When was paterson founded

In fact, many Paterson factories contributed to the production of aircraft engines up through World War II, helping the U. What We Do. Revitalizing Paterson. Great Falls Promise Neighborhood.

Great Falls Neighborhood Plan. His long experience in state politics and administration earned him a seat on the five-person delegation sent by New Jersey to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, where he played a pivotal role. By a narrow margin, delegates approved the Virginia Plan, which provided for proportional representation, based on population, in two houses of government.

Paterson introduced the New Jersey Plan, which called for a unicameral body with equal representation from each state. In the debate that followed, the delegates hammered out the Great Compromise, with proportional representation in the house of Representatives and equal representation in the Senate.

Paterson signed the Constitution in September Elected to serve in the first Senate of the United States, Paterson worked with the group which wrote the Judiciary Act of which established a federal judiciary. While governor, Paterson oversaw the codification and revision of the state's entire legal system.

In he signed the charter incorporating SUM as well as a municipal charter covering 36 square miles for the Corporation of the Town of Paterson at the site of the Great Falls of the Passaic River. Chosen by President George Washington in to sit as associate justice of the United States Supreme Court, Paterson spent the last 13 years of his life devoted to building a stable and powerful federal judiciary. Among the cases he decided were several which laid important foundations for the doctrine of judicial review.

He was About Us. By the end of the 19th century, the silk industry had earned the city its nickname, "Silk City". In , Paterson became a focal point of the labor movement when silk mill workers struck for six months, demanding improved working conditions and an eight-hour workday. Although it failed, the Silk Strike focused national attention on the plight of mill workers and eventually contributed to later improvements to working conditions nationwide.

As happened with most other Northeastern industrial cities, Paterson's fortunes continued on an uneven course through the twentieth century. The post-World War II years would see most of the mills and factories shuttering their doors, even as more workers arrived; some were African-Americans from the South, others came from other parts of the world.

In , S. After years, S. It had succeeded, however, in establishing a center for others to come and seek their fortunes in the power provided by the Passaic River and the Great Falls. Ultimately, Paterson would fall victim to the economic uncertainties that have affected other industrial centers. By the s, Paterson's fortunes had waned, with only a few cotton mills still operating.

Through the s, the area continued to gain more national recognition; the Great Falls were declared a National Landmark in , and in , the power and raceway system were named a National Civil and Mechanical Engineering Landmark. These milestones led to plans to create a national park with the Great Falls at its center. It would not only protect this natural wonder, but it would encompass the surrounding district with its stories of mills and factories, pioneering technology, and the changing faces of Paterson's workers and residents.

Paterson's story has not ended. While the Great Falls no longer provide power to the now-silent mills, they will once again serve the city of Paterson by telling the world of the contributions and innovations that began here. Explore This Park.