Everything about Fort Lee New Jersey totally explained
Fort Lee is a
borough in
Bergen County,
New Jersey,
United States. As of the
United States 2000 Census, the borough population was 35,461.
Fort Lee was formed by an Act of the
New Jersey Legislature on
March 29,
1904, from the remaining portions of
Ridgefield Township. With the creation of Fort Lee, Ridgefield Township became defunct and was dissolved as of
March 29,
1904.
The New Jersey entrance to the
George Washington Bridge is in Fort Lee.
Geography
Fort Lee is located at (40.853423, -73.97481). It is north of
Edgewater, New Jersey and is on the Hackensack Peninsula between the
Hackensack River and the
Hudson River.
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 2.9
square miles (7.5
km²), of which, 2.5 square miles (6.6 km²) of it's land and 0.3 square miles (0.9 km²) of it (12.15%) is water.
History
Fort Lee is named as a result of
George Washington and named after General
Charles Lee, who camped in this area, defending
New York City. George Washington and his troops actually walked on a road which is called Main Street in Fort Lee. In fact, it was during Washington's retreat from Fort Lee in November 1776 that
Thomas Paine composed his pamphlet, "The American Crisis", which began with the recognized phrase, "These are the times that try men's souls". The
George Washington Bridge, which connects New Jersey to the
Washington Heights neighborhood in uptown
Manhattan,
New York City, has its western terminus located in Fort Lee.
In recent years, Fort Lee has seen a surge of residents of
Korean origin which has led to the conversion of much of the town into a large
Koreatown, similar to Chinatowns of such cities as New York and San Francisco in that many traditional Korean stores and restaurants may be seen in Fort Lee, and the
hangul letters of the Korean alphabet are as common as signs in English in parts of the downtown area.
The rapid increase of the Korean population has seen the decline of many other immigrant communities once centered in Fort Lee, notably the
Greek and
Italian communities, once quite large but now all but extinct. Luxury high-rises built near the George Washington Bridge have attracted many New York City residents to the city as well, as Fort Lee offers some relief from the stresses and prices of living in New York City. A sizable
Russian immigrant community has also sprung up in recent years, also attracted by the urban setting of Fort Lee.
Fort Lee: the motion picture capital of America
The
history of cinema in the United States can trace its roots to the
East Coast where at one time, Fort Lee was the motion picture capital of America. The industry got its start at the end of the 19th century with the construction of
Thomas Edison's "Black Maria", the first
motion picture studio in
West Orange, New Jersey. Cities in New Jersey offered land at costs considerably less than
New York City, and the cities and towns of New Jersey near New York benefited greatly as a result of the phenomenal growth of the film industry at the turn of the 20th century.
Filmmaking began attracting both capital and an innovative workforce and when the
Kalem Company began using Fort Lee in 1907 as a location for filming in the area, other filmmakers quickly followed. In 1909 a forerunner of
Universal Studios, the
Champion Film Company, built the first studio. They were quickly followed by others who either built new studios or who leased facilities in Fort Lee. In the 1910s and 1920s, film companies such as the
Independent Motion Picture Co.,
Peerless Studios,
The Solax Company,
Éclair Studios,
Goldwyn Picture Corporation,
American Méliès (Star Films),
World Pictures,
Biograph Studios,
Fox Film Corporation,
Pathé Frères,
Metro Pictures Corporation,
Victor Film Company,
Selznick Pictures Corporation were all making pictures in Fort Lee. Such notables as
Mary Pickford and Miles Remy got their start at Biograph Studios.
With the offshoot businesses that sprang up to service the film studios, for nearly two decades Fort Lee experienced unrivaled prosperity. However, just as the development of Fort Lee production facilities was gaining strength,
Nestor Studios of
Bayonne, New Jersey, built the first studio in
Hollywood in 1911. Nestor Studios owned by David and William Horsley, later merged with Universal Studios, and William Horsley's other company Hollywood Film Laboratory is now the oldest existing company in Hollywood, now called the Hollywood Digital Laboratory.
California's more hospitable and cost effective climate led to the eventual shift of virtually all filmmaking to the
West Coast by the 1930s. Some companies, such as American Méliès, moved to
San Antonio, Texas, and others moved to
Jacksonville, Florida. However, the companies which moved to Texas and Florida soon folded or joined the move to Hollywood.
Since 2000 the
Fort Lee film commission
has been charged with celebrating the history of film in Fort Lee as well as to attract film and television production companies to the borough.
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 35,461 people, 16,544 households, and 9,396 families residing in the borough. The
population density was 14,001.7 people per square mile (5,411.7/km²). There were 17,446 housing units at an average density of 6,888.5/sq mi (2,662.4/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 62.75%
White, 1.73%
African American, 0.07%
Native American, 31.43%
Asian, 0.06%
Pacific Islander, 1.69% from
other races, and 2.26% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 7.87% of the population.
There were 16,544 households out of which 22.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.7% were
married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.2% were non-families. 39.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the borough the population was spread out with 17.5% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 20.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.1 males.
The median income for a household in the borough was $58,161, and the median income for a family was $72,140. Males had a median income of $54,730 versus $41,783 for females. The
per capita income for the borough was $37,899. About 5.7% of families and 7.9% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 10.9% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.
As of the 2000 census, 17.18% of Fort Lee's residents identified themselves as being of
Korean ancestry, which was the fifth highest in the United States and third highest of any municipality in New Jersey; behind neighboring
Palisades Park (36.38%) and
Leonia (17.24%) — for all places with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry. In the same census, 5.56% of Fort Lee's residents identified themselves as being of
Chinese ancestry, and 6.09% of Fort Lee's residents identified themselves as being of
Japanese ancestry, the highest of any municipality in New Jersey for all places with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry.
Government
Local government
As of 2008, the Mayor of Fort Lee is Mark J. Sokolich (
D, term ends
December 31,
2011). Members of the Borough Council are Council President Michael Sargenti (D, 2008), Joseph L. Cervieri, Jr. (D, 2009), Jan Goldberg (D, 2010), Ila Kasofsky (D, 2010), Armand Pohan (D, 2008) and Harvey Sohmer (D, serving unexpired term expiring 2008).
In elections held on
November 6,
2007, voters filled the position of mayor and two seats on the borough council. Democrat Mark J. Sokolich (3,873 votes) was elected mayor, defeating Republican Judith Waters Fisher (1,415). Democratic incumbent Ila Kasofsky (3,744) and running mate Jan Goldberg (3,762) were elected to the council, ahead of Republican candidates Puzant C. Torigian (1,329) and Boris Zmijewsky (1,319). Democrats will again occupy all seats on the 2008 governing body.
On Election Day,
November 7,
2006, voters filled two three-year seats on the Borough Council, on a Council that was comprised entirely of Democrats, in a community in which registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by a better than 2-1 margin. Incumbent Democrats Mark J. Sokolich (6,020 votes) and Joseph L. Cervieri Jr. (5,836) won re-election, defeating Republicans challengers John Cali (2,475) and Boris Zmijewsky (2,316).
Federal, state and county representation
Fort Lee is in the Ninth Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 38th Legislative District.
Politics
As of
April 1,
2006, out of a 2004 Census estimated population of 37,310 in Fort Lee, there were 17,434 registered voters (46.7% of the population, vs. 55.4% in all of Bergen County). Of registered voters, 4,788 (27.5% vs. 20.7% countywide) were registered as
Democrats, 2,016 (11.6% vs. 19.2% countywide) were registered as
Republicans and 10,628 (61.0% vs. 60.1% countywide) were registered as
Undeclared. There were two voters registered to other parties.
On the national level, Fort Lee leans very strongly toward the Democratic Party. In the
2004 presidential election, Democrat
John Kerry received 61% of the vote here, defeating Republican
George W. Bush, who received around 38%.
Education
The
Fort Lee School District serves public school students in Kindergarten through twelfth grade. Schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the
National Center for Education Statistics) include four K-6 elementary schools —
School 1 (544 students),
School 2 (397 students),
School 3 (464 students) and
School 4 (466 students) —
Lewis F. Cole Middle School (grades 7 and 8; 533 students) and
Fort Lee High School (grades 9-12; 1,083 students).
Transportation
Fort Lee is served by
Palisades Interstate Parkway,
New Jersey Route 4,
New Jersey Route 5,
New Jersey Route 67,
Interstate 95/
New Jersey Turnpike,
U.S. Route 9W,
U.S. Route 1-9,
U.S. Route 46, and
County Route 505. The
George Washington Bridge crosses the
Hudson River from Fort Lee to
Manhattan.
Fort Lee is also served by
New Jersey Transit buses
154,
156,
158,
159,
171,
175,
178,
181,
182,
186,
188,
751,
753,
755 and
756. The buses with the number that starts with the digit 1 go into
New York City.
In addition,
China Airlines provides private bus service to
John F. Kennedy International Airport from the
Citibank to feed its flight to
Taipei,
Taiwan.
Miscellaneous
Notable residents
Albert Anastasia, Mafia boss.
Anthony Fanzo, Actor, Singer.
Mickey Appleman, professional poker player.
Balfour Brickner (1926-2005), was rabbi emeritus of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in Manhattan.
Dr. Joyce Brothers, psychologist, television personality, current resident.
Cam'ron, rapper.
Jay Chiat, Advertising agency executive.
Celia Cruz, Cuban-born singer.
Kerri Green, actress
Buddy Hackett, comedian and actor.
Whitney Houston, Singer, Actress.
Jay-Z, rapper.
Ali Khatami, former Iranian Presidential Chief of Staff.
Samm Levine, actor on Freaks and Geeks.
Richard Reines, co-owner of Drive-Thru Records, a record label specializing largely in pop punk music.
Freddie Roman, Comedian, New York Friars' Club notable.
Joe Rosario, actor, appeared on The Sopranos, Law & Order, current resident.
Anton Sikharulidze, gold medal winning pairs figure skater.
Phoebe Snow (1952-), singer.
Darryl Strawberry (1962-), Major League Baseball Outfielder who played for both the New York Mets and New York Yankees.
Lyle Stuart (1922-2006), independent publisher of controversial books.
Chien-Ming Wang (1980-), pitcher for the New York Yankees.
Sources
"History of Bergen County, New Jersey, 1630-1923;" by "Westervelt, Frances A. (Frances Augusta), 1858-1942."
"Municipal Incorporations of the State of New Jersey (according to Counties)" prepared by the Division of Local Government, Department of the Treasury (New Jersey); December 1, 1958.Further Information
Get more info on 'Fort Lee New Jersey'.
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