of Highland Park is Democrat Elsie Foster, whose term of office ending on December 31, 2027. Members of the Borough Council are Council President Matthew Hersh (D, 2026), Tara Canavera (D, 2024), Philip George (D, 2025), Matthew Hale (D, 2025), Stephany Kim-Choban (D, 2024) and Jason Postelnik (D, 2026).<ref name=Council>Mayor & Borough Council, Borough of Highland Park. Accessed May 27, 2024.</ref><ref>2024 Municipal Data Sheet, Borough of Highland Park. Accessed May 27, 2024.</ref><ref name=Middlesex2023>November 7, 2023 General Election Official Results, Middlesex County, New Jersey, December 7, 2023. Accessed January 1, 2024.</ref><ref name=Middlesex2022>November 8, 2022 General Election Official Results, Middlesex County, New Jersey, updated November 22, 2022. Accessed January 1, 2023.</ref><ref name=Middlesex2021>General Election November 2, 2021 Official Results, Middlesex County, New Jersey, updated November 19, 2021. Accessed April 13, 2022.</ref>

In January 2023, the borough council appointed Elsie Foster to fill the vacant seat expiring in December 2023 that had been held by Gayle Brill Mittler until she resigned from office the previous month citing a desire for more time with her family.<ref>Russell, Suzanne. "Elsie Foster elected Highland Park mayor for rest of 2023", MyCentralJersey.com, January 25, 2023. Accessed March 31, 2023. "Elsie Foster is the borough's new mayor. During a special Borough Council meeting on Tuesday, Foster, the council president, who had been serving this year as the acting mayor, was elected mayor by the council and will serve in the position until the end of 2023, replacing former Mayor Gayle Brill Mittler who resigned Dec. 31.... Last month former Mayor Gayle Brill Mittler, who had served as mayor since 2014, announced she was resigning with a year left on her term to spend more time with her family, including her three grandchildren."</ref> The next month, Jason Postelnik was appointed to the council seat expiring in December 2023 that was vacated by Elsie Foster when she took office as mayor.<ref>Russell, Suzanne. "Meet Highland Park's newest council member", MyCentralJersey.com, February 25, 2023. Accessed March 31, 2023. "Jason Postelnik was sworn in Tuesday to fill the council seat vacated by Elsie Foster, who was selected last month to serve as mayor following the resignation of Mayor Gayle Brill Mittler last year."</ref>

In January 2017, the borough council selected Matthew Hersh to fill the seat expiring in December 2019 that became vacant following the death of Jon Erickson the previous October before Election Day; Erickson's name remained on the ballot and he was elected to serve the three-year term. Hersh had earlier been chosen to serve the balance of Erickson's previous term that expired in December 2016.<ref>Baldwin, Carly. "Highland Park Fills Council Vacancy; Matthew Hersh will fill out the remainder of popular Councilman Jon Erickson's term. Erickson died unexpectedly in October.", New Brunswick, NJ Patch, January 7, 2017. Accessed December 4, 2019. "The Borough Council has reappointed Democrat Matthew Brian Hersh (pictured) to continue filling a vacancy on the seven-member governing body, the result of the Oct. 16 death of popular Councilman Jon K. Erickson. Erickson served on the Highland Park Council since 2002 until his death. He was posthumously re-elected last Nov. 8th, because his passing occurred after the deadline to remove his name from the ballot."</ref> In July 2018, Hersh resigned to accept a position with a state agency and was replaced by Matthew Hale.<ref>Staff. "Political Science Prof Hale Now a Highland Park Councilman", Insider NJ, July 18, 2018. Accessed December 4, 2019. "Seton Hall University Political Science Professor Matt Hale – who writes a column for this website – last night assumed a seat on the Highland Park Borough Council.... Hale, a Democrat, accepted the appointment to replace Councilman Matthew Hersh, who congratulated his successor. 'I did resign from the Council last month for an incredible opportunity with Gov. Murphy's administration as director of communications at the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, working on an inspiring and ambitious environmental policy agenda,' Hersh wrote on Facebook."</ref>

Mayors

The mayors are:

• James B. Archer (D), 1905–1907.
• Lorenz Volkert (R), 1908–1913.
• George White (D), 1914–1915.
• Russell E. Watson (R), 1916–1919.
• Robert Wood Johnson II (R), 1920–1921.<ref>Staff. "Robert Wood Johnson, 74, Dies. Chairman of Johnson & Johnson. Founder's Son Led Company Until 1963. No. 2 Man on War Production Board", The New York Times, January 31, 1968. Accessed August 12, 2018. "He had served from 1920 to 1922 as Mayor of Highland Park, and contended that his experience in small-town politics taught him more about psychology than all the books he had read."</ref>
• Cornelius B. McCrelis Jr. (R), 1922–1923.
• George F. Leonard (D), 1924–1925.
• Benjamin Erickson (R), 1926–1928.
• Edwin W. Eden (R), 1928–1929.
• Richard T. Parker (R), 1930–1931.
• Irving D. Buttler (R), 1932–1935.
• Russell C. Smalley (R), 1936–1937.
• Russell B. Howell, 1938–1939.
• Walter K. Wood, 1940–1941.
• Harold W. Drake (R), 1942–1946.
• George W. Miller (R), 1946–1948.
• Alvah H. Cole (R), 1948–1951.
• Joseph C. DeCoster (D), 1952–1953.
• William C. Campbell (D), 1954–1955.
• Luther H. Martin (D), 1956–1959.
• Samuel J. Kronman (D), 1960–1965.
• Herbert M. Tanzman (D), 1966–1969.
• Samuel J. Kronman (D), 1970–1971.
• Gasper Paul Beck (D), 1972–1975.
• Harold "Hesh" Berman (D), 1976–1979.
• Charles W. Muhollen (D), 1980–1983.
• Harold "Hesh" Berman (D), 1984–1987.
• Jeffrey M.Orbach (R), 1988–1991.
• H. James Polos (D), 1992–1999.
• Meryl Frank (D), 2000–2010 (resigned office).<ref name=BoroughofHomes/><ref>Mayors of Highland Park, New Jersey, Political Graveyard. Accessed October 6, 2014. "Robert Wood Johnson Jr. 1920-22 Cornelius McCrelis 1922-24 Edwin W. Eden 1928-30 Alvah H. Cole 1948-51 Joseph C. DeCoster 1952-53 Meryl L. Frank 2007"</ref>
• Steve Nolan (D), 2010–2012.<ref>Johnson, Brett. "Former councilman Stephen Nolan takes oath as interim mayor of Highland Park", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, January 21, 2010. Accessed December 5, 2016. "Shortly after Stephen Nolan was sworn in as Highland Park's interim mayor tonight, former mayor Meryl Frank presented him with a set of keys."</ref><ref>"Mayor of Highland Park is Affirmed", Leoraw, January 5, 2012. Accessed December 5, 2016. "Gary Minkoff is Affirmed as the new Mayor of Highland Park.... Outgoing mayor Steve Nolan is pictured on the right."</ref>
• Gary Minkoff (D), 2013–2014 (resigned office).
• Padraic Millet (D), 2014 (acting)
• Gayle Brill Mittler (D), 2014–2022. Re-elected on November 5, 2019, to serve another 4-year term, which would expire on December 31, 2023; she resigned in December 2022.
• Elsie Foster (D), 2023–present after being appointed to fill Gayle Britt Mittler's vacant seat

Federal, state and county representation

Highland Park is located in the 6th Congressional District<ref name=PCR2012>Plan Components Report, New Jersey Redistricting Commission, December 23, 2011. Accessed February 1, 2020.</ref> and is part of New Jersey's 18th state legislative district.<ref name=Districts2011>Municipalities Sorted by 2011-2020 Legislative District, New Jersey Department of State. Accessed February 1, 2020.</ref><ref name=LWV2019>2019 New Jersey Citizen's Guide to Government, New Jersey League of Women Voters. Accessed October 30, 2019.</ref><ref>Districts by Number for 2011-2020, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed January 6, 2013.</ref>

Politics

As of March 2011, there were a total of 8,506 registered voters in Highland Park, of which 5,082 (59.7%) were registered as Democrats, 634 (7.5%) were registered as Republicans and 2,776 (32.6%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 14 voters registered as Libertarians or Greens.<ref>Voter Registration Summary - Middlesex, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, March 23, 2011. Accessed November 23, 2012.</ref>

In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 72.7% of the vote (4,470 cast), ahead of Republican Mitt Romney with 24.9% (1,528 votes), and other candidates with 2.4% (148 votes), among the 6,191 ballots cast by the borough's 9,052 registered voters (45 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 68.4%.<ref name=2012Elections>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=2012VoterReg>Template:Cite web</ref> In the 2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 72.1% of the vote (4,699 cast), ahead of Republican John McCain with 25.6% (1,667 votes) and other candidates with 1.5% (96 votes), among the 6,518 ballots cast by the borough's 9,072 registered voters, for a turnout of 71.8%.<ref>2008 Presidential General Election Results: Middlesex County, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, December 23, 2008. Accessed November 23, 2012.</ref> In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat John Kerry received 72.0% of the vote here (4,550 ballots cast), outpolling Republican George W. Bush with 26.4% (1,669 votes) and other candidates with 0.8% (70 votes), among the 6,319 ballots cast by the borough's 8,507 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 74.3.<ref>2004 Presidential Election: Middlesex County, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, December 13, 2004. Accessed November 23, 2012.</ref>

Presidential Elections Results

Year	Republican	Democratic	Third Parties
style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|2024<ref name="2024Elections">Template:Cite web</ref>	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Republican|26.1% 1,794	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|69.3% 4,772	4.6% 241
style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|2020<ref name="2020Elections">Template:Cite web</ref>	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Republican|21.7% 1,533	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|76.0% 5,379	2.3% 119
style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|2016<ref name="2016Elections">Template:Cite web</ref>	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Republican|19.5% 1,211	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|74.4% 4,619	4.6% 283
style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|2012<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Republican|24.9% 1,528	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|72.7% 4,470	2.4% 148
style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|2008<ref>2008 Presidential General Election Results: Middlesex County Template:Webarchive, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, December 23, 2008. Accessed January 9, 2025.</ref>	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Republican|25.6% 1,667	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|72.1% 4,699	1.5% 96
style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|2004<ref>2004 Presidential Election: Middlesex County Template:Webarchive, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, December 13, 2004. Accessed January 9, 2025.</ref>	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Republican|26.4% 1,669	style="text-align:center;" Template:Party shading/Democratic|72.0% 4,550	0.8% 70

In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Democrat Barbara Buono received 64.1% of the vote (2,449 cast), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 33.9% (1,294 votes), and other candidates with 2.1% (79 votes), among the 3,867 ballots cast by the borough's 9,065 registered voters (45 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 42.7%.<ref name=2013Elections>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=2013VoterReg>Template:Cite web</ref> In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Democrat Jon S. Corzine received 65.7% of the vote here (2,842 ballots cast), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 26.0% (1,125 votes), Independent Chris Daggett with 6.5% (280 votes) and other candidates with 0.9% (39 votes), among the 4,329 ballots cast by the borough's 8,342 registered voters, yielding a 51.9% turnout.<ref>2009 Governor: Middlesex County Template:Webarchive, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, December 31, 2009. Accessed November 23, 2012.</ref>

Education

File:Hphs hp nj.jpg

Highland Park High School

The Highland Park Public Schools serve students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade.<ref>Highland Park Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Highland Park Public Schools. Accessed March 10, 2022. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades PreK through 12 in the Highland Park School District. Composition: The Highland Park School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Highland Park."</ref> As of the 2020–21 school year, the district, comprised of four schools, had an enrollment of 1,558 students and 145.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.7:1.<ref name=NCES>District information for Highland Park Boro School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 15, 2022.</ref> Schools in the district (with 2020–21 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics<ref>School Data for the Highland Park Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 15, 2022.</ref>) are Irving Primary School<ref>Irving Primary School, Highland Park Public Schools. Accessed March 10, 2022.</ref> with 248 students in grades Pre-K–1, Bartle Elementary School<ref>Bartle Elementary School, Highland Park Public Schools. Accessed March 10, 2022.</ref> with 437 students in grades 2–5, Highland Park Middle School<ref>Highland Park Middle School, Highland Park Public Schools. Accessed March 10, 2022.</ref> with 364 students in grades 6–8 and Highland Park High School<ref>Highland Park High School, Highland Park Public Schools. Accessed March 10, 2022.</ref> with 477 students in grades 9–12.<ref>District Info, Highland Park School District. Accessed February 24, 2024.</ref><ref>School Performance Reports for the Highland Park Boro School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 1, 2024.</ref><ref>New Jersey School Directory for the Highland Park Public Schools, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.</ref>

The community is also served by the Greater Brunswick Charter School, a K–8 charter school serving students from Highland Park, Edison, Milltown and New Brunswick.<ref>About Us, Greater Brunswick Charter School. Accessed December 15, 2019. "The Greater Brunswick Regional Charter School is defined by the broad themes of child-directed learning in the vein of constructivism, Howard Gardner's 'unschooled mind,' and Montessori instruction; multi-age groupings of students; a unique degree of parental and community involvement; and a region of residence serving the entire and contiguous school districts of New Brunswick, Edison, Highland Park, and Milltown."</ref> As of the 2020–2021 school year, the school had an enrollment of 394 students and 31.8 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 12.4:1.<ref>District information for Greater Brunswick Charter School, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 15, 2022.</ref>

Eighth grade students from all of Middlesex County are eligible to apply to attend the high school programs offered by the Middlesex County Magnet Schools, a county-wide vocational school district that offers full-time career and technical education at its schools in East Brunswick, Edison, Perth Amboy, Piscataway and Woodbridge Township, with no tuition charged to students for attendance.<ref>Heyboer, Kelly. "How to get your kid a seat in one of N.J.'s hardest-to-get-into high schools", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, February 23, 2019. Accessed February 8, 2025. "Middlesex County has two stand-alone career academies for high-achieving students: the Academy for Science, Math and Engineering Technology, located on the campus of Middlesex County College in Edison, and the Academy for Allied Health and Biomedical Sciences in Woodbridge. How to apply: Students must attend a mandatory information session and submit an application by November of their 8th grade year."</ref><ref>About Our Schools, Middlesex County Magnet Schools. Accessed February 8, 2025. "These high schools are free public schools that offer hands-on, integrated learning opportunities for students in grades 9-12 interested in all types of careers as well as higher education. Any student who resides anywhere in Middlesex County's 25 municipalities student may apply to the school district. If accepted, the home school district will permit the student to attend and will organize daily transportation at no cost to the student's family."</ref>

The Center School serves students with learning and emotional challenges in grades K–12. Founded in 1971 in Bound Brook, the school moved in 1989 to a former public school building in Highland Park.<ref>History, The Center School. Accessed July 4, 2012.</ref> A fire in the school's building in February 2012 forced the school to relocate to Branchburg Township on an interim basis.<ref>Cooper, Warren. "Displaced from Highland Park by a fire, the Center School settles in at Branchburg's Old York School", Somerset Messenger-Gazette, March 5, 2012. Accessed July 4, 2012. "The school 'reopened' unexpectedly on Feb. 22 to accommodate 112 students and 52 staffers of a private, special-needs school in Highland Park that was shuttered a week earlier by a fire. Classes at The Center School on Madison Avenue had ended for the day when a fire broke out about 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 14, according to Executive Director and Principal Marcie Fiorentino."</ref>

Transportation

Roads and highways

File:2020-09-16 11 08 42 View north on New Jersey Route 27 and east on County Route 514 (Albany Street Bridge) approaching River Road and Lincoln Avenue, crossing the Raritan River from New Brunswick into Highland Park in Middlesex County, New Jersey.jpg

Route 27 and County Route 514 entering Highland Park on the Albany Street Bridge

Template:As of, the borough had a total of Template:Convert of roadways, of which Template:Convert were maintained by the municipality, Template:Convert by Middlesex County, and Template:Convert by the New Jersey Department of Transportation.<ref>Middlesex County Mileage by Municipality and Jurisdiction, New Jersey Department of Transportation, May 2010. Accessed July 18, 2014.</ref>

There are five main roads in Highland Park:<ref>Middlesex County Road Map, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed December 1, 2019.</ref>

• New Jersey Route 27 – Known as Raritan Avenue, it traverses for about Template:Convert through downtown and the outskirts of Highland Park. The section between Adelaide and Fifth Avenues runs virtually east to west and divides the town into the north and south sides.<ref name="27sld">Route 27 Straight Line Diagram, New Jersey Department of Transportation, updated May 2018. Accessed December 4, 2019.</ref>
• County Route 514 – Enters Highland Park concurrent with Route 27, then heads eastward on Woodbridge Avenue at South Sixth Avenue. It runs through the southeast region of the borough.<ref name="514sld">County Route 514 Straight Line Diagram, New Jersey Department of Transportation, updated October 2012. Accessed December 4, 2019.</ref>
• Middlesex County Route 622 – River Road in Highland Park, stretches for over Template:Convert in the western region of the borough following the curving bank of the Raritan River.<ref name="622sld">Middlesex County Route 622 Straight Line Diagram, New Jersey Department of Transportation, updated June 2011. Accessed December 4, 2019.</ref>
• Middlesex County Route 676 – This is Duclos Lane and it forms a portion of Highland Park's eastern border with Edison. Road spends Template:Convert in Highland Park.<ref name="676sld">Middlesex County Route 676 Straight Line Diagram, New Jersey Department of Transportation, updated June 2011. Accessed December 4, 2019.</ref>
• Middlesex County Route 692 – Cedar Lane in the northern section of the borough intersects with River Road.<ref name="692sld">Middlesex County Route 692 Straight Line Diagram, New Jersey Department of Transportation, updated June 2011. Accessed December 4, 2019.</ref>

U.S. Route 1 and New Jersey Route 18 are accessible close to Highland Park, just beyond its southeastern and southwestern borders.

Public transportation

NJ Transit local bus service is provided on the 810 and 814 routes.<ref>Middlesex County Bus/Rail Connections, NJ Transit, backed up by the Internet Archive as of May 22, 2009. Accessed October 1, 2011.</ref><ref>Middlesex County Transit Guide, Middlesex County. Accessed April 1, 2023.</ref>

Atlantic City weekend service is available on Suburban Transit's 700 route.<ref>Atlantic City Service, Suburban Transit. Accessed April 21, 2015.</ref>

NJ Transit northbound trains to Penn Station New York, and southbound to the Trenton Transit Center via the Northeast Corridor Line can be found in neighboring New Brunswick station and Edison station.

Wildlife

File:Deer in Highland Park NJ 24 Feb 2018.jpg

A deer in the street in Highland Park

White-tailed deer are common enough in and around Highland Park to be seen as a problem.<ref>Deer Damage Management Program, Rutgers University Ecological Preserve. Accessed August 17, 2020.</ref> A deer population survey which includes Highland Park was conducted by Raritan Valley Community College in December 2019; the borough's government was using this survey in 2020 as it made plans for deer management.<ref>Deer Management, Borough of Highland Park. Accessed August 17, 2020.</ref>

Notable people

Template:Category see also People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Highland Park include: Template:Div col

• Adele Astaire (1896–1981), acclaimed vaudeville and musical theater dancer, actress<ref>Adele appeared in ten Broadway musicals from 1917 to 1931 with her brother Fred, who credited her with initiating his career in show business. After birth as Adele Austerlitz in Omaha, she enrolled in Chambers’ Dancing Academy, relocated to New York City in 1904, participated in Claude Alvienne's dancing school, attended public school at Highland Park, New Jersey for two years, enrolled in Ned Wayburn's dancing school in 1910, then began acting career. See Consult Annual Obituary 1981 (St. Martin's Press, 1982) 66-68 and Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives, Vol 1 (Charles Scribner's Sons, 1998) 20-22 and American National Biography, Vol 1 (1999) 692-693."</ref><ref name=DT2016>Donnelly, Marea. "Fred Astaire's sister was the real dance and vaudeville star", The Daily Telegraph, September 10, 2016. Accessed November 8, 2020. "When bookings dropped off from 1910 as they lost their cute appeal and Adele shot up over Fred, they attended classes at New Jersey's Highland Park public school for two years."</ref>
• Fred Astaire (1899–1987), dancer, singer, actor, recipient of three Emmy and three Golden Globe Awards and an honorary Academy Award<ref>After birth as Fred Austerlitz in Omaha, he enrolled in Chambers’ Dancing Academy, relocated to New York City in 1904, participated in Claude Alvienne's dancing school, attended public school at Highland Park, New Jersey for two years, enrolled with his sister Adele in Ned Wayburn's dancing school in 1910, then began his acting career. See Consult Current Biography (1964) 13-14 and Lincoln Journal Star, May 9, 1999, pp. E-1, E-2 and American National Biography, Vol 1 (1999) 693-695 and Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives, Vol 2 (1999) 36-38."</ref><ref name=DT2016/>
• Jim Axelrod (born 1963), CBS news correspondent<ref name=HNT2005>Granieri, Laurie. "Actor, journalists honored as alumni", Home News Tribune, May 6, 2005."On May 14, the borough high school will honor alumni Willie Garson, best known as Stanford Blatch on the former HBO series Sex and the City, CBS news correspondent Jim Axelrod and WNYC Public Radio news anchor and Morning Edition host Soterios Johnson."</ref><ref>Makin, Bob. "Levinson Axelrod celebrates 70 years of service", Home News Tribune, November 12, 2009. Accessed August 17, 2012. "His son is with CBS News as their Washington reporter. He's writing a book that is out soon about his relationship with his father. His name is Jim Axelrod. He's well known. They're Highland Park people. Jim went to Highland Park High School."</ref>
• Harvey Jerome Brudner (1931–2009), engineer and inventor<ref>Staff. "Harvey J. Brudner: Obituary", The Record, September 16, 2009. Accessed February 2, 2015. "He was born and raised in New York City and lived for many years in Highland Park, NJ."</ref>
• David Clewell (1955–2020), poet and creative writing instructor at Webster University who served as the Poet Laureate of Missouri<ref>"Interview with Former Poet Laureate of Missouri, David Clewell", Geosi Reads, October 16, 2016. Accessed February 7, 2020. "Shortly after the My Lai massacre in Vietnam, Bob Stephens read every word of Thoreau's Civil Disobedience out loud to his 8 a.m. Freshman English class at Highland Park High because he honestly believed that words, used well, had the power to change lives. Small wonder, then, that he was the person to show me the first poems I actually cared about in mine."</ref>
• Earle Dickson (1892–1961), inventor of the Band-Aid<ref name=Mayor>The Mayor's Viewpoint: Celebrating a century of progress, Highland Park Chamber of Commerce, backed up by the Internet Archive as of May 22, 2001. Accessed April 9, 2011.</ref>
• Nancy Dorian (1936–2024), linguist who carried out research into the decline of the East Sutherland dialect of Scottish Gaelic<ref>Howard, Roberta. "Hoots from the Owl", The Daily Home News, November 16, 1955. Accessed May 9, 2024, via Newspapers.com. "Nancy Dorian, also of the class of 1954, made the dean's list at Connecticut College for Women."</ref>
• Kirk Douglas (born Issur Danielovitch; 1916–2020), actor, producer, director, philanthropist and writer<ref>Jordan, Chris. "Remembering Kirk Douglas: His three greatest fight scenes and his Jersey connection", Asbury Park Press, February 5, 2020. Accessed February 7, 2020. "We also note that Douglas was a Jersey guy — sort of. His first wife Diana Dill, whom Douglas married in 1943, had a connection to the Johnson family of New Brunswick's Johnson & Johnson fame. Douglas and Dill lived briefly in the Johnson-built Merriwold Castle on River Road in Highland Park. Son Michael, also a noted actor, was born in New Brunswick in 1944."</ref>
• Michael Douglas (born 1944), actor, director and producer<ref>Dzielak, Kathy. "Michael Douglas comes home to New Jersey", Asbury Park Press, May 15, 2014. Accessed February 7, 2020. "Born: Michael Kirk Douglas in St. Peter's Hospital in New Brunswick, N.J., the son of actors Kirk and Diana Douglas. Lived the first six weeks of his life in Highland Park, N.J. at Merriewold, the former estate of the late J. Seward Johnson (Sr.), the Johnson & Johnson heir."</ref>
• Samuel G. Freedman, author and columnist for The New York Times<ref>Groner, Jonathan. "This Is Not Your Father's World: An Interview with Samuel G. Freedman" Template:Webarchive, Jewish Community Alliance of Southern Maine. Accessed April 16, 2008. "Freedman himself grew up in Highland Park, New Jersey in a family that was, in his words, 'totally secular.'"</ref>
• Willie Garson (1964–2021), actor best known for his role as Stanford Blatch in Sex and the City<ref name=HNT2005/>
• Israel Gelfand (1913–2009), renowned mathematician<ref>Kochman, Marilyn. "In Person; An Equation for Success", The New York Times, October 5, 2003. Accessed April 9, 2011. "Dr. Gelfand, who lives in Highland Park, has made an indelible impact in such areas as functional analysis, representation theory, geometry and integrable systems."</ref>
• Rebecca Goldstein (born 1950), author, philosopher, and 1996 MacArthur "Genius Award" winner<ref>"Goldstein and Howard Receive MacArthur 'Genius' Fellowships", Columbia University Record, September 6, 1996. Accessed July 22, 2007. "Her works include The Mind-Body Problem (1983), The Late-Summer Passion of a Woman of Mind (1989), The Dark Sister (1991), Strange Attractors (1993) and Mazel (1995). She lives in Highland Park, N.J."</ref>
• Alan Guth (born 1947), physicist and cosmologist<ref>Alan H. Guth, Victor F. Weisskopf Professor of Physics Template:Webarchive, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Accessed June 11, 2007. "Professor Alan Guth was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, in 1947. He grew up and attended the public schools in Highland Park, NJ, but skipped his senior year of high school to begin studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology."</ref>
• Dwayne Haskins (1997–2022), American football quarterback<ref>Hunt, Todderick. "Dwayne Haskins Jr., one of the top quarterbacks in the country, recaps recent Rutgers visit", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, May 29, 2014. Accessed September 17, 2018. "Dwayne Haskins, the Bullis School (Potomac, Md.) sophomore quarterback, has been one of the hottest recruits throughout the entire country during the spring evaluation period. The 6-3, 185-pounder has multiple ties to the Scarlet Knights program as he grew up in Highland Park, N.J."</ref>
• Amy Herzog, playwright<ref>Catton, Pia. "The Lights Are Bright Off-Broadway", The Wall Street Journal, May 28, 2012. Accessed January 4, 2022. "Even if Hollywood beckons, Ms. Herzog's roots are firmly in the theater, a community she has been long been a part of, even before she realized it. A native of Highland Park, N.J., she had an early exposure to New York theater through her grandparents, who were in the industry."</ref>
• John Hulme (born 1987), author of the book series The Seems and director of the documentary Blood, Sweat & Tears: A Basketball Exorcism<ref>Makin, Bob. "Makin Waves with Highland Park filmmaker John Hulme", Courier News, January 12, 2017. Accessed June 7, 2017. "Longtime borough resident, filmmaker and former basketball star John Hulme chronicles the intense feelings that accompanied the Owls' Rocky-like game against New Brunswick's Zebras in the 1987 Central Jersey Group I championship basketball game in his new documentary Blood, Sweat & Tears: A Basketball Exorcism.... At first, the local filmmaker focuses on the lifelong pain he has felt about New Brunswick freshman Cassius 'Money' Hargrove swishing the game-winning jump shot and snuffing victory from the underdogs as the ball cascaded just out of the reach of Hulme's long arms into the basket."</ref>
• John Seward Johnson II (1930–2020), sculptor and founder of the Johnson Atelier in Hamilton Township, Mercer County, New Jersey<ref>Horner, Shirley. "About Books", The New York Times, February 15, 1987. Accessed June 11, 2015. "After J. Seward's 1937 divorce from their mother ended a 13-year marriage, the four children of that marriage were forced by necessity to live in a garage next to the chicken coop of a spacious estate, their former home in Highland Park. J. Seward's second child, J. Seward Johnson Jr., founder of the Johnson Atelier Technical Institute of Sculpture in Princeton, told the author that 'since the age of 7, I'd felt disenfranchised.'"</ref>
• Robert Wood Johnson II (1893–1968), Johnson & Johnson President, general and philanthropist, who served as mayor of Highland Park from 1920 to 1922<ref>Gardner, Joel R. and Harrison, Andrew R. "The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: The Early Years" Template:Webarchive, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2005, p. 2. Accessed July 22, 2007. "Johnson married Elizabeth Dixon Ross, of New Brunswick, in 1916, and their wedding was the social event of the year. They moved into Bellevue, an estate in Highland Park, and their son, Robert Wood Johnson III, was born in 1920. While living in Highland Park, Johnson became involved in local politics and served a term as mayor while he was still in his twenties."</ref>
• Soterios Johnson, WNYC radio host<ref name=HNT2005/>
• Seth Kaper-Dale, Protestant pastor who was a Green Party candidate in the New Jersey gubernatorial election, 2017<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Sacha Killeya-Jones (born 1998), American-British basketball player for Hapoel Gilboa Galil of the Israeli Basketball Premier League<ref>Sacha Killeya-Jones, Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball. Accessed March 22, 2020. "Born Aug. 10 in Highland Park, New Jersey"</ref>
• Sheldon Lavin (1932–2023), CEO and chairman of meat processor OSI Group<ref>#278 Sheldon Lavin, Forbes. Accessed November 8, 2020. "Residence: Highland Park, New Jersey"</ref>
• Jerry Levine (born 1957), actor and director of television and theater, best known for appearing on Will & Grace and in the films Teen Wolf and Casual Sex?<ref>Seiler, Andy. "Casual Sex? role marks change for H. Park actor", Central New Jersey Home News, May 6, 1988. Accessed June 20, 2024, via Newspapers.com. "Levine, who grew up in Highland Park, has starred in two television series, both times as a youngster."</ref>
• Roy Lichtenstein (1923–1997), pop artist who moved to a home at 66 South Adelaide Avenue in 1960<ref name=Mayor/><ref>Chronology, Roy Lichtenstein Foundation. Accessed April 3, 2017. "1960:... Moves into a house at 66 S. Adelaide Avenue, Highland Park, New Jersey, where he sets up his studio in the bedroom."</ref>
• Seth Mandel (born 1982), conservative author who is editor of The Washington Examiner<ref>Amato, Jennifer. "Parents celebrate baby's birth at body shop"Template:Dead link, CentralJersey.com, May 2, 2017. Accessed September 28, 2018. "Little did Seth Mandel know that 10 years after leaving Greater Media Newspapers, a precursor of Newspaper Media Group, that his family would make its own headlines. Seth and his wife Bethany thought their third child was going to arrive on April 27, a day after Bethany's due date, so they headed from their home in Highland Park to the hospital in Princeton."</ref>
• Tomás Eloy Martínez (1934–2010), journalist and writer, professor and director of the department of Latin American Studies at Rutgers, author of Santa Evita and The Peron Novel<ref>Ojito, Mirta. "Author didn't seek tie-in to Madonna"Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore, The Tampa Tribune, January 10, 1997. Accessed April 9, 2011. "Soon after, Martinez began work on the book, which he completed in his new home in Highland Park, NJ..."</ref>
• Suzy Parker (1932–2003), fashion model and actress<ref>""Round About Town",The Daily Home News, May 4, 1960. Accessed January 26, 2023, via Newspapers.com. "Dario would be the first to take issue with former Highland Park-iie Suzy Parker who declared on the Jack Paar program last night that 'the French are a mean people.'"</ref>
• Arno Allan Penzias (1933–2024), physicist and a co-winner of the 1978 Nobel Prize in physics<ref>Horner, Shirley. "About Books", The New York Times, October 3, 1993. Accessed December 19, 2007. "Previous recipients of the award, which has come to be known as the Michael, include Mary Higgins Clark of Saddle River, Belva Plain of Short Hills, Wende and Harry Devlin of Mountainside, the Nobel laureate Dr. Arno Penzias of Highland Park and Gay Talese of Ocean City."</ref>
• Susan Pitt (1948–2024), competition swimmer and world record-holder in the 200-meter butterfly<ref>Anderson, Sue Pitt (Part One), Rutgers University Oral History Archives, August 29, 2022. Accessed December 3, 2024. "KR: You grew up in Highland Park. Is that correct? SA: In Highland Park, yes."</ref>
• Stav Prodromou (born 1944), businessman who was the founder and former chief executive officer of Poqet Computer Corporation<ref>"Communion Action", The Daily Home News, December 8, 1960. Accessed January 26, 2023, via Newspapers.com. "Stavro E. Prodromou, 17, center, recipient of the Highland Park Fire Department scholarship at Rutgers University, looks on as Louis Figle, fire chief, presents $400 check to Dr. Mason W. Cross, president of the university.... Prodromou, son of Mr. and Mrs. Evangelo Prodromou of 218 Magnolia St., Highland Park, was graduated from Highland Park High School in June."</ref>
• George T. Reynolds (1917–2005), physicist best known for his work in particle physics, biophysics and environmental science<ref>George Reynolds, Rutgers University Oral History Archives, October 29, 1999. Accessed June 28, 2019. "I was born in 1917, in Trenton. Soon after that, I guess I was two years old, we moved to Highland Park, New Jersey, and that's where I lived my early life."</ref>
• Susana Rotker (1954–2000), Venezuelan journalist, columnist, essayist and writer<ref>Saxon, Wolfgang. "Susana Rotker-Martinez, 46, Language Professor at Rutgers", The New York Times, December 2, 2000. Accessed August 12, 2018. "Dr. Susana Rotker-Martinez, director of the Rutgers Center for Hemispheric Studies, was hit by a truck and fatally injured Monday while crossing a road in Piscataway, N.J. She was 46 and lived in Highland Park."</ref>
• Rudy Rucker (born 1946), mathematician, computer scientist and science fiction author, best known for the novels in the Ware Tetralogy<ref>Rucker, Rudy van Bitter. All the visions, p. 102. Ocean View Books, 1991. Template:ISBN. Accessed February 28, 2018. "Audrey and I were newlyweds there in Highland Park, and we used to watch The Newlywed Game on TV every week."</ref>
• Neil Sloane (born 1939), mathematician, creator and maintainer of the On-Line Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences<ref>Home Page, Neil J. A. Sloane. Accessed May 30, 2015.</ref>
• L. J. Smith (born 1980), former NFL tight end<ref>L.J. Smith profile Template:Webarchive, Philadelphia Eagles. Accessed June 9, 2007. "Growing up in the small town of Highland Park, NJ (2 square miles, population 14,500), Smith graduated from the local high school as part of a 115-person class.</ref>
• Joan Snyder (born 1940), pioneering neo-expressionist feminist artist and 2007 MacArthur "Genius Award" winner<ref>Ronnen, Meir. "Joan Snyder at the Jewish Museum; New York's Jewish Museum is currently presenting Joan Snyder: A Painting Survey, 1969-2005 through October 23.", The Jerusalem Post, February 18, 2010. Accessed August 12, 2018. "Born in Highland Park, New Jersey in 1940, Snyder was the middle child of Jewish parents who never lost a sense of their immigrant heritage."</ref>
• Ulrich P. Strauss (1920–2015), Rutgers University chemist and 1971 Guggenheim Fellow<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Darrell K. Sweet (1934–2011), illustrator best known for cover art for science fiction and fantasy novels<ref>Gray, Kristy. "Peek into the imagination of Cody sci-fi artist Darrel K. Sweet: Mind Traveler", Casper Star-Tribune, January 21, 2007. Accessed April 9, 2011. "Sweet was drawing at age 3½ growing up in Highland Park, N.J. His mother still has some of these pictures, nearly seven decades old."</ref>
• Endre Szemerédi (born 1940), mathematician who was the 2012 winner of the Abel Prize<ref>Staff. "Math drives this Rutgers professor" Template:Webarchive, copy of article from The Star-Ledger, March 23, 2008. Accessed July 4, 2012. "Endre Szemeredi 67, Highland Park "</ref>
• Norman Tanzman (1918–2004), politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 1962 to 1968 and in the New Jersey Senate from 1968 to 1974<ref>"Norman Tanzman, 85, once Middlesex state senator". Home News Tribune, June 7, 2004. Accessed March 1, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "Born in New York City, Mr. Tanzman moved to New Brunswick when he was 4, and then to Highland Park."</ref>
• Olga Von Till (1897–1996), classical pianist and piano teacher<ref>"Hugh Kormos, Publisher, Dies; Funeral Will Be Held Tomorrow", The Central Jersey Home News, December 3, 1951. Accessed May 31, 2020. "Born in Zsambek, Hungary, Mr. Kormos came to the community in 1921, shortly after his marriage to Miss Olga Von Till of Highland Park, whom he met in Budapest while she was studying music abroad."</ref>
• Alan Voorhees (1922–2005), engineer and urban planner<ref>Greats go down - Alan Voorhees, Rand Brown Template:Webarchive, Tollroadsnews. December 24, 2005. Accessed July 22, 2007. "Born in Highland Park NJ, he was a distinguished Navy Seal in World War II, part of a team that regularly reconnoitered enemy occupied shores mapping beaches for good landing sites - for which he was awarded a Silver Star."</ref>
• Selman Waksman (1888–1973), biochemist and microbiologist who won the Nobel Prize for his work on antibiotics including Streptomycin for treating tuberculosis<ref>Cheslow, Jerry. "If You're Thinking of Living in/Highland Park; Well-Established, but Unpretentious", The New York Times, November 21, 1993. Accessed September 8, 2014. "Highland Park has been home to two Nobel laureates. The late Selman A. Waksman was awarded the prize in medicine and physiology in 1952 for his work with antibiotics and Dr. Arno A. Penzias, who shared the 1978 prize in physics for his work related to the big bang theory, still lives there."</ref>

External links

• Borough of Highland Park website
• Highland Park Public Schools
• Template:NJReportCard
• Highland Park Volunteer Fire Department
• School Data for the Highland Park Public Schools, National Center for Education Statistics
• Historical Maps of Highland Park, Rutgers Special Collection
• Highland Park Environmental Commission