Cranford, New Jersey
Cranford, New Jersey | |
|---|---|
Droeschers Mill, built in 1737 on the Rahway River | |
| Nickname: "The Venice of New Jersey" | |
| Motto(s): "Friendship and Progress" | |
Location of Cranford in Union County highlighted in yellow (left). Inset map: Location of Union County in New Jersey highlighted in black (right). | |
Census Bureau map of Cranford, New Jersey | |
| Coordinates: 40°39′23″N 74°18′17″W / 40.656391°N 74.30483°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New Jersey |
| County | Union |
| Incorporated | March 14, 1871 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Township |
| • Body | Township Committee |
| • Mayor | Terrence Curran (D, term ends December 31, 2025) |
| • Administrator | Lavona Patterson (interim) |
| • Municipal clerk | Patricia Donahue |
| Area | |
• Total | 4.87 sq mi (12.62 km2) |
| • Land | 4.84 sq mi (12.52 km2) |
| • Water | 0.04 sq mi (0.10 km2) 0.78% |
| • Rank | 281st of 565 in state 10th of 21 in county |
| Elevation | 82 ft (25 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 23,847 |
• Estimate (2023) | 23,741 |
| • Rank | 112th of 565 in state 8th of 21 in county |
| • Density | 4,927.1/sq mi (1,902.4/km2) |
| • Rank | 115th of 565 in state 11th of 21 in county |
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT)) |
| ZIP Code | 07016 |
| Area code | 908 |
| FIPS code | 3403915640 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0882214 |
| Website | www |
Cranford is a township in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located 18 miles (29 km) southwest of Manhattan. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 23,847, an increase of 1,222 (+5.4%) from the 2010 census count of 22,625, which in turn reflected an increase of 47 (+0.2%) from the 22,578 counted in the 2000 census.
NJ Transit rail service is available at the Cranford station, along the Raritan Valley Line, with service to Newark Penn Station and to New York Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan via Midtown Direct. It is part of the New York metropolitan area.
Cranford was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 14, 1871, from portions of the Townships of Clark, Linden, Springfield Township, Union Township and Westfield. Portions of the township were taken to form Garwood (in 1903) and Kenilworth (in 1907). The township's name is said to derive from the Crane family, including John Crane, who built a mill in 1720 along the Rahway River.