The town is home to a county park, called Grover Cleveland Park, named in honor of the President of the United States who was born in neighboring town, Caldwell. The towns of Caldwell and West Caldwell share a school district. There are four elementary schools between the two towns, all of which are named after American presidents: Washington School, Jefferson School, and Wilson School, located in West Caldwell; and Lincoln School, located in Caldwell. Students are districted to go to a certain one of the four elementary schools between Kindergarten and fifth grade, based on where they live. Between sixth and eighth grades, all students in both Caldwell and West Caldwell attend Grover Cleveland Middle School, located in Caldwell. All students also attend the same high school, James Caldwell high school, located in the center of West Caldwell, which is named after the same Revolutionary War hero that the towns are named for.
Caldwell, West Caldwell, and neighboring towns such as Fairfield, Verona, Livingston, Essex Falls, North Caldwell and Roseland were all originally one town known as "Caldwell".
West Caldwell has several stores and strip malls, and two public town pools, Cedar Street Pool and Westville Pool. The town is generally a safe place with few violent crimes and only two murders in its history.
Geography
West Caldwell is located at 40°50'54" North, 74°17'20" West (40.848349, -74.288970)1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 13.1 km² (5.1 mi²). 13.1 km² (5.1 mi²) of it is land and none of it is covered by water.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 11,233 people, 3,990 households, and 3,112 families residing in the township. The population density is 858.8/km² (2,224.4/mi²). There are 4,044 housing units at an average density of 309.2/km² (800.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the township is 93.84% White, 0.89% African American, 0.04% Native American, 3.85% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.61% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. 2.80% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 3,990 households out of which 35.3% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.1% are married couples living together, 7.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 22.0% are non-families. 19.2% of all households are made up of individuals and 11.2% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.75 and the average family size is 3.17.
In the township the population is spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 41 years. For every 100 females there are 90.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 86.2 males.
The median income for a household in the township is $83,396, and the median income for a family is $94,379. Males have a median income of $67,108 versus $45,365 for females. The per capita income for the township is $38,345. 2.1% of the population and 1.2% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 2.5% are under the age of 18 and 2.4% are 65 or older.