Hoboken was originally an island surrounded by the Hudson River on the East and tidal lands to
the West a campsite in the territory of Hackensack a land of the Lenny Lenape who used the rock found
there to carve pipes now Hoboken lies on the West Bank of the Hudson between Weehawken and Union
City on the North with Jersey City's county seat to the Southwest with a total area of just 2.01
square miles of which nearly half are located in the water Hoboken is a special and unusual place
with a glorious history that many ways altered the culture of the region today we discover the rise
and fall of Hoboken New Jersey I'm your host Ryan silkash and you're watching its history
the regions of Delaware New Jersey southern New York and eastern Pennsylvania were inhabited and
controlled by a tribe called the Lenny Lenape which means men of men but has been translated
to mean original people is believed that around 1600 the tribe had 20 000 people throughout
these regions the Lenny Lenape and other Native American tribes have been estimated to have ruled
over these lands for some Ten Thousand Years the name Hoboken likely originated from the native's
classification of the grounds which they called a similar equivalent translating to land of the
tobacco pipe and refers to the green-colored Rock they used to carve tobacco pipes it's unknown how
long the tribe would have presided over the specific area that is now Hoboken but we know
that they were inhabiting this land when Outsiders arrived it is said that Harry Hudson was the first
European to lay claim to this area Hudson was an Englishman sailing for the Dutch East India
Company who anchored his ship the half moon at Weehawken Cove on October the 2nd 1609.
soon after it became part of the province of New Netherland he also noted green colored Rock which
was abundant in volume and size it's important to emphasize here that the arrival of colonizers in
present-day America exploded around this time by the mid-1600s the Dutch had a significant presence
particularly on the island of Manhattan from the early Voyage of Henry Hudson to this point of
Dutch prominence much happened between Outsiders and the Lenny Lenape including battles known as
the pig War the whiskey war and so on as you might imagine these battles didn't bode well for the
natives nor do those account for the full extent of conflicts during the time period hence in
1658 the Dutch bought the land where present-day Hoboken stents trading a weapon used for jewelry
clothing kettles guns belts and beer they made an acquisition that would strongly Define the region
this sale of territory represented just one of many similar occurrences in the area and in the
country that seemingly marked the beginning of the end of Native American control in America the
concept of land ownership was likely utterly foreign to Native Americans it's been widely
speculated that the natives interpreted the sale as an agreement to cohabitate on the land not to
be removed from it from this point on the Lenny Lenape faced more conflict unfavorable treatment
displacement or forced assimilation in New Jersey and Beyond after the sale of this land they rarely
appeared in the history books of Hoboken arguably the most pivotal moment in hoboken's history
happened in 1784 when Colonel John Stevens bought this portion of New Jersey he purchased the land
at a public auction for roughly ninety thousand dollars Stevens would permanently settle on the
name Hoboken and change the would-be city's entire trajectory three years after Stevens bought the
land New Jersey became a state the third to ratify the U.S Constitution and the first to sign the
Bill of Rights created hoboken's orderly Street pattern bringing consistency and coherence to its
architecture the township of Hoboken was formed and separated from North Bergen in 1849 the city
itself was incorporated on March the 28th 1855. Hoboken has 48 streets laid out in a grid many
north-south streets were named for United States presidents Washington Adams Madison and Monroe
though Clinton Street likely honors the 19th century politician as opposed to the memorable
president of the 1990s the numbered streets running East-West start two blocks north of
Observer Highway with First Street with the grid ending close to the city lines at 16th Street near
Weehawken Cove neighborhoods in Hoboken often have vague definitions making downtown Midtown
and Uptown subjective castlepoint the projects Hoboken terminal and Hudson Chi are distinct
enclaves at the city's Pro periphery finally as it transforms from its previous industrial use
to a residential district the Northwest is a name being used for that part of the city
Beyond giving hoboken's official name Stevens and his family did so much to make the city into what
it would become Stevens for one brought it much attention and Novelty as an inventor he received
one of the first American patents which he used for a steam engine application some years later
the first Steamboat little Juliana the first driven by two screw propellers steamed across
the Hudson from Battery Park to Hoboken in 1826 he also designed and built the first steam driven
locomotive in the U.S which Stevens operated in Hoboken in the early 19th century Colonel John
Stevens developed the Waterfront as a resort for manhattanites the Waterfront defined Hoboken as
an archetypal Port Town empowered its economy from the mid-19th to 20th century by which time it had
become essentially industrial the large production plants of Lipton tea and Maxwell House and the dry
parks of Bethlehem shipping Corporation dominated the northern port for many years
and the aforementioned inventions did not only bring attention to Hoboken but in large part led
to it becoming a hub for transportation though Colonel Stevens passed away in 1838 his family
continued to build the legacy of Hoboken many of the 19th century buildings that still stand today
were erected due to the efforts of his family they also created hoboken's organized Street pattern
which is present today their name is honored at the Stevens Institute of Technology one of
the country's top engineering schools hoboken's rapid growth from 1860 to 1910 and its role as the
gateway to America brought many immigrants from Europe to the city the Germans were the first and
German became the dominant language throughout Hoboken after World War One however the city's
ethnic character changed Germans were followed by Irish Italians yugoslavians Latinos and Asian
Indians literally transforming the city into the poster child of the American Melting Pot the
city's role as a leading Port played significantly in World War one serving as the port that saw off
three million American troops essentially the town was the last stop for soldiers before being sent
to the biggest war in history at the time hence comes the famous slogan Heaven hell or Hoboken
by Christmas Hoboken would become a frequently visited and utilized place for celebrities of
the late 18th and early 19th centuries after Stevens created what is known as the turtle
club which according to many is considered to be America's first social club The Turtle Club had
many prominent members including George Washington Alexander Hamilton Benjamin Franklin and many more
the club eventually moved out of Hoboken many years later and into NYC renaming itself the
New York Turtle Club however the club seemingly fell out of prominence and eventually apart in the
early 20th century as The Story Goes the creation of the turtle club happened when Stevens's new
estate was overrun with snapping turtles which kept eating his chickens he invited his wealthy
buddies from the island of Manhattan over for a turtle feast and the day was deemed a success in
the Hoboken Turtle Club was born surprisingly the first official recorded baseball game occurred in
Hoboken in 1846 between kickboxer club and New York 9 at Elysian Fields in 1845 the kickboxer
club which Alexander Cartwright had founded began using alician field to play baseball due to the
lack of suitable grounds in Manhattan the team members included the Saint George's Cricket Club
players the brothers Harry and George White and Henry Chadwick the english-born journalist who
coined the term America's pastime by the 1850s several manhattan-based members of the National
Association of baseball players were using the grounds in Hoboken as their home field however the
prominence of Elysian Fields diminished after two main baseball fields were constructed in Brooklyn
Sybil's cave a cave with a natural spring was opened in 1832 and visitors came to pay
a penny for a glass of water that was said to have medicinal powers in 1841 the cave became a legend
when Edgar Allan Poe wrote The Mystery of Marie rogut about an event that took place there this
was Poe's first story that took place around an actual crime and might I add to anyone who hasn't
read this poem it is a stirring piece of Hoboken history anyhow the cave was closed in the late
1880s after the water was found to be contaminated and it was sealed off in the 1930s filled with
concrete on a brighter note hobo can saw a glorious day on December the 12th 1915 when Frank
Sinatra was born to Italian immigrants Natalie or Dolly and Anthony Marty Sinatra Marty a boxer went
by the name of Marty O'Brien to gain access to the town's irish-only gyms although Sinatra ended up
living elsewhere he was born and raised in Hoboken in 1945 director Elian Kazan filmed the classic
american crime drama on the waterfront in Miles Square City forever earning Hoboken a place in
cinematic history actually this film marked one of the earliest occurrences of a big Motion Picture
filming on location rather than in studio which has since been common throughout New York City and
Cinema worldwide on the waterfront was shot almost entirely on location in Hoboken and featured
appearances by real Dock Workers and police officers the film ranked in eight Oscars including
a best actor prize for Star Marlon Brando and when it comes to show business that's not the end the
town has also been featured in other films such as funny girls 1968 The Station Agent 2013 Julie
and Julia from 2009 as well as Eric Clapton's 1996 music video for change the world so with
Hoboken having some of the greatest encapsulations of American history from the archetype of the
Melting Pot to the first recorded baseball game you might be wondering where was the downturn
Hoboken eventually met a fate similar to New York City in the 1970s a complete economic downturn
and although gentrification was prominent Hoboken experienced a wave of fires mostly
arson destroying buildings businesses and homes crime was also up and the once critical shipping
Port had become outdated with containerization containerization brought about the need for bigger
ships and more oversized ports to handle the influx of containerized goods this need was likely
too much for the small Hoboken port to operate efficiently this downturn in Hoboken essentially
marked the end of the city's classification as a blue-collar city 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 these still solid middle and
working-class population had kept intact this movement caught the eye of both local and out
of town Real Estate Investors who also began to buy up the late 19th century tenements then
applied housing a real estate investment firm took advantage of U.S government incentives to renovate
quote substandard housing in order to receive subsidized rental payments commonly known as
Section 8 which triggered low-income displacement this was perhaps the moment that Hoboken attracted
many artists musicians upwardly mobile commuters known as yuppies and the Bohemian types interested
in socio-economic possibilities and a way to escape the challenges of a bankrupt New York
for a new town with beautiful Aesthetics both in its Civic and Commercial architecture a sense of
community and relatively cheaper renting prices all with the benefit of Manhattan being a quick
train hop away today Hoboken is full of mostly young people and New York City commuters in recent
years the once Blue Collar city run by ports has pivoted now being considered a desirable spot hobo
can host numerous festivals bars restaurants shops and more and it's pretty amazing when you consider
that it's history and its current popularity is so much larger than its geographical size and in some
ways it sticks to its roots remaining an important Transportation Hub for the tri-state area
Hoboken has the highest public transportation use of any city in the United States with the city's
Waterfront opposite of New York Hoboken established itself as a rail and water
transportation center Hoboken terminal located at the city's Southeast corner is a National Historic
Landmark built in 1907 by the Delaware Lackawanna and Western railroad the terminal is the original
slash destination point for several modes of transportation and an important Hub within the
New York New Jersey Metropolitan Region's public transportation system many of New Jersey transit's
Main lines terminate in Hoboken in fact the Hudson Bergen Light Rail has three stations in Hoboken
alone but crossing the Hudson's never been easier path is a 24-hour Subway system from Hoboken
terminal to 33rd Street Manhattan World Trade Center Journal Square and Newark Penn Station
and let's not forget the New York Waterway ferry service making Hudson River Crossings
from Hoboken terminal and 14th Street to Battery Park City Ferry Terminal Wall Street Pier 11 and
West Midtown ferry terminal in Manhattan I'd like to end this video with something of a personal
observation when it comes to my own first memories of Hoboken New Jersey in the 1980s for the lack of
better words I recall the place as a kind of scary Wasteland hence the video titled the rise and fall
of Hoboken I believe many fall into the same category with regards to this type of perception
however Hoboken has a vibrancy and energy rare to cities its size sidewalk cafes exciting shops
period buildings street fairs the Hudson River walkway and a busy street life combined to make
Hoboken a colorful and distinctive Urban square mile Hoboken has been home to many celebrities
historical figures movies and businesses with a culture defined by events dating back from
its Origins as the land of tobacco pipes to its present day as the land of taco pizza with great
views of of Manhattan endless activities and influx of young residents it would only seem
that the town's brightest days are still ahead thanks so much for watching don't forget to hit
that subscribe button to catch our new videos every Thursday and Saturday consider hitting
the join button if you'd like to support the channel and experience our tours of Urban Decay
and don't miss our playlist on New Jersey history until next time this is Ryan so cash signing off