Summit Avenue (Hudson County)
Encyclopedia
County Route 617 is 4.55 miles (7.32 km) long and follows one street, Summit Avenue along the ridge of the Hudson Palisades in Hudson County, New Jersey
. Its southern end is CR 622, or Grand Street, at Communipaw Junction
in the Bergen-Lafayette Section
of Jersey City
(although Summit Avenue continues one block south to Garfield and Communipaw Avenues without county maintenance). Its northern end is CR 691, 32nd Street, a section of the Bergen Turnpike, in Union City
.
trail, used by the Hackensack Indians between their summer encampment at Communipaw
on the Upper New York Bay
and a more permanent settlement at Overpeck Creek
. In the 16th century it was also used by early European settlers to region, first at Pavonia
and later Bergen
, that was part of the provincial colony of New Netherland
. The ferry landing (nearby the present site of Liberty Science Center
), was used by village on the bay as well the one on the hill (at today's Bergen Square
) to travel to New Amsterdam
. The trail continued north through Bergen Woods
before descending and crossing the Hackensack Meadows
.
, the southern emergence of the Palisades, and is the central street of the New Jersey Register of Historic Places
state-designated Bergen Hill Historic District, which includes St. Johns Episcopal Church. It travels northward to the former Jersey City Medical Center
, a national historic site being restored and converted to a gated neighborhood, The Beacon and crosses Montgomery Street just east of McGinley Square
. Passing the Jersey City Armory
, it enters the Journal Square
district and at Academy Street is two blocks east of Bergen Square
. The Jersey City Municipal Courts are also near the intersection. At Sip Avenue a bridge traverses the former Pennsylvania Railroad
Jersey City Branch cut
. It was at this location 1910 the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad opened the Summit Avenue Station which has now become part of the Journal Square Transportation Center used by the Port Authority Trans Hudson rapid transit system. At the southeast side of the bridge is the New Jersey state office building, while at the northeast stands one of the oldest buildings in New Jersey, built by descendents of the first Dutch settlers. Summit Avenue is one of the streets that creates the Five Corners
, the other two being early components of the Newark Plank Road
. The area is the county seat
of Hudson County, and home to the landmark Hudson County Courthouse
. The concentration of Filipino-American creates a Little Manila, while one long block west is the India Square
neighborhood. After crossing the Bergen Arches
, the Long Dock Tunnel
, and the The Divided Highway, Summit Avenue enters central
section of Jersey City Heights, and passes the site of JC Reservoirs #3 (a nature preserve) and #4 (demolished), and Pershing Field, a major park in the district. The avenue becomes more residential, with examples of Victorian
and Edwardian-era homes, and pre-war
low rise apartment buildings. The Second Reformed Church of Hudson City is located on the avenue.
Summit Avenue crosses the Union City
line at Transfer Station It is here that it intersects Paterson Plank Road
, which runs to the New Jersey Meadowlands
. Summit Avenue was the "downtown" of the former municipality of West Hoboken
, and is still a busy commercial district. A theater from the period is now the Summit Quadplex cinema. The Summit Avenue Historic Commercial District, which runs from 9th to 32nd Streets was designated by the New Jersey Register of Historic Places
in 1985. At 18th Street the city's newest branch library is located at a public school named for Jose Marti
, in recognition of the city's large Cuban-American community. Both are built on the grounds of the former Monastery and Church of Saint Michael the Archangel
rising just east of the avenue. At 27th Street a memorial to Joe Jeanette
, a native son and famous boxer, is found. Soon after it passes Union City High School, completed in 2009 on the site of the former Roosevelt Stadium
, where Babe Ruth
and Lou Gehrig
played exhibition baseball games, and where National Football League
greats Lou Cordileone
and Frank Winters
played during their high school days. It crosses over New Jersey Route 495, a cut
which leads into the Lincoln Tunnel
. Summit Avenue ends at the 32nd Street section of the Hackensack Plank Road
near the Kennedy Center (the landmark former Sears Roebuck and Company building), the Park Theater, and Schuetzen Park on Kennedy Boulevard
.
The North Hudson County Railway
built trolley line along the avenue. Until bustitution
the Public Service Railway
operated streetcar lines along the avenue which is now served by New Jersey Transit bus #85 and #82
.
Hudson County, New Jersey
Hudson County is the smallest county in New Jersey and one of the most densely populated in United States. It takes its name from the Hudson River, which creates part of its eastern border. Part of the New York metropolitan area, its county seat and largest city is Jersey City.- Municipalities...
. Its southern end is CR 622, or Grand Street, at Communipaw Junction
Communipaw
Communipaw is a section of Jersey City, New Jersey west of Liberty State Park and east of Bergen Hill, and site of one the earliest European settlements in North America. It gives its name to the historic avenue which runs from its eastern end near LSP Station through the neighborhoods of...
in the Bergen-Lafayette Section
Bergen-Lafayette, Jersey City
Bergen-Lafayette is a section of Jersey City, New Jersey.As its name implies, Bergen-Lafayette is made of different neighborhoods. It lies west-southwest of Downtown and Liberty State Park...
of Jersey City
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
(although Summit Avenue continues one block south to Garfield and Communipaw Avenues without county maintenance). Its northern end is CR 691, 32nd Street, a section of the Bergen Turnpike, in Union City
Union City, New Jersey
Union City is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. According to the 2010 United States Census the city had a total population of 66,455. All of the city is on land, an area of...
.
History
The route of the avenue follows a LenapeLenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...
trail, used by the Hackensack Indians between their summer encampment at Communipaw
Communipaw
Communipaw is a section of Jersey City, New Jersey west of Liberty State Park and east of Bergen Hill, and site of one the earliest European settlements in North America. It gives its name to the historic avenue which runs from its eastern end near LSP Station through the neighborhoods of...
on the Upper New York Bay
Upper New York Bay
Upper New York Bay, or Upper Bay, is the traditional heart of the Port of New York and New Jersey, and often called New York Harbor. It is enclosed by the New York City boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Staten Island and the Hudson County, New Jersey municipalities of Jersey City and Bayonne.It...
and a more permanent settlement at Overpeck Creek
Overpeck Creek
Overpeck Creek is a tributary of the Hackensack River, approximately 8 miles long, in Bergen County in northern New Jersey in the United States. The upper creek flows through suburban communities west of New York City...
. In the 16th century it was also used by early European settlers to region, first at Pavonia
Pavonia, New Netherland
Pavonia was the first European settlement on the west bank of the North River that was part of the 17th century province of New Netherland in what would become today's Hudson County, New Jersey.-Hudson and the Hackensack:...
and later Bergen
Bergen, New Netherland
Bergen was a part of the 17th century province of New Netherland, in the area in northeastern New Jersey along the Hudson and Hackensack Rivers that would become contemporary Hudson and Bergen Counties...
, that was part of the provincial colony of New Netherland
New Netherland
New Netherland, or Nieuw-Nederland in Dutch, was the 17th-century colonial province of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands on the East Coast of North America. The claimed territories were the lands from the Delmarva Peninsula to extreme southwestern Cape Cod...
. The ferry landing (nearby the present site of Liberty Science Center
Liberty Science Center
Liberty Science Center is an interactive science museum and learning center located in Liberty State Park in Jersey City, New Jersey.The center, which first opened in 1993 as New Jersey's first major state science museum, has science exhibits, the largest IMAX Dome theater in the United States,...
), was used by village on the bay as well the one on the hill (at today's Bergen Square
Bergen Square
Bergen Square, at the intersection of Bergen Avenue and Academy Street in Jersey City, is in the southwestern part of the much larger Journal Square district...
) to travel to New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam
New Amsterdam was a 17th-century Dutch colonial settlement that served as the capital of New Netherland. It later became New York City....
. The trail continued north through Bergen Woods
Bergenwood, North Bergen
Bergenwood is a long narrow district of North Bergen, New Jersey in the northern central part of the township between Kennedy Boulevard and Tonnelle Avenue, characterized by the steep slopes on the west side of the Hudson Palisades as they descend to the New Jersey Meadowlands...
before descending and crossing the Hackensack Meadows
New Jersey Meadowlands
New Jersey Meadowlands, also known as the Hackensack Meadowlands after the primary river flowing through it, is a general name for the large ecosystem of wetlands in northeast New Jersey in the United States. The Meadowlands are known for being the site of large landfills and decades of...
.
Geography
Summit Avenue starts at the foot of Bergen HillBergen Hill
Bergen Hill refers to the lower Hudson Palisades in New Jersey, USA, where they emerge on Bergen Neck, which in turn is the peninsula between the Hackensack and Hudson River, and their bays. In Hudson County, it reaches a height of 260 feet.-Rail:...
, the southern emergence of the Palisades, and is the central street of the New Jersey Register of Historic Places
New Jersey Register of Historic Places
The New Jersey Register of Historic Places is the official list of historic resources of local, state, and national interest in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The program is administered by the Historic Preservation Office of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.The register was...
state-designated Bergen Hill Historic District, which includes St. Johns Episcopal Church. It travels northward to the former Jersey City Medical Center
Jersey City Medical Center
The Jersey City Medical Center is a hospital in Jersey City, New Jersey. The hospital has had different facilities in the city.-History:The hospital began as the "Charity Hospital" but the Board of Aldermen of Jersey City bought land at Baldwin Avenue and Montgomery Street in 1882 for a new hospital...
, a national historic site being restored and converted to a gated neighborhood, The Beacon and crosses Montgomery Street just east of McGinley Square
McGinley Square
McGinley Square is in Jersey City, New Jersey, located near the middle of the city, south of Journal Square. The square itself is at the intersection of two of the city's major thoroughfares, Montgomery Street , and Bergen Avenue .The area was named after Monsignor Roger...
. Passing the Jersey City Armory
Jersey City Armory
The Jersey City Armory is located at 678 Montgomery Street near McGinley Square in Jersey City, New Jersey. In addition to being a military training and mustering facility of the New Jersey National Guard , the WPA era armory has long been used as a sports arena, particularly for boxing,...
, it enters the Journal Square
Journal Square
Journal Square is a business district, residential area, and transportation hub in Jersey City, New Jersey, which takes its name from the newspaper Jersey Journal whose headquarters are located there. The "square" itself is at the intersection of Kennedy Boulevard and Bergen Avenues...
district and at Academy Street is two blocks east of Bergen Square
Bergen Square
Bergen Square, at the intersection of Bergen Avenue and Academy Street in Jersey City, is in the southwestern part of the much larger Journal Square district...
. The Jersey City Municipal Courts are also near the intersection. At Sip Avenue a bridge traverses the former Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
Jersey City Branch cut
Cut (earthmoving)
In civil engineering, a cut or cutting is where soil or rock material from a hill or mountain is cut out to make way for a canal, road or railway line....
. It was at this location 1910 the Hudson and Manhattan Railroad opened the Summit Avenue Station which has now become part of the Journal Square Transportation Center used by the Port Authority Trans Hudson rapid transit system. At the southeast side of the bridge is the New Jersey state office building, while at the northeast stands one of the oldest buildings in New Jersey, built by descendents of the first Dutch settlers. Summit Avenue is one of the streets that creates the Five Corners
Five Corners, Jersey City
Five Corners is at the intersection of Summit Avenue, Newark Avenue and Hoboken Avenue in Jersey City, New Jersey and is a northeastern part of the larger Journal Square district...
, the other two being early components of the Newark Plank Road
Newark Plank Road
The Newark Plank Road was a major 19th century artery between New Jersey's Hudson Waterfront and the burgeoning city of Newark, further inland across the New Jersey Meadows. As its name suggests, a plank road was constructed of wooden planks laid side-to-side on a roadbed. A charter to construct...
. The area is the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Hudson County, and home to the landmark Hudson County Courthouse
Hudson County Courthouse
The Hudson County Courthouse or Justice William J. Brennan Jr. Courthouse is located in Jersey City, New Jersey. The six-story structure was originally built between 1906 and 1910 at a cost of $3,328,016.56...
. The concentration of Filipino-American creates a Little Manila, while one long block west is the India Square
India Square
India Square also called Little India or Little Bombay is a neighborhood in Jersey City, New Jersey. The neighborhood is centered around Newark Avenue between Tonnelle Avenue and JFK Boulevard, and is considered to be part of the larger Journal Square district...
neighborhood. After crossing the Bergen Arches
Bergen Arches
Bergen Arches is an abandoned railroad right of way through Bergen Hill in Jersey City, New Jersey.-History:...
, the Long Dock Tunnel
Long Dock Tunnel
The Long Dock Tunnel is a tunnel in New Jersey that runs diagonally through Bergen Hill, a section of the New Jersey Palisades in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States...
, and the The Divided Highway, Summit Avenue enters central
Central Avenue
Central Avenue is an often used road name. Major thoroughfares with this name include:Canada* Central Avenue India* Chittaranjan Avenue, in Kolkata, IndiaUnited States* Central Avenue Corridor in Phoenix, Arizona...
section of Jersey City Heights, and passes the site of JC Reservoirs #3 (a nature preserve) and #4 (demolished), and Pershing Field, a major park in the district. The avenue becomes more residential, with examples of Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
and Edwardian-era homes, and pre-war
Pre-war
The term pre-war or prewar is usually applied to the most recent or significant war in a culture's history.Antebellum is most often used to denote the period before the American Civil War while pre-war typically refers to the period before WWII.In real estate the term refers to buildings from the...
low rise apartment buildings. The Second Reformed Church of Hudson City is located on the avenue.
Union City, New Jersey
Union City is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. According to the 2010 United States Census the city had a total population of 66,455. All of the city is on land, an area of...
line at Transfer Station It is here that it intersects Paterson Plank Road
Paterson Plank Road
Paterson Plank Road is a road that runs through Passaic, Bergen and Hudson Counties in northeastern New Jersey originally lain in the colonial era. The route, connecting the city Paterson and the Hudson River waterfront, still exists...
, which runs to the New Jersey Meadowlands
New Jersey Meadowlands
New Jersey Meadowlands, also known as the Hackensack Meadowlands after the primary river flowing through it, is a general name for the large ecosystem of wetlands in northeast New Jersey in the United States. The Meadowlands are known for being the site of large landfills and decades of...
. Summit Avenue was the "downtown" of the former municipality of West Hoboken
West Hoboken, New Jersey
West Hoboken was a municipality that existed in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, from 1861 to 1925.West Hoboken was originally incorporated as a township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on February 28, 1861, from portions of North Bergen Township. The township was reincorporated on...
, and is still a busy commercial district. A theater from the period is now the Summit Quadplex cinema. The Summit Avenue Historic Commercial District, which runs from 9th to 32nd Streets was designated by the New Jersey Register of Historic Places
New Jersey Register of Historic Places
The New Jersey Register of Historic Places is the official list of historic resources of local, state, and national interest in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The program is administered by the Historic Preservation Office of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.The register was...
in 1985. At 18th Street the city's newest branch library is located at a public school named for Jose Marti
José Martí
José Julián Martí Pérez was a Cuban national hero and an important figure in Latin American literature. In his short life he was a poet, an essayist, a journalist, a revolutionary philosopher, a translator, a professor, a publisher, and a political theorist. He was also a part of the Cuban...
, in recognition of the city's large Cuban-American community. Both are built on the grounds of the former Monastery and Church of Saint Michael the Archangel
Monastery and Church of Saint Michael the Archangel
The Monastery and Church of Saint Michael the Archangel is a state and national historic place in Union City, New Jersey. Formally opened in 1869 and completed in 1875, the grounds of the complex are bounded West Street and Summit Avenue between 18th and 21st Streets. The small street leading to...
rising just east of the avenue. At 27th Street a memorial to Joe Jeanette
Joe Jeanette
Jeremiah "Joe" Jeannette is considered one of the best African-American heavyweight boxers of the early 20th century.-Early life and career:...
, a native son and famous boxer, is found. Soon after it passes Union City High School, completed in 2009 on the site of the former Roosevelt Stadium
Roosevelt Stadium (Union City)
Roosevelt Stadium was a football stadium that stood in Union City, New Jersey. -History:...
, where Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
and Lou Gehrig
Lou Gehrig
Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig , nicknamed "The Iron Horse" for his durability, was an American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 17-year baseball career for the New York Yankees . Gehrig set several major league records. He holds the record for most career grand slams...
played exhibition baseball games, and where National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
greats Lou Cordileone
Lou Cordileone
Lou Anthony Cordileone is a former American football offensive lineman, primarily guard, who played nine seasons in the National Football League. He is more famous for being traded from the New York Giants to the San Francisco 49ers for quarterback Y. A. Tittle...
and Frank Winters
Frank Winters
Frank Mitchell Winters is a former American football center in the National Football League for the Cleveland Browns, New York Giants, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Green Bay Packers...
played during their high school days. It crosses over New Jersey Route 495, a cut
Cut (earthmoving)
In civil engineering, a cut or cutting is where soil or rock material from a hill or mountain is cut out to make way for a canal, road or railway line....
which leads into the Lincoln Tunnel
Lincoln Tunnel
The Lincoln Tunnel is a long tunnel under the Hudson River, connecting Weehawken, New Jersey and the borough of Manhattan in New York City.-History:...
. Summit Avenue ends at the 32nd Street section of the Hackensack Plank Road
Hackensack Plank Road
The Hackensack Plank Road was a major artery which connected the cities of Hoboken and Hackensack, New Jersey Like its cousin routes, the Newark Plank Road and Paterson Plank Road, it travelled over Bergen Hill and across the Hackensack Meadows from the Hudson River waterfront to the city for...
near the Kennedy Center (the landmark former Sears Roebuck and Company building), the Park Theater, and Schuetzen Park on Kennedy Boulevard
County Route 501 (New Jersey)
County Route 501 is a county highway in New Jersey in two sections spanning Middlesex, Hudson and Bergen Counties. The southern section runs from South Plainfield to Perth Amboy, the northern section runs from Bayonne to Rockleigh, and the two sections are connected by New York State Route 440...
.
The North Hudson County Railway
North Hudson County Railway
The North Hudson Railway Company built and operated a streetcar system in Hudson County and southeast Bergen County, New Jersey before and after the turn of twentieth century. It was founded by John Bonn, and eventually taken over by the Public Service Railway...
built trolley line along the avenue. Until bustitution
Bustitution
The word bustitution is a neologism sometimes used to describe the practice of replacing a passenger train service with a bus service either on a temporary or permanent basis. The word is a portmanteau of the words "bus" and "substitution"...
the Public Service Railway
Public Service Railway
The Public Service Railway, owned by the Public Service Corporation of New Jersey, operated most of the streetcar lines in New Jersey by the early 20th century. Public Service lines stretched from northeast New Jersey to Trenton, and then south to Camden and its suburbs...
operated streetcar lines along the avenue which is now served by New Jersey Transit bus #85 and #82
82 Hudson
The 82 Hudson is a bus route operated by New Jersey Transit in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Buses run from Exchange Place in Jersey City along Montgomery Street, Marin Boulevard, Newark Avenue, and Summit Avenue to Paterson Plank Road at Transfer Station in Union City.-History:The 82 operates...
.