South Jersey

:"This is about a region in the United States. For the island of Jersey, see Jersey."

South Jersey is a colloquial term, with no consensus definition, covering the southern portions of New Jersey between the lower Delaware River and the Atlantic Ocean.

New Jersey is sandwiched between two large cities: New York City in the northeast and Philadelphia in the southwest; Benjamin Franklin called her "a barrel tapped at both ends". "South Jersey" is the area within the Philadelphia sphere of influence, whereas "North Jersey" is the area within New York City's influence.

The shoreline areas, in particular Atlantic City, have a distinct economy centered around tourism.
Burlington and Camden counties have several older streetcar towns, and many residents commute to Philadelphia.

outh Jersey counties

There are 8 counties that comprise South Jersey. [ [http://www.snjdc.org/pdf_docs/2006_regional_dev_plan.pdf Definition of South Jersey on Page 2] , Southern New Jersey Development Council. Accessed January 12, 2008.]

*Atlantic County
*Burlington County
*Camden County
*Cape May County
*Cumberland County
*Gloucester County
*Ocean County
*Salem County

Until it was split in 1999, the original area covered by Area code 609 was one of the definitions of South Jersey. [Demasters, Karen. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9500E6DE1F38F934A35751C0A96F958260 "The New Phone Math: 609 Divided by 2"] , "The New York Times", February 7, 1999. Accessed August 6, 2008.]

Economics and Demographics

In 2005, "Money magazine" named Moorestown the "best place to live" [not financially] in the United States, although they stated that a number of adjacent municipalities (particularly Mount Laurel, Haddonfield, Medford, Marlton, Cherry Hill, and Voorhees) could have just as easily been given the distinction. New Jersey's population density, as well as the geographic limitations of such a populous state, make disparities between adjoining or neighboring towns readily evident. For example, Maple Shade, which abuts Moorestown, is a township of working class and middle income families.

By contrast, nearby Camden has excessive poverty and crime. Lindenwold, Clementon, Mt. Holly, Gloucester City, and Pemberton and Atlantic City contain large segments of working class citizens.

Commercial centers and resorts

South Jersey's regional commercial centers include: Cherry Hill, Camden, and Atlantic City with its resort casinos, boardwalk, shopping, and beaches.

Other South Jersey beach resorts include:
*Avalon
*Brigantine
*Cape May
*Long Beach Island
*Longport
*Margate
*North Wildwood
*Ocean City
*Point Pleasant Beach
*Sea Isle City
*Seaside Heights
*Stone Harbor
*Wildwood
*Wildwood Crest
*Ventnor

Famous South Jerseyans

*Mitch Albom, author and journalist
*Malik Allen, basketball player for the Chicago Bulls of the NBA
*Mike Bibby, basketball player for the Atlanta Hawks of the NBA
*Mary Birdsong, actress
*Dave Budd, retired basketball player
*The Camden 28, anti-Vietnam war protesters
*Joanna Cassidy, actress
*Jeff Celentano, actor
*James Fenimore Cooper, author of Last of the Mohicans
*Musa Cooper, dancer
*Ron Dayne, football player for the Houston Texans of the NFL
*Trevor Dennis, founder of trekden
*Marc Ecko, owner and founder of eckō unltd.
*Keith Elias, former football player
*Linda Fiorentino, actress
*Calista Flockhart, actress
*Glenn Foley, former football player
*Chris Ford, former basketball player and coach
*Bruce S. Gordon, president of the NAACP
*Vernon Hill, businessman
*Rodney Jerkins, rapper
*Phil Ivey, poker player
*Brian Joo, Korean American singer
*Michael Landon, actor
*Ali Larter, actress/model
*Al Leiter, former baseball player
*Carl Lewis, 9-time Olympic gold medalist in track and field
*Michelle Malkin, political commentator
*Eddie Money, musician
*George Norcross III, political activist
*Diamond Dallas Page, retired professional wrestler
*Alice Paul, American suffragist leader
*Thomas Paine, author of Common Sense
*Scott Patterson, actor
*Piper Perabo, actress
*Kelly Ripa, actress/talk show host
*H. Browning Ross, two-time steeplechase Olympian
*Michael Schoeffling, actor/wrestler
*Scott Schoeneweis, pitcher for the New York Mets of the MLB
*J.R. Smith, basketball player for the Denver Nuggets of the NBA
*Patti Smith, musician
*Steven Spielberg, director/producer
*Dave Thomas, founder of the famous Wendy's fast food chain
*Martin Truex Jr., race car driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
*Ben Vaughn, folk musician and NPR commentator
*Paul Volcker, former Chairman of the Federal Reserve
*Bruce Willis, actor
*Walt Whitman, poet
*Nicole Wood, Miss April 1993 Playboy Playmate
*Norman Joseph Woodland, inventor of the bar code

Culture

A list of unique and notable South Jersey cultural icons and institutions include, but is not limited, to:
*Absecon Light
*Adventure Aquarium
*Barnegat Light
*Batsto Village
*Blueberry farms in Hammonton
*Cape May Light
*Casinos in Atlantic City
*Clementon Amusement Park
*Commerce Bank
*Garden State Park
*Hereford Inlet Light
*Jersey Devil
*Knotz Soft Pretzels
*Lucy the Elephant
*Pine Barrens
*Shore Culture
*"On the Way to Cape May"
*Traffic circles
*Washington Street Mall
*Wawa Food Markets
*Wheaton Village
*USS New Jersey (BB-62)

References

External links

* [http://southjerseyvideomagazine.com/index.htm South Jersey Video Magazine] Video archive featuring the people and culture of the region
* [http://nsjersey.blogspot.com/ Where is North and South Jersey?] Documentary seeking to answer the question.