Hoboken, NJ
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Hoboken ( ; ) is a
city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
in
Hudson County Hudson County is a List of counties in New Jersey, county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the North River (Hudson River), Hudson River, the No ...
in the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
of
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
. Hoboken is part of the
New York metropolitan area The New York metropolitan area, also called the Tri-State area and sometimes referred to as Greater New York, is the List of cities by GDP, largest metropolitan economy in the world, with a List of U.S. metropolitan areas by GDP, gross metropo ...
and is the site of
Hoboken Terminal Hoboken Terminal is a commuter-oriented intermodal passenger station in Hoboken, Hudson County, New Jersey. One of the New York metropolitan area's major transportation hubs, it is served by eight NJ Transit (NJT) commuter rail lines, an NJ T ...
, a major
transportation hub A transport hub is a place where passengers and cargo are exchanged between vehicles and/or between transport modes. Public transport hubs include railway stations, rapid transit stations, bus stops, tram stops, airports, and ferry slips. ...
. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 60,419, an increase of 10,414 (+20.8%) from the 2010 census count of 50,005, which in turn reflected an increase of 11,428 (+29.6%) from the 38,577 counted in the 2000 census. The
Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...
's
Population Estimates Program The Population Estimates Program (PEP) is a program of the U.S. Census Bureau that publishes annual population estimates and estimates of birth, death, and international migration rates for people in the United States. In addition to publishing t ...
calculated a population of 57,010 for 2023, making it the 708th-most populous municipality in the nation.Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places of 20,000 or More, Ranked by July 1, 2023 Population: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, released May 2024. Accessed May 30, 2024. Note that townships (including Edison, Lakewood and Woodbridge, all of which have larger populations) are excluded from these rankings.
With more than in data from the 2010 census, Hoboken was ranked as the third-most densely populated municipality in the United States among cities with a population above 50,000. In the 2020 census, the city's population density climbed to more than of land, ranked fourth in the county behind Guttenberg, Union City and West New York. Hoboken was first settled by Europeans as part of the Pavonia, New Netherland colony in the 17th century. During the early 19th century, the city was developed by Colonel John Stevens, first as a resort and later as a residential neighborhood. Originally part of Bergen Township and later North Bergen Township, it became a separate township in 1849 and was incorporated as a city in 1855. Hoboken is the location of the first recorded game of
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
and of the
Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a Private university, private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely de ...
, one of the oldest technological universities in the United States. It is also known as the birthplace and hometown of
Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...
; various streets and parks in the city have been named after him. Located on the
Hudson Waterfront The Hudson Waterfront is an urban area of northeastern New Jersey along the lower reaches of the Hudson River, the Upper New York Bay and the Kill van Kull. Though the term can specifically mean the shoreline, it is often used to mean the contig ...
, the city was an integral part of the
Port of New York and New Jersey The Port of New York and New Jersey is the port district of the New York metropolitan area, New York-Newark metropolitan area, encompassing the region within approximately a radius of the Statue of Liberty National Monument. It includes the sy ...
and was home to major industries for most of the 20th century. The character of the city has changed from an artsy industrial vibe from the days when Maxwell House coffee, Lipton tea, Hostess Cupcakes, and
Wonder Bread Wonder Bread is an American brand of sliced bread. Established in Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1921, it was one of the first companies to sell sliced bread nationwide by 1930. The brand is currently owned by Flowers Foods in the United States. His ...
called Hoboken home, to one of trendy shops and expensive condominiums. It was ranked 2nd in Niche's "2019 Best Places to Live in Hudson County" list, and 1st in 2022.


History


Etymology

The name Hoboken was chosen by Colonel John Stevens when he bought land, on a part of which the city still sits. The
Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historica ...
, later called Delaware Indian tribe of Native Americans, referred to the area as the "land of the tobacco pipe", most likely to refer to the
soapstone Soapstone (also known as steatite or soaprock) is a talc-schist, which is a type of metamorphic rock. It is composed largely of the magnesium-rich mineral talc. It is produced by dynamothermal metamorphism and metasomatism, which occur in sub ...
collected there to carve
tobacco pipe A tobacco pipe, often called simply a pipe, is a device specifically made to smoke tobacco. It comprises a chamber (the bowl (smoking), bowl) for the tobacco from which a thin hollow stem (shank) emerges, ending in a mouthpiece. Pipes can range ...
s, and used a phrase that became "Hopoghan Hackingh"."The Abridged History of Hoboken"
, Hoboken Museum, Accessed February 24, 2015.
Like
Weehawken Weehawken is a Township (New Jersey), township in the North Hudson, New Jersey, northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located on the Hudson Waterfront and Hudson Palisades overlooking ...
, its neighbor to the north, as well as
Communipaw Communipaw is a neighborhood in Jersey City in Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located west of Liberty State Park and east of Bergen Hill, and the site of one of the earliest European settlements in North America. It gives ...
and
Harsimus Harsimus (also known as Harsimus Cove) is a neighborhood within Downtown Jersey City, Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The neighborhood stretches from the Harsimus Stem Embankment (the Sixth Street Embankment) on the north to Ch ...
to the south, Hoboken had many variations in the folks-tongue. ''Hoebuck'', old Dutch for high bluff, and likely referring to Castle Point, the district of the city highest above sea level, was used during the colonial era, and was later spelled as ''Hobuck'', ''Hobock'', ''Hobuk'' and ''Hoboocken''. However, in the nineteenth century, the name was changed to Hoboken, influenced by
Flemish Flemish may refer to: * Flemish, adjective for Flanders, Belgium * Flemish region, one of the three regions of Belgium *Flemish Community, one of the three constitutionally defined language communities of Belgium * Flemish dialects, a Dutch dialec ...
immigrants, and a
folk etymology Folk etymology – also known as (generative) popular etymology, analogical reformation, (morphological) reanalysis and etymological reinterpretation – is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a mo ...
had emerged, linking the town of Hoboken to the similarly-named Hoboken district of
Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...
. Hoboken has been nicknamed the Mile Square City, but it actually occupies about of land. During the late 19th/early 20th century the population and culture of Hoboken was dominated by
German language German (, ) is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family, mainly spoken in Western Europe, Western and Central Europe. It is the majority and Official language, official (or co-official) language in Germany, Austria, Switze ...
speakers who sometimes called it "Little Bremen", many of whom are buried in Hoboken Cemetery, North Bergen.


Early-European arrival and colonial period

Hoboken was originally an island which was surrounded by the
Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...
on the east and tidal lands at the foot of the New Jersey Palisades on the west. It was a seasonal campsite in the territory of the Hackensack, a
phratry In ancient Greece, a phratry (, derived from ) was a group containing citizens in some city-states. Their existence is known in most Ionian cities and in Athens and it is thought that they existed elsewhere as well. Almost nothing is known about th ...
of the
Lenni Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historical territory included present-day northeastern Del ...
, who used the serpentine rock found there to carve pipes. The first recorded European to lay claim to the area was
Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the Northeastern United States. In 1607 and 16 ...
, an Englishman sailing for the
Dutch East India Company The United East India Company ( ; VOC ), commonly known as the Dutch East India Company, was a chartered company, chartered trading company and one of the first joint-stock companies in the world. Established on 20 March 1602 by the States Ge ...
, who anchored his ship the ''
Halve Maen ''Halve Maen'' (; ) was a Dutch East India Company ''jacht'' (similar to a carrack) that sailed into what is now New York Harbor in September 1609. She had a length of 21 metres and was commissioned by the VOC Chamber of Amsterdam in the Dutch ...
'' (''Half Moon'') at
Weehawken Cove Weehawken Cove is a cove on the west bank of the North River (Hudson River), Hudson River between the New Jersey municipalities of Hoboken, New Jersey, Hoboken to the south and Weehawken, New Jersey, Weehawken to the north. At the perimeter of ...
on October 2, 1609.Short History of Hoboken
, Hoboken Historical Museum. Accessed September 1, 2015.
An entry made in the journal of Hudson's mate, Robert Juet, on that date, is the earliest known reference to the area today known as Hoboken, and would be the last known such reference until twenty years later. Soon after the area became part of the province of
New Netherland New Netherland () was a colony of the Dutch Republic located on the East Coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva Peninsula to Cape Cod. Settlements were established in what became the states ...
. In 1630,
Michael Reyniersz Pauw Michiel Reiniersz Pauw (29 March 1590 – 24 March 1640) was a director of the Dutch West India Company (WIC) between 1621 and 1636. He is buried at Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam. He grew up in Warmoesstraat in an influential Calvinist merchant ...
, a burgemeester (mayor) of
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
and a director of the
Dutch West India Company The Dutch West India Company () was a Dutch chartered company that was founded in 1621 and went defunct in 1792. Among its founders were Reynier Pauw, Willem Usselincx (1567–1647), and Jessé de Forest (1576–1624). On 3 June 1621, it was gra ...
, received a land grant as
patroon In the United States, a patroon (; from Dutch '' patroon'' ) was a landholder with manorial rights to large tracts of land in the 17th-century Dutch colony of New Netherland on the east coast of North America. Through the Charter of Free ...
on the condition that he would plant a colony of not fewer than fifty persons within four years on the west bank of what had been named the North River. Three Lenape sold the land that became Hoboken and part of Jersey City for 80 fathoms (146 m) of
wampum Wampum is a traditional shell bead of the Eastern Woodlands tribes of Native Americans. It includes white shell beads hand-fashioned from the North Atlantic channeled whelk shell and white and purple beads made from the quahog or Western ...
, 20 fathoms (37 m) of cloth, 12 kettles, six guns, two blankets, one double kettle, and half a barrel of beer. These transactions, variously dated as July 12, 1630 and November 22, 1630, represent the earliest known conveyance for the area. Pauw, whose Latinized name is Pavonia, failed to settle the land, and he was obliged to sell his holdings back to the company in 1633. It was later acquired by Hendrick Van Vorst, who leased part of the land to Aert Van Putten, a farmer. In 1643, north of what would be later known as Castle Point, Van Putten built a house and a brewery, North America's first. In series of Indian and Dutch raids and reprisals, Van Putten was killed and his buildings destroyed, and all residents of Pavonia, as the colony was then known, were ordered back to New Amsterdam. In 1664, the English took possession of
New Amsterdam New Amsterdam (, ) was a 17th-century Dutch Empire, Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''Factory (trading post), fac ...
with little to no resistance, and in 1668 they confirmed a previous land patent by Nicolas Verlett. In 1674–1675, the area became part of
East Jersey The Province of East Jersey, along with the Province of West Jersey, between 1674 and 1702 in accordance with the Quintipartite Deed, were two distinct political divisions of the Province of New Jersey, which became the U.S. state of New Jersey. ...
, and the province was divided into four administrative districts, Hoboken becoming part of
Bergen County Bergen County is the List of counties in New Jersey, most populous County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Hudson County Hudson County is a List of counties in New Jersey, county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the North River (Hudson River), Hudson River, the No ...
on February 22, 1840. English-speaking settlers (some relocating from New England) interspersed with the Dutch, but it remained sparsely populated and agrarian. Eventually, the land came into the possession of William Bayard, who originally supported the revolutionary cause, but became a Loyalist Tory after the fall of New York in 1776 when the city and surrounding areas, including the west bank of the renamed Hudson River, were occupied by the British. At the end of the Revolutionary War, Bayard's property was confiscated by the Revolutionary Government of New Jersey. In 1784, the land described as "William Bayard's farm at Hoebuck" was bought at auction by Colonel John Stevens for £18,360 (then $90,000).


19th century

In the early 19th century, Colonel John Stevens developed the waterfront as a resort for Manhattanites. On October 11, 1811, Stevens' ship the ''Juliana'', began to operate as a
ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...
between Manhattan and Hoboken, making it the world's first commercial steam ferry. In 1825, he designed and built a
steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...
capable of hauling several passenger cars at his estate.
Sybil's Cave Hoboken, New Jersey, is home to many parks, historical landmarks, and other places of interest. Landmarks Association of Exempt Firemen Building Carlo's Bakery A famous bakery and setting for the TLC (TV channel), TLC reality television series ' ...
, a cave with a natural spring, was opened in 1832 and visitors came to pay a penny for a glass of water from the cave which was said to have medicinal powers. In 1841, the cave became a legend, when
Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...
wrote " The Mystery of Marie Roget" about an event that took place there. The cave was closed in the late 1880s after the water was found to be contaminated, and it was shut and in the 1930s and filled with concrete, before it was reopened in 2008. Before his death in 1838, Stevens founded the Hoboken Land and Improvement Company, which laid out a regular system of streets, blocks and lots, constructed housing, and developed manufacturing sites. In general, the housing consisted of masonry row houses of three to five stories, some of which survive to the present day, as does the street grid. Hoboken was originally formed as a
township A township is a form of human settlement or administrative subdivision. Its exact definition varies among countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, this tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Canad ...
on April 9, 1849, from portions of North Bergen Township. As the town grew in population and employment, many of Hoboken's residents saw a need to incorporate as a full-fledged city, and in a referendum held on March 29, 1855, ratified an Act of the
New Jersey Legislature The New Jersey Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, as defined by the New Jersey Constitution of 1947, the Legislature consists of two houses: the General Assembly and ...
signed the previous day, and the City of Hoboken was born. In the subsequent election, Cornelius V. Clickener became Hoboken's first mayor. On March 15, 1859, the Township of Weehawken was created from portions of Hoboken and North Bergen Township.Snyder, John P
''The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968''
Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 148. Accessed May 29, 2024.
Based on a bequest from
Edwin A. Stevens Edwin Augustus Stevens (July 28, 1795 – August 7, 1868) was an American engineer, inventor, and entrepreneur who left a bequest that was used to establish the Stevens Institute of Technology. Life Stevens was born at Castle Point, Hobo ...
,
Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a Private university, private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely de ...
was founded at Castle Point in 1870, at the site of the Stevens family's former estate, as the nation's first
mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...
college.Leading Innovation: A Brief History of Stevens
,
Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a Private university, private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely de ...
. Accessed November 5, 2017. "When inventor Edwin A. Stevens died in 1868, his will provided for the establishment of the university that now bears his family's name. Two years later, in 1870, Stevens Institute of Technology opened, offering a rigorous engineering curriculum leading to the degree of Mechanical Engineer following a course of study firmly grounded both in scientific principles and the humanities."
By the late 19th century, shipping lines were using Hoboken as a terminal port, and the
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, also known as the DL&W or Lackawanna Railroad, was a U.S. Class 1 railroad that connected Buffalo, New York, and Hoboken, New Jersey, and by ferry with New York City, a distance of . The railroad was ...
(later the
Erie Lackawanna Railroad The Erie Lackawanna Railway , known as the Erie Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. The official motto of the line was "The Friendly Service Route ...
) developed a railroad terminal at the waterfront, with the present
NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. I ...
terminal designed by architect Kenneth Murchison constructed in 1907. It was also during this time that German immigrants, who had been settling in town during most of the century, became the predominant population group in the city, at least partially due to its being a major destination port of the
Hamburg America Line The Hamburg-Amerikanische Packetfahrt-Actien-Gesellschaft (HAPAG), known in English as the Hamburg America Line, was a transatlantic shipping enterprise established in Hamburg, in 1847. Among those involved in its development were prominent Germ ...
, though anti-German sentiment during World War I led to a rapid decline in the German community. In addition to the primary industry of shipbuilding, Hoboken became home to Keuffel and Esser's three-story factory and in 1884, to Tietjen and Lang Drydock (later Todd Shipyards). Well-known companies that developed a major presence in Hoboken after the turn-of the-century included
Maxwell House Maxwell House is an American brand of coffee manufactured by a like-named division of Kraft Heinz in North America and JDE Peet's in the rest of the world. Introduced in 1892 by wholesale grocer Joel Owsley Cheek, it was named in honor of the Ma ...
,
Lipton Tea Lipton is a brand named after its founder, Sir Tom Lipton, who started an eponymous grocery retail business in the United Kingdom in 1871. The brand was used for various consumer goods sold in Lipton stores, including tea from 1890 for which ...
, and Hostess.


Birthplace of baseball

The first officially recorded game of
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
took place in Hoboken in 1846 between
Knickerbocker Club The Knickerbocker Club (known informally as The Knick) is a gentlemen's club in New York City that was founded in 1871. It is considered to be the most exclusive club in the United States and one of the most Aristocracy (class), aristocratic gent ...
and New York Nine at Elysian Fields. In 1845, the Knickerbocker Club, which had been founded by
Alexander Cartwright Alexander Joy Cartwright Jr. (April 17, 1820 – July 12, 1892) was a founding member of the New York Knickerbockers Base Ball Club in the 1840s. Although he was an inductee of the Baseball Hall of Fame and he was sometimes referred to as a "f ...
, began using Elysian Fields to play
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
due to the lack of suitable grounds on
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
. Team members included players of the St George's Cricket Club, the brothers Harry and George Wright, and Henry Chadwick, the English-born journalist who coined the term "America's Pastime". By the 1850s, several
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
-based members of the
National Association of Base Ball Players The National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) was the first organization governing American baseball (spelled as two words in the 19th century). The first convention of 16 New York City area clubs was held at Smith's Hotel, 462 Broome ...
were using the grounds as their home field while St. George's continued to organize international matches between Canada, England and the United States at the same venue. In 1859, George Parr's All England Eleven of professional cricketers played the United States XXII at Hoboken, easily defeating the local competition. Sam Wright and his sons Harry and George Wright played on the defeated United States team, a loss which inadvertently encouraged local players to take up baseball. Henry Chadwick believed that baseball and not cricket should become the national pastime after the game drawing the conclusion that amateur American players did not have the leisure time required to develop cricket skills to the high technical level required of professional players.
Harry Wright William Henry "Harry" Wright (January 10, 1835 – October 3, 1895) was an American professional baseball player, manager (baseball), manager, and developer. He assembled, managed, and played Center fielder, center field for baseball's first fu ...
and George Wright then became two of the first professional baseball players in the United States when Aaron Champion raised funds to found the
Cincinnati Red Stockings The Cincinnati Red Stockings of were baseball's first all-professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) 1867 ...
in 1869. In 1865, the grounds hosted a championship match between the Mutual Club of New York City and the Atlantic Club of
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
that was attended by an estimated 20,000 fans and captured in the Currier & Ives
lithograph Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...
"The American National Game of Base Ball". With the construction of two significant baseball parks enclosed by fences in
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
, enabling promoters there to charge admission to games, the prominence of Elysian Fields diminished. In 1868 the leading
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
club, Mutual, shifted its home games to the
Union Grounds Union Grounds was a baseball park located in the Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Williamsburg section of Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. The grounds opened in 1862 in sports, 1862, its inaugural match being played on May 15. It was the first baseball park ...
in Brooklyn. In 1880, the founders of the
New York Metropolitans The Metropolitan Club (New York Metropolitans or the Mets) was a 19th-century professional baseball team that played in New York City from 1880 to 1887. (The ''New York Metropolitan Baseball Club'' was the name chosen in 1961 for the New York M ...
and
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
finally succeeded in siting a ballpark in Manhattan that became known as the
Polo Grounds The Polo Grounds was the name of three stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used mainly for professional baseball and American football from 1880 to 1963. The original Polo Grounds, opened in 1876 and demolished in 1889, was built for the ...
.


20th century

Few nonwhites had settled in Hoboken by 1901. The ''
Brooklyn Eagle The ''Brooklyn Eagle'' (originally joint name ''The Brooklyn Eagle'' and ''Kings County Democrat'', later ''The Brooklyn Daily Eagle'' before shortening title further to ''Brooklyn Eagle'') was an afternoon daily newspaper published in the city ...
'' claimed that an unwritten
sundown town Sundown towns, also known as sunset towns, gray towns, or sundowner towns, were all-white municipalities or neighborhoods in the United States. They were towns that practiced a form of racial segregation by excluding non-whites via some combinati ...
policy prevented African Americans from residing or working there.


World War I

When the U.S. entered
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, the Hamburg-American Line piers in Hoboken and
New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...
were taken under
eminent domain Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
. Federal control of the port and anti-German sentiment led to part of the city being placed under martial law, and many German immigrants were forcibly moved to
Ellis Island Ellis Island is an island in New York Harbor, within the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. Owned by the U.S. government, Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United State ...
or left the city of their own accord. Hoboken became the major point of embarkation and more than three million soldiers, known as "
doughboy "Doughboy" was a popular nickname for the American infantryman during World War I. Though the origins of the term are not certain, the nickname was still in use as of the early 1940s, when it was gradually replaced by " G.I." as the following ge ...
s", passed through the city. Their hope for an early return led to General Pershing's slogan, "Heaven, Hell or Hoboken... by Christmas." Following the war,
Italians Italians (, ) are a European peoples, European ethnic group native to the Italian geographical region. Italians share a common Italian culture, culture, History of Italy, history, Cultural heritage, ancestry and Italian language, language. ...
, mostly stemming from the
Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...
port city of
Molfetta Molfetta (; Bari dialect, Molfettese: ) is a town located in the northern side of the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia, southern Italy. It has a well restored old city, and its own dialect. History The earliest local signs of permanent habit ...
, became the city's major ethnic group, with the Irish also having a strong presence. While the city experienced the
Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
, jobs in the ships yards and factories were still available, and the tenements were bustling. Middle-European Jews, mostly German-speaking, also made their way to the city and established small businesses. The
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, (PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ) is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate c ...
, which was established on April 30, 1921, oversaw the development of the
Holland Tunnel The Holland Tunnel is a vehicular tunnel under the Hudson River that connects Hudson Square and Lower Manhattan in New York City in the east to Jersey City, New Jersey, in the west. The tunnel is operated by the Port Authority of New York an ...
(completed in 1927) and the
Lincoln Tunnel The Lincoln Tunnel is an approximately tunnel under the Hudson River, connecting Weehawken, New Jersey, to the west with Midtown Manhattan in New York City to the east. It carries New Jersey Route 495 on the New Jersey side and the unsigned N ...
(in 1937), allowing for easier vehicular travel between New Jersey and New York City, bypassing the waterfront.


Post-World War II

The war facilitated economic growth in Hoboken, as the many industries located in the city were crucial to the war effort. As men went off to battle, more women were hired in the factories, some (most notably, Todd Shipyards), offering classes and other incentives to them. Though some returning service men took advantage of GI housing bills, many with strong ethnic and familial ties chose to stay in town. During the 1950s, the economy was still driven by Todd Shipyards,
Maxwell House Maxwell House is an American brand of coffee manufactured by a like-named division of Kraft Heinz in North America and JDE Peet's in the rest of the world. Introduced in 1892 by wholesale grocer Joel Owsley Cheek, it was named in honor of the Ma ...
,
Lipton Tea Lipton is a brand named after its founder, Sir Tom Lipton, who started an eponymous grocery retail business in the United Kingdom in 1871. The brand was used for various consumer goods sold in Lipton stores, including tea from 1890 for which ...
, Hostess and
Bethlehem Steel The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Until its closure in 2003, it was one of the world's largest steel-producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its success ...
and companies with big plants were still not inclined to invest in major infrastructure elsewhere. In the 1960s, working pay and conditions began to deteriorate: turn-of-the century housing started to look shabby and feel crowded, shipbuilding was cheaper overseas, and single-story plants surrounded by parking lots made manufacturing and distribution more economical than old brick buildings on congested urban streets. The city appeared to be in the throes of inexorable decline as industries sought (what had been) greener pastures, port operations shifted to larger facilities on
Newark Bay Newark Bay is a tidal bay at the confluence of the Passaic and Hackensack Rivers in northeastern New Jersey. It is home to the Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal, the largest container shipping facility in Port of New York and New Jerse ...
, and the car, truck and plane displaced the railroad and ship as the transportation modes of choice in the United States. Many Hobokenites headed to the suburbs, often the close by ones in
Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...
and
Passaic Passaic ( or ) is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city was the state's 16th-most-populous municipality,Paterson, Elizabeth, Camden, and neighboring
Jersey City Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous
. The old economic underpinnings were gone and nothing new seemed to be on the horizon. Attempts were made to stabilize the population by demolishing the so-called slums along River Street and build subsidized middle-income housing at Marineview Plaza, and in midtown, at Church Towers. Heaps of long uncollected garbage and roving packs of semi-wild dogs were not uncommon sights. Though the city had seen better days, Hoboken was never abandoned. New infusions of immigrants, most notably
Puerto Ricans Puerto Ricans (), most commonly known as Puerto Rico#Etymology, Boricuas, but also occasionally referred to as '':es:Anexo:Gentilicios de Puerto Rico#Lista general, Borinqueños'', '':es:Anexo:Gentilicios de Puerto Rico#Lista general, Borincan ...
, kept the storefronts open with small businesses and housing stock from being abandoned, but there wasn't much work to be had. Washington Street, commonly called "the avenue", was never boarded up, and the tight-knit neighborhoods remained home to many who were still proud of their city. Stevens remained a premier technology school, Maxwell House kept chugging away, and Bethlehem Steel still housed sailors who were dry-docked on its piers. Italian-Americans and other came back to the "old neighborhood" to shop for delicatessen. In 1975, the western part of the Keuffel and Esser Manufacturing Complex (known as "Clock Towers") was converted into residential apartments, after having been an architectural, engineering and drafting facility from 1907 to 1968; the eastern part portion became residential apartments in 1984 (now called the '' Grand Adams'').


Waterfront

The
Hudson Waterfront The Hudson Waterfront is an urban area of northeastern New Jersey along the lower reaches of the Hudson River, the Upper New York Bay and the Kill van Kull. Though the term can specifically mean the shoreline, it is often used to mean the contig ...
defined Hoboken as an archetypal port town and powered its economy from the mid-19th to mid-20th century, by which time it had become essentially industrial (and mostly inaccessible to the general public). The large production plants of Lipton Tea and Maxwell House, and the
drydock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...
s of Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation and Todd Shipbuilding dominated the northern portion for many years. On June 30, 1900, a large fire at the
Norddeutscher Lloyd Norddeutscher Lloyd (NDL; North German Lloyd) was a German shipping company. It was founded by Hermann Henrich Meier and Eduard Crüsemann in Bremen on 20 February 1857. It developed into one of the most important German shipping companies of th ...
piers killed numerous people and caused almost $10 million in damage. The southern portion (which had been a U.S. base of the Hamburg-American Line) was seized by the federal government under
eminent domain Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
at the outbreak of
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, after which it became (with the rest of the Hudson County) a major East Coast cargo-shipping port. With the development of the
Interstate Highway System The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...
and
containerization Containerization is a system of intermodal freight transport using intermodal containers (also called shipping containers, or International Organization for Standardization, ISO containers). Containerization, also referred as container stuf ...
shipping facilities (particularly at
Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manche ...
), the docks became obsolete, and by the 1970s were more or less abandoned. A large swath of River Street, known as the
Barbary Coast The Barbary Coast (also Barbary, Berbery, or Berber Coast) were the coastal regions of central and western North Africa, more specifically, the Maghreb and the Ottoman borderlands consisting of the regencies in Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli, a ...
for its taverns and boarding houses (which had been home for many dockworkers, sailors, merchant mariners, and other seamen) was leveled as part of an
urban renewal Urban renewal (sometimes called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address real or perceived urban decay. Urban renewal involves the clearing ...
project. Though control of the confiscated area had been returned to the city in the 1950s, complex lease agreements with the
Port Authority A port authority (less commonly a port district) is a governmental or quasi-governmental public authority for a special-purpose district usually formed by a legislative body (or bodies) to operate ports and other transportation infrastructure. ...
gave it little influence on its management. In the 1980s, the waterfront dominated Hoboken politics, with various civic groups and the city government engaging in sometimes nasty, sometimes absurd politics and court cases. By the 1990s, agreements were made with the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, (PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ) is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate c ...
, various levels of government, Hoboken citizens, and private developers to build commercial and residential buildings and "open spaces" (mostly along the bulkhead and on the foundation of un-utilized Pier A). The northern portion, which had remained in private hands, has also been re-developed. While most of the dry-dock and production facilities were razed to make way for mid-rise apartment houses, many sold as investment condominiums, some buildings were renovated for adaptive re-use (notably the Tea Building, formerly home to Lipton Tea, and the Machine Shop, home of the Hoboken Historic Museum). Zoning requires that new construction follow the street grid and limits the height of new construction to retain the architectural character of the city and open sight-lines to the river. Downtown, Frank Sinatra Park and Sinatra Drive honor the man most consider to be Hoboken's most famous son, while uptown the name Maxwell recalls the factory with its smell of roasting coffee wafting over town and its huge neon "Good to the Last Drop" sign, so long a part of the landscape. The midtown section is dominated by the serpentine rock outcropping atop of which sits Stevens Institute of Technology (which also owns some, as yet, undeveloped land on the river). At the foot of the cliff is
Sybil's Cave Hoboken, New Jersey, is home to many parks, historical landmarks, and other places of interest. Landmarks Association of Exempt Firemen Building Carlo's Bakery A famous bakery and setting for the TLC (TV channel), TLC reality television series ' ...
(where 19th century day-trippers once came to "take the waters" from a natural spring), long sealed shut, though plans for its restoration are in place. The promenade along the river bank is part of the
Hudson River Waterfront Walkway The Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, also known as the Hudson River Walkway, is a promenade along the Hudson Waterfront in New Jersey. The ongoing and incomplete project located on Kill van Kull and the western shore of Upper New York Bay and t ...
, a state-mandated master plan to connect the municipalities from the
Bayonne Bridge The Bayonne Bridge is an Through arch bridge, arch bridge that spans the Kill Van Kull between Staten Island, New York (state), New York, and Bayonne, New Jersey, Bayonne, New Jersey, United States. It carries New York State Route 440 and ...
to
George Washington Bridge The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee in Bergen County, New Jersey, with the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is named after George W ...
and provide contiguous unhindered access to the water's edge and to create an urban linear park offering expansive views of the Hudson with the spectacular backdrop of the New York skyline. As of 2017, the city was considering using
eminent domain Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
to take over the last operating maritime industry in the city, the Union Dry Dock.


1970s–present

During the late 1970s and 1980s, the city witnessed a speculation spree, fueled by transplanted New Yorkers and others who bought many turn-of-the-20th-century brownstones in neighborhoods that the still solid middle and working class population had kept intact and by local and out-of-town real-estate investors who bought up late 19th century apartment houses often considered to be tenements. Hoboken experienced a wave of fires, some of which were arson.Good, Philip
"Recalling the Glory Days of The Hudson Dispatch"
, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', October 27, 1991. Accessed February 1, 2012.
Applied Housing, a real-estate investment firm, used federal government incentives to renovate "sub-standard" housing and receive subsidized rental payments (commonly known as Section 8), which enabled some low-income, displaced, and disabled residents to move within town. Hoboken attracted artists, musicians, upwardly mobile commuters, and "bohemian types" interested in the socioeconomic possibilities and challenges of a bankrupt New York and who valued the aesthetics of Hoboken's residential, civic and commercial architecture, its sense of community, and relatively (compared to Lower Manhattan) less expensive rents, all a quick, train hop away. These trends in development resembled similar growth and change patterns in
Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
and downtown
Jersey City Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous
and Manhattan's East Village—and to a lesser degree,
SoHo SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...
and
TriBeCa Tribeca ( ), originally written as TriBeCa, is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. Its name is a syllabic abbreviation of "Triangle Below Canal Street". The "triangle" (more accurately a quadrilateral) is bounded by Canal Str ...
—which previously had not been residential. Empty lots were built on, tenements were transformed into luxury condominiums. Hoboken felt the impact of the destruction of the World Trade Center intensely, many of its newer residents having worked there. Re-zoning encouraged new construction on former industrial sites on the waterfront and the traditionally more impoverished low-lying west side of the city where, in concert with Hudson-Bergen Light Rail and New Jersey State land-use policy, transit villages are now being promoted. Once a
blue collar A blue-collar worker is a person who performs manual labor or skilled trades. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled labor. The type of work may involve manufacturing, retail, warehousing, mining, carpentry, electrical work, custodia ...
town characterized by live poultry shops and drab taverns, it has since been transformed into a town filled with gourmet shops and luxury condominiums. In October 2012,
Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as Superstorm Sandy) was an extremely large and devastating tropical cyclone which ravaged the Caribbean and the coastal Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States in late ...
caused widespread flooding in Hoboken, leaving 1,700 homes flooded and causing $100 million in damage after the storm "filled up Hoboken like a bathtub", leaving the city without electricity for days, and requiring the summoning of the
National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...
. Workers in Hoboken had the highest rate of public transportation use in the nation, with 56% commuting daily via mass transit. Hurricane Sandy caused seawater to flood half the city, crippling the PATH station at Hoboken Terminal when more than 10 million gallons of water dumped into the system. In December 2013 Mayor Dawn Zimmer testified before a U.S. Senate Committee on the impact the storm had on Hoboken's businesses and residents, and in January 2014 she stated that Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno and Richard Constable, a member of governor
Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...
's cabinet, deliberately held back Hurricane Sandy relief funds from the city in order to pressure her to approve a Christie ally's developmental project, a charge that the Christie administration denied. In June 2014, the
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the secretary of housing and u ...
allocated $230 million to Hoboken as part of its Rebuild by Design initiative, adding levees, parks, green roofs,
retention basin A retention basin, sometimes called a retention pond, wet detention basin, or storm water management pond (SWMP), is an artificial pond with vegetation around the perimeter and a permanent pool of water in its design. It is used to manage ...
s and other infrastructure to help the low-lying riverfront city protect itself from ordinary flooding and build a network of features to help Hoboken
future-proof Future-proofing (also futureproofing) is the process of anticipating the future and developing methods of minimizing the effects of shocks and stresses of future events. Future-proofing is used in industries such as infrastructure development, ...
itself against subsequent storms. The project included expanding the city's sewer capacity, incorporating
cisterns A cistern (; , ; ) is a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and store rainwater. To prevent leakage, the interior of the cistern is often lined with hydraulic plaster. Cisterns are disti ...
and basins into parks and playgrounds, redesigning streets to minimize traffic accidents, and collect and redirect waster. By September 2023, the improvements were so successful that when a storm hit the area that month, depositing 3.5 inches on the city, including 1.44 inches during the hour coinciding with high tide, only a few inches of standing water remains at three of the city's 277 intersections by the evening, resulting in only three towed cars, and no cancelation of any city events. In an article that November for ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'', Michael Kimmelman compared this to the storm's effects in New York City, whose government focused on
flood wall A floodwall is a freestanding, permanent, engineered structure designed to prevent encroachment of floodwaters. Floodwalls are mainly used on locations where space is scarce, such as cities or where building levees or dikes (dykes) would in ...
s and
breakwater Breakwater may refer to: * Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour Places * Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia * Breakwater Island, Antarctica * Breakwater Islands, Nunavut, Canada * ...
s, but not rainwater, resulting in several subway lines being submerged in water, and thigh-high water levels in Brooklyn streets. For this, the article hailed Hoboken as a "climate change success story."


Geography

According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the city has a total area of , including of land and of water (37.50%). Hoboken lies on the west bank of the Hudson River between
Weehawken Weehawken is a Township (New Jersey), township in the North Hudson, New Jersey, northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located on the Hudson Waterfront and Hudson Palisades overlooking ...
and Union City to the north and
Jersey City Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous
(the county seat) to the south and west. Directly across the Hudson River are the
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
, New York City neighborhoods of the
West Village The West Village is a neighborhood in the western section of the larger Greenwich Village neighborhood of Lower Manhattan, New York City. The West Village is bounded by the Hudson River to the west and 14th Street (Manhattan), 14th Street to ...
and Chelsea. Hoboken is laid out in a
grid Grid, The Grid, or GRID may refer to: Space partitioning * Regular grid, a tessellation of space with translational symmetry, typically formed from parallelograms or higher-dimensional analogs ** Grid graph, a graph structure with nodes connec ...
. North–south streets are named (Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Jackson, Harrison, and Clinton, for example). The numbered streets running east–west start two blocks north of Observer Highway with First Street, with the grid ending close to 16th near
Weehawken Cove Weehawken Cove is a cove on the west bank of the North River (Hudson River), Hudson River between the New Jersey municipalities of Hoboken, New Jersey, Hoboken to the south and Weehawken, New Jersey, Weehawken to the north. At the perimeter of ...
and the city line. Castle Point (or Stevens Point),
The Projects In the United States, subsidized housing is administered by federal, state and local agencies to provide subsidized rental assistance for low-income households. Public housing is priced much below the market rate, allowing people to live in ...
,
Hoboken Terminal Hoboken Terminal is a commuter-oriented intermodal passenger station in Hoboken, Hudson County, New Jersey. One of the New York metropolitan area's major transportation hubs, it is served by eight NJ Transit (NJT) commuter rail lines, an NJ T ...
, and Hudson Tea are distinct enclaves at the city's periphery. The "Northwest" is a name being used for that part of the city as it transforms from its previous industrial use into a residential district. Hoboken's ZIP Code is 07030 and its
area code A telephone numbering plan is a type of numbering scheme used in telecommunication to assign telephone numbers to subscriber telephones or other telephony endpoints. Telephone numbers are the addresses of participants in a telephone network, rea ...
is 201.


Climate

Hoboken's temperatures hover around an average in winter, rising and falling, rather than a consistent pattern with a clear coldest time of year, with minimums occurring in late December and early-mid February, rising and falling repeatedly throughout January. Just like neighboring New York City, the climate is humid subtropical (Cfa).


Demographics


2020 census

The 2020 United States census counted 60,419 people, 28,175 households, and 12,177 families in Hoboken. The population density was 48,335.2 per square mile (18,662.2/km). There were 30,202 housing units at an average density of 24,161.6 per square mile (9,328.8/km). The racial makeup was 70.69% (42,711)
white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
or
European American European Americans are Americans of European ancestry. This term includes both people who descend from the first European settlers in the area of the present-day United States and people who descend from more recent European arrivals. Since th ...
(67.29%
non-Hispanic white Non-Hispanic Whites, also referred to as White Anglo Americans or Non-Latino Whites, are White Americans who are classified by the United States census as "White" and not of Hispanic or Latino origin. According to annual estimates from the Unit ...
), 4.11% (2,484)
black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
or
African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...
, 0.18% (107) Native American or
Alaska Native Alaska Natives (also known as Native Alaskans, Alaskan Indians, or Indigenous Alaskans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Alaska that encompass a diverse arena of cultural and linguistic groups, including the I ...
, 10.89% (6,581) Asian, 0.09% (57)
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
or
Native Hawaiian Native Hawaiians (also known as Indigenous Hawaiians, Kānaka Maoli, Aboriginal Hawaiians, or simply Hawaiians; , , , and ) are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, Indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiʻi was set ...
, 5.34% (3,225) from other races, and 8.7% (5,254) from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race was 14.14% (8,542) of the population. Of the 28,175 households, 20.9% had children under the age of 18; 33.2% were married couples living together; 30.3% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. 34.5% of households consisted of individuals and 5.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.1 and the average family size was 2.7. The percent of those with a bachelor’s degree or higher was estimated to be 57.0% of the population. 15.6% of the population was under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 53.3% from 25 to 44, 15.1% from 45 to 64, and 6.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.2 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older, there were 99.9 males. The 2016-2020 5-year
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
estimates show that the median household income was $153,438 (with a margin of error of +/- $9,118). The median family income was $200,132 (+/- $18,994). Males had a median income of $100,368 (+/- $5,816) versus $77,081 (+/- $3,810) for females. The median income for those above 16 years old was $86,005 (+/- $2,370). Approximately, 2.4% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 3.1% of those under the age of 18 and 11.0% of those ages 65 or over.


2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 50,005 people, 25,041 households, and 9,465 families in the city. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...
was . There were 26,855 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup was 82.24% (41,124)
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 3.53% (1,767) Black or African American, 0.15% (73) Native American, 7.12% (3,558) Asian, 0.03% (15)
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 4.29% (2,144) from other races, and 2.65% (1,324) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race were 15.20% (7,602) of the population. Of the 25,041 households, 15.5% had children under the age of 18; 28.8% were married couples living together; 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present and 62.2% were non-families. Of all households, 39.7% were made up of individuals and 5.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.93 and the average family size was 2.68. 12.2% of the population were under the age of 18, 12.1% from 18 to 24, 55.9% from 25 to 44, 13.5% from 45 to 64, and 6.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31.2 years. For every 100 females, the population had 101.8 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 100.7 males. The Census Bureau's 2006–2010
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars)
median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...
was $101,782 (with a margin of error of +/− $3,219) and the median family income was $121,614 (+/− $18,466). Males had a median income of $90,878 (+/− $6,412) versus $67,331 (+/− $3,710) for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $69,085 (+/− $3,335). About 9.6% of families and 11.0% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 20.7% of those under age 18 and 24.4% of those age 65 or over.


2000 census

As of the 2000 census, there were 38,577 people, 19,418 households, and 6,835 families residing in the city. The population density was , fourth highest in the nation after neighboring communities of Guttenberg, Union City and West New York. There were 19,915 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 80.82%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 4.26%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.16% Native American, 4.31% Asian, 0.05%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 7.63% from other races, and 2.78% from two or more races. Furthermore, 20.18% of residents considered themselves to be
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino.Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Hoboken city, New Jersey
,
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
. Accessed February 1, 2012.
DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 – Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Hoboken city, Hudson County, New Jersey
,
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
. Accessed September 24, 2012.
There were 19,418 households, out of which 11.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 23.8% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 64.8% were non-families. 41.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 1.92 and the average family size was 2.73. In the city the age distribution of the population showed 10.5% under the age of 18, 15.3% from 18 to 24, 51.7% from 25 to 44, 13.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, age 18 and over, there were 103.9 males. The median income for a household in the city as of the 2000 census was $62,550, while the median income for a family was $67,500. Males had a median income of $54,870 versus $46,826 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the city was $43,195. 11.0% of the population and 10.0% of families were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
. Out of the total population, 23.6% of those under the age of 18 and 20.7% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line. The city is a
bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
of New York City, where most of its employed residents work. Based on the 2000 Census Worker Flow Files, about 53% of the employed residents of Hoboken (13,475 out of 25,306) worked in one of the five boroughs of New York City, as opposed to about 15% working within Hoboken.


Economy

The first centrally air-conditioned public space in the United States was demonstrated at Hoboken Terminal. The first Blimpie restaurant opened in 1964 at the corner of Seventh and Washington Streets. Hoboken is home to one of the headquarters of publisher
John Wiley & Sons John Wiley & Sons, Inc., commonly known as Wiley (), is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Publishing, publishing company that focuses on academic publishing and instructional materials. The company was founded in 1807 and pr ...
, which moved from Manhattan in 2002. According to the
New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development The New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development is a governmental agency of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The New Jersey Civil Service Commission is an independent body within the New Jersey state government under the auspices of ...
, Hoboken's
unemployment rate Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work d ...
as of 2014 was 3.3%, compared to a 6.5% in Hudson County as a whole. In 2018, Hoboken had an unemployment rate of 2.1%, vs. 3.9% countywide. A 2014 study showed that
Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a Private university, private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely de ...
contributed $117 million to Hoboken's economy in 2014, reflecting the university's nearly $100 million payroll for salaries and wages, as well as other goods and services acquired, construction and off-campus spending by students and visitors. The university is responsible for 1,285 full-time jobs.


Parks and recreation

The four parks were originally laid out within city street grid in the 19th century were Church Square Park, Columbus Park, Elysian Park and Stevens Park. Four other parks that were developed later but fit into the street pattern are Gateway Park, Jackson Street Park, Legion Park and Madison Park. More recently built parks throughout the city include Pier C, a reconstructed pier accessed by a curving walkway along lower Sinatra Drive. A multi-use sports field called 1600 Park opened in 2013, while the one-acre Southwest Park was completed along Jackson Street and Paterson Avenue in 2017. As of 2019, the city was considering expanding the park to a property across the street. A two-acre park and public plaza called 7th and Jackson Resiliency Park opened in 2019. It includes a playground, an acre of open lawn space, a new indoor gymnasium, play sculptures, and infrastructure to capture over 450,000 gallons of rainwater to reduce flooding. Construction of the Northwest Resiliency Park broke ground in 2019. Amenities in the $90 million park's design include a great lawn, a stage, a central fountain that can be converted into a seasonal ice skating rink, a pavilion, playgrounds, and athletic fields. Also incorporated into the park are a number of environmentally friendly provisions, including both underground and above ground stormwater detention system that can store up to of water to help mitigate flooding. The park, which is located at 12th and Adams Streets, opened in June 2023. A 2014 renovation to the 14th Street Viaduct near the city's northwest edge saw the creation of several recreational areas underneath the structure that include a dog park, passive recreation areas, and street hockey and basketball courts amid a new cobblestone streetscape. The
Hudson River Waterfront Walkway The Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, also known as the Hudson River Walkway, is a promenade along the Hudson Waterfront in New Jersey. The ongoing and incomplete project located on Kill van Kull and the western shore of Upper New York Bay and t ...
is a state-mandated master plan to connect the municipalities from the
Bayonne Bridge The Bayonne Bridge is an Through arch bridge, arch bridge that spans the Kill Van Kull between Staten Island, New York (state), New York, and Bayonne, New Jersey, Bayonne, New Jersey, United States. It carries New York State Route 440 and ...
to the
George Washington Bridge The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee in Bergen County, New Jersey, with the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is named after George W ...
creating an -long urban linear park and provide contiguous unhindered access to the water's edge. By law, any development on the waterfront must provide a public promenade with a minimum width of . To date, completed segments in Hoboken and the new parks and renovated piers that abut them are at
Hoboken Terminal Hoboken Terminal is a commuter-oriented intermodal passenger station in Hoboken, Hudson County, New Jersey. One of the New York metropolitan area's major transportation hubs, it is served by eight NJ Transit (NJT) commuter rail lines, an NJ T ...
, Pier A, the promenade and bike path from Newark to 5th Streets, Frank Sinatra Park, Castle Point Park, Sinatra Drive to 12th to 14th Streets, New York Waterway Pier, 14th Street Pier, and 14th Street north to southern side of Weehawken Cove. Other segments of river-front held privately are not required to build a walkway until the land is re-developed.


Arts and culture

Since 1992, the Hudson Shakespeare Company has been the resident
Shakespeare Festival A Shakespeare festival is a theatre organization that stages the works of William Shakespeare continually. Origins In 1830, the Mulberry Club (a scholarly group formed in Stratford-upon-Avon, named after the destroyed New Place mulberry tree) beg ...
of
Hudson County Hudson County is a List of counties in New Jersey, county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the North River (Hudson River), Hudson River, the No ...
performing a free Shakespeare production for each month of the summer. Since 1998, the group has performed "Shakespeare Mondays" at Frank Sinatra Park (410 Frank Sinatra Drive) as part of their annual
Shakespeare in the Park Shakespeare in the Park is a term for outdoor festivals featuring productions of William Shakespeare's plays. The term originated with the New York Shakespeare Festival in New York City's Central Park, originally created by Joseph Papp. This conc ...
tour. Hoboken is also home to cultural attractions such as Barsky Gallery and creative institutions such as the Hoboken Historical Museum and the Monroe Center.


Annual cultural events

Hoboken has many annual events such as the Frank Sinatra Idol Contest, Hoboken Comedy Festival, Hoboken House Tour,
Hoboken International Film Festival The Hoboken International Film Festival is an annual festival that promotes domestic and international television pilots, screenplays, non-studio films. Awards, with cash prizes, are given for the best submissions. It is held at the Thomas Morahan ...
, Hoboken Studio Tour, Hoboken Arts and Music Festival, Hoboken (Secret) Garden Tour and Movies Under the Stars. The Hoboken Farmer's Market occurs every Tuesday, June through October. There are also numerous festivals such as the Saint Patrick's Day Parade, Feast of Saint Anthony's, Saint Ann's Feast and the Hoboken Italian Festival. From the 1960s until 2011, Hoboken was home to the Macy's Parade Studio, which houses many of the floats for the
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade in New York City presented by the American-based department store chain Macy's. The Parade first took place in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States ...
.Shkolnikova, Svetlana
"NJ students get behind-the-scenes tour of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade studio"
,''
The Record The Record may refer to: Music * The Record (Fear album), ''The Record'' (Fear album), a 1982 studio album by the hardcore-punk band Fear * The Record (Boygenius album), ''The Record'' (Boygenius album), a 2023 studio album by the indie rock supe ...
'', November 13, 2018. Accessed November 13, 2019. "The floats are all built in-house by a team of about 50 full-time designers, sculptors, technicians and painters working year-round out of Moonachie, the parade's newest home. For 40 years, until 2011, the magic began in a converted Tootsie Roll factory in Hoboken."
Many Stevens students, alumni, and staff members volunteer in the preparation and piloting of the parade floats. The studio was moved out of Hoboken and into a converted former Tootsie Roll Factory in Moonachie, New Jersey 2011.


Government and public service


Local government

The City of Hoboken is governed within the Faulkner Act (formally known as the Optional Municipal Charter Law) under the mayor-council (Plan D) system of municipal government, implemented based on the recommendations of a Charter Study Commission as of January 1, 1953. The city is one of 71 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form of government. The governing body is comprised of the Mayor and the nine-member City Council. The city council includes three members elected
at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather tha ...
from the city as a whole, and six members who each represent one of the city's six wards. All of the members of the city council are elected to four-year terms of office in
non-partisan Nonpartisanship, also known as nonpartisanism, is a lack of affiliation with a political party and a lack of political bias. While an ''Oxford English Dictionary'' definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., ...
elections on a staggered basis in odd-numbered years, with the six ward seats up for election together and the three at-large and mayoral seats up for vote two years later.''2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book'',
Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...
Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, March 2013, p. 145.
In July 2011, the city council voted to move municipal elections from May to November. The first shifted election were held in November 2013, with all officials elected in 2009 and 2011 having their terms extended by six months. , the mayor of Hoboken is
Ravinder Bhalla Ravinder Singh Bhalla (born ), often simply called Ravi Bhalla, is an American civil rights lawyer and politician, serving as the 39th Mayor of Hoboken, New Jersey, Mayor of Hoboken, New Jersey, since 2018. Prior to becoming mayor, he served on t ...
, whose term of office ends December 31, 2025.Meet the Mayor
, City of Hoboken. Accessed April 16, 2022.
Members of the city council are Council President Michael Russo (2027; 3rd Ward), Council Vice President Emily Jabbour (2025; at-large), Phil Cohen (2027; 5th Ward), Paul Presinzano (2027; 1st Ward), James J. Doyle (2025; at-large), Tiffanie Fisher (2027; 2nd Ward), Joe Quintero (2025; at-large) and Ruben J. Ramos Jr. (2027; 4th Ward).Elected Officials
,
Hudson County, New Jersey Hudson County is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the Hudson River, the North Jersey county is part of the state's Gateway Region an ...
Clerk. Accessed April 16, 2022.
General Election November 2, 2021 Official results
,
Hudson County, New Jersey Hudson County is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the Hudson River, the North Jersey county is part of the state's Gateway Region an ...
, updated November 17, 2021. Accessed January 1, 2022.
Hudson County General Election 2019 Statement of Vote November 5, 2019
,
Hudson County, New Jersey Hudson County is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the Hudson River, the North Jersey county is part of the state's Gateway Region an ...
Clerk, updated November 13, 2019. Accessed January 1, 2020.
The 6th Ward is vacant after the sudden and unexpected passing of 5 time elected council woman Jen Giattino. In the 2017 general election, Ravinder Bhalla was elected to succeed Dawn Zimmer becoming the state's first
Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...
mayor; Zimmer had chosen not to run for re-election to a third term and had endorsed Bhalla for the post. Bhalla's running mates, incumbents James Doyle and Emily Jabbour, won two of the at-large seats, while the third seat was won Vanessa Falco who had been aligned with the slate of mayoral candidate Michael DeFusco.Hudson County General Election 2017 Statement of Vote November 7, 2017
Hudson County, New Jersey Hudson County is a county in the U.S. state of New Jersey, its smallest and most densely populated. Lying in the northeast of the state and on the west bank of the Hudson River, the North Jersey county is part of the state's Gateway Region an ...
Clerk, updated November 17, 2017. Accessed January 1, 2018.
Zimmer had been the city council president and first took office as mayor on July 31, 2009, after her predecessor, Peter Cammarano, was arrested on allegations of corruption stemming from a decade-long FBI operation. Zimmer, who lost a June 9, 2009, runoff election to Cammarano by 161 votes, served as acting mayor starting on July 31, 2009, making her the city's first female mayor. She won a special election to fill the remainder of the term on November 3, 2009, and was sworn in as mayor on November 6. Zimmer won re-election in November 2013 to a second term of office and began her second term in January 2014.


Federal, state, and county representation

Hoboken is located in the 8th Congressional DistrictPlan Components Report
,
New Jersey Redistricting Commission The New Jersey Redistricting Commission is a constitutional body of the government of New Jersey tasked with redrawing the state's Congressional election districts after each decade's census. Like Arizona, Idaho, Hawaii, Montana, and Washington ...
, December 23, 2011. Accessed February 1, 2020.
and is part of New Jersey's 32nd state legislative district.


Politics

As of March 2011, there were a total of 35,532 registered voters in Hoboken, of which 14,385 (40.5%) were registered as Democrats, 3,881 (10.9%) were registered as Republicans and 17,218 (48.5%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 48 voters registered to other parties. In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
received 66.1% of the vote (14,443 cast), ahead of Republican
Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American businessman and retired politician. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Utah from 2019 to 2025 and as the 70th governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 ...
with 32.4% (7,078 votes), and
Libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...
and
Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...
candidates with 1.5% (325 votes), among the 22,018 ballots cast by the city's 40,209 registered voters (172 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 54.8%. In the 2008 presidential election, Democrat
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
received 71.0% of the vote here (17,051 cast), ahead of Republican
John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...
with 27.5% (6,590 votes) and other candidates with 0.9% (225 votes), among the 24,007 ballots cast by the city's 38,970 registered voters, for a turnout of 61.6%. In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat
John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...
received 65.0% of the vote here (13,436 ballots cast), outpolling Republican
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
with 33.4% (6,898 votes) and other candidates with 0.5% (161 votes), among the 20,668 ballots cast by the city's 31,221 registered voters, for a turnout percentage of 66.2. In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Republican
Chris Christie Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...
received 53.0% of the vote (6,562 cast), ahead of Democrat
Barbara Buono Barbara A. Buono (born July 28, 1953) is an American politician who served in the New Jersey Senate from 2002 to 2014, where she represented the 18th Legislative District. She served from 2010 to 2012 as the Majority Leader in the Senate, succ ...
with 45.0% (5,565 votes), and other candidates with 2.0% (243 votes), among the 16,331 ballots cast by the city's 41,094 registered voters (3,961 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 39.7%. In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Democrat
Jon Corzine Jon Stevens Corzine ( ; born January 1, 1947) is an American financial executive and retired politician who served as a United States Senator from New Jersey from 2001 to 2006, and the 54th governor of New Jersey from 2006 to 2010. Corzine ran f ...
received 62.3% of the vote here (9,095 ballots cast), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 29.5% (4,307 votes), Independent Chris Daggett with 4.6% (673 votes) and other candidates with 0.9% (138 votes), among the 14,593 ballots cast by the city's 34,844 registered voters, yielding a 41.9% turnout. On November 7, 2017, City Councilmember
Ravinder Bhalla Ravinder Singh Bhalla (born ), often simply called Ravi Bhalla, is an American civil rights lawyer and politician, serving as the 39th Mayor of Hoboken, New Jersey, Mayor of Hoboken, New Jersey, since 2018. Prior to becoming mayor, he served on t ...
was elected as mayor, making him the first
Sikh Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Si ...
mayor in the state's history. He was re-elected in November 2021.


Fire department

The city is protected by the 132 paid firefighters of the city of Hoboken Fire Department (HFD). Established in 1891, the HFD currently operates under the command of a Department Chief, to whom two Deputy Chiefs report. The department reported to 3,352 emergency calls in 2010, arriving in an average of 2.6 minutes from the time the original call was received. The HFD has been a Class 1 rated fire department since 1996 as determined by the
Insurance Services Office Insurance Services Office, Inc. (ISO), a subsidiary of Verisk Analytics, is a provider of statistical, actuarial, underwriting, and claims information and analytics; compliance and fraud identification tools; policy language; information abou ...
, one of only three in
New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...
, joining Hackensack and
Cherry Hill Cherry Hill often refers to: * Cherry Hill, New Jersey, a township in Camden County, New Jersey * Cherry Hill, Prince William County, Virginia, a census-designated place Cherry Hill may also refer to: Places Canada * Cherry Hill, Nova Scotia, a ...
. HFD's firehouses, including its fire museum, are listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
. The department is part of the Metro USAR Strike Team, which consists of nine North Jersey fire departments and other emergency services divisions working to address major emergency rescue situations.Steadman, Andrew
"Bayonne firefighters participate in mock disaster drills in Newark"
, ''
The Jersey Journal ''The Jersey Journal'' was a daily newspaper, published from Monday through Saturday, covering news and events throughout Hudson County, New Jersey. ''The Journal'' is a sister paper to ''The Star-Ledger'' of Newark, ''The Times'' of Trenton a ...
'', May 1, 2012. Accessed June 6, 2016. "According to the press release, the Metro USAR Strike Team is made up of nine fire departments from Bayonne, Elizabeth, Hackensack, Hoboken, Jersey City, Newark, Paterson, Morristown as well as the five-municipality North Hudson Regional Fire and Rescue Agency."


Fire station locations and apparatus

Fire station and company locations in Hoboken are:Locations
, Hoboken Fire Department. Accessed February 19, 2011.
The Fire Museum is located at 213 Bloomfield Street.


Emergency medical services

EMS in the city of Hoboken is provided primarily by the members of the Hoboken Volunteer Ambulance Corps (HVAC), which was established in 1971. HVAC does not charge for the services it provides. HVAC has seven emergency vehicles, in addition to six bicycles that can be used to provide coverage at outdoor events. Hoboken University Medical Center, founded in 1863 as St. Mary's Hospital, is a historic hospital and the oldest in continuous operation in the state. It is a community hospital and part of the CarePoint Health System.


Social services

HOPES Community Action Partnership, Incorporated (HOPES CAP, Inc. / HOPES) was established in 1964 under President Lyndon B. Johnson's administration signing the Economic Opportunity Act. The majority of HOPES program participants have incomes below the federal poverty threshold. Services include those for youth enrichment, adults, senior assistance, and early childhood development. Homelessness in the city is addressed by the Hoboken Homeless Shelter, one of the three homeless shelters in the county. In December 2018, the city of Hoboken installed eight parking meters in high foot-traffic areas, painted orange, to collect donations to benefit homelessness initiatives.


Transportation

Hoboken has the highest
public transportation Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whi ...
use of any city in the United States, with 56% of working residents using public transportation for commuting purposes each day.
Hoboken Terminal Hoboken Terminal is a commuter-oriented intermodal passenger station in Hoboken, Hudson County, New Jersey. One of the New York metropolitan area's major transportation hubs, it is served by eight NJ Transit (NJT) commuter rail lines, an NJ T ...
, located at the city's southeastern corner, is a
national historic landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...
originally built in 1907 by the
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, also known as the DL&W or Lackawanna Railroad, was a U.S. Class 1 railroad that connected Buffalo, New York, and Hoboken, New Jersey, and by ferry with New York City, a distance of . The railroad was ...
. The terminal is the origination/destination point for several modes of transportation and an important hub within the NY/NJ metropolitan region's public transit system. The number of residents parking on Hoboken streets decreased from 2010 to 2015. Hudson Bike Share, a
bicycle sharing system A bicycle-sharing system, bike share program, public bicycle scheme, or public bike share (PBS) scheme, is a shared transport service where bicycles are available for shared use by individuals at low cost. The programmes themselves include bo ...
operated by nextbike, opened in October 2015. Amid conflicts with Jersey City, which used
Citi Bike Citi Bike is a privately owned public bicycle sharing system serving the New York City boroughs of the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens, as well as Jersey City, New Jersey, Jersey City and Hoboken, New Jersey. Named after lead sponsor Ci ...
, Hoboken ceased using Hudson Bike Share in May 2021, and adopted Citi Bike itself, thus connecting the town's bicycle sharing network with the ones already operating in Jersey City and New York City.


Pedestrian safety

In the late 2010s, Hoboken implemented a number of improvements to make certain intersections and roads safer. These include giving pedestrians lead time before turning traffic lights green; installing vertical delineator post or a flexible bollard to prevent cars from parking within 25 feet of intersections, thus improving sightlines for motorists in order to allow them to avoid cyclists, pedestrians, and other cars. By 2022, the city had not seen a traffic death in four years.


Rail

NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. I ...
's Main Line, Bergen County Line,
Pascack Valley Line The Pascack Valley Line is a commuter rail line operated by the Hoboken Division of New Jersey Transit, in the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York. The line runs north from Hoboken Terminal, through Hudson and Bergen counties in New Jerse ...
, Montclair-Boonton Line, Morris and Essex Lines and Meadowlands Rail Line terminate at the Hoboken Terminal. The Hudson-Bergen Light Rail, another NJ Transit subsidiary, has three stations in Hoboken–Hoboken Terminal, 2nd Street and 9th Street-Congress Street.
PATH A path is a route for physical travel – see Trail. Path or PATH may also refer to: Physical paths of different types * Bicycle path * Bridle path, used by people on horseback * Course (navigation), the intended path of a vehicle * Desir ...
, a 24-hour subway system operated by the Port Authority, operates from Hoboken Terminal to 33rd Street Manhattan, World Trade Center, and
Journal Square Journal Square is a business district, residential area, and transportation hub in Jersey City, New Jersey. It is named for the newspaper ''Jersey Journal'', whose headquarters were located there from 1911 to 2013. The "square" itself is at the ...
.


Water

NY Waterway NY Waterway, or New York Waterway, is a private transportation company running ferry and bus service in the Port of New York and New Jersey and in the Hudson Valley. The company utilizes public-private partnership with agencies such as the Por ...
ferry service makes
Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...
crossings from Hoboken Terminal and 14th Street to Battery Park City Ferry Terminal, Wall Street-Pier 11 and the West Midtown Ferry Terminal in
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
.


Surface

New Jersey Transit buses 22, 22X, 23, 64, 68, 85, 87, 89, and 126 terminate at Hudson Place/Hoboken Terminal.Hudson County System Map
,
NJ Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. I ...
. Accessed November 5, 2017.
Academy Bus Lines has a garage in Hoboken, operating most of their NYC services from there. Taxi service is available for a flat fare within city limits and negotiated fare for other destinations.
Zipcar Zipcar is an American car sharing, car-sharing company and a subsidiary of Avis Budget Group. Zipcar provides vehicle reservations to its members, billable by the minute, hour or day; members may have to pay a monthly or annual membership fee i ...
is located downtown at the Center Parking Garage on Park Avenue, between Newark Street and Observer Highway.Zipcar Car Location 77 Park Av/Hoboken NJ
.
Zipcar Zipcar is an American car sharing, car-sharing company and a subsidiary of Avis Budget Group. Zipcar provides vehicle reservations to its members, billable by the minute, hour or day; members may have to pay a monthly or annual membership fee i ...
. Accessed November 19, 2008.


Roads and highways

, the city had a total of of roadways, of which were maintained by the municipality and by Hudson County. The 14th Street Viaduct connects Hoboken to
Paterson Plank Road Paterson Plank Road is a road that runs through Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic, Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen and Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson Counties in northeastern New Jersey. The route, originally laid in the colonial era, conn ...
in
Jersey City Heights The Heights or Jersey City Heights is a neighborhood in Jersey City, New Jersey, located atop the New Jersey Palisades, along the west side of the Hudson River. It is bound by Paterson Plank Road on the north, Highway 139 on the south, Ho ...
. Two highway tunnels that connect New Jersey to New York are located close to Hoboken. The
Lincoln Tunnel The Lincoln Tunnel is an approximately tunnel under the Hudson River, connecting Weehawken, New Jersey, to the west with Midtown Manhattan in New York City to the east. It carries New Jersey Route 495 on the New Jersey side and the unsigned N ...
is north of the city in
Weehawken Weehawken is a Township (New Jersey), township in the North Hudson, New Jersey, northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located on the Hudson Waterfront and Hudson Palisades overlooking ...
. The
Holland Tunnel The Holland Tunnel is a vehicular tunnel under the Hudson River that connects Hudson Square and Lower Manhattan in New York City in the east to Jersey City, New Jersey, in the west. The tunnel is operated by the Port Authority of New York an ...
is south of the city in downtown Jersey City.


Air

Hoboken has no airports. Airports which serve Hoboken are operated by the
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, (PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ) is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate c ...
. These airports are Newark Liberty International Airport, LaGuardia Airport and John F. Kennedy Airport.


Education

Hoboken has a highly educated population. Based on data from the
American Community Survey The American Community Survey (ACS) is an annual demographics survey program conducted by the United States Census Bureau. It regularly gathers information previously contained only in the long form of the United States census, decennial census ...
, it was ranked in 2019 as one of the top 15 most-educated municipalities in New Jersey with a population of at least 10,000, placing first on the list, with 50.2% of residents having bachelor's degree or higher, more than double the 23.4% of residents in New Jersey and 19.1% nationwide who have reached that educational level.


Public schools

Hoboken Public Schools is a school district that serves students in pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. The district is one of 31 former Abbott districts statewide that were established pursuant to the decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court in ''Abbott v. Burke'' which are now referred to as "SDA Districts" based on the requirement for the state to cover all costs for school building and renovation projects in these districts under the supervision of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority. As of the 2023–24 school year, the district, comprised of five schools, had an enrollment of 3,531 students and 240.0 classroom teachers (on an full-time equivalent, FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 14.7:1.District information for Hoboken Public School District
National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
Schools in the district (with 2023–24 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are Joseph F. Brandt Elementary School with 611 students in grades K–5, Thomas G. Connors Elementary School with 328 students in grades K–5, Wallace Elementary School with 594 students in grades PreK–5, Hoboken Middle School with 432 students in grades 6–8 and Hoboken High School with 607 students in grades 9–12. In addition, Hoboken has three charter schools, which are schools that receive public funds yet operate independently of the Hoboken Public Schools under charters granted by the Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Education. Elysian Charter School serves students in grades K–8, Hoboken Charter School in grades K–12 and Hoboken Dual Language Charter School in grades K–8. In 2018 the New Jersey Department of Education named the Dual Language charter as having one of six "Model Programs" in New Jersey.


Private schools

Private schools in Hoboken include The Hudson School, All Saint's Episcopal Day School, and Stevens Cooperative School. Hoboken Catholic Academy, a K-8 Catholic school operated by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, was one of eight private schools recognized in 2017 as an Exemplary High Performing School by the National Blue Ribbon Schools Program of the United States Department of Education.


Higher education

Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a Private university, private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely de ...
, which was founded in 1870, is located in the Castle Point section of Hoboken. The university is comprised of three schools and one college; the Charles V. Schaefer Jr. School of Engineering and Science, School of Business, School of Systems and Enterprises and the College of Arts and Letters.Stevens Institute of Technology, The Innovation University
,
Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a Private university, private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely de ...
. Accessed May 31, 2015.
Total enrollment is more than 8,800 undergraduate and graduate students across all schools. Stevens is home to three Center of excellence, national research centers of excellence and joint research programs focusing on healthcare, energy, finance, defense, STEM education and coastal stability. Stevens also owns most of Castle Point, which is the highest point in Hoboken.


Media

Hoboken is located within the Media in New York City, New York media market; most of its daily papers available for sale or delivery. Local, Hudson County, county, and regional news is covered by ''
The Jersey Journal ''The Jersey Journal'' was a daily newspaper, published from Monday through Saturday, covering news and events throughout Hudson County, New Jersey. ''The Journal'' is a sister paper to ''The Star-Ledger'' of Newark, ''The Times'' of Trenton a ...
'', a daily newspaper long based in nearby Jersey City and now based in Secaucus, New Jersey, Secaucus. The ''Journal'', along with other sister newspapers, operates NJ.com, which includes the blog Hoboken Now. ''The Hoboken Reporter'' was the first local weekly published by ''The Hudson Reporter'' group of papers, which was based in Hoboken from 1983 - 2016. It then moved its headquarters to Bayonne, before closing in January 2023. Other weeklies, the ''River View Observer'' and the Spanish-language ''El Especialito'', also cover local news, as does ''The Stute'', the campus newspaper at Stevens Institute of Technology. Magazines that cover Hoboken include the lifestyle magazine hMAG, which launched in 2009, and ''The Digest'', which covers local restaurants and events. The city has been the location of several film productions. Elia Kazan's Academy Award-winning 1954 film ''On the Waterfront'', was shot in Hoboken. A wedding scene in the 1997 Jennifer Aniston film ''Picture Perfect (1997 film), Picture Perfect'' was filmed at the Elks Club at 1005 Washington Street. The 1998 Adrien Brody film ''Restaurant (1998 film), Restaurant'' is set in Hoboken. The production company for the 2009 film ''Assassination of a High School President'' was based in Hoboken. The children's book The Hoboken Chicken Emergency takes place in the city. The city is home to Carlo's Bake Shop, which was featured from 2009 to 2020 in the TLC (TV channel), TLC reality show ''Cake Boss''. The popularity of the show resulted in increased business for Carlo's Bake Shop, and increased tourism to the Hoboken area, although the long lines drove away some of the shop's local customers. The fourth season of A&E Network, A&E's ''Parking Wars'', which documents the lives and duties of parking enforcement personnel, was filmed in Hoboken, in addition to its usual venues of Detroit and Philadelphia. The ABC Primetime magazine ''What Would You Do? (2008 TV program), Primetime: What Would You Do?'' has filmed multiple episodes of their social experiments in Hoboken's shops and restaurants. The 1989 television series ''Dream Street (U.S. TV series), Dream Street'' was set and shot in Hoboken. Bands from Hoboken include alternative rock pioneers The Bongos and the art-rock band Yo La Tengo.Testa, Jim
"Yo La Tengo biography delves deeply into the history of Hoboken"
''
The Jersey Journal ''The Jersey Journal'' was a daily newspaper, published from Monday through Saturday, covering news and events throughout Hudson County, New Jersey. ''The Journal'' is a sister paper to ''The Star-Ledger'' of Newark, ''The Times'' of Trenton a ...
'', June 8, 2012. Accessed February 6, 2013. "Since the story of Yo La Tengo is inextricably intertwined with the city of Hoboken, Jarnow begins the book by looking back at the city's past, including the fascinating story of how professional baseball was born on Elysian Field, which today is the corner of Washington and Eleventh Streets and the home of Maxwell's."


Notable people


See also

* Bergen, New Netherland * Gateway Region * Hudson Street (TV series), Hudson Street * List of sundown towns in the United States


References


Further reading

* *
City of Hoboken Official Website
- Offers resources, updates, and historical information on Hoboken’s municipal services, government, and city planning.
Hoboken Public Library
- Provides local events, historical resources, and community programs in Hoboken, both digitally and in-person.
Hoboken Historical Museum
- Contains exhibits and information on Hoboken’s industrial and community heritage.
Hoboken Public Library Friends & Foundation
- Supports the Hoboken Public Library through events, funding, and volunteer programs, promoting community culture and education.
Hudson County Genealogical & Historical Society
- Focuses on preserving Hudson County’s historical and genealogical records, valuable for those researching Hoboken’s history.


External links


City of Hoboken Official Website


* {{Authority control Hoboken, New Jersey, 1849 establishments in New Jersey Cities in Hudson County, New Jersey Cities in New Jersey Establishments in New Netherland Faulkner Act (mayor–council) New Jersey populated places on the Hudson River Populated places established in 1849 Port cities and towns in New Jersey Sundown towns in New Jersey