Jersey City seen from Ellis Island. Picture credit: Pavel Kuritsyn
This time Streets & Squares goes to Jersey City, Hudson County, New Jersey, USA. Jersey City is the second-most populous city of New Jersey, after Newark. It was incorporated as a city in February 1838.
As always, clicking on the addresses will open Google Maps for you, and clicking on the names will (usually) lead to the person’s Wikipedia page. After each address there is usually also a link to Google’s street view which takes you straight to somewhere along that street.
Audrey Zapp Drive, leading to Liberty State Park, was named after the environmentalist Audrey Zapp (1925-2012), the" Godmother" of the park. Born in Jersey City. StreetView
Barrow Street - Named after Dr. William Barrow (-1846), a well-respected and wealthy New York medical doctor and surgeon who purchased the property for his half of the compound in August 1835, the same month that his sister-in-law Sarah Brower Van Vorst died. StreetView
Bartholdi Avenue - Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi (1834-1904) French sculptor who designed the Statue of Liberty. Born in Colmar, France. StreetView
Colden Street - Cadwallader D. Colden (1769-1834) was a politician, the 54th Mayor of New York City and Jersey City retiree who helped complete the Morris Canal. Born in Flushing, Province of New York, British America. StreetView
Colgate Street - William Colgate (1783-1857) British-American soap industrialist who had emigrated to America with his family at age 15. He founded what became the Colgate-Palmolive company whose first factories ran out of Jersey City. Born in Hollingbourne, Kent, England. StreetView - NJ 07302
Dr. Lena Edwards Park - Lena Frances Edwards (1900-1986) New Jersey physician who was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Born in Washington, D.C. - StreetView
Greene Street - Nathanael Greene (1742-1786) was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. Born in Potowomut, Rhode Island, British America. StreetView
J Owen Grundy Park - This riverfront pier facing the NYC skyline is named after J. Owen Grundy (1912-1985) who was a native of Jersey City and until his death its official historian. He was a keen preservationist, and influential in the environmental and preservation movement that led to the creation of Liberty State Park. StreetView
Johnston Avenue - John Taylor Johnston (1820-1893) was a businessman, patron of the arts and one of the founders of The Metropolitan Museum of Art. He also served as President of the Central Railroad of New Jersey. Born in New York City. StreetView
Mercer Street - Hugh Mercer (1726-1777) physician/to America at age 21/soldier and general in the American Revolution. Born in Pitsligo, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. StreetView
Montgomery Street - Richard Montgomery (1738-1775) farmer, sodier and general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Born in Swords, Dublin, Kingdom of Ireland. StreetView
Morris Pesin Drive - Morris Pesin (1911-1992) was an entrepreneur and a relentless civic leader who is credited as the father of the Liberty State Park. StreetView - New York Times
Paulmier Place - Susan Paulmier (-1874) was a businesswoman, real estate speculator and philanthropist who after becoming a widow had accumulated a large fortune which the poor in Jersey City benefited from. StreetView - NJ 07302
Randolph Avenue - Theodore Fitz Randolph (1826-1883) was a businessman, politician and inventor who served as Governor of New Jersey from 1869 to 1872. Born in Mansfield, Pennsylvania. StreetView
Saint Pauls Avenue - Named of course for Paul the Apostle (c. 5 – c. 64/67 AD) and the nearby St Pauls Evangelical Lutheran Church on Hoboken Avenue - StreetView - NJ 07306
Steuben Street - Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben (1730-1794) Prussian military officer who came to America at age 47 to fight in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He wrote Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States, the book that served as the Army’s drill manual for decades. Born in Magdeburg, Kingdom of Prussia, Holy Roman Empire. StreetView - NJ 07302
Van Reipen Avenue - Garrett D Van Reipen (1826-1902) was a businessman, and Mayor of Hudson City for 15 years. When Hudson City was annexed to Jersey City he was elected to the office of alderman. Van Reipen was born in Bergen before it became Jersey City. StreetView
Van Vorst Park - named after the prominent Van Vorst family whose forefather came from Netherlands to America in 1626. FVVP - Forgotten NY - StreetView - Wiki
Varick Street - Richard Varick (1753-1831) was a lawyer, military officer and the 45th Mayor of New York City. He was the figurehead of the development of Jersey City, and owned property on what we now refer to as his street. Born in Hackensack, Province of New Jersey, British America. StreetView
Wayne Street - Anthony Wayne (1745-1796) soldier, Revolutionary War general and a statesman of Irish descent. Born in Easttown township, Province of Pennsylvania, British America. StreetView
A to Z FROM JERSEY CITY
i.e. a list of people born in Jersey City. Just another fun way to know something more about the city. We pick a couple of people for each alphabet, if possible. The numbers you see at the end of each line indicate the year of birth. This list is updated from time to time. And last but not least: the flag of Jersey City!
A –
B – Philip Bosco* actor (1930)
C – Richard Conte* actor (1910)
D –
E –
F – Susan Flannery* actress (1939)
G – J. Owen Grundy* reporter/historian/preservationist (1912) - Paul Gleason* actor (1939)
H – Charles Hornig* editor/one of the earliest contributors to the science fiction genre (1916)
I –
J – Malcolm Jamal-Warner* actor/ director/producer (1970)
K –
L – Norman Lloyd* actor/ producer/director (1914) - Nathan Lane* actor/ voice actor (1956) - Derek Luke* actor (1974)
M – Christina Milian* (b Flores) singer/ songwriter/actress (1981)
N –
O –
P –
Q –
R –
S – Nancy Sinatra* singer/actress (1940) - Martha Stewart* businesswoman/ writer (1941) - Frank Sinatra Jr.* singer-songwriter/ actor/conductor (1944)
T –
U –
V – Cornelius Van Vorst* landowner/Mayor of Jersey City (1822) - Garrett D Van Reipen* businessman/Mayor of Hudson City (1826) - Tom Vlachos* police officer/Survivor S28 Contestant (1973)
W – Flip Wilson* actor/ comedian (1933)
Y –
Z –
Check this video below! Even though the ride is slightly bumpy (does he walk or what) and the wind blows in the microphone, it is a pleasant and interesting walk in Jersey City! A nice video with a refreshing absence of speech, leaving plenty of room for your own imagination. Thank you ActionKid!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOniYvMausM
USEFUL LINKS
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Hudson_County,_New_Jersey_placename_etymologies
https://www.veblenhouse.org/2021/02/who-put-paulmier-in-jesse-paulmier.html
https://www.nestigator.com/location/07307/jersey-city
Updated 31.8.2022
Oh, and here is another video of Jersey City, a bit more official than the one above: