Great Falls (Passaic River)

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Great Falls of the Passaic and Society for Useful Manufactures Historic District (Boundary Increase)
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark District
New Jersey Register of Historic Places
The Great Falls of the Passaic River
Location:	Paterson, New Jersey
Coordinates:	40°54′58.28″N 74°10′53.75″W / 40.9161889°N 74.1815972°W / 40.9161889; -74.1815972Coordinates: 40°54′58.28″N 74°10′53.75″W / 40.9161889°N 74.1815972°W / 40.9161889; -74.1815972
Governing body:	National Park Service
Added to NRHP:	August 14, 1986
Designated NHLD:	May 11, 1976[2]
Designated [[|]]:	March 30, 2009
Designated NJRHP:	June 24, 1986
NRHP Reference#:	86001507[1]
NJRHP #:	2364

The Great Falls of the Passaic River are a prominent waterfall, 77 ft (23 m) high, on the Passaic River in the city of Paterson in Passaic County in northern New Jersey in the United States. Congress authorized its establishment as a National Historical Park in 2009.^[3] One of the United States' larger waterfalls, it played a significant role in the early industrial development of New Jersey starting in the earliest days of the nation. It is part of the Great Falls of Paterson-Garrett Mountain National Natural Landmark^[4]. It has also been designated as a National Historic Landmark District since 1976.^[5] The Great Falls' raceway and power systems were designated an Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1977.^[6]

During floods the Great Falls becomes a spectacular sight, with tremendous amounts of water cascading over the falls.

Contents 1 History 1.1 Formation and early history 1.2 Industrial development 1.3 Great Falls State Park 1.4 The falls in literature 1.5 The falls in television 2 Viewing the falls 3 National Historical Park Authorization 4 Gallery 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

[edit] History

[edit] 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 by 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 Native Americans, and later for Dutch settlers in the 1690s.

[edit] Industrial development

In 1778, Alexander Hamilton visited the falls and was impressed by its potential for industry. Later as the nation's first Secretary of Treasury, 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 construction of numerous canals known as 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 Rogers Locomotive Works (1832), the Colt revolver (1837), and the USS Holland (SS-1) (1898).

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 area as a National Natural 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.

[edit] Great Falls State Park

The State of New Jersey has announced plans for a new urban state park in Paterson surrounding the Great Falls, called Great Falls State Park. [1] The master plan for the park calls for utilizing surrounding industrial areas for parklands that include a trail network and recreation areas, and creating new areas to view the falls.

[edit] 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.

[edit] The falls in television

The falls were featured in episode 6 of the first season of The Sopranos.

[edit] Viewing the falls

The Falls are viewable from Haines Overlook Park on the south and Mary Ellen Kramer Park on the north. Drive-by viewing is available from McBride Avenue where it crosses the river just above the Falls. A footbridge over the Falls gorge (historically, the eighth such bridge to span this spectacular chasm) also serves as an exciting outlook point from which many have captured the famous Falls rainbow. A visitor's center at the corner of Spruce and McBride Avenues, in the heart of the Great Falls Historic FDistrict, provides a historical overview of the falls and the industrial and cultural history of Paterson.

[edit] National Historical Park Authorization

On March 30, 2009, President Obama signed legislation authorizing the falls as Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park, which would provide additional federal protections for the 77-foot waterfall.^[3][7][8] As of August 2009, formal establishment of the falls as a unit of the National Park System is still pending.

[edit] Gallery

The Great Falls of the Passaic River in Paterson, New Jersey

The falls, showing the most recent of many bridges spanning them

The Great Flood after 8 inches (200 mm) of rain April 18, 2007.

[edit] See also

• List of waterfalls
• List of National Natural Landmarks
• Garret Mountain Reservation
• Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Passaic County, New Jersey

[edit] References

This article includes a list of references or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (August 2009)

[edit] External links

• National Park Service: On Designation of the Area as part of the National Park System
• Paterson Friends of the Great Falls
• Passaic County, NJ Passaic County Board of Chosen Freeholders

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