Kearny ( Wright, E. Assata. "Secaucus: How do you pronounce it? Development put town on map, but newcomers don't know where they are", The Hudson Reporter, July 6, 2011. Accessed November 30, 2022. "Therefore, the new neighbors may proudly totter about telling folks they live in Sih-KAW-cus or See-KAW-cus. However, natives prefer that the accent be on the first syllable, as in: SEE-kaw-cus.... Bayonne is bay-OWN, not ba-YON, locals say. Kearny is Kar-nee, not Keer-nee.") is a town in the western part of Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, and a suburb of Newark. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 41,999, an increase of 1,315 (+3.2%) from the 2010 census count of 40,684, which in turn reflected an increase of 171 (+0.4%) from the 40,513 counted in the 2000 census.Table 7. Population for the Counties and Municipalities in New Jersey: 1990, 2000 and 2010, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, February 2011. Accessed May 1, 2023.
Kearny is named after Civil War general Philip Kearny.Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed September 2, 2015.Gannett, Henry. The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States, p. 172. United States Government Printing Office, 1905. Accessed September 2, 2015. It began as a township formed by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 8, 1867, from portions of Harrison Township. Portions of the township were taken on July 3, 1895, to form East Newark. Kearny was incorporated as a town on January 19, 1899, based on the results of a referendum held two days earlier.Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606–1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 147. Accessed May 29, 2024. The Arlington section of town was named for Arlington Station on the Erie Railroad at the Arlington Mill plant, owned by Arlington Mills of Lawrence, Massachusetts.
History
Colonial roots The area of Kearny Township, created in 1867, had been part of the original Crown Grant of obtained by Major William Sandford of Barbados on July 4, 1668. Major Sandford named it New Barbadoes Neck after his old home.Harvey, Cornelius Burnham. "Genealogical History Of Hudson And Bergen Counties New Jersey; Early Settlers Of Hudson County – Part A" , Getnj.com, 1900. Accessed October 29, 2014. As was the custom of the time, the Major paid 20 pounds sterling to Chief Tantaqua of the Hackensack tribe for all their reserve rights and titles."Congressman Dominick V. Daniels Hails Kearny, N.J., Centennial", p. 27112, Congressional Record, Volume 113, Part 20. United States Government Printing Office, 1967. Accessed November 13, 2019.
Sanford's Uncle, Major Nathaniel Kingsland acquired the property in 1708 and sold the upper western tract of the Grant for 300 pounds sterling to Captain Arent Schuyler two years later. The new purchase included present-day Kearny, North Arlington, Lyndhurst and Kingsland.History, Town of Kearny. Accessed March 31, 2020.
Shortly after Schuyler's purchase of his new homestead, a peculiar green stone was uncovered. It was sent to England for analysis and he learned that it contained 80% copper. His opening of a copper mine brought the first steam engine to America from England; it was used to pump out the deep mine shaft. The engine was secretly delivered by its engineer, Josiah Hornblower. The engine and mines were destroyed by fire in 1772 and remained idle for some years.Documents, Manuscripts, Maps, & Photographs; Manuscript Group 651, Schuyler Family (New Barbados Neck, NJ) , New Jersey Historical Society. Accessed October 29, 2014.Lienhard, John H. "No. 1085: The First American Steam Engine", University of Houston Engines of Our Ingenuity. Accessed October 29, 2015.
Schuyler Mansion played a role during the American Revolutionary War Era. When Lord Howe of England took possession of New York Harbor, the proximity of Schuyler Mansion drew many of his officers. They generally traveled over a road that today is referred to as the Belleville Turnpike, which was originally constructed in 1759 using cedar logs from the nearby swamps.
During September 1777, General Henry Clinton, head of the British Expeditionary Forces in America, selected Schuyler Mansion for his headquarters during one of his more important raiding operations, which included the famed Battle of Second River. The Mansion stood until 1924, a period of 214 years, when it was torn-down by a land development company, despite the company's offers to transfer the land to an organization that would be able to pay to maintain the property.Krasner, Barbara. Kearny, p. 10. Arcadia Publishing, 2000. . Accessed July 7, 2011. "Constructed of stone and bricks imported from Holland, the mansion stood as a source of pride until 1924. When the mansion was about to be torn down, a development company offered to deed a section of the 60 acres to any historical society that would pay for the upkeep.... no one was able to do so and this monument was destroyed."
19th century
In the middle 19th century, Kearny was the upper, or northern, section of the Township of Harrison. A prominent citizen and resident of the upper section, General N. M. Halsted, felt it was impossible under these political conditions for his section to obtain proper recognition. He engaged an energetic campaign for an independent township. He succeeded when the NJ Legislature of 1867 on March 14, adopted "an act creating the Township of Kearny". The town was named to honor Major General Philip Kearny, Commander of the New Jersey Forces in the Civil War and the owner of the mansion known as Belle Grove (or Belgrove), locally called "Kearny Castle".Cooper, Lee E. "Historic Kearny Family Plot in Jersey To Be Used as Site for New Apartments", The New York Times, January 4, 1939. Accessed July 5, 2018. "This was a part of 'Belgrove,' purchased about 1850 by Philip Kearny, father of General John Watts Kearny, and utilized by him as a site for a mansion which became popularly known as 'Kearny Castle.'"
On April 8, 1867, the first election of town officers was held. General N. M. Halsted was elected chairman. The first official seat of Government was three rooms in the old Lodi Hotel, on the northeast corner of Schuyler and Harrison Avenues.Hipp, Jessie M. Seventy-fifth Anniversary of Kearny Town Hall , Town of Kearny, November 1984. Accessed October 27, 2011.
In the early 1870s, Kearny erected its first Town Hall, on the corner of Kearny and Woodland Avenues, the present site of the Knox Presbyterian Church Parish Hall. This served as a Town Hall, Court House, and Schoolhouse. The Minute Book of the Township states on August 16, 1870, the first step toward establishing Kearny's present public school system was taken. The first schoolhouse was housed in the Town Hall built at Kearny and Woodland Avenues in 1873.
The Highland Hose No. 4 firehouse, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was built in 1895.Staff. "Historic firehouse under restoration", The Observer , November 24, 2011. Accessed November 13, 2019. "The structure is the oldest standing firehouse in town: a small two-story brick building on Halstead St., just west of Kearny Ave. It dates to 1895 and was originally the headquarters for Highland Hose Co. No. 4, back in the days when a clanging bell was the only way to alert firefighters to an emergency, and when rigs pulled by galloping horses raced through the streets to answer a call."
The town's nickname, "Soccer Town, U.S.A." is derived from a soccer tradition that originated in the mid-1870s, when thousands of Scottish and Irish immigrants settled in the town, after two Scottish companies, Clark Thread Company and Nairn Linoleum, opened two local mills and a factory.Hernandez, Raymond. "World Cup Hits Home In Soccer Town, U.S.A." The New York Times June 26, 1994. Accessed September 12, 2013. "In a nation that has not yet shared the world's enthusiasm for soccer, Kearny (pronounced CAR-nee) is certainly an anomaly. The town has two local soccer historians. On Kearny Avenue, the main strip, a sign proclaims: 'Welcome to Kearny. Soccer Town, U.S.A.'"
When the town's growth demanded larger quarters, the present Kearny Town Hall, built of Indiana limestone, was erected in 1909.
Factory town The early influx and development of industry in Kearny dates back to 1875 when the Clark Thread Company of Paisley in Scotland extended its activities to the United States by erecting two large mills in Kearny, and adding two others in 1890. These mills brought to Kearny thousands of Scots immigrants. Many of them would play on Kearny's soccer teams in National Association Football League. Many are buried at Arlington Memorial Park in the Kearny Uplands.
In 1876, the Mile End Thread Mills started operating, giving employment to several hundred operators.
In 1883, the Marshall Flax Spinning Company of England erected a large plant in Kearny, known as the Linen Thread Company. Their need for experienced flax spinners brought an influx of workers from other sections of the British Isles. Families of those early textile workers were the nucleus of Kearny's present population.
The Puraline Manufacturing Company, later called the Arlington Company, which became a subsidiary of E. I. DuPont de Nemours Company, had purchased a large tract of land east of the Arlington Station on the Erie Railroad extending well out, north of the railroad embankment, into the meadowland.
In 1887, Sir Michael Nairn established the Nairn Linoleum Company of Kirkcaldy in Scotland, now the Congoleum Nairn Company of Kearny, giving further impetus to local industrial growth. This also led to the growth in the Scottish American population which in the 1960s was about 21,000, accounting for more than half of the town's residents.Prentice, Claire. "The Scots of Kearny, New Jersey – home of The Sopranos", The Herald, March 22, 2010, backed up by the Internet Archive as of December 7, 2013. Accessed November 13, 2019. "The story of the Scots in Kearny goes back to the 1860s, when two Scottish companies, Paisley thread mill Clark's and Kirkcaldy linoleum company Nairn's, opened factories in the area. They wanted to avoid paying import taxes on goods shipped from Scotland and Kearny's tax breaks and location, at the confluence of the Passaic and Hackensack Rivers, made it an ideal choice. Word got out back in Scotland that skilled workers were needed. By the 1960s, there were 21,000 Scots living in Kearny (as of the 2000 United States Census, the town's population was approximately 40,000)."
In 1902, the Lovell–Dressel Company, manufacturers of marine and railway lamps and fixtures, located in Kearny adjacent to the Erie Railroad.
Other industries which located in Kearny include: Swift & Company, Koppers Company, Theobald Industries, Standard Tool & Manufacturing, Wilkata Box Company, Harris Steel Company and L & R Manufacturing.
Cargo ships were built at Kearny Yards during World War I, and warships during World War II.Kearny Yards, GlobalSecurity.org
Kearny Works
On June 15, 1928, Western Electric broke ground on their second manufacturing facility at 110 Central Avenue to be known as Kearny Works, which would grow to throughout the years and be the second- largest Western Electric manufacturing plant built before the 1930s, behind the Hawthorne Works at Cicero, Illinois.Western Electric Company Kearny Works, Kearny, New Jersey. [graphic]., Library Company of Philadelphia. Accessed March 27, 2024. "Aerial view of the Western Electric Kearny Works factory, Distribution Avenue, Kearny, NJ along the Passaic River looking west/northwest.... Probably taken September 1926."