Trenton, New Jersey
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Template:US City infobox Trenton is the capital of New Jersey, a state of the United States of America. As of the United States 2000 Census, the City of Trenton had a population of 85,403. Trenton is also the county seat of Mercer County.
Trenton is located in almost the exact center of the state (the official geographic center is 5 miles southeast of Trenton at 74° 33.5'W, 40° 4.2'N). Due to this, it is sometimes included as part of North Jersey and as the southernmost city of the New York metropolitan area. Others consider it part of South Jersey and as the northernmost city of the Delaware Valley metropolitan area. Locals consider it to be a part of Central Jersey, and thus part of neither region, though in truth the city has more communication and transportation links with the Delaware Valley than it does with New York.
Trenton is the home of the Trenton Thunder Eastern League AA minor league baseball team, which is affiliated with the New York Yankees and plays in Waterfront Park, and the Trenton Titans (an ECHL minor league hockey affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers) which plays in the Sovereign Bank Arena. The New Jersey State Prison, which has two maximum security units and houses the state's most dangerous criminals, is also located in Trenton.
Trenton is an anchor city for the Delaware Valley metropolitan area. Trenton and its immediate suburbs are often lumped together and referred to as "Greater Trenton" by locals.
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History
The first settlement which would become Trenton was established by Quakers in 1679, in the region then called the Falls of the Delaware, led by Mahlon Stacy from Handsworth, Sheffield, UK. Quakers were being persecuted in England at this time and North America provided the perfect opportunity to exercise their religious freedom.
By 1719, the town adopted the name "Trent-towne", after William Trent, one of its leading landholders who purchased much of the surrounding land from Stacy's family. This name later was shortened to "Trenton".
During the American Revolutionary War, the city was the site of George Washington's first military victory. On December 26, 1776, Washington and his army, after crossing the icy Delaware River to Trenton, defeated the Hessian troops garrisoned there (see Battle of Trenton). After the war, Trenton was briefly the national capital of the United States in November and December of 1784. The city was considered as a permanent capital for the new country, but the southern states favored a location south of the Mason-Dixon Line.
Trenton became the state capital in 1790, but prior to that year the Legislature often met here. The town was incorporated in 1792.
In 1896 the first professional basketball game was played in Trenton between the Trenton Basketball Team and the Brooklyn YMCA.
Trenton was a major manufacturing center in the late 1800s and early 1900s; one relic of that era is the slogan "Trenton Makes, The World Takes" displayed on the Lower Free Bridge just north of the Trenton-Morrisville Toll Bridge (the "Trenton Makes Bridge"). The city adopted the slogan in the 1920s to represent Trenton's then-leading role as a major manufacturing center for steel, rubber, wire, rope, linoleum and ceramics.
Geography
Image:TrentonSkylineDuringFloodOf2005-Small.jpg
Trenton is located at 40°13'18" North, 74°45'22" West (40.221741, -74.756138)Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 21.1 km² (8.1 mi²). 19.8 km² (7.7 mi²) of it is land and 1.3 km² (0.5 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 6.01% water.
Trenton borders Ewing Township, Lawrence Township, Hamilton Township, and the Delaware River. Several bridges across the Delaware River - the Trenton-Morrisville Toll Bridge, Lower Trenton Bridge and Calhoun Street Bridge - connect Trenton to Morrisville, Pennsylvania.
Trenton is one of the only two state capitals which borders another state. The other such capital is Carson City, Nevada, which borders California. (Tallahassee, Florida, Cheyenne, Wyoming and Providence, Rhode Island are parts of counties which border other states. In addition, Juneau, Alaska borders Canada. )
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 85,403 people, 29,437 households, and 18,692 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,304.7/km² (11,153.6/mi²). There were 33,843 housing units at an average density of 1,705.9/km² (4,419.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 52.06% Black (people)/African American (Note: a lot of the Blacks are from Jamaica and directly from Africa with a growing Haitian population), 32.55% White, 0.35% Native American, 0.84% Asian, 0.23% Pacific Islander, 10.76% from other races, and 3.20% from two or more races. 21.53% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. (Note: Most of the Hispanics in Trenton have been traditionally Puerto Rican. However, recently, that has changed as many immigrants from Guatemala, Ecuador, and various Latin American countries have settled in the city).
There were 29,437 households out of which 32.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 29.0% were married couples living together, 27.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.5% were non-families. 29.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.75 and the average family size was 3.38.
In the city the population was spread out with 27.7% under the age of 18, 10.1% from 18 to 24, 31.9% from 25 to 44, 18.9% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 97.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,074, and the median income for a family was $36,681. Males had a median income of $29,721 versus $26,943 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,621. 21.1% of the population and 17.6% of families were below the poverty line. 26.8% of those under the age of 18 and 19.5% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Government
Local government
The City of Trenton is governed under the Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council) system of municipal government.
Trenton's current Mayor, Douglas Palmer, has been in office since July 1, 1990.
Members of the City Council are:
- Paul M. Pintella - Council President and Councilman At Large
- Annette H. Lartigue - Council Vice President and West Ward Councilwoman
- Milford Bethea - North Ward Councilman
- John G. Ungrady - South Ward Councilman
- Gino A. Melone - East Ward Councilman
- Manuel Segura - Councilman At Large
- Cordelia M. Staton - Councilwoman At Large
Federal, state and county representation
Trenton is spread across two congressional districts, the Fourth Congressional District and the Twelfth Congressional District, and is part of New Jersey's 15th Legislative District.
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Template:NJ Mercer County Freeholders
Transportation
City highways include the Trenton Freeway, which is part of US Route 1, and the John Fitch Parkway, which is part of NJ Route 29. Canal Boulevard, more commonly known as NJ Route 129, connects US Route 1 and NJ Route 29 in South Trenton. U.S. Route 206, NJ Route 31, and NJ Route 33 also pass through the city via regular city streets (Broad Street / Brunswick Avenue / Princeton Avenue, Pennington Avenue, and Greenwood Avenue, respectively). Interstate 95 and Interstate 295 pass through the surrounding suburbs of Ewing Township, Lawrence Township, and Hamilton Township, and Interstate 195 connects the city to the New Jersey Turnpike via NJ Routes 29 and 129. The Pennsylvania Turnpike also passes close to the city.
Public transportation within and beyond the city is mostly provided by New Jersey Transit, in the form of local bus routes between nearby suburbs and the city, as well as commuter train service northward from the Trenton Rail Station along the Northeast Corridor to Newark and New York. The new River LINE diesel light rail line extends from Trenton southward to Camden. SEPTA provides commuter train service southward from the Trenton Station along the Northeast Corridor to Philadelphia.
Long-distance transportation is provided by Amtrak train service along the Northeast Corridor. Limited commercial airline transportation is provided at nearby Trenton-Mercer Airport in Ewing; much more extensive airline service is available at the more distant international airports in Newark (reachable by direct New Jersey Transit or Amtrak rail link) and Philadelphia.
Noted residents
Some well-known Americans born in Trenton include:
- Samuel Alito, Supreme Court Justice
- Elvin Bethea, Pro Football Hall of Famer
- David Dinkins, former New York City mayor
- William Granville, former Mobil Oil executive
- Ernie Kovacs, comedian
- Dennis Rodman, professional basketball star
- Antonin Scalia, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
- Norman Schwarzkopf, United States Army General
- Jon Stewart, host of The Daily Show
- Gary Stills, professional football player (defensive end with the Kansas City Chiefs)
- Troy Vincent, professional football player
- Charlie Weis, Notre Dame football coach
- Poor Righteous Teachers, hip-hop group
External links
- City of Trenton website
- Trenton Downtown Association
- Trenton Historical Society
- Trenton Public Schools
- Obsolete Bank Notes and Old Scrip of Trenton
Template:United States state capitals
| Image:Flag of New Jersey.svg | State of New Jersey</span> |
|---|---|
| Capital | Trenton |
| Regions | Central Jersey | Delaware Valley | Jersey Shore | Meadowlands | North Jersey | Pine Barrens | South Jersey | New York metro area | Tri-State Region |
| Major Cities | Atlantic City | Bayonne | Camden | Clifton | East Orange | Elizabeth | Hackensack | Hoboken | Jersey City | Linden | Long Branch | New Brunswick | Newark | Passaic | Paterson | Perth Amboy | Plainfield | Princeton | Union City | Vineland | In addition to the major cities listed, All Municipalities (by Population) |
| Counties | Atlantic | Bergen | Burlington | Camden | Cape May | Cumberland | Essex | Gloucester | Hudson | Hunterdon | Mercer | Middlesex | Monmouth | Morris | Ocean | Passaic | Salem | Somerset | Sussex | Union | Warren |
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