Stafford Township, New Jersey  Stafford Township is a township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population increased to 26,535, reflecting an increase of 4,003 (+17.8%) from the 22,532 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 9,207 (+69.1%) from the 13,325 counted in the 1990 Census. The 2010 population was the highest level ever recorded in a decennial census for Stafford Township. Stafford Township is the gateway to the resort communities on Long Beach Island, with Route 72 providing the sole road access, ending in Ship Bottom as it crosses Barnegat Bay via the Manahawkin Bay Bridge (formally known as the Dorland J. Henderson Memorial Bridge). The Garden State Parkway and U.S. Route 9 pass through the township and provide access to Route 72. Stafford Township was formed by Royal charter on March 3, 1750, from portions of Shrewsbury Township, while the area was still part of Monmouth County. It was incorporated as one of New Jersey's first 104 townships by the Township Act of 1798 of the New Jersey Legislature on February 21, 1798, and became part of the newly formed Ocean County on February 15, 1850. Portions of the township were taken to form Union Township (March 10, 1846, now Barnegat Township), Eagleswood Township (March 17, 1874), Long Beach City borough (September 19, 1894, now Surf City) and Long Beach Township (March 23, 1899). The township was named for Staffordshire, England. Stafford Township was mostly a rural area, aside from the bustling downtown of Manahawkin. Early growth in the township started in the 1950s, starting with the construction of large resort communities of Beach Haven West and Ocean Acres, which were built around the same time as the completion of the Garden State Parkway and the expansion of Route 72, the latter which formerly ran along the two-lane Bay Avenue. While growing quickly, development was still sparse. Route 72 was still mostly wooded, aside from several car dealerships, gas stations, a drive-in movie theater, and the Manahawkin Executive Airport. Most of the growth started in the 1980s, when several new developments were constructed, such as Colony Lakes and the expansion of Beach Haven West, and Ocean Acres, which strayed from being a community of summer homes into a booming development of Single-family homes.