Wildwood, New Jersey
Wildwood, New Jersey | |
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Sunrise in Wildwood in August 2016 | |
Location of Wildwood in Cape May County highlighted in red (left). Inset map: Location of Cape May County in New Jersey highlighted in orange (right). | |
Census Bureau map of Wildwood, New Jersey | |
Location in Cape May County Location in New Jersey | |
| Coordinates: 38°59′20″N 74°49′11″W / 38.988914°N 74.819824°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New Jersey |
| County | Cape May |
| Incorporated | May 1, 1895 (as borough) January 1, 1912 (as city) |
| Government | |
| • Type | Walsh Act |
| • Body | Board of Commissioners |
| • Mayor | Ernie Troiano Jr. (term ends December 31, 2027) |
| • Municipal clerk | Lisa Brown |
| Area | |
• Total | 1.65 sq mi (4.28 km2) |
| • Land | 1.54 sq mi (3.99 km2) |
| • Water | 0.11 sq mi (0.29 km2) 6.79% |
| • Rank | 434th of 565 in state 12th of 16 in county |
| Elevation | 7 ft (2 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 5,157 |
• Estimate (2023) | 5,123 |
| • Rank | 373rd of 565 in state 6th of 16 in county |
| • Density | 3,346.5/sq mi (1,292.1/km2) |
| • Rank | 203rd of 565 in state 1st of 16 in county |
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (Eastern (EDT)) |
| ZIP Code | 08260 |
| Area code(s) | 609 exchanges: 522, 523, 729, 846 |
| FIPS code | 3481170 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0885444 |
| Website | www |
Wildwood is a city in Cape May County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The city, and all of Cape May County, is part of the Ocean City metropolitan statistical area, and is part of the Philadelphia-Wilmington-Camden, PA-NJ-DE-MD combined statistical area, also known as the Delaware Valley or Philadelphia metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's year-round population was 5,157, a decrease of 168 (−3.2%) from the 2010 census count of 5,325, which in turn reflected a decline of 111 (−2.0%) from the 5,436 counted in the 2000 census. A popular Jersey Shore resort destination, the population can swell to 250,000 during the summer. Wildwood was the first city in New Jersey to have a female mayor, Doris W. Bradway, who was ousted in a 1938 recall election.
The city of Wildwood proper constitutes the center of the island communities collectively known as The Wildwoods. The Wildwoods is used as a collective term to describe four communities on the island with the name Wildwood attached to them: North Wildwood, West Wildwood, Wildwood, and Wildwood Crest. Also part of The Wildwoods are Diamond Beach and a portion of Lower Township on the island. The city, and the surrounding communities that share the name, derives its name from the wild flowers found in the area. Wildwood is part of the South Jersey region of the state.