The Elizabeth River is a tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the Arthur Kill

Arthur Kill

The Arthur Kill is a tidal strait separating Staten Island, New York from mainland New Jersey, USA, and a major navigational channel of the Port of New York and New Jersey. Kill is from the Middle Dutch word kille, meaning "riverbed" or "water channel"...

 in Union County

Union County, New Jersey

Union County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 Census, the population was 536,499. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Elizabeth. Union County ranks 93rd among the highest-income counties in the United States. It also ranks 74th in...

, New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

The Elizabeth River begins at the border between the Union and Essex

Essex County, New Jersey

Essex County is a county located in the northeastern part of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the United States 2010 Census, the population was 783,969, ranking it third in the state after Bergen County and Middlesex County; Essex County's population has declined from 786,147 as of the bureau's...

 counties near exit 142/142 A on the Garden State Parkway

Garden State Parkway

The Garden State Parkway is a 172.4-mile limited-access toll parkway that stretches the length of New Jersey from the New York line at Montvale, New Jersey, to Cape May at New Jersey's southernmost tip. Its name refers to New Jersey's nickname, the "Garden State." Most New Jersey residents refer...

 in Hillside

Hillside, New Jersey

Hillside is a township in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the township population was 21,404.Hillside was incorporated as a township on April 3, 1913, from portions of Union Township, based on the results of a referendum held on April 29, 1913.The town...

, and near Beech Spring Road. That part of the river bed

Stream bed

A stream bed is the channel bottom of a stream, river or creek; the physical confine of the normal water flow. The lateral confines or channel margins, during all but flood stage, are known as the stream banks or river banks. In fact, a flood occurs when a stream overflows its banks and flows onto...

 may be dried-out most of the time but it is always wet as soon as the river emerges from underneath Garden State Parkway near exit 141.

The river flows through Hillside parallel to Morris Avenue and enters the city of Elizabeth

Elizabeth, New Jersey

Elizabeth is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 124,969, retaining its ranking as New Jersey's fourth largest city with an increase of 4,401 residents from its 2000 Census population of 120,568...

. It crosses Westfield Avenue, W Jersey St, and Broad St as well as U.S. Route 1/9

U.S. Route 1/9

U.S. Route 9 is a U.S. highway in the northeast United States, running from Laurel, Delaware north to the Canadian border near Champlain, New York...

to flow parallel to Elizabeth Avenue. It empties underneath a bridge on the S Front Street near Elizabeth Ave and S 1st St in Elizabeth, flowing into the Arthur Kill.

Recently, the City Hall of Elizabeth did start a project to re-introduce fish to the river as well as to clean it up.