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Newark (/ ˈnjuːərk / NEW-ərk, [ 24 ]locally: [nʊɹk]) [ 25 ] is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. [ 26 ][ 27 ][ 28 ] As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 311,549. [ 11 ][ 12 ] The Population Estimates Program calculated a pop...
- Overview
- History
- The contemporary city
Newark, city and port, Essex county, northeastern New Jersey, U.S. It lies on the west bank of the Passaic River and on Newark Bay, 8 miles (13 km) west of lower Manhattan Island, New York City. Newark was incorporated as a city in 1836. Pop. (2010) 277,140; Newark-Union Metro Division, 2,147,727; (2020) 311,549; Newark Metro Division, 2,280,061.
Puritans migrating from Connecticut founded Newark in 1666 on land purchased from Delaware Indians. The settlement, first named Pesayak Towne and later New Milford, was probably renamed for the home of the Reverend Abraham Pierson, who went there from Newark-on-Trent, England. Another version holds that the name was of biblical significance (New Ark). Newark became the seat of Essex county (1682) and was chartered as a township in 1693.
After the American Revolution, Newark became (c. 1790) noted for leather tanning, jewelry, and shoe manufacturing. The shoe industry profited greatly from the inventiveness of Seth Boyden, who, regarded by Thomas Edison as one of the greatest American inventors, came to Newark from Massachusetts in 1815 and developed a process for making patent leather (1818). He is credited as the first producer of malleable cast iron (1826) and as a developer of an improved, larger strawberry. There is a statue of him in Washington Park. Newark’s other industrial pioneers included the Reverend Hannibal Goodwin, who patented a flexible film for motion pictures (1887), and Edward Weston, who invented electrical measuring instruments (1888).
Newark’s proximity to New York City places it within the country’s most highly industrialized and populous area. The city is the largest in New Jersey and is a leading industrial centre. Its manufactures are highly diversified and include electronic equipment, leather goods, chemicals, rubber, jewelry, furniture and fixtures, textiles, industrial machinery, and foodstuffs. Printing, publishing, and the insurance business are also significant. Newark is a transportation centre and a major East Coast distributing point. Newark International Airport is one of the world’s busiest, since it serves both Newark and the New York City area. The Port of Newark, started in 1915, is now leased and operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
Located in Newark are the New Jersey Institute of Technology (1881), the Newark campus of Rutgers University, a branch of Seton Hall University (1856; Roman Catholic), Essex County College (1968), and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (1956). Near the city centre is Military Park, used as a drill ground in colonial times and now the site of a bronze group of figures, The Wars of America, by Gutzon Borglum. Branch Brook, a county park, is noted for its Japanese cherry trees. In front of the county courthouse, designed by Cass Gilbert, is a seated statue of Abraham Lincoln, also by Borglum. Historic buildings include Trinity Cathedral (1733), used as a hospital during the Revolution; House of Prayer (1850), with its older stone rectory, Plume House (1710); and the First Presbyterian Church (1790). Adjacent to and part of the Newark Museum of Art (which has a variety of exhibits) is the Ballantine House (1880s), a restored Victorian mansion. The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC; 1997), across from Military Park, is a multipurpose venue with fine acoustics and a mix of small and large performance spaces; it is home to the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. Several blocks away, near City Hall (1908) and the Depression-era Newark Penn Station (which serves Amtrak, subway, and commuter trains), is the Prudential Center (2007), venue for the New Jersey Devils ice-hockey team and host to other sports and entertainment events.
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- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- See a show at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. For almost 20 years the New Jersey Performing Arts Center has reigned as one of the largest and most prolific performing arts centers in the entire United States.
- See the cherry blossoms at Branch Brook Park. One of the many pockets of urban greenery dotting the districts of Newark, Branch Brook Park covers more than 359 acres of land over the northern reaches of Essex County.
- See Tibetan treasures at the Newark Museum of Art. The largest museum in the entire Garden State can be found nestled between the city streets just a stone’s throw back form the waters of the Newark Reach.
- Wonder at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart. Standing tall and proud in a glorious array of Gothic Revivalism on the edge of the blossoming Branch Brook Park, this truly colossal church hails in as one of the largest basilicas in all of America.
Aug 27, 2024 · Mayor Ras J. Baraka welcomes you to Newark, the largest city in New Jersey. Use our site to get connected to city resources and each other.
Discover world-class entertainment and cultural delights in Newark, where diverse communities come together to create a unique vibe you won’t find anywhere else. Only 15 kilometers from New York City, Newark has much of the same big-city fun as the Big Apple, but in more intimate bites – and at lower prices.
Newark is New Jersey's largest city and second largest in Metro New York. Although one of the great historic cities of the Northeast and the most culture-rich city in the state, Newark is often overlooked in favor of Goliath-like Manhattan and towns along the Hudson River, such as Jersey City and Hoboken .
Aug 27, 2024 · Make sure you visit Branch Brook Park, Vonda’s Kitchen, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, Newark Museum, New Jersey Historical Society, the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery, Nico Kitchen and Bar, and other attractions in this guide.
