BRIDGETON, a city in southern New Jersey, United States, 38m. S. of Philadelphia, at the head of navigation on the Cohan sey river; the county seat of Cumberland county. It is served by the Central railroad of New Jersey and the Pennsylvania railroad. The population in 1920 was 14,323, and in 1930 was 15,699 by Federal census. It is the social and commercial centre of a rich agricultural region, and has well-established industries, the most important of which are the manufacture of glass bottles, jars and plate-glass ; the canning of fruits and vegetables ; iron works, and machine shops. The output of the 57 establishments in the city in 1925 was valued at $12,898,723. Considerable local capital is invested in the oyster industry at Bivalve, in the southern part of the county. Bridgeton still has its "Liberty Bell," which rang from the court house in 1776; and there are numerous survivals of century architecture, notably the Broad Street Presbyterian church, built in 1792 from the proceeds of a lottery authorized by the legislature for the purpose. City park and lakes contain i,000ac. of picturesque natural beauty.
The first rude bridge across the Cohansey, which gave the town its name, was built in 1716. In 1749 the hamlet was chosen by popular election for the county seat, and in 1754 a town was laid out. A mail route to Philadelphia, with daily deliveries, was established in 1802. At this time the principal industry was cutting cordwood for the Philadelphia market. A woollen mill was established in 1811, a nail and iron works in 1815, the first glass works in 1830, and the first canning factory in 186o. Bridgeton was designated a port of entry, but it never had much foreign commerce. The city was incorporated in 1864. In 1907 a new charter was adopted, providing for a modified commission form of government.