Forked River ( located within Lacey Township, in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the CDP's population was 5,274, which in turn reflected an increase of 330 (+6.7%) from the 4.914 counted in the 2000 census.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the CDP had a total area of , including of land and of water (73.66%).
Forked River is located on U.S. Route 9 south of Toms River. The community of Lanoka Harbor is directly north of Forked River, Bamber Lake is to the west, Barnegat is to the southwest, and Waretown is to the south.
Forked River is also the name of a nearby river that empties into Barnegat Bay.
Demographics
Forked River first appeared as an unincorporated community in the 1970 U.S. census
!Pop 2010
!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |Pop 2020
!% 2000
!% 2010
!style="background-color: #ffffb3;" |% 2020
|-
|White alone (NH)
|4,668
|4,781
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|4,547
|94.99%
|91.17%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|86.22%
|-
|Black or African American alone (NH)
|36
|31
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|34
|0.73%
|0.59%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|0.64%
|-
|Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)
|10
|7
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|8
|0.20%
|0.13%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|0.15%
|-
|Asian alone (NH)
|16
|32
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|39
|0.33%
|0.61%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|0.74%
|-
|Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)
|0
|5
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|1
|0.00%
|0.10%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|0.02%
|-
|Other race alone (NH)
|0
|0
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|21
|0.00%
|0.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|0.40%
|-
|Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)
|18
|40
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|159
|0.37%
|0.76%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|3.01%
|-
|Hispanic or Latino (any race)
|166
|348
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|465
|3.38%
|6.64%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|8.82%
|-
|Total
|4,914
|5,244
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|5,274
|100.00%
|100.00%
|style='background: #ffffe6;'|100.00%
|}
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Forked River had a population of 5,274. The median age was 43.4 years. 19.8% of residents were under the age of 18 and 18.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 101.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.4 males age 18 and over.
96.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 3.4% lived in rural areas.
There were 2,097 households in Forked River, of which 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 53.2% were married-couple households, 18.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 19.8% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 24.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 1,927 households, out of which 30.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.8% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.98. until 2019 it operated as All Saints Regional Catholic School and was collectively managed by five churches, with one being St. Pius X Church, In 2019 St. Mary Church in Barnegat took entire control of the school, which remained on the same Manahawkin campus, and changed its name. The other churches no longer operate the school but still may send students there.
On June 6, 1997, Melissa Drexler, known as The Prom Mom, delivered a baby in a restroom stall at her Lacey Township High School prom, and threw the body in the trash before returning to the dance. She pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter, and was sentenced to fifteen years' imprisonment. After serving nearly 37 months, she was released on parole.
Transportation
thumb|[[Garden State Parkway at the exit for Forked River]]
NJ Transit provides bus service to Atlantic City on the 559 bus route. Academy Bus provided bus service to Jersey City and New York City on the Parkway Express. Local bus service is provided by Ocean Ride. Forked River is served by U.S. Route 9 and exit 74 of the Garden State Parkway.
Notable people
People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Forked River include:
- Christopher J. Connors (born 1956), represents the 9th legislative district in the New Jersey General Assembly
- Melissa Drexler (born 1978), Prom Mom
- "Irish" Teddy Mann (1951–2024), former middleweight boxing contender and author of Fighting For Redemption: The "Irish" Teddy Mann Story
- Brady Noon (born 2005), actor known for his roles in Boardwalk Empire, Good Boys and The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers
- Scott Palguta (born 1982), Head Men's Soccer Coach at Colorado College who had played with the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer
- Rhett Titus (born 1987), professional wrestler