-
New Netherland Discovered
Hudson explores Newark Bay -
First town in NJ
Bergen, now Jersey City, becomes the first permanent town in New Jersey
The gated community, constructed for defense in 1660, was laid out in an area of about 800-foot square. A palisade of tall pointed wooden stakes, with a gate on each side, surrounded the land that was designed around two intersecting main streets (present-day Bergen Avenue and Academy Street), creating four quarters. Each quarter was then subdivided into eight plots. -
New Netherland surrendered to Britain
New Netherland surrendered to Britain and became New Jersey. At its peak, only about 9,000 people lived in New Netherland, leaving it vulnerable to attack from the English, who fought three wars against the Dutch, their main commercial rivals, between 1652 and 1674 and who vastly outnumbered them in the New World. -
One of First Indian reservation in the US
One of the first Indian reservations in the United States was established in Burlington County in 1758 for the Lenni-Lenape tribe. The first and only reservation in New Jersey, the Brotherton Reserve was sold back to the state in 1801 by the remaining members of the tribe, who moved up north to join relatives in New Stockbridge, New York -
Rutgers University is Founded
Rutgers University is founded.Chartered in 1766 as all-male Queen’s College in New Brunswick, New Jersey, the school, affiliated with the Dutch Reformed Church, was renamed Rutgers College in 1825 in honor of trustee and Revolutionary War veteran Colonel Henry Rutgers. -
N.J First newspaper
N.J.'s first newspaper, the New Jersey Gazette, issues its first edition. But printing was being done in the colony as early as 1723, and it even had its first magazine, “The New American Magazine“, done by James Parker at Woodbridge in 1758. But it was Isaac Collins who on Dec. 5, 1777 started in Burlington the province’s first newspaper, “The New Jersey Gazette”, which would be removed to Trenton just three months later where it continued until 1786 -
New Jersey state seal is designed
New Jersey's state seal was designed by Pierre Eugene du Simitiere and presented in May of 1777. There are several state symbols included in the seal. The horse head stands for speed and strength, and is the state animal. The helmet of a knight's suit of armor faces forward representing sovereignty for a state that governs itself. Below the helmet is a shield with three plows on it. The plows show the importance of agriculture to the -
Plan for government in NJ
New jersey plan government proposed at one-house legislature in which each state would have to vote. -
Third state to ratify the constitution
New Jersey is the third state to ratify the U.S. Constitution. New Jersey became the third state to ratify the U.S. Constitution and thereby join the Union, following Delaware and Pennsylvania. New Jersey had played a major role in designing -
First state to ratify the Bill of Rights
New Jersey is the first state to sign the Bill of Rights. New Jersey ratifies the Bill of Rights, becoming the first state to do so. New Jersey’s action was a first step toward making the first 10 amendments to the Constitution law and completing the revolutionary reforms begun by the Declaration of Independence. -
Hamilton built the first industrial city
Alexander Hamilton built the country's first planned industrial city in present-day Paterson, by the Passaic River's 77-foot Great Falls. By the late 1880s, Paterson became so well known for silk manufacturing that it was called "Silk City." -
Hamilton and Aaron Burr have a duel
Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr have a famous duel in Weehawken. Burr and Hamilton had a strong dislike of one another for several years prior to the duel. Tensions reached a boiling point, however, when Burr alleged Hamilton journalistically defamed his character during Burr’s 1804 New York gubernatorial race. Letters were exchanged and when neither side backed down, a duel was scheduled for July 11, 1804, at a Weehawken, New Jersey site. -
Last state in the Northeast to free slaves
New Jersey became the last state in the Northeast to free slaves as it had more slaves than any other Northern state. -
The War of 1812 ends
The War of 1812 between U.S. and Great Britain, ended in a stalemate but confirmed America's Independence -
New Jersey adopts its second state constitution
New Jersey adopts its second state constitution. New Jersey's second constitution shifted governmental power, which had been vested disproportionately in the legislature under the state's first charter, to the executive branch. In addition to direct election of the governor by the voters, the 1844 State Constitution also provided for gubernatorial veto power and the appointment of most high-level officials by the governor -
first Virtually in tact dinosaur skeleton found
The first virtually complete dinosaur skeleton discovered in North America was unearthed in 1858 by William Parker Foulke in Haddonfield, New Jersey. The Hadrosaurus foulkii, as it was later named, proved that the existence of dinosaurs was real, and provided the shocking evidence that dinosaurs could be bipedal. In 1868, it became the first dinosaur skeleton in the world to be mounted on display. -
the Civil War outbreak
The American Civil War. outbreak of the Civil War. Abraham Lincoln, a known opponent of slavery, was elected president and in 1861 the South Secedes. The initial Secession of South Carolina was followed by the secession of Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. These eleven states eventually formed the Confederate States of America. -
Slavery Abolished
The Abolishment of Slavery. The Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is ratified, thus officially abolishing slavery -
Robert E Lee surrenders
The surrender of Robert E. Lee on april 9th 1865 signalled the end of confederacy. There were many more soldiers and armies throughout the south that had not yet surrendered. However, when they heard of Lee's surrender at Appomattox, many of them knew the war was over. General Joseph Johnston surrendered his army to General Sherman on April 26, 1865. Many other officers followed in surrendering. -
First board walk constructed
The world’s first boardwalk was constructed in Atlantic City in 1870 merely to reduce the amount of sand tracked into nearby hotels and railroad cars. As hotels, shops, restaurants and casinos sprouted up along the seaside, Atlantic City became one of the most popular tourist attractions in the United States. As of 2012, the boardwalk remains the longest in the world—stretching for six miles. -
Thomas Edison moves his laboratories
Thomas Edison moves his laboratories to West Orange. the West Orange location allowed Edison easy access to his financial backers in New York City and provided comprehensive rail and other transportation services. Edison was able to purchase enough land in West Orange to build factories in close proximity to the laboratory complex to permit the prompt and efficient mass production and commercialization of perfected inventions and improved products. -
Woodrow Wilson elected
Woodrow Wilson elected president in 1912. He was a previous NJ Governor. -
German U-Boat sinks American ships
A German U-boat sinks six American ships off the coast of New Jersey. On Jan. 13, 1942, German U-boat attacks officially started against merchant ships along the Eastern Seaboard of North America. From then until early August, Nazi U-boats dominated the waters off the East Coast, sinking fuel tankers and cargo ships with impunity and often within sight of shore -
First Passenger Airline
First passenger flight in America flew from New York City to Atlantic City. The plane landed the afternoon of August 11, 1938 at Floyd Bennett Field, now a park in Brooklyn, after taking off about 25 hours earlier from Berlin on a 3,728-mile flight. Thousands of people gathered for the landing, Lufthansa said in a press release. Previous crossings had been made by sea planes, often with the purpose of transporting mail. -
Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr Kidnapped
Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., son of aviator Anne Morrow Lindbergh, kidnapped. Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., 20-month-old son of the famous aviator and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, was kidnapped about 9:00 p.m., on March 1, 1932, from the nursery on the second floor of the Lindbergh home near Hopewell, New Jersey. The child’s absence was discovered and reported to his parents, who were then at home, at approximately 10:00 p.m. by the child’s nurse, Betty Gow. -
USS New Jersey Began Active Service
U.S.S. New Jersey began active service. The New Jersey (BB-62) was launched December 7th 1942 by the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard; sponsored by Mrs. Charles Edison, wife of Governor Edison of New Jersey, former Secretary of the Navy; and commissioned at Philadelphia 23 May 1943, Captain Carl F. Holden in command. -
9/11
United Flight 93 left Newark, crashed into World Trade Center in New York City -
Three Charged for selling Missiles
Three charged with conspiring to sell missiles to terrorists to use for shooting down American airliners. The 68-year-old Briton allegedly tried to sell an Igla missile to an FBI agent posing as an Islamic militant after buying it from Russian intelligence officers posing as suppliers. -
Six people arrested for plotting to attack Fort Dix
Six suspected Islamic militants arrested on charges of plotting to attack Fort Dix army base and kill US soldiers; New Jersey became third US state to offer civil unions to same-sex couples; death penalty abolished -
laundering money
Three mayors, two state legislators among 40 people arrested for money laundering, corruption in FBI probe. An investigation into the sale of black-market kidneys and fake Gucci handbags evolved into a sweeping probe of political corruption in New Jersey, ensnaring more than 40 people Thursday, including three mayors, two state lawmakers and several rabbis.
