Van Vorst Park
Encyclopedia
Van Vorst Park is neighborhood in Historic Downtown
in Jersey City
, centered around a park sharing the same name. The neighborhood is located west of Paulus Hook and Marin Boulevard, north of Grand Street, east of the Turnpike Extension
, and south of The Village
and Christopher Columbus Drive. Much of it is included in the Van Vorst Park Historical District.
The park was a centerpiece of Van Vorst Township
, a township
that existed in Hudson County
from 1841 to 1851. Van Vorst was incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature
on April 12, 1841, from portions of Bergen Township. On March 18, 1851, Van Vorst Township was annexed by Jersey City
.
The name Van Vorst comes from a prominent family in the area, the first of which arrived in the 1630s as superindentent of the patroonship Pavonia
, the earliest European settlement on the west bank of the Hudson River
in the province of New Netherland
. His homestead at Harsimus
, plus others at Communipaw
, Paulus Hook, Minakwa
, Pamrapo were later incorporated into Bergen
. His namesake and eighth generation descendant, Cornelius Van Vorst
, was the twelfth Mayor of Jersey City serving from 1860 to 1862.
Like the Harsimus
and Hamilton Park
to the north and Bergen-Lafayette
to the southwest, the neighborhood contains by nineteenth century rowhouses and brownstone
s. Many streets in the neighborhood bear the names of American Revolution
military figures (namely Mercer
, Greene
, Wayne
, Varick
and Montgomery
). The Grove Street PATH station
is located nearby to the north, as is the Jersey Avenue (HBLR station)
to the south. It is home to the Jersey City Medical Center
, James J. Ferris High School
(named for the Jersey City citizne who laid the foundation of the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Powerhouse
with his firm Stillman, Delehanty and Ferris and the Old Colony Shopping Plaza.
Downtown Jersey City
Downtown is an area of Jersey City, New Jersey that includes the Historic Downtown and the Waterfront. Historic Downtown can be further broken down into the neighborhoods of Harsimus Cove, The Village, Van Vorst Park, Grove Street, Hamilton Park and Boyle Plaza...
in Jersey City
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
, centered around a park sharing the same name. The neighborhood is located west of Paulus Hook and Marin Boulevard, north of Grand Street, east of the Turnpike Extension
Interstate 78 in New Jersey
Interstate 78 is an east–west route stretching from Union Township, Lebanon County, Pennsylvania to New York City. In New Jersey, I-78 is called the Phillipsburg–Newark Expressway and the Newark Bay Extension of the New Jersey Turnpike...
, and south of The Village
The Village, Jersey City
The Village is a neighborhood in the western section of Historic Downtown in Jersey City. It is bordered by Hamilton Park and Harsimus Cove to the east and the Turnpike Extension to the west, on the other side of which Jones Park and Mary Benson Park are located. Newark Avenue is the major street...
and Christopher Columbus Drive. Much of it is included in the Van Vorst Park Historical District.
The park was a centerpiece of Van Vorst Township
Van Vorst Township, New Jersey
Van Vorst was a township that existed in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, from 1841 to 1851. It was on the Hudson River, immediately south of downtown Jersey City and across from Manhattan....
, a township
Township (New Jersey)
A township, in the context of New Jersey local government, refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government. As a political entity, a township is a full-fledged municipality, on par with any town, city, borough, or village, collecting property taxes and providing...
that existed in Hudson County
Hudson County, New Jersey
Hudson County is the smallest county in New Jersey and one of the most densely populated in United States. It takes its name from the Hudson River, which creates part of its eastern border. Part of the New York metropolitan area, its county seat and largest city is Jersey City.- Municipalities...
from 1841 to 1851. Van Vorst was incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature
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 the Senate...
on April 12, 1841, from portions of Bergen Township. On March 18, 1851, Van Vorst Township was annexed by Jersey City
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
.
The name Van Vorst comes from a prominent family in the area, the first of which arrived in the 1630s as superindentent of the patroonship Pavonia
Pavonia, New Netherland
Pavonia was the first European settlement on the west bank of the North River that was part of the 17th century province of New Netherland in what would become today's Hudson County, New Jersey.-Hudson and the Hackensack:...
, the earliest European settlement on the west bank of the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
in the province of New Netherland
New Netherland
New Netherland, or Nieuw-Nederland in Dutch, was the 17th-century colonial province of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands on the East Coast of North America. The claimed territories were the lands from the Delmarva Peninsula to extreme southwestern Cape Cod...
. His homestead at Harsimus
Harsimus
Harsimus is a neighborhood within Downtown Jersey City. The neighborhood stretches from the Harsimus Stem Embankment in the north to Christopher Columbus Drive in the south between Coles Street and Grove Street or more broadly, to Marin Boulevard...
, plus others at Communipaw
Communipaw
Communipaw is a section of Jersey City, New Jersey west of Liberty State Park and east of Bergen Hill, and site of one the earliest European settlements in North America. It gives its name to the historic avenue which runs from its eastern end near LSP Station through the neighborhoods of...
, Paulus Hook, Minakwa
Greenville, Jersey City
Greenville is the southernmost section of Jersey City, New Jersey.In its broadest definition Greenville encompasses the area south of the West Side Branch of Hudson-Bergen Light Rail and north of the city line with Bayonne, between the Upper New York Bay and the Newark Bay, and corresponds to the...
, Pamrapo were later incorporated into Bergen
Bergen, New Netherland
Bergen was a part of the 17th century province of New Netherland, in the area in northeastern New Jersey along the Hudson and Hackensack Rivers that would become contemporary Hudson and Bergen Counties...
. His namesake and eighth generation descendant, Cornelius Van Vorst
Cornelius Van Vorst
Cornelius Van Vorst was the twelfth Mayor of Jersey City serving from 1860 to 1862. He was the namesake and eighth generation descendant of the 17th century Superintendent of the Pavonia Colony.-Biography:...
, was the twelfth Mayor of Jersey City serving from 1860 to 1862.
Like the Harsimus
Harsimus
Harsimus is a neighborhood within Downtown Jersey City. The neighborhood stretches from the Harsimus Stem Embankment in the north to Christopher Columbus Drive in the south between Coles Street and Grove Street or more broadly, to Marin Boulevard...
and Hamilton Park
Hamilton Park, Jersey City
Hamilton Park is a neighborhood in Historic Downtown in Jersey City, centered around a park with the same name. Hamilton Park is located west of Newport, north of Harsimus Cove, north and east of The Village and south of Boyle Plaza. The Victorian age park is located between Eighth Street and...
to the north and Bergen-Lafayette
Bergen-Lafayette, Jersey City
Bergen-Lafayette is a section of Jersey City, New Jersey.As its name implies, Bergen-Lafayette is made of different neighborhoods. It lies west-southwest of Downtown and Liberty State Park...
to the southwest, the neighborhood contains by nineteenth century rowhouses and brownstone
Brownstone
Brownstone is a brown Triassic or Jurassic sandstone which was once a popular building material. The term is also used in the United States to refer to a terraced house clad in this material.-Types:-Apostle Island brownstone:...
s. Many streets in the neighborhood bear the names of American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
military figures (namely Mercer
Hugh Mercer
Hugh Mercer was a soldier and physician. He initially served with British forces during the Seven Years War but later became a brigadier general in the Continental Army and a close friend to George Washington...
, Greene
Nathanael Greene
Nathanael Greene was a major general of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. When the war began, Greene was a militia private, the lowest rank possible; he emerged from the war with a reputation as George Washington's most gifted and dependable officer. Many places in the United...
, Wayne
Anthony Wayne
Anthony Wayne was a United States Army general and statesman. Wayne adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military exploits and fiery personality quickly earned him a promotion to the rank of brigadier general and the sobriquet of Mad Anthony.-Early...
, Varick
Richard Varick
Richard Varick was an American lawyer and politician. He was born on 15 March 1753 at Hackensack in Bergen County, New Jersey, and he died on 30 July 1831 at Jersey City in Hudson County, New Jersey....
and Montgomery
Richard Montgomery
Richard Montgomery was an Irish-born soldier who first served in the British Army. He later became a brigadier-general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and he is most famous for leading the failed 1775 invasion of Canada.Montgomery was born and raised in Ireland...
). The Grove Street PATH station
Grove Street (PATH station)
Grove Street is a PATH station at the junction of Grove Street, Newark Avenue and Railroad Avenue in Jersey City, New Jersey. Opened on September 6, 1910 as Grove-Henderson Streets station, it is situated in the heart of Jersey City's historic downtown district...
is located nearby to the north, as is the Jersey Avenue (HBLR station)
Jersey Avenue (HBLR station)
Jersey Avenue is a station on the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail located south of Grand Street in Jersey City, New Jersey. The station opened on April 22, 2000....
to the south. It is home to the Jersey City Medical Center
Jersey City Medical Center
The Jersey City Medical Center is a hospital in Jersey City, New Jersey. The hospital has had different facilities in the city.-History:The hospital began as the "Charity Hospital" but the Board of Aldermen of Jersey City bought land at Baldwin Avenue and Montgomery Street in 1882 for a new hospital...
, James J. Ferris High School
James J. Ferris High School
James J. Ferris High School is a four-year public high school located in Jersey City, New Jersey, operated as part of the Jersey City Public Schools.The school is named after James J. Ferris, who was a civil engineer and politician in Jersey City...
(named for the Jersey City citizne who laid the foundation of the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Powerhouse
Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Powerhouse
The Hudson and Manhattan Railroad Powerhouse, also known as the Jersey City Powerhouse in Jersey City, New Jersey was built in 1908. The powerhouse made possible the subway system between New Jersey and New York for the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad . The powerhouse was closed in 1929 and used as...
with his firm Stillman, Delehanty and Ferris and the Old Colony Shopping Plaza.
Vicinity
- Jersey City MuseumJersey City MuseumJersey City Museum is a former art museum that was most recently located in the Van Vorst Park section of Downtown Jersey City, New Jersey. Serving a diverse community, the Museum collects, exhibits, preserves, and interprets its collections of 19th- and 20th-century paintings, works on paper,...
- Barrow MansionBarrow MansionThe Dr. William Barrow Mansion, is located in Downtown Jersey City, New Jersey.The mansion was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 2, 1977 and is located within the Van Vorst Park Historic District, which itself was dedicated on March 5, 1980 and is roughly bounded by Railroad...
- Dixon MillsDixon MillsDixon Mills are a residential complex in Jersey City, New Jersey that uses the buildings of the former location of the Joseph Dixon Crucible Company, which was in use between 1847 and 1895....
- Van Vorst Park
- Jersey City Public Library
- Jersey City City Hall
Odonyms
- Colden Street- Cadwallader D. ColdenCadwallader D. ColdenCadwallader David Colden was an American politician.-Life:...
- York Street- New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
- Varick Street- Richard VarickRichard VarickRichard Varick was an American lawyer and politician. He was born on 15 March 1753 at Hackensack in Bergen County, New Jersey, and he died on 30 July 1831 at Jersey City in Hudson County, New Jersey....
- Colgate Street- Colgate-PalmoliveColgate-PalmoliveColgate-Palmolive Company is an American diversified multinational corporation focused on the production, distribution and provision of household, health care and personal products, such as soaps, detergents, and oral hygiene products . Under its "Hill's" brand, it is also a manufacturer of...
and William ColgateWilliam ColgateWilliam Colgate was an American manufacturer who founded what became the Colgate toothpaste company in 1806.- History :... - Montgomery- Richard MontgomeryRichard MontgomeryRichard Montgomery was an Irish-born soldier who first served in the British Army. He later became a brigadier-general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War and he is most famous for leading the failed 1775 invasion of Canada.Montgomery was born and raised in Ireland...
- Mercer Street- Hugh MercerHugh MercerHugh Mercer was a soldier and physician. He initially served with British forces during the Seven Years War but later became a brigadier general in the Continental Army and a close friend to George Washington...
- Wayne Street- Anthony WayneAnthony WayneAnthony Wayne was a United States Army general and statesman. Wayne adopted a military career at the outset of the American Revolutionary War, where his military exploits and fiery personality quickly earned him a promotion to the rank of brigadier general and the sobriquet of Mad Anthony.-Early...
See also
- List of neighborhoods in Jersey City, New Jersey
- List of Registered Historic Places in Hudson County, New Jersey
- Pavonia, New NetherlandPavonia, New NetherlandPavonia was the first European settlement on the west bank of the North River that was part of the 17th century province of New Netherland in what would become today's Hudson County, New Jersey.-Hudson and the Hackensack:...
- Van Vorst TownshipVan Vorst Township, New JerseyVan Vorst was a township that existed in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, from 1841 to 1851. It was on the Hudson River, immediately south of downtown Jersey City and across from Manhattan....
- Odonyms in Hudson County, New Jersey
- Grace Church Van VorstGrace Church Van VorstThe Grace Church Van Vorst, is located in Jersey City, New Jersey. The church was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 1, 1979. The church was built in 1853 and was named after the former Van Vorst Township. The church is an English Gothic-style Episcopalian church and was...
