Lakewood New Jersey History & Facts

Lakewood Township is the most populous township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. A rapidly growing community, as of the 2020 United States Census, the township had a total population of 135,158 representing an increase of 41,415 (+45.5%) from the 92,843 counted in the 2010 Census. The township ranked as the fifth-most-populous municipality in the state in 2020, after having been ranked 7th in 2010 and 22nd in 2000. The sharp increase in population from 2000 to 2010 was led by increases in the township's Orthodox Jewish and Latino communities.

Lakewood is a hub of Orthodox Judaism, and is home to Beth Medrash Govoha (BMG), the largest yeshiva outside of Israel.The large Orthodox population, which comprises more than half the township's population, strongly influences the township's culture and wields considerable political clout in the township as a voting bloc.

The earliest documented European settlement of the present Lakewood area was by operators of sawmills, from about 1750 forward. One such sawmill—located at the east end of the present Lake Carasaljo—was known as Three Partners Mill from at least 1789 until at least 1814. From 1815 until 1818, in the same area, Jesse Richards had an iron-smelting operation known as Washington Furnace, using the local bog iron ore. The ironworks were revived in 1833 by Joseph W. Brick, who named the business Bergen Iron Works, which also became the name of the accompanying town. In 1865, the town was renamed Bricksburg in 1865, and in 1880, it was renamed Lakewood and became a fashionable winter resort.

Lakewood's developers thought that "Bricksburg" didn't capture their vision for the community, and the names "Brightwood" and "Lakewood" were proposed. After reaching out to area residents, "Lakewood" was chosen, and the United States Postal Service approved the name in March 1880.The name "Lakewood" was intended to focus on the location near lakes and pine forests.

Lakewood was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 23, 1892, from portions of Brick Township. Portions of Howell Township in Monmouth County were annexed to Lakewood Township in 1929.

Lakewood's three greatest hotels were the Laurel House (opened in 1880; closed in 1932), the Lakewood Hotel (opened January 1891, closed in 1925), and the Laurel-in-the-Pines (opened December 1891, burned down in 1967).Lakewood's promoters claimed that its winter temperature was usually about ten degrees warmer than that of New York City and were warmer than points located further south,but this claim is not substantiated by official records of the United States Weather Bureau. During the 1890s, Lakewood was a resort for the rich and famous, and The New York Times devoted a weekly column to the activities of Lakewood society.Grover Cleveland spent the winters of 1891–1892 and 1892–1893 in a cottage near the Lakewood Hotel, commuting to his business in New York City.Mark Twain also enjoyed vacationing in Lakewood. George Jay Gould I acquired an estate at Lakewood in 1896, which is now Georgian Court University.John D. Rockefeller bought a property in 1902 which later became Ocean County Park. Lakewood's hotel business remained strong in the 1920s and 1950s, but went into severe decline in the 1960s.

Famous Peoples From Lakewood New Jersey

Yitzchak Abadi

Yitzchak Abadi (born March 12, 1933) is an Orthodox Jewish Rabbi and Posek and a prominent leader of Orthodox Judaism in the United States and around the world.

Yitzchak Abadi was born in Venezuela. He moved with his parents to Tiberias, Mandatory Palestine at age 2. As a child Abadi attended school in Haifa. His studies began in the Yishuv Hachdash in Tel Aviv, Israel and continued in Yeshivat Chevron in Jerusalem. At 19 years old, he was sent by the Chazon Ish to study in Montreux, Switzerland. A year later the Chazon Ish sent Abadi to study in Lakewood, New Jersey, under the famed Rabbi Aharon Kotler.

Rabbi Abadi is a posek, and his students are rabbis across the globe. After Rav Kotler's death, Rabbi Abadi emerged as one of the leading poskim for the Lakewood community. Rabbi Abadi branched out on his own in 1980, opening a premiere halacha Kollel in Lakewood. In 1993, Rabbi Abadi transferred his Kollel to Har Nof, Jerusalem, where it continued to produce scholars trained to decide halachic questions touching on every aspect of Jewish law. Rabbi Abadi moved back to Lakewood in 2009.

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