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Verona is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 13,332〔〔〔 reflecting a decline of 201 (-1.5%) from the 13,533 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn declined by 64 (-0.5%) from the 13,597 counted in the 1990 Census.〔(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 September 6, 2012.〕 In 2008, ''New Jersey Monthly'' magazine ranked Verona #1 in Essex County and #3 in New Jersey as "Top Places to Live in New Jersey".〔(Top Places to Live in New Jersey ), ''New Jersey Monthly'' magazine, accessed February 21, 2008.〕 ==History== Verona and several neighboring towns were all originally one town known as the Horseneck Tract. In 1702, a group of settlers left Newark and purchased a large tract of land northwest of their home city for the equivalent of a few hundred dollars from the Lenni Lenape Native Americans. This piece of land extended west and north to the Passaic River, south to the town center of what would become Livingston, and east to the First Watchung Mountain, and was called Horseneck by the natives because it resembled the neck and head of a horse. What was then known as Horseneck contained most of the present day northern Essex County towns: Verona, along with Caldwell, West Caldwell, Cedar Grove, Essex Fells, Fairfield, North Caldwell, and Roseland are all located entirely in Horseneck, and parts of what are today Livingston, Montclair, and West Orange also were contained in the Horseneck Tract.〔Lefkowitz, Melanie. ("Verona's Small-Town Roots Prove a Draw" ), ''The Wall Street Journal'', November 19, 2011. "Verona, once part of a large town known as the Horseneck Tract that encompassed many of the now-adjacent communities, has been settled since the early 18th century."〕 After the Revolutionary War, the area of Horseneck was incorporated as "Caldwell Township" in honor of local war hero James Caldwell, a pastor who used pages from his church's bibles as wadding to ignite the ammo in soldiers' cannons and helped to drive the British out of Horseneck.〔(Caldwell New Jersey Historical Photographs and History ), accessed October 15, 2006.〕 The area of present-day Verona was part of what was known in the 1800s as Vernon Valley. The name was rejected when residents applied to the United States Postal Service, as the name had already been in use for an area in Sussex County. Verona was chosen as the alternative name for the community.〔(Verona ), History of New Jersey. Accessed November 19, 2011. "By the mid-nineteenth century, this area became known as Vernon Valley. However, when application was made for a United States Post Office, the townspeople were informed that another Vernon Valley, in Sussex County, had first claim to the name. The name Verona was put forth by the townspeople as a suitable replacement and was eventually accepted."〕 The township's name is derived from Verona, Italy.〔Hutchinson, Viola L. (''The Origin of New Jersey Place Names'' ), New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed September 24, 2015.〕 At various times between 1798 and 1892, issues arose which caused dissatisfaction between the Caldwell and Verona areas. These included a desire of the citizens of Verona to more closely control their own governmental affairs. With the population growing, Verona needed to centrally locate essential services such as schools and places of worship; problems with the water supply; and the disposition of road repair funds. On February 17, 1892, the citizens of Verona voted to secede from Caldwell Township to form Verona Township.〔Snyder, John P. (''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968'' ), Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 194. Accessed April 23, 2012.〕 Further growth and the need for a water system and other public utilities found Verona moving ahead of the other half of the township and in 1902 the two areas decided to separate into two separate municipalities: Verona Township and Verona Borough. It took two sessions of the state legislature to approve the new borough, but on April 18, 1907, the borough of Verona was approved by an act of the New Jersey Legislature, pending the results of a referendum held on April 30, 1907, in which the new borough passed by a 224-77 margin.〔〔Honeyman, Abraham Van Doren. (''Index-analysis of the Statutes of New Jersey, 1896-1909: Together with References to All Acts, and Parts of Acts, in the 'General Statutes' and Pamphlet Laws Expressly Repealed: and the Statutory Crimes of New Jersey During the Same Period'' ), p. 307. New Jersey Law Journal Publishing Company, 1910. Accessed October 18, 2015.〕 Residents of the newly formed borough had sought to disassociate themselves from the Overbrook County Insane Asylum and the Newark City Home (a reform school), as well as from the settlement of Cedar Grove, which was considered a settlement of farmers.〔Staff. ("VERONA DROPS CEDAR GROVE.; Votes Herself Separate Borough at a Special Election." ), ''The New York Times'', May 2, 1907. Accessed January 28, 2012.〕 On April 9, 1908, Verona Township changed its name to Cedar Grove Township.〔 In 1981, the borough was one of seven Essex County municipalities to pass a referendum to become a township, joining four municipalities that had already made the change, of what would ultimately be more than a dozen Essex County municipalities to reclassify themselves as townships in order take advantage of federal revenue sharing policies that allocated townships a greater share of government aid to municipalities on a per capita basis.〔("Chapter VI: Municipal Names and Municipal Classification" ), p. 73. New Jersey State Commission on County and Municipal Government, 1992. Accessed September 24, 2015.〕〔("Removing Tiering From The Revenue Sharing Formula Would Eliminate Payment Inequities To Local Governments" ), Government Accountability Office, April 15, 1982. Accessed September 24, 2015. "In 1978, South Orange Village was the first municipality to change its name to the 'township' of South Orange Village effective beginning in entitlement period 10 (October 1978 to September 1979). The Borough of Fairfield in 1978 changed its designation by a majority vote of the electorate and became the 'Township of Fairfield' effective beginning entitlement period 11 (October 1979 to September 1980).... However, the Revenue Sharing Act was not changed and the actions taken by South Orange and Fairfield prompted the Town of Montclair and West Orange to change their designation by referendum in the November 4, 1980, election. The municipalities of Belleville, Verona, Bloomfield, Nutley, Essex Fells, Caldwell, and West Caldwell have since changed their classification from municipality to a township."〕〔Karcher, Alan J. (''New Jersey's Multiple Municipal Madness'' ), pp. 119-120. Rutgers University Press, 1998. ISBN 9780813525662. Accessed September 24, 2015.〕 As an example of the potential benefits of switching to a township, Verona Borough received $213,000 in federal aid in 1976, while similarly sized Cedar Grove Township received $1.24 million.〔Narvaez, Alfonso A. ("New Jersey Journal" ), ''The New York Times'', December 27, 1981. Accessed September 24, 2015. "Under the Federal system, New Jersey's portion of the revenue sharing funds is disbursed among the 21 counties to create three 'money pools.' One is for county governments, one for 'places' and a third for townships. By making the change, a community can use the 'township advantage' to get away from the category containing areas with low per capita incomes."〕 Today, Verona uses just "Township of Verona" in most official documents, but some other official documents such as purchase orders still include "Township of Borough of Verona". 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Verona, New Jersey」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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