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city in New Jersey, United States
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Woodbury is a city in and the county seat of Gloucester County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The city, along with the rest of Gloucester County, is part of South Jersey and of the Philadelphia metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 9,963, a decrease of 211 (−2.1%) from the 2010 census count of 10,174, which in turn reflected a decline of 133 (−1.3%) from the 10,307 in the 2000 census.
Woodbury was originally formed as a borough on March 27, 1854, within Deptford Township based on the results of a March 22, 1854, referendum. On January 2, 1871, Woodbury was reincorporated as a city based on the results of a referendum held that day.
Inspira Health Network is based in Woodbury. The now-defunct Woodbury Country Club operated in Woodbury from 1897 to 2010, closing due to declining membership and mounting debt that led to its 2013 bankruptcy filing.
The city had the 14th-highest property tax rate in New Jersey with an equalized rate of 4.582% as of 2020 compared to 3.212% in the county as a whole and a statewide average of 2.279%.
As recounted by historian William McMahon, the Native Americans called the place where the city of Woodbury is now located "Piscozackasing", or "place of the black burrs".
Woodbury was founded in 1683 by Henry Wood, a Quaker from North West England who left Great Britain due to religious persecution. Wood was incarcerated in Lancaster for practicing as a Quaker and left his home in Tottington near Bury, Lancashire in a boat to set up a community in the new world where he and his family could practice his religion freely. His surname and hometown inspired naming the city that he founded Woodbury.
In 2000, Bury, England, and Woodbury were twinned as part of millennium celebrations in both countries. The twinning ceremony was the culmination of a week where more than 300 school children and college students, local dignitaries, and local residents from Bury took part in sporting and cultural events held in and around Woodbury. During the week, there was a symbolic meeting and reconciliation of the Vicar of Henry Wood's former church in Tottington and the Quaker meeting house in Woodbury and an ecumenical service attended by many of the residents and visitors.
In 1787, a fossil bone recovered in Woodbury from local Cretaceous strata was discussed by the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia. The remains were only retrospectively identified as dinosaurian, as dinosaurs would not be scientifically recognized as a distinct group of reptiles until August 1841.
Woodbury was the first city in the United States to mandate recycling. This effort was led by then-councilman and later mayor Donald P. Sanderson in the 1970s, and an ordinance was finally passed in December 1980. The idea of towing a recycling trailer behind a trash collection vehicle to enable the collection of trash and recyclable material at the same time emerged. Sanderson was asked to speak in municipalities throughout the country and other towns and cities soon followed suit.
There are numerous contributing properties to the Broad Street Historic District encompassing Broad Street (located between Woodbury Creek and Courtland Street) Highland Mills, and Delaware Street (located between Broad and Wood streets) including the Gloucester County Courthouse, which was placed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places (#1429) in 1988.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city had a total area of 2.10 square miles (5.45 km2), including 2.02 square miles (5.23 km2) of land and 0.08 square miles (0.22 km2) of water (3.95%).
The city borders Deptford Township, West Deptford Township, and Woodbury Heights.
Woodbury has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cfa) typical of southern New Jersey with warm summers and cold winters.
As of the 2020 census, Woodbury had a population of 9,963. The median age was 38.4 years. 23.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 88.6 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 84.0 males age 18 and over.
100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 4,068 households in Woodbury, of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 34.8% were married-couple households, 19.4% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 37.7% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 4,532 housing units, of which 10.2% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 10.4%.
The 2010 United States census counted 10,174 people, 4,088 households, and 2,420 families in the city. The population density was 5,064.0 inhabitants per square mile (1,955.2/km2). There were 4,456 housing units at an average density of 2,217.9 per square mile (856.3/km2). The racial makeup was 66.01% (6,716) White, 24.91% (2,534) Black or African American, 0.23% (23) Native American, 1.28% (130) Asian, 0.28% (28) Pacific Islander, 3.19% (325) from other races, and 4.11% (418) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.66% (1,085) of the population.
Of the 4,088 households, 27.9% had children under the age of 18; 36.6% were married couples living together; 17.4% had a female householder with no husband present and 40.8% were non-families. Of all households, 35.3% were made up of individuals and 16.0% 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.
23.5% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 25.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.0 years. For every 100 females, the population had 93.1 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 90.3 males.
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $58,629 (with a margin of error of +/− $4,598) and the median family income was $74,276 (+/− $7,880). Males had a median income of $57,019 (+/− $3,425) versus $37,363 (+/− $6,910) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $28,845 (+/− $2,571). About 7.8% of families and 11.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.7% of those under age 18 and 15.0% of those age 65 or over.
As of the 2000 United States census, there were 10,307 people, 4,051 households, and 2,588 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,961.4 inhabitants per square mile (1,915.6/km2). There were 4,310 housing units at an average density of 2,074.7 per square mile (801.0/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 72.45% White, 22.83% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.99% Asian, 0.14% Pacific Islander, 1.28% from other races, and 2.10% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.94% of the population.
There were 4,051 households, out of which 32.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.4% were married couples living together, 18.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.1% were non-families. 31.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.08.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 24.8% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 16.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $41,827 per annum and the median income for a family was $53,630. Males had a median income of $40,429 versus $30,570 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,592. About 11.2% of families and 13.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.7% of those under age 18 and 15.4% of those age 65 or over.
Woodbury is governed under the City form of New Jersey municipal government, which is used in 15 municipalities (of the 564) statewide. The governing body is comprised of the mayor and the city council. A mayor is elected at-large directly by the voters for a two-year term of office. The city council has nine members, three from each of three wards, elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with one seat from each ward coming up for election each year as part of the November general election in a three-year cycle.
As of 2025, the mayor of Woodbury is Democrat Kyle Miller, whose term ends December 31, 2026. Members of the Woodbury City Council are Council President William H. Fleming Jr. (D, 2027; Ward 2), Sam Ferraino (D, 2026; Ward 3), Danielle Carter (D, 2025; Ward 1), Norlyn Garlic (D, 2025; Ward 2), Frances Harwell (D, 2026; Ward 2), Robert Johnson (D, 2025; Ward 3 - elected to serve an unexpired term), Ryan Lange (D, 2027; Ward 3), Reed Merinuk (D, 2022; Ward 3), Donna Miller (D, 2026; Ward 1) and Jo Miller (D, 2027; Ward 1).
In April 2017, the city council selected Karlene O'Connor from a list of three candidates nominated by the Democratic municipal committee to fill the Second Ward seat expiring in December 2019 that had been held by David Trovato until he resigned from office earlier in the month.
At the January 2017 reorganization meeting, the city council chose Kenneth McIlvaine from three candidates nominated by the Democratic municipal committee to fill the Third Ward seat expiring in December 2017 that was vacated by Jessica Floyd when she took office as mayor.
The Democratic sweep in November 2012 of the three council seats and mayor gave the party a 6–3 majority on the 2013 council.
Woodbury is located in the 1st Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 5th state legislative district.
For the 119th United States Congress, New Jersey's 1st congressional district is represented by Donald Norcross (D, Camden). New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Democrats Cory Booker (Newark, term ends 2027) and Andy Kim (Moorestown, term ends 2031).
For the 2026–2027 session, the 5th legislative district of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the State Senate by Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D, Barrington) and in the General Assembly by Bill Moen (D, Camden) and William Spearman (D, Camden).
Gloucester County is governed by a board of county commissioners, whose seven members are elected at-large to three-year terms of office on a staggered basis in partisan elections, with either two or three seats coming up for election each year. At a reorganization meeting held each January, the Board selects a Director and a Deputy Director from among its members. As of 2025, Gloucester County's Commissioners are:
Director Frank J. DiMarco (D, Deptford Township, 2025), Matt Weng (D, Pitman, 2026), Joann Gattinelli (D, Washington Township, 2026), Nicholas DeSilvio (R, Franklin Township, 2027), Denice DiCarlo (D, West Deptford Township, 2025) Deputy Director Jim Jefferson (D, Woodbury, 2026) and Christopher Konawel Jr. (R, Glassboro, 2027).
Gloucester County's constitutional officers are: Clerk James N. Hogan (D, Franklin Township; 2027), Sheriff Carmel Morina (D, Greenwich Township; 2027) and Surrogate Giuseppe "Joe" Chila (D, Woolwich Township; 2028).
As of March 2011, there were a total of 6,368 registered voters in Woodbury, of which 2,255 (35.4%) were registered as Democrats, 1,162 (18.2%) were registered as Republicans and 2,948 (46.3%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 3 voters registered as Libertarians or Greens.
In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 67.7% of the vote (2,972 cast), ahead of Republican Mitt Romney with 30.9% (1,356 votes), and other candidates with 1.5% (65 votes), among the 4,430 ballots cast by the city's 6,623 registered voters (37 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 66.9%. In the 2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 66.9% of the vote (3,216 cast), ahead of Republican John McCain with 30.9% (1,487 votes) and other candidates with 1.2% (58 votes), among the 4,806 ballots cast by the city's 6,829 registered voters, for a turnout of 70.4%. In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat John Kerry received 60.1% of the vote (2,735 ballots cast), outpolling Republican George W. Bush with 38.3% (1,742 votes) and other candidates with 0.7% (43 votes), among the 4,547 ballots cast by the city's 6,521 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 69.7.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Woodbury, New Jersey”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.