Toms River, New Jersey in the context of "Manchester Township, New Jersey"

Barnegat Bay is a small brackish arm of the Atlantic Ocean, approximately 42 miles (68 km) long, along the coast of Ocean County, New Jersey in the United States. It is separated from the Atlantic by the long Island Beach State Park (colloquially called a "barrier island"), as well as by the north end of Long Beach Island, popular segments of the Jersey Shore. The bay is fed by several small rivers, including the Toms River, the Forked River, the Metedeconk River, Cedar Creek, Oyster Creek, Mill Creek, Westecunk Creek, and Tuckerton Creek, all of which empty into the bay through small estuaries along its inner shore. The communities of Toms River, Silverton, and Forked River sit along the river estuaries on the bay.

The bay connects with the ocean through the Barnegat Inlet, along which sits the Barnegat Lighthouse. The bay is part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, entered on its north end by the Point Pleasant Canal and connecting on the south end with Little Egg Harbor via the small Manahawkin Bay. In a broader sense, Barnegat Bay is sometimes considered to stretch to the south end of Long Beach Island and to include Little Egg Harbor.

The Garden State Parkway (GSP) is a controlled-access toll road that stretches the north–south length of eastern New Jersey from the state's southernmost tip near Cape May north to the New York state line at Montvale. Its name refers to New Jersey's nickname, the "Garden State". The parkway has an unsigned reference number of Route 444 by the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT). At its north end, the road becomes the Garden State Parkway Connector, a component of the New York State Thruway system that connects to the Thruway mainline in Ramapo, New York.

The Garden State Parkway is the longest highway in the state at approximately 172 miles (277 km), and, according to the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association, was the busiest toll road in the United States in 2006. Most of the highway north of the Raritan River runs through heavily populated areas. Between the Raritan River and Toms River, the highway passes through lighter suburban development, while south of Toms River, the road mostly runs through unspoiled wilderness in the Pine Barrens and swampland, interspersed with small towns and Jersey Shore beach communities. The highway has a posted speed limit of 65 miles per hour (105 km/h) for most of its length and is primarily for passenger vehicle use; trucks weighing over 10,000 pounds (4,500 kg) are prohibited north of exit 105.

Toms River is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located within and constituting the mainland portion of Toms River Township (formerly Dover Township), in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the CDP's population was 92,830, its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 4,039 (+4.5%) from the 88,791 recorded at the 2010 census, which in turn reflected an increase of 2,464 (+2.9%) from the 86,327 counted in the 2000 census. The Toms River CDP is the county seat of Ocean County. The area is named for Toms River, whose estuary flows through the community and empties into Barnegat Bay.

Toms River Township and its fully contained census-designated place are not co-extensive. In addition to the census-designated place, which includes all of mainland Toms River Township and is home to the vast majority of the township's population, Toms River Township includes two small CDPs: Dover Beaches North (2020 Census population of 1,277) and Dover Beaches South (1,331), both of which are located on the Barnegat Peninsula. As defined by the Census Bureau based on 2010 Census data, more than 96% of Toms River Township's area and of its population of 95,438 was located in Toms River CDP.

Silverton is an unincorporated community located within the north-eastern portion of Toms River Township in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The area comprises the area surrounding the Silver Bay and including Green Island. Several bay beach clubs service the surrounding neighborhoods as recreation centers. Silver Bay Elementary School, part of the Toms River Regional Schools, is located on Silver Bay Road.

Silverton is bordered to the north by Brick Township. Main roads that run through Silverton include Hooper Avenue (County Route 549), Silver Bay Road, and Church Road/Kettle Creek Road (County Route 620).