Old New Jersey, Part 1

Concerning the American State of New Jersey, this map caption probably holds true today, as when Mr. E. John Long wrote it in 1933, "New Jersey is the traffic center of the east.  Although it is one of our smaller states, ranking 45th in area. . . and is crossed annually by millions on their way to New York or to the State's own mammoth beach resorts," New Jersey Now, National Geographic Magazine, May, 1933, p. 521.  Mr. Long compares the boardwalk at Atlantic City, New Jersey, to the grandeurs of a country fair.

"Atlantic City, with its variety and contrasts, is but one of New Jersey's many facets.  If variety be the spice of life, New Jersey is a highly seasoned State," (p. 524).  It is good for me to read this.  ALL I know of New Jersey is I-95 and the Jersey Turnpike!

It is always interesting to know how an area gets its name.  "At first New Jersey had no name.  It was lumped with New York and part of New England by the Dutch under the title of New Netherlands.  Later it was known as "Nova Caesarea," and finally as "New Jersey," in honor of Sir George Carteret, one of its first proprietors, who had formerly been a governor of the Channel island of Jersey," (p. 527).

With 120 miles of seashore, the state is dominated by water, "The map shows the State almost surrounded by water.  In fact, the proportion of water boundary is greater in New Jersey than in any other State," (p. 527).

Although New Jersey was sighted in the 1500's, it was settled somewhat later.  The New Jersey town of Shrewsbury "was settled in 1664 by emigrants from the State of Connecticut," (p. 534).

Ah, in 1933, it was still a time of working lighthouses whose lights were manned!  The 8-page section of color photographs shows shows stately Barnegat Light, "especially valuable to small craft entering Barnegat Inlet," (p. 535).  It was built in 1858 with its upper half painted red and the lower half painted white.  Today, all U.S. lighthouses in use have been automated by the U.S. Coast Guard and only one is manned.

Do you remember your U.S. History when Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr dueled?  It happened in 1804 in Weehawken, New Jersey, over political disputes.  Hamilton was mortally wounded.  Across from the dueling grounds is the Empire State Building in New York City. Another historical site close to Trenton, New Jersey, is commemorated by a park on the Delaware River where George Washington and his Continental Army crossed from Pennsylvania on Christmas Night, 1776.  As you can imagine, New Jersey abounds in Revolutionary War sites.

Here's a town I might like to visit: "Cape May City is one of the oldest seashore resorts in the United States.  Advertisements describing its beach, horseback riding, and tavern appeared in Philadelphia newspapers as early as 1776 and it was popular after the Revolution," (p. 546).

In 1933, New Jersey led the nation in the production of bathroom sinks and other clay sanitary products.  There was a large shipbuilding industry.

There were very large cranberry bogs.  I learned from this article why the cranberry bogs are flooded.  "Flooding is employed only to kill certain insects and to protect the cranberry plants from severe cold,"  (p. 543).  Although it was the second producer of cranberries nationwide, New Jersey was responsible for 95% of the nation's blueberry crops.  Southern New Jersey boasted of numerous produce farms and canneries.  "In Camden originated the idea of concentrated or condensed soups, saving almost half the previous cost in canning, labeling, packing, storage, and shipping," (p. 551).   Poultry was also a major agricultural product.  On the coast, as expected, commercial fishing flourished as did formerly a whaling operation.

For the next blog entry, we will leave the agricultural/food industry and venture into other industries in the New Jersey of 1933.