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Jersey City is a city located in Hudson County, New Jersey. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 240,055. It is the county seat of Hudson County6.
Jersey City is on the Hudson River, across from New York City. The second largest city in the state and a commercial and industrial center surpassed only by Newark, it is a port of entry and a manufacturing center. With 11 mi (17.7 km) of waterfront and significant rail connections, Jersey City is an important transportation terminal point and distribution center. It has railroad shops, oil refineries, warehouses, and plants that manufacture a diverse assortment of products, such as chemicals, petroleum and electrical goods, textiles, and cosmetics. The city has benefited from its position across from the island of Manhattan, and many Jersey City companies are extensions of those originating in New York City. Further developments have included increased housing and shopping areas; other parts of the city, however, remain run-down after years of commercial inactivity. A large number of various ethnic groups, particularly Hispanics, Filipinos, and Indians, have made their home in Jersey City.
The acting mayor of Jersey City is L. Harvey Smith, who has recently announced that he will run for the unexpired term of the late Mayor Glenn D. Cunningham, the first African American mayor of Jersey City, who died of a heart attack in May 2004 a year before his first four-year term was about to end.
The city is presently governed under the Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council) system of municipal government.
The land comprising what is now known as Jersey City was wilderness inhabited by the Lenni Lenape until 1609 when Henry Hudson, seeking an alternate route to East Asia and failing in that mission, anchored his small vessel in Sandy Hook. After spending nine days surveying the area and meeting its inhabitants, he returned to Holland. The Dutch organized the United New Netherlands Company to manage this new territory and named it New Netherlands. In June of 1623, New Netherlands became a Dutch province. Soon after, Michael Pauw, a burgermeister of Amsterdam and Lord of Achtienhoven, received a grant on the condition that he would plant a colony in New Netherlands of not fewer than fifty persons, within four years. He chose the west bank of the Hudson River and purchased the land from the Indians. This land grant is dated November 22, 1630 and is the earliest known conveyance for what is now Jersey City.
The first settlement was at Communipaw, an area adjacent to present-day Liberty State Park. A house was built here in 1633 for Jan Evertsen Bout, superintendent of the colony, which was then called Pavonia. Shortly after, another house was built at Harsimus (near the present-day corner of Fourth Street and Marin Boulevard). This second house became the home of Cornelius Van Vorst, who succeeded Bout as superintendent. These were the first two houses in Jersey City.
Jersey City was incorporated as The City of Jersey in 1820, and reincorporated under its present name in 1838.
Jersey City was a dock and manufacturing town for much of the 19th and 20th centuries. From 1917 to 1947, it was ruled by Mayor Frank Hague, whose name is synonymous with the early 20th century urban American blend of political favoritism and social welfare known as bossism. "Hanky-Panky," as he was known then, ruled the city with an iron fist while, at the same time, moulding governors, United States senators, and judges to his whims. He was known to be loud and vulgar, and would often dismiss his enemies as "reds" or "commies." Citizens of Jersey City dared not speak out against him for fear of being harassed by Hague's police or being ostracized or publicly embarassed in some way. Hague also lived like a millionaire, despite having an average annual salary of $8,000. He was able to maintain a fourteen-room duplex apartment in Jersey City, a suite at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Manhattan, and a palatial summer home in Deal, New Jersey, while travelling to Europe yearly in the royal suites of the best liners.
The city developed a reputation for corruption, even after Hague left office. At the same time, the city was caught up in a wave of urban decline that saw many of its wealthy residents fleeing to the suburbs, and led to an influx of working class citizens scarred by rising crime, civil unrest, political corruption, and economic hardship. Immigrants also sought refuge in Jersey City because of low housing costs, despite the fact that many of Jersey City's neighborhoods were decaying and suffering from abandonment and neglect.
However, the city is quickly undergoing a renaissance. As the Waterfront continues to grow, Jersey City's downtown neighborhoods are experiencing rapid gentrification as yuppies and other professionals working in Manhattan are beginning to move in. The downtown area has a significant number of Victorian brownstones, and at prices that are far lower than one would find, for a similar home, in Manhattan, or even Brooklyn.
Jersey City is home to the New Jersey City University (NJCU) and Saint Peter's College.
Jersey City is a city of neighborhoods, each with a different aesthetic and architectural style, to some degree. Downtown Jersey City includes the Waterfront (including Newport, Harsimus Cove, Paulus Hook, Port Liberte, and Exchange Place), Hamilton Park, Grove Street, and Van Vorst Park. Neighborhoods further out from downtown include Liberty State Park, Jersey City Heights (or, simply, "The Heights"), Western Slope, Journal Square, West Side, Bergen, Greenville, and Lafayette. These designations are unofficial and, to some degree, subjective.
Currently, the tallest building in Jersey City is the Goldman Sachs Tower, which was completed in 2004. Other notable buildings in Jersey City include 101 Hudson Street, the Newport Tower, and the Exchange Place Centre.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 54.7 km² (21.1 mi²). 38.6 km² (14.9 mi²) of it is land and 16.1 km² (6.2 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 29.37% water. Jersey City is bordered to the east by the Hudson River, to the north by Union City and Hoboken, to the west by Kearny and Newark, and to the south by Bayonne.
As of the census of 2000, there are 240,055 people, 88,632 households, and 55,660 families residing in the city. The population density is 6,212.2/km² (16,093.7/mi²). There are 93,648 housing units at an average density of 2,423.4/km² (6,278.3/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 34.01% White, 28.32% African American, 0.45% Native American, 16.20% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 15.11% from other races, and 5.84% from two or more races. 28.31% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 88,632 households out of which 31.1% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.4% are married couples living together, 20.2% have a female householder with no husband present, and 37.2% are non-families. 29.2% of all households are made up of individuals and 8.2% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.67 and the average family size is 3.37.
In the city the population is spread out with 24.7% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 35.1% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 9.8% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 32 years. For every 100 females there are 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 92.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $37,862, and the median income for a family is $41,639. Males have a median income of $35,119 versus $30,494 for females. The per capita income for the city is $19,410. 18.6% of the population and 16.4% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 27.0% are under the age of 18 and 17.5% are 65 or older.
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