History
Captain Robert Treat and his colleagues, under the authority of the Royal Governor of New Jersey, Philip Carteret, purchased the land that would come to be known as Newark. Captain Treat bought the land from Hackensack Indians for gunpowder, lead, axes, coats, guns, swords, kettles, blankets, knives, hoes, 10 pairs of breeches, and 3 trooper coats amounting to about $750.
In May 1666, Puritan families settled the land and attempted a theocracy. The church and government was an inseparable entity. Anyone who was not a member of the church was denied protection and benefits from the Newark township or government. The oligarchic rule ended when Colonel Josiah Ogden harvested his wheat on Sunday.
Some of the first immigrants settled Newark in the early 1800's. Among these immigrants were the Irish who came to Newark in the 1820's to build the Morris Canal. Later, in the 1840's and 1850's, German immigrants started to arrive. Many German immigrants were leaders of the failed 1948 revolution who came to Newark as refugees. They became the leaders of Newark's German population. The German areas were known for beer gardens, singing societies, and turnvereins (athletic clubs). Both the German and Irish communities lived in sub-standard housing such as decaying barns, carriage houses, warehouses, breweries, and other ramshackle buildings. The German influence was strong by 1865 when Newark's population was one third German or of German heritage.
The Jewish founders of Newark were primarily German or Bohemian. German immigrants from small farms settled Newark because it was close to New York and there was already a community of German speaking Christians in the area. Unfortunately, Polish Jews found life in Newark hard since, unlike the German Jews, they did not have anybody to communicate with. The Polish Jews area of Newark was filled with live carp swimming in glass tanks, corned beef, pastrami, pickles, herring, St. John's Bread, sugar cane, and fruits and vegetables, which were packed in pushcarts parked along the wooden block streets. Jewish immigrants spent there free time at the Y where they participated in dramatic clubs, glee clubs, literary clubs, theater, lectures, and sports.
The leather industry was responsible for making Newark into the industrial giant it became in the 19th and 20th centuries. In addition to the leather industry, the completion of the Morris Canal, the development of railroads, and the granting of official city status helped to initiate Newark's industrial movement.
Newark was home to several great innovators and creators. Seth Boyden is credited with creating patent leather, malleable iron, and inventing the nail-making machine as well as many other industrial advancements. Astonishingly, Thomas Edison perfected the ticker tape while living and working in Newark. In addition, Rev. Hannibal Goodwin made motion pictures possible by inventing celluloid tape and the measuring instrument giant, Edward Weston, started his industry while living in Newark.
Newark's industry was booming by the time of the civil war and became the leading supplier of the south. Shortly after the surge in industries, the banking and insurance sector took hold. Prudential and Mutual Benefit were established and remain in Newark to this day.
The feeling of euphoria soon diminished with both national and international crisis. Newark witnessed WWI and WWII, the Great Depression, Vietnam and Korean wars. It began manufacturing products of war around the clock to keep up with the changing economy.
During the 1950s Prudential and Mutual Benefit once again assisted in the advancement of the community. In conjunction with Mayor Leo P. Cariln, Prudential and Mutual Benefit launched the "New" Newark Movement and started to rebuild their downtown headquarters. Other companies soon joined in and before long the airport and university complex was underway. This initiative also increased investment in the industrial sector.
The 1960s in Newark reflected much of the attitudes prevalent in the rest of the nation. There was discrimination, crime, poor housing, rioting, and reduction in the workforce in Newark as well as the rest of the country. As hope for maintaining Newark as one of America's oldest and major cities lessened, an amazing thing happened. Kenneth Gibson was elected mayor and became the first African-American mayor of a major American East-Coast city. Gibson stiffed policies in the political, social, and economic sectors and got Newark back on track.
Since then Newark has continued to expanded in both in businesses and buildings. The Gateway Towers, the Legal Center, the PSE&G tower, and the Newark Center, which includes Seton Hall Law School and a commercial complex, fill Newark. Adaptive changes have transformed St. Joseph's Plaza, the old Gibraltar Building of the Prudential, and the Two Guys Department Store. Further, multi-tenant retail use was accommodated by reconstruction of the former Macy's and Haynes buildings. The airport has increased dramatically and is now one of the nation's busiest airports. Passengers are carried between terminals by a $375 million dollar Monorail in which plans are now being considered to link the Monorail to the downtown areas of Elizabeth and Newark. Students attending the rapidly growing universities and colleges can enjoy the Newark Museum or the Newark Public Library with its recent addition, the Information Technology Center.
Housing has been swiftly growing in Newark. Upscale town houses and condos are cropping up all over the city, which are probably built by the leading developer, K. Hovanian. There has also been a surge in low-rise and low-income housing as well as private housing. High rise buildings of the 50s and 60s have started the conversion into more human-scale units.
Much success has been attributed to Newark's Municipal Council in addition to the mayor, Sharpe James. Mayor James has been working closely with the business that has stabilized the existing business environment and has also to drawn in businesses from the suburbs. Both residents and businesses respect and admire mayor James.
As one of America's oldest cities, Newark has a rich history. In 1995, Newark celebrated its 330th birthday and the motto was "pride", a very appropriate title.
Created by: Shelly Hahne, Angelica Hambrick, Katie Johnas, and Steve Klimpke
for Pols 350 Group & Minority Politics at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire
for Professor Rodd Freitag
last updated: Tuesday November 20, 2001
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