| Palermo, New Jersey | |
| Settlement Type: | Census-designated place |
| Pushpin Map: | USA New Jersey Cape May County#USA New Jersey#USA |
| Pushpin Label: | Palermo |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location in Cape May County##Location in New Jersey##Location in the United States |
| Pushpin Relief: | yes |
| Pushpin Label Position: | right |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: |  United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Cape May |
| Subdivision Type3: | Township |
| Subdivision Name3: | Upper |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 8.23 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 3.18 |
| Area Land Km2: | 8.06 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.16 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 3.11 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.06 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Total: | 3183 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 1022.81 |
| Population Density Km2: | 394.86 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | −05:00 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | −04:00 |
| Elevation Ft: | 16 |
| Coordinates: | 39.24°N -74.6725°W |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | [3] |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 879097 |
Palermo is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP)[4] located in Upper Township, in Cape May County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.[5]
Palermo is located 14miles northeast of Cape May Court House.
The Palermo Air Force Station, closed in 1970, was located south of Palermo.
An early settler, Henry Young, arrived in New Jersey aboard a whaling vessel prior to 1700, and established a plantation extending west from Palermo.[6]
The Friendship School in Palermo was built around 1830 and was restored in 1980. It is one of the oldest schools in Upper Township.[7]
A post office was established in 1872.[8]
The Ocean City Railroad constructed a line through Palermo, and a station was erected there in 1897. The line later became part of the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines.[9] The line is now abandoned.[10]
In 1953, a proposed extension of the Garden State Parkway was to be constructed through Palermo. Several Upper Township farmers complained about the route, including one from Palermo who claimed "the parkway went through the center of his piggery".[11] A commission was established to settle disputes between farmers and the Parkway Authority.[11]
As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 3,183.[2]
As with other parts of Upper Township, the area is zoned to Upper Township School District[12] (for grades K-8) and Ocean City School District (for high school). The latter operates Ocean City High School.
Countywide schools include Cape May County Technical High School[13] [14] and Cape May County Special Services School District.