Port Norris is located within Commercial Township in Cumberland County. It has a total area of 6.9 miles and a population over 1,500. In the Port Norris area are the towns of Bivalve and Shell Pile, both were centers of the oystering industry. Bivalve was actually named after it, while Shell Pile is named for the great heaps of oyster shells stacked outside the packing sheds. The oystering industry reached its peak in 1955 and declined by 1957 due to a parasitic disease which killed 90 percent of the oysters. Now, Bivalve and Shell Pile are mostly ghost towns. Port Norris still supports a strong crabbing industry, net fishing, and recreational boating.