Paterson is a city located in Passaic County, New Jersey. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 149,222, making it New Jersey's third largest city. It is the county seat of Passaic County6. The City of Paterson is governed under the Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council) system of municipal government.
The Great Falls of the Passaic River in Paterson are the second-highest large-volume falls on the East Coast: only Niagara Falls are higher. Alexander Hamilton helped encourage the harnessing of the energy of the Great Falls to secure the independence from British manufacturers. In 1791, Hamilton helped found the Society for the Establishment of Useful Manufactures. Paterson, which was founded by the society, became the cradle of the industrial revolution in America. Paterson was named for William Paterson, New Jersey governor, statesman, and signer of the Constitution.
The industries developed in Paterson were powered by the 77-foot high Great Falls of the Passaic, and a system of water raceways that harnessed the power of the falls. The district originally included dozens of mill buildings and other manufacturing structures associated with the textile industry and later, the firearms, silk, and railroad locomotive manufacturing industries. In the latter half of the 1800's, silk production became the dominant industry and formed the basis of Paterson's most prosperous period, earning it the nickname "Silk City." Paterson was also the site of historic labor unrest that focused on anti-child labor legislation, and the six month long 1913 Paterson silk strike that demanded the eight-hour day and better working conditions, but was defeated by the employers with workers forced to return under pre-strike conditions.
Famous Patersonians
Garret A. Hobart, twenty-fourth Vice President of the United States
Lou Costello, of the comedy duo Abbott and Costello
Joe Clark, educator and former principal of Eastside High School, depicted by Morgan Freeman in the movie Lean on Me
Larry Doby, Hall of Fame baseball player who broke the color barrier in the American League
Frank Lautenberg, politician, currently represents New Jersey in the United States Senate
Allen Ginsberg, writer and Beat Generation poet
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, boxer, subject of the Bob Dylan song "Hurricane" and the movie The Hurricane
Tim Thomas, pro basketball player, currently on the Chicago Bulls
Frederick Reines, awarded the 1995 Nobel Prize in Physics for detection of the neutrino
Gaetano Bresci, weaver and anarchist, assassinated Italian king Umberto I
Bernie Wayne, songwriter, wrote "There She Is, Miss America"
J. Michael Straczynski, science-fiction writer, creator and writer for Babylon 5
Lawrence Barrett, actor, one of the leading American actors of the 19th century
Elizabeth Vargas, ABC news anchor
Maxine Jones, singer, member of En Vogue
Just Blaze, hip hop music producer
Patrick Warburton, actor, performs in movies and on television, famous for his roles in Seinfeld and Family Guy
