Lakewood was incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 23, 1892, from portions of Brick Township. Portions of Howell Township in Monmouth County were annexed to Lakewood Township in 1929.
Lakewood is one of the hubs of Orthodox Judaism and is home to one of the largest yeshivas in the world. The large Orthodox population, comprising nearly half of the township's population, wields considerable political clout in Lakewood Township, commanding a bloc of about 10,000 votes.
Lakewood CDP (2000 Census population of 36,065), Leisure Village (1,785) and Leisure Village East (1,594) are census-designated places and unincorporated areas located within Lakewood Township.
As of the census of 2000, there were 60,352 people, 19,876 households, and 13,356 families residing in the township. The population density was 2,431.8 people per square mile (938.8/km²). There were 21,214 housing units at an average density of 854.8/sq mi (330.0/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 78.77% White, 12.05% African American, 0.17% Native American, 1.39% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 4.61% from other races, and 2.98% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 14.80% of the population. There were 19,876 households out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.3% were married couples living together, 10.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 28.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.92 and the average family size was 3.64.
In the township the population was spread out with 31.8% under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 15.7% from 45 to 64, and 18.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 91.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.5 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $35,634, and the median income for a family was $43,806. Males had a median income of $38,967 versus $26,645 for females. The per capita income for the township was $16,700. About 15.7% of families and 19.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.9% of those under age 18 and 7.7% of those age 65 or over.
Lakewood Airport is a public-use airport located 3 miles (5 km) southeast of the township's central business district. The airport is publicly owned.