Great Falls of the Passaic River
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The Great Falls of the Passaic River is a prominent waterfall, 77 ft (23 m) high, on the Passaic River in the city of Paterson in northern New Jersey in the United States. One of the United States' taller waterfalls, it played a significant role in the early industrial development of New Jersey starting in the earliest days of the nation.
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History
Formation and early history
Geologically, the falls were formed at the end of the last ice age approximately 13,000 years ago. Formerly the Passaic had followed a shorter course through the Watchung Mountains near present-day Summit. As the glacier receded, the river's previous course was blocked a newly-formed moraine. A large lake, called Glacial Lake Passaic, formed behind the Watchungs. As the ice receded, the river found a new circuitous route around the north end of the Watchungs, carving the spectacular falls through the underlying basalt, which was formed approximately 200 million years ago.
The falls later became the site of a habitation for Lenape Indians, and later for Dutch settlers in the 1690s.
Industrial development
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In 1778 Alexander Hamilton visited the falls and was impressed by its potential for industry. Later as the nation's first Secretary of State, he selected the site of the nation's first planned industrial city, which he called a "national manufactory." In 1791, Hamilton helped found the Society for the Establishment of Useful Manufactures (S.U.M.), state-chartered private corporation to fulfill this vision. The town of Paterson was founded by the society and named after New Jersey governor William Paterson in appreciation of his efforts to promote the society.
Although the grand vision of Hamilton's planned city remained unrealized, the society nevertheless successfully promoted real estate development in the area. As a result the falls became the nucleus for a burgeoning mill industry, with contruction of numerous raceways. In 1793, two years after the society's foundation, the falls was the site of the first water-powered cotton spinning mill in New Jersey. In 1812, it was the site of the state's first continuous roll paper mill. Other products whose construction used the falls as a power source include the Colt revolver (1837), the Roger's Locomotive (1837), and the Holland Submarine (1878).
The society continued operation until 1945 when its charter and property were sold to the city of Paterson. The area fell into disuse with the steep decline of industry in the region during the 20th century. In 1971, the Great Falls Preservation and Development Corporation was established to restore and redevelop the historic mill buildings and raceways.
On June 6, 1976, President Ford designated the falls and its surrounding as a National Historic Landmark. The designation protects the site from federal development, but not from local and state development. Redevelopment of the decayed adjacent industrial areas has been an ongoing controversial topic. An attempt in the 1990s to redevelop the adjacent Allied Textile Printing Co. (ATP) facility, destroyed by fire in the 1980s, into prefabricated townhouses was initially approved by the city but later repelled by a coalition of local citizens seeking to preserve the historic character of the district.
The falls in literature
The unique history of the falls and the city were described in the five-volume philosophical poem Paterson by William Carlos Williams. Among the episodes described in Williams' poem is the 1827 leap over the falls by Sam Patch, who later became the first known person to survive a trip over Niagara Falls.
Viewing the falls
The falls is viewable from Overlook Park on the north and Hamilton Park on the south. A bridge below the falls, the eighth such structure to be built, also provides viewing of the falls. An adjacent visitor's center provides a historical overview of the falls.
See also
External links
- National Park Service: On Designation of the Area as part of the National Park System (http://www.nps.gov/legal/testimony/107th/grtfalls.htm)
- Sam Patch and the Great Falls (http://www.centenarycollege.edu/artwork/quill/THE%20ARTS/greatfalls.html)