- The area of modern day Passaic was originally settled in 1678 by Dutch pioneers.
- Beginning in 1831 Passaic’s newest mode of transportation was the railroad (horse drawn until 1834). By '34, all the trains were powered by steam engines and the future was here. By the latter 1890's, the time to get into midtown Manhattan was the same as it is today, well over 100 years later.
- The train lines that ran through Passaic over the years were the Erie, The D.L.&W. (The Delawanna, Lackawanna & Western [now a New Jersey Transit line]), the Susquehanna and the Bergen Short Cut.
- In 1854 the village that was known as Acquackanonk took the name of the river that it bordered, Passaic.
- By the late 1860's Passaic was steadily growing in population and commercial and residential size.
This growth was mostly due to the completion of the Dundee Dam and Dundee Canal in July of 1861.
- The vastly enlarged and now abundant fresh water supply became the basis for the industrial boom that would fuel Passaic’s rapid growth.
- Passaic was incorporated as a city in 1878.
- The period between 1850 and the start of World War I in 1914 saw tremendous growth for Passaic’s numerous factories, mills and mom and pop businesses. The population growth during this time was
over ten fold and peaked in the 70,000's during the 1920’s.
- The Passaic Fire Department was the first fully mechanized fire department in the entire country
starting in 1910.
- Passaic has always been a city of immigrants:
Many Italian and Jewish immigrants settled here during the early 1900’s. After World War I Passaic witnessed a migration of Southern Blacks to our city (as did most other industrial northern cities). After World War II, Passaic saw an influx of Puerto Ricans, the first Hispanic group to come to our city in any numbers.
In 1956, during the Hungarian revolt, many Hungarians came here to join their relatives and friends. Since the 1970's many Hispanic immigrants from Central America, South America, Mexico and the Caribbean Island countries have chosen Passaic as their home, to make a new start and share in the "American Dream."
- On the arts and entertainment front, movie houses were an integral part of the Passaic landscape for many years. The Palace on Market Street was a longtime memory for the immigrant groups that crowded our city’s eastside for several generations.
The original Montauk, on the corner of Madison Street and Main Avenue, was a famous vaudeville
theater until replaced by the current building in 1924.
The Capitol Theater on Monroe Street was originally a vaudeville house and then a movie theater, but mostly will be remembered for great concerts presented by rock impresario John Scher. Back in 1964,
The Capitol was the first American venue ever played by The Rolling Stones!
The Central Theater, the site of the legendary Glenn Miller’s last American performance in September of 1942, was the finest theater around in its day. The entertainment on opening night in 1940 was Charlie Spivack and his band, the Andrews Sisters and Moe, Larry and Curly; also known as The Three Stooges.
The fabulous “Girl Group,” the Shirelles (“Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?”), Joey Dee (famous for ”The Peppermint Twist” when he and the Starliters packed them in at the trendy Peppermint Lounge in New York during the early 60’s) and Loretta Swit—“Hot Lips” on the long-running TV show, “M*A*S*H” — all hail from Passaic.
These celebrities represent but a fraction of the talent that has come out of Passaic. Scientists, inventors, Pulitzer Prize winners, judges and lawyers, screenwriters, educators and successful professionals from virtually every field have made this city their home.
- Passaic’s contributions to the sports scene have been considerable. For example, the basketball "Wonder Teams" won a world’s record 159 consecutive games from December 1919 to February 1925, a record that should stand forever.
Pictures courtesy of Mark S. Auerbach, Passaic City Historian.
