Barnegat Light is a borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough’s population was 574, reflecting a decline of 190 (-24.9%) from the 764 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 89 (+13.2%) from the 675 counted in the 1990 Census. The borough borders the Atlantic Ocean on Long Beach Island and is home to Barnegat Lighthouse.

Barnegat Light was formed as a Borough by the New Jersey Legislature on November 2, 1948, to replace Barnegat City borough, which in turn had been created on March 29, 1904, from portions of Long Beach Township.

In 1948, Barnegat City was renamed as Barnegat Light. The motivations for this renaming were both to honor the legacy of the lighthouse (which was decommissioned four years earlier) and to distinguish itself from nearby Barnegat Township. In 1950, the post office moved from the Applegate general store’s location to a new location on 18th Street. The building it replaced had itself been a general store and a gas station, both owned by Jens Jensen in 1920; who had given it to John Englesen in 1940 as a trade for a house on 19th Street. The post office remained at this location until its current location on 10th Street was opened. The site of the first post office, at the general store on 4th Street, remains today as the Inlet Deli.

The continued threat of storms such as the Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962 reinforced concerns about the stability of Barnegat Light’s beaches. The construction of the existing jetty in the 1990s added a significant amount of land to the town, much of which was designated as parkland and now includes a bird sanctuary. The jetty has provided stabilization to the shoreline along the inlet, but requires frequent dredging. In addition to the lighthouse, the borough continues to maintain a United States Coast Guard station, reflecting the continued presence of the former United States Life-Saving Service. In line with the borough’s history, its most prominent industries continue to be tourism and fishing.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough had a total area of 0.852 square miles (2.207 km²), including 0.731 square miles (1.893 km²) of land and 0.121 square miles (0.314 km²) of water (14.22%).

The borough borders Berkeley Township, Long Beach Township and Ocean Township. It is located on the northern tip of Long Beach Island and is bounded by Barnegat Bay on the West, the Atlantic Ocean on the East, the Barnegat Inlet to the North and the Long Beach Township neighborhood of Loveladies to the South.

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 574 people, 274 households, and 184.128 families residing in the borough. The population density was 785.1 per square mile (303.1/km²). There were 1,282 housing units at an average density of 1,753.6 per square mile (677.1/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 97.74% (561) White, 1.05% (6) Black or African American, 0.00% (0) Native American, 0.00% (0) Asian, 0.00% (0) Pacific Islander, 1.05% (6) from other races, and 0.17% (1) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.92% (11) of the population.

Source: Wikipedia