67 Fun Facts About New Jersey

New Jersey takes its name from a place in which body of water?

The English Channel: the colony was named for Jersey, the Channel Island whose former governor, Sir George Carteret, received the land from the Duke of York in 1664.

What is New Jersey's state capital?

Trenton, on the Delaware River, has been New Jersey's capital since 1790 and briefly served as the national capital when Congress met there in late 1784.

New Jersey holds which population distinction among US states?

Most densely populated: the 2020 census counted about 9.29 million people in the fifth-smallest state by land area, roughly 1,260 residents per square mile.

New Jersey ratified the US Constitution on December 18, 1787, making it which state to do so?

Third: Delaware (December 7) and Pennsylvania (December 12) ratified first, and New Jersey followed unanimously on December 18, 1787; it was also first to ratify the Bill of Rights in November 1789.

Which Indigenous people were dominant in the region when Europeans arrived in the 17th century?

The Lenape (Delaware) people lived throughout the region; Dutch and Swedish colonists founded the first European settlements before the English took control in 1664.

Which troops did Washington's army surprise after crossing the Delaware on the night of December 25-26, 1776?

Hessians: German auxiliaries under Colonel Johann Rall garrisoned Trenton and were routed on December 26, 1776, with Rall mortally wounded and about 900 captured.

Because of its many Revolutionary War battles, New Jersey earned what title?

Crossroads of the Revolution: Washington's army fought at Trenton, Princeton and Monmouth (June 1778) in New Jersey and wintered twice at Morristown.

Edison perfected his incandescent light bulb in 1879 at his laboratory in which New Jersey community?

Menlo Park: Edison's laboratory there produced a practical carbon-filament bulb in October 1879, lit Christie Street with incandescent lamps in 1880, and he went on to 1,093 US patents.

Which of these inventions did NOT originate in New Jersey?

The telephone was patented by Alexander Graham Bell in Boston in 1876; New Jersey claims the phonograph (1877), the transistor (1947) and the first drive-in theater (1933).

The first drive-in movie theater opened on June 6, 1933, near which city on the Delaware?

Richard Hollingshead's patented drive-in stood on Admiral Wilson Boulevard in Pennsauken Township, just outside Camden.

The first organised baseball game under Knickerbocker rules was played in 1846 at the Elysian Fields in which city?

Hoboken: at the Elysian Fields on June 19, 1846, the Knickerbockers lost 23-1 to the New York Nine in the first recorded game under Knickerbocker rules.

Rutgers played the first intercollegiate football game in 1869 against which college?

Princeton: on November 6, 1869, Rutgers beat Princeton 6-4 in New Brunswick, with the Rutgers players wearing scarlet turbans and handkerchiefs to tell the sides apart.

Rutgers, chartered in 1766, was originally known by what name?

Queen's College, named for George III's queen Charlotte, was chartered in 1766 under the Dutch Reformed Church and renamed Rutgers in 1825 after benefactor Henry Rutgers.

Nassau Hall at the state's Ivy League college served as the US capital for four months in which year?

1783: the Continental Congress sat in Nassau Hall from June to November 1783 and learned there that the Treaty of Paris had been signed; the college was founded in 1746 as the College of New Jersey.

Which Caldwell, New Jersey-born president was the first to serve non-consecutive terms?

Grover Cleveland, born in Caldwell in 1837, served as the 22nd president from 1885 to 1889 and the 24th from 1893 to 1897.

New Jersey is famous for having more of which eatery than anywhere else in the world?

Diners: New Jersey has roughly 500-600 of them, earning the nickname 'Diner Capital of the World', and builders such as Kullman Industries manufactured diners in the state.

New Jersey law requires every gas station to do what for customers?

Pump the gas for you: New Jersey has banned self-service fuelling under its Retail Gasoline Dispensing Safety Act since 1949, and became the only state with a statewide ban after Oregon allowed self-service in 2023.

Under what brand name was the state's famous pork roll sold until food labelling rules changed in 1906?

Taylor's Prepared Ham: John Taylor of Trenton created it in 1856, and the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act forced a rename to Taylor's Pork Roll, seeding the north-south 'Taylor ham' versus 'pork roll' argument.

Which fruit did New Jersey designate as its official state fruit in 2004?

Blueberries: the highbush blueberry became the state fruit in 2004, honouring Whitesbog, where Elizabeth White and Frederick Coville first cultivated blueberries commercially in 1916.

New Jersey is the only one of the fifty never to have had what?

An official song: New Jersey is the only state without one; Red Mascara's 'I'm From New Jersey' passed the legislature in 1972 but Governor William Cahill never signed it.

The Jersey Shore's first boardwalk, built in 1870, was intended to solve what problem?

Sand being tracked into hotel lobbies: Atlantic City's 1870 boardwalk was laid to keep sand out of hotels and railroad cars, and its planks were taken up at the end of every season.

The first Miss America Pageant was held on the boardwalk in which year?

1921: the first Miss America pageant, won by 16-year-old Margaret Gorman of Washington DC, was staged on the Atlantic City boardwalk in September 1921 to stretch the summer season.

The US edition of Monopoly takes its street names from which shore resort?

Atlantic City: Boardwalk, Park Place and Baltic Avenue are its real streets, and 'Marvin Gardens' misspells nearby Marven Gardens, an error copied from the couple who taught Charles Darrow the game.

In which year did New Jersey voters legalise casino gambling in the state's boardwalk resort?

1976: after a 1974 statewide-casino referendum failed, voters approved Atlantic City-only casinos in November 1976, and Resorts International opened the first one in May 1978.

Which South Jersey town, with a National Historic Landmark Victorian downtown, is America's oldest seaside resort?

Cape May: its Victorian district became a National Historic Landmark in 1976, and Congress Hall, first built in 1816, made the town a favourite escape for Philadelphians.

The Hindenburg burst into flames in 1937 while landing at a naval air station in which New Jersey town?

Lakehurst: the airship burned at Naval Air Station Lakehurst on May 6, 1937, killing 36; radio reporter Herbert Morrison's 'Oh, the humanity!' was recorded on the landing field.

Orson Welles' 1938 War of the Worlds broadcast placed the Martian landing in which New Jersey hamlet?

Grover's Mill, in West Windsor Township, is where the Mercury Theatre's October 30, 1938 broadcast landed the first Martian cylinder; the panic it reportedly caused was later shown to be exaggerated.

In which year was the Jersey Devil, the cursed thirteenth Leeds child, said to be born?

1735: legend has Mother Leeds cursing her thirteenth child, born in the Pine Barrens that year, which became the winged Jersey Devil; the NHL's Devils took the name in 1982.

The New Jersey Devils began life in 1974 as which team?

The Kansas City Scouts joined the NHL in 1974, moved to Denver as the Colorado Rockies in 1976, and became the New Jersey Devils in 1982.

MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford is home to which two NFL teams?

The New York Giants and New York Jets have shared MetLife Stadium since it opened in 2010 at a cost of about $1.6 billion; it hosted Super Bowl XLVIII in February 2014 and 2026 World Cup matches.

Which crooner was born in Hoboken in 1915 and got his break with the Hoboken Four?

Frank Sinatra was born in Hoboken on December 12, 1915, and won the Major Bowes Amateur Hour in 1935 with a local group renamed the Hoboken Four.

Bruce Springsteen was born in Long Branch and grew up in which Monmouth County town?

Freehold: Springsteen grew up there after his 1949 birth in Long Branch, and 'My Hometown' on Born in the U.S.A. draws on the Freehold of his childhood.

Bon Jovi formed in 1983 in which New Jersey town?

Sayreville: Jon Bon Jovi grew up there and formed the band in 1983; the group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018.

Which best-selling musician was born in Newark and started singing at New Hope Baptist Church?

Whitney Houston, born in Newark in 1963, sang in the junior gospel choir at New Hope Baptist Church and was a backing vocalist for Chaka Khan while still in high school.

Who created The Sopranos, the HBO drama about a New Jersey mob boss with panic attacks?

David Chase, raised in New Jersey, created The Sopranos, which ran on HBO from 1999 to 2007; the Bada Bing! scenes were shot at Satin Dolls on Route 17 in Lodi.

Which 172-mile toll road, finished in 1957, runs from Bergen County down to Cape May?

The Garden State Parkway opened in stages between 1946 and 1957 and runs 172 miles from Montvale in Bergen County to Cape May, carrying Shore-bound traffic.

Which double-decked Hudson River bridge, opened in 1931, links Fort Lee with Upper Manhattan?

The George Washington Bridge opened in October 1931 and gained its lower deck in 1962; its fourteen lanes carried about 100 million vehicles a year by the 2010s, more than any other bridge.

Which crossing connecting Jersey City to Manhattan opened in 1927?

The Holland Tunnel opened under the Hudson on November 13, 1927, linking Jersey City and Lower Manhattan; the Lincoln Tunnel to Weehawken followed in 1937.

Which soup company has been headquartered in Camden, New Jersey, since 1869?

Campbell's: Joseph Campbell and Abraham Anderson began canning in Camden in 1869, and Campbell Soup Company kept its headquarters there, selling the first condensed soup in 1897.

The Delaware Water Gap cuts through which ridge on New Jersey's border with Pennsylvania?

Kittatinny Mountain: the Delaware River slices through the ridge between Mount Tammany in New Jersey and Mount Minsi in Pennsylvania, and the gap is the centrepiece of a national recreation area.

New Jersey's 1776 constitution extended the vote to which groups, subject to a wealth requirement?

Women and Black people: the 1776 constitution enfranchised 'all inhabitants' worth 50 pounds, so unmarried women and free Black men voted until an 1807 law limited the vote to white men.

Which private research campus, headquartered for decades in New Jersey, gave the world the transistor?

Bell Labs: John Bardeen, Walter Brattain and William Shockley demonstrated the first transistor at its Murray Hill, New Jersey campus in December 1947.

Where in Jersey City did German saboteurs set off the 1916 blast that damaged the Statue of Liberty?

Black Tom: on July 30, 1916, German agents blew up a munitions depot on Black Tom island in Jersey City harbour, and shrapnel damaged the Statue of Liberty's torch, which was closed to visitors for good.

Which Passaic River city, known as Silk City, sits beside a Great Falls that is now a national historical park?

Canals brought Pennsylvania coal to Paterson, Newark and Jersey City as their industries grew.

Which theme park in Jackson Township is New Jersey's biggest amusement destination?

Six Flags Great Adventure opened in Jackson Township in 1974 and shares its grounds with a 350-acre safari park, making it one of the largest theme parks in the country.

Lucy the Elephant, a six-storey elephant-shaped building from 1881, stands in which shore town?

Margate City: James Lafferty built the 65-foot wooden elephant in 1881 to lure property buyers, and Lucy was named a National Historic Landmark in 1976.

Which shore town is famous for its 1950s and 60s 'doo-wop' motel architecture?

The neon-and-plastic-palm style survives in dozens of Wildwood motels.

Which New Jersey city, the state's largest, is home to Liberty International Airport?

The airport is run by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and is one of the three main airports for the New York area.

Which future president was governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913 after leading Princeton?

Woodrow Wilson, Princeton's president from 1902 to 1910, was governor from 1911 to 1913, broke with the party bosses to pass progressive reforms, and beat Taft and Roosevelt in 1912.

Which two nearby cities do most New Jersey residents live within the orbit of?

New York City and Philadelphia: New Jersey's northern counties lie in the New York metropolitan area and its southern counties in Philadelphia's, at the hub of the Northeast megalopolis.

Edison built his larger 1887 laboratory complex in which New Jersey town?

West Orange: Edison opened his larger laboratory complex there in 1887 after leaving Menlo Park, and the site is now preserved as Thomas Edison National Historical Park.

Jersey City is the county seat of which New Jersey county?

Hudson County: Jersey City is its seat and largest city, with about 30 miles of waterfront on the Hudson River, Upper New York Bay, the Hackensack River and Newark Bay.

What was the name of the Dutch patroonship, granted in 1630, that preceded Jersey City?

Pavonia: the patroonship granted to Amsterdam burgomaster Michiel Pauw in 1630 took its name from the Latin form of Pauw, meaning peacock, and Saint Peter's University's peacock mascot nods to it.

Which Revolutionary War clash took place at a British fort in what is now downtown Jersey City in August 1779?

Paulus Hook: Major Henry 'Light-Horse Harry' Lee, then 23, stormed the British fort on August 19, 1779, took 158 prisoners and withdrew; an obelisk at Washington and Grand Streets marks the site.

Which founding father helped create the 1804 'Associates of the Jersey Company' behind Jersey City?

Alexander Hamilton drew up the Associates of the Jersey Company's charter in 1804, predicting 'a great city shall rise on the western banks of the Hudson', months before his fatal July duel with Aaron Burr.

Which political boss ran Jersey City as mayor from 1917 to 1947?

Frank Hague ran Jersey City from 1917 to 1947 on a salary that never topped $8,500, yet kept a duplex in the city and a suite at the Plaza, earning the nickname 'King Hanky-Panky'.

In 1908 Jersey City became the first US place to permanently do what to its tap water?

The system, devised by John L. Leal, was installed at the Boonton Reservoir on the Rockaway River, which had replaced the Passaic as the city's source in 1904.

What is the giant timepiece on the Jersey City waterfront, billed as the world's largest of its kind, called?

The Colgate Clock, 50 feet across with a 2,200-pound minute hand, went up in 1924 at the Colgate soap works on the waterfront, replacing a smaller clock shipped to the company's Indiana plant.

Which 1,212-acre site on former railyards is New Jersey's largest urban green space?

Liberty State Park opened in 1976 on 1,212 acres of former Central Railroad of New Jersey and Lehigh Valley Railroad land, and Liberty Science Center opened within it in 1993.

Jersey City's Exchange Place financial district has earned what nickname?

Wall Street West: Goldman Sachs's 42-storey tower at 30 Hudson Street, New Jersey's tallest building when completed in 2004, anchors the banks clustered around Exchange Place.

What motto is on the seal and flag of the state's second-largest city, home to Journal Square?

Let Jersey Prosper: the motto on Jersey City's seal and flag recalls its 19th-century boundary fight with New York, which the 1834 compact between the two states finally settled.

Roughly what share of Jersey City residents were foreign-born in Census Bureau figures for 2020?

About 42 percent: Census Bureau figures for 2020 put roughly four in ten Jersey City residents as foreign-born, with large Indian, Filipino, Dominican and Egyptian communities.

The Landmark theatre in Journal Square is the only one of which group of 1920s movie palaces built outside NYC?

The Loew's Wonder Theatres: the Loew's Jersey, opened in 1929, is the only one of the five Wonder Theatres outside New York City, and Friends of the Loew's volunteers have restored it since 1993.

How many counties does New Jersey have?

21: thirteen of New Jersey's counties date from the colonial era, and the newest, Union County, was carved out of Essex County in 1857.

What were New Jersey's elected county officials uniquely called until a 2020 law renamed them?

Freeholders: the 'Board of Chosen Freeholders' title dated from colonial property-holding rules; Governor Murphy signed the bill renaming them county commissioners on August 21, 2020, effective January 2021.

Who became New Jersey's first lieutenant governor when the post was created in January 2010?

Kim Guadagno was sworn in alongside Chris Christie on January 19, 2010; before the 2005 constitutional amendment creating the post, a vacant governorship went to the state Senate president as acting governor.

What is the elevation of High Point, New Jersey's highest spot, in Sussex County?

1,803 feet: High Point, in the state's northwest corner in Sussex County, is topped by the 220-foot High Point Monument, dedicated in 1930 to New Jersey's war dead.