Wayne was formed as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 12, 1847, from portions of Manchester Township. Totowa was formed from portions of Manchester and Wayne Townships on March 15, 1898.
Wayne was ranked at No. 32 on Money magazine's 2006 "best places" list, among towns in the nation with populations greater than 50,000. .
Wayne is home to Willowbrook Mall, Wayne Hills Mall, Wayne Towne Center, and also High Mountain Park Preserve.
As of the census of 2000, there were 54,069 people, 18,755 households, and 14,366 families residing in the township. The population density was 2,269.5 people per square mile (876.4/km²). There were 19,218 housing units at an average density of 806.7/sq mi (311.5/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 90.05% White, 1.66% African American, 0.10% Native American, 5.67% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.17% from other races, and 1.34% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.09% of the population.
There were 18,755 households out of which 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.4% were married couples living together, 7.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.4% were non-families. 20.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.19.
In the township the population was spread out with 23.2% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $96,651, and the median income for a family was $117,047. Males had a median income of $61,271 versus $39,835 for females. The per capita income for the township was $35,349. About 1.6% of families and 2.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.1% of those under age 18 and 4.8% of those age 65 or over.
As of 2007, according to "Sperling's Best Places" and Fidelity National Financial, the median income for a household in the township now stands at $91,416, with the income per capita at $40,834. The median home value in Wayne is $599,000.
Wayne is criss-crossed by several major roadways, including Interstate 80, U.S. Route 46, U.S. Route 202 and Route 23.
Wayne is served by the Mountain View and Wayne Route 23 New Jersey Transit stations, offering service on the Montclair-Boonton Line to Hoboken Terminal or on Midtown Direct trains (about 16%) to Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan via the Secaucus Junction. A Wayne-Route 23 station opened in January 2008 which offers train service via the Montclair-Boonton Line and regular bus service into the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan.
NJ Transit provides bus service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan on the 191, 193, 194 and 195; to Newark on the 11, 28 (Saturday and Sunday only) and 75 routes, with local service provided on the MCM1, 704, 705, 712, 744, 748, 970 and 971 routes.
Wayne is 25.9 miles (41.7 km) from Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark / Elizabeth, and 30 miles (48 km) from LaGuardia Airport in Flushing, Queens.