Pennsauken Township, New Jersey

Pennsauken Township is a township in Camden County, New Jersey, United States, and a suburb of Philadelphia. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township's population was 35,885, reflecting an increase of 148 (+0.4%) from the 35,737 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 999 (+2.9%) from the 34,738 counted in the 1990 Census.

History

Pennsauken Township was incorporated as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 18, 1892, from portions of the now-defunct Stockton Township.

The exact origin of the name Pennsauken is unclear, but it probably derives from the language of the Lenni Lenape people (a Native American group which once occupied the area) from "Pindasenauken", the Lenape language term for "tobacco pouch". Alternatively, the "Penn" in the township's name refers to William Penn, while "sauk" is a water inlet or outlet.

Pennsauken was home to America's first drive-in movie theater, created in 1933 with the opening of the Camden Drive-In in Pennsauken. It featured the comedy Wives Beware, released in the theaters as Two White Arms.