Paterson, New Jersey

Paterson ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.New Jersey County Map
New Jersey Department of State. Accessed July 10, 2017. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 159,732, rendering it New Jersey's third-most-populous city. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 157,794 in 2021, ranking the city as the 163rd-most-populous in the country.

Paterson is known as the Silk City for its dominant role in silk production during the latter half of the 19th century.Thomasch, Paul
"Irene another blow to struggling New Jersey city"
Reuters, September 1, 2011. Accessed January 24, 2012. "Nicknamed the 'Silk City' for its 19th-century silk factories, Paterson has a place in labor history as the site of a six-month strike in 1913 by the Industrial Workers of the World, or 'Wobblies,' who were viewed as a threat to capitalism at a time when the United States had a radical labor movement." It has since evolved into a major destination for Hispanic immigrants as well as for immigrants from Turkey, the Arab world, and South Asia. Paterson has the nation's second-largest per capita Muslim population,"Robert Menendez, New Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair: 'No Daylight Between US, Israel On My Watch'"
''The Algemeiner'', March 13, 2013. Accessed January 27, 2015. "JNS.org asked Menendez if his public support for the Jewish community and for Israel in any way has conflicted with his work in diverse New Jersey communities such as Paterson, a city that is home to the second-largest Muslim population in the U.S. as well as a mosque, the Islamic Center of Passaic County, whose leader, Mohammad Qatanani, is allegedly a member of Hamas." and between 75 and 100 languages are spoken in Paterson, many of them Arabic dialects.

History

The area of Paterson was inhabited by the Algonquian-speaking Native American Acquackanonk tribe of the Lenape, also known as the Delaware Indians. The land was known as the Lenapehoking. The Dutch claimed the land as New Netherlands, followed by the British as the Province of New Jersey.Scott, William Winfield
"The Founding of Passaic 250 years ago"
, Passaic County Historical Society, September 1, 1929. Accessed January 27, 2015.

Establishment

In 1791, Alexander Hamilton (1755/57–1804), first United States Secretary of the Treasury, helped found the Society for Establishing Useful Manufactures (S.U.M.), which helped encourage the harnessing of energy from the Great Falls of the Passaic River to secure economic independence from British manufacturers. The society founded Paterson, which became the cradle of the industrial revolution in America. Paterson was named for William Paterson, statesman, signer of the Constitution and Governor of New Jersey, who signed the 1792 charter that established the Town of Paterson.

Architect, engineer, and city planner Pierre (Peter) Charles L'Enfant (1754–1825), who had earlier developed the initial plans for Washington, D.C., was the first planner for the S.U.M. project. His plan proposed to harness the power of the Great Falls through a channel in the rock and an aqueduct. The society's directors felt he was taking too long and was over budget, and he was replaced by Peter Colt, who used a less complicated reservoir system to get the water flowing to factories in 1794. Eventually, Colt's system developed some problems and a scheme resembling L'Enfant's original plan was used after 1846.

Paterson was originally formed as a township from portions of Acquackanonk Township on April 11, 1831, while the area was still part of Essex County. It became part of the newly created Passaic County on February 7, 1837, and was incorporated as a city on April 14, 1851, based on the results of a referendum held that day. The city was reincorporated on March 14, 1861.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606–1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 210. Accessed January 24, 2012.

Industrial growth

The high Great Falls and a system of water raceways that harnessed the falls' power provided power for the mills in the area until 1914 and fostered growth of the city. The district originally included dozens of mill buildings and other manufacturing structures associated with the textile industry and, later, the firearms, silk, and railroad locomotive manufacturing industries. In the latter half of the 19th century, silk production became the dominant industry and formed the basis of Paterson's most prosperous period, earning it the nickname "Silk City."

In 1835, Samuel Colt began producing firearms in Paterson, but within a few years he moved his business to Hartford, Connecticut. Later in the 19th century, Paterson was the site of early experiments with submarines by Irish-American inventor John Philip Holland. Two of Holland's early models—one found at the bottom of the Passaic River—are on display in the Paterson Museum, housed in the former Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works near the Passaic Falls.

Behind Newark and New York, the brewing industry was booming in Paterson in the late 1800s. Braun Brewery, Sprattler & Mennell, Graham Brewery, The Katz Brothers, and Burton Brewery merged in 1890 to form Paterson Consolidated Brewing Company. Hinchliffe Brewing and Malting Company, founded in 1861, produced 75,000 barrels a year from its state-of-the-art facility at 63 Governor Street. All the breweries closed during Prohibition.

The city was a mecca for immigrant laborers, who worked in its factories, particularly Italian weavers from the Naples region. Paterson was the site of historic labor unrest that focused on the six-month-long Paterson silk strike of 1913 that demanded the eight-hour day and better working conditions. It was defeated, with workers returning at the end of the strike without having negotiated any changes.

In 1919, Paterson was one of eight locations bombed by self-identified anarchists.

According to the New Jersey Historical Commission, Paterson’s industrialism ended “as the economy and technological needs of the United States changed. By 1983, Paterson was the fifth poorest city in the United States. The town that had called itself Silk City, the Iron City, and the Cotton City, was in economic ruin.” Once millwork and production left the city, Paterson’s poverty became reminiscent of what occurred in the towns surrounding the Appalachian Mountains once the coal mining industry ended. In 2020, 25.2% of Paterson residents lived in poverty.

Athletics

From 1932 to 1933, Paterson constructed Hinchliffe Stadium, an Art Deco concrete stadium.Hinchliffe Stadium
National Trust for Historic Preservation. Originally called City Stadium, it was renamed in honor of Mayor John V. Hinchliffe and his uncle John Hinchliffe.Alfred M. Martin & Alfred T. Martin, ''The Negro Leagues in New Jersey: A History'' (McFarland, 2008), pp. 21-23. The New York Black Yankees of the Negro National League played at the stadium from 1933 to 1937 and from 1939 to 1945. Professional football teams, including the Paterson Panthers, Newark Bears, and Jersey City Giants, played here. The stadium was also a venue for other professional and high school athletic competitions, boxing matches, fireworks displays, and music concerts. The comedy team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello performed at Hinchliffe before boxing matches (Abbott was from the coastal New Jersey city of Asbury Park and Costello was a Paterson native).Malinconico, Joe
"Paterson's Hinchliffe Stadium is a keystone in the history of Negro Leagues baseball"
''Paterson Press'', October 3, 2018. The stadium was acquired by Paterson Public Schools since 1963 and closed in 1996. It has fallen into disrepair, although preservation and restoration efforts have taken place. The stadium is one of two surviving Negro league baseball stadiums, the other being Birmingham, Alabama's Rickwood Field. Hinchliffe Stadium is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The stadium is currently home to the New Jersey Jackals minor league baseball team.

Post–World War II era

During World War II Paterson played an important part in the aircraft engine industry, but by the end of the war urban areas were in decline and Paterson was no exception. Since the late 1960s the city has suffered high unemployment rates and white flight.

Competition from malls in upscale neighboring towns like Wayne and Paramus have forced the big chain stores out of Paterson's downtown. The biggest industries are now small businesses, with the decline of the city's industrial base. But the city still attracts many immigrants, who have revived its economy, especially through small businesses.

The downtown area has been struck by massive fires several times, most recently on January 17, 1991. In this fire nearly a whole city block (bordered on the north and south by Main Street and Washington Street and on the east and west by Ellison Street and College Boulevard, a stretch of Van Houten Street dominated by Passaic County Community College) was engulfed in flames due to an electrical fire in the basement of a bar at 161 Main Street and spread to other buildings. Firefighter John A. Nicosia, 28, of Engine 4 went missing in the fire, having gotten lost in the basement. His body was recovered two days later. A plaque honoring his memory was later placed on a wall near the area. The area was so badly damaged that most of the burned buildings were demolished, with an outdoor mall standing in their place. The most notable of the destroyed buildings was the Meyer Brothers department store, which closed in 1987 and had since been parceled out.

Paterson includes numerous locations listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including museums, civic buildings such as City Hall, Hinchliffe Stadium, Public School Number Two and the Danforth Memorial Library, churches ( Cathedral of St. John the Baptist and St. Michael's Roman Catholic Church), individual residences, such as Lambert Castle, and districts of the city, such as the Paterson Downtown Commercial Historic District, the Great Falls/Society for the Establishment of Useful Manufactures Historic District and the Eastside Park Historic District.

In August 2011, Paterson was severely affected in the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, particularly by flooding of the Passaic River, where waters rose to levels unseen for 100 years, leading to the displacement of thousands and the closure of bridges over the river. Touring the area with Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Craig Fugate, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano declared, "This is as bad as I've seen, and I've been in eight states that have been impacted by Irene." The same day, President Obama declared New Jersey a disaster area, and announced that he would visit the city.

Geography

Paterson is at the bottom part of Passaic County, which is near the north edge of New Jersey, as a county that spans some hilly areas and has dozens of lakes. The county covers a region about . The region is split by major roads, including portions of Interstate 80, which runs through Paterson (see map ''at left)''. The Garden State Parkway (GSP) cuts across the south of Paterson, near Clifton, New Jersey. The Passaic River winds northeast past Totowa into Paterson, where the river then turns south to Passaic town, on the way to Newark, further south.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city had a total area of 8.71 square miles (22.55 km²), including 8.41 square miles (21.79 km²) of land and 0.29 square miles (0.76 km²) of water (3.38%).

Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the city include Riverside and Totowa.

The city borders the municipalities of Clifton, Haledon, Hawthorne, Prospect Park, Totowa and Woodland Park (formerly West Paterson) in Passaic County; and both Elmwood Park (formerly East Paterson) and Fair Lawn in Bergen County