Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park | |
 The Great Falls of the Passaic River. | |
  Location of the Great Falls of the Passaic River in Passaic County. Inset: Location of Passaic County in New Jersey. Show map of Passaic County, New Jersey Great Falls (Passaic River) (New Jersey) Show map of New Jersey Great Falls (Passaic River) (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Location | Paterson, New Jersey |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 40°54′58″N74°10′54″W / 40.91611°N 74.18167°W /40.91611; -74.18167 |
| Area | 36.30 acres (0.1469 km2)[2] |
| Website | Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park |
| NRHP reference No. | 70000391[1] (original) 86001507[3] (increase) |
| NJRHP No. | 2383[4] |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | April 14, 1970 |
| Boundary increase | August 14, 1986 |
| Designated NHLD | May 11, 1976[5] |
| Designated NHP | November 7, 2011 |
| Designated NJRHP | May 27, 1971 |
TheGreat Falls of the Passaic River is a prominentwaterfall, 77 feet (23 m) high, on thePassaic River in the city ofPaterson inPassaic County,New Jersey. One of theUnited States' largest waterfalls, it played a significant role in the early industrial development of New Jersey starting in the earliest days of the nation. The falls and surrounding area are protected as part of thePaterson Great Falls National Historical Park, administered by theNational Park Service. Congress authorized its establishment in 2009.[6]
In 1967 it was designated aNational Natural Landmark together withGarret Mountain Reservation.[7] The falls and the surrounding neighborhood have also been designated as aNational Historic Landmark District since 1976.[8][9] The Great Falls' raceway and power systems were designated aNational Historic Civil Engineering Landmark and aNational Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark in 1977.[10]
Geologically, the falls were formed at the end of the lastice age approximately 13,000 years ago. Formerly the Passaic had followed a shorter course through theWatchung Mountains near present-daySummit. As theglacier receded, the river's previous course was blocked by a newly formedmoraine. A large lake, calledGlacial 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 underlyingbasalt, which was formed approximately 200 million years ago.
The falls later became the site of a habitation of the historicLenapeNative Americans, who followed earlier indigenous cultures in the region. Later, in the colonial era,Dutch settlers developed a community here beginning in the 1690s.
In 1778,Alexander Hamilton visited the falls and was impressed by its potential for industry. Later when Hamilton was the nation'sSecretary 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 theSociety for the Establishment of Useful Manufactures (S.U.M.), a state-chartered private corporation to fulfill this vision. The town of Paterson was founded by the society and named afterNew Jersey GovernorWilliam Paterson, in appreciation of his efforts to promote the society.
Hamilton commissionedcivil engineerPierre Charles L'Enfant, responsible for the layout of the new capital atWashington, D.C., to design the system of canals known asraceways to supply the power for thewatermills in the new town.[11] As a result, Paterson became the nucleus for a burgeoning mill industry. In 1792, David Godwin was commissioned to build the firstwater-poweredcotton spinning mill in New Jersey. He subsequently built the first dam on the falls; it was a structure made of wood.[12]
In 1812, this was the site of the state's firstcontinuous roll paper mill. Other 19th-century industries that produced goods using the falls as a power source include theRogers Locomotive Works (1832),Colt's Manufacturing Company, for the Colt revolver (1837), and the construction of theUSSHolland (SS-1) (1898). The oldest extant structure in the historic district is the Phoenix Mill, built in 1813.[13]
Workers were exploited, especially new immigrants from Europe, who often did not speak English. They began to seek better working conditions. The industrial area became the site of labor unrest, and it was a center for the1913 Paterson silk strike. Facing harsh conditions in factories, immigrant workers staged numerous strikes during and after theGreat War, adding to social tensions of the time. They organized the first labor movements in the United States.
The SUM society continued operation until 1945, when its charter and property were sold to the city of Paterson. The area fell into disuse during a period of restructuring that resulted in a steep decline of industry in the region during the mid to late 20th century. In 1971, concerned residents established the Great Falls Preservation and Development Corporation to restore and redevelop the historic mill buildings and raceways as artifacts of industrial history.
The State of New Jersey announced plans for a new urban state park in Paterson surrounding the Great Falls, called Great Falls State Park, in 2007.[14] The master plan for the park called for utilizing surrounding industrial areas for parklands that include a trail network and recreation areas, and creating new areas to view the falls. These plans were superseded by the establishment of Great Falls National Historical Park.
On March 30, 2009, President Obama signed theOmnibus Public Land Management Act[6] authorizing the falls as anational historical park, which would provide additional federal protections for the 77-foot waterfall.[6][15][16] By 2011, Great Falls State Park and other land along thePassaic River were transferred to the federal government for the creation of the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park. Formal establishment as a unit of the National Park System required action by theSecretary of the Interior,[6] which took place November 7, 2011, whenSecretary Salazar formally accepted lands on behalf of the United States, and dedicated the park as the nation's 397th park system unit.[17]
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 chasm) also serves as an outlook point. A visitor center at the corner of Spruce and McBride avenues, in the Great Falls Historic District, provides a historical overview of the falls and the industrial and cultural history of Paterson.[citation needed] A record 177,000 visitors went to the Great Falls in 2016.[18]
TheGreat Falls of Paterson – Garret Mountain is aNational Natural Landmark designated in January 1967 and expanded in April 1967 to include nearbyGarret Mountain. Together they help demonstrate howjointedbasalticlava flow shaped the geology of the area during the EarlyMesozoic period through bothextrusion andintrusion.[19]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.
Thehydroelectric plant at the falls is operated by Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, which is considering commissioning another facility downstream at theDundee Dam.[20][21]
The Great Falls hydroelectric plant has three Kaplan type turbines with a total capacity of 10.95 Mwe. Flow through each turbine is 710 cfs, with a total flow of 2,130 cfs, 1,377 MGD. Three 8.5' diameter penstocks feed the turbines, with a velocity 12.5 ft/sec and 8.5 mph.
The unique history of the Great Falls and the city were described in the five-volumephilosophical poemPaterson byWilliam Carlos Williams. Among the episodes described in Williams' poem is the 1827 leap over the falls bySam Patch, who later became the first known person to perform a stunt atNiagara Falls. The 2016 filmPaterson, directed byJim Jarmusch, is partly inspired by the works of Williams and features the falls as a primary location.
The Great Falls were also featured in thepilot of theHBO crime dramaThe Sopranos, as well as in the series'sixth episode, in which Mikey Palmice and another associate throw a drug dealer off the bridge and into the falls to his death.
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