About New Jersey

The state of New Jersey was one of the original 13 colonies that declared independence from Great Britain. Today it is the 11th-most populous state and the most densely populated of all 50 states.

Settled by Native Americans more than 2,800 years ago, the land that would become New Jersey produced maize for the Lenni-Lenape peoples. The first Europeans to claim ownership of land in New Jersey were the Dutch, who founded the New Netherland colony in 1614. In 1664, England annexed New Netherland, renaming it the Province of New Jersey.

New Jersey passed its state constitution on July 2nd, 1776, two days before the colonies declared independence from Great Britain. New Jersey was one of the primary battlegrounds of the Revolutionary War, and is today referred to as “The Crossroads of the Revolution.”

Today, New Jersey produces more than 20,000 products from manufacturers. Our largest industry is the chemical industry, and New Jersey is one of the most prominent areas for scientific research centers in the world. Farmland covers approximately 790,000 acres of New Jersey and produces garden vegetables, blueberries, cranberries and peaches.

Ellis Island, the primary gateway European immigrants used to cross into America, is part of New Jersey. Thomas Edison invented the light bulb there, and the first professional baseball game was played in Hoboken, while the first college football game was played in Princeton. New Jersey has a tradition of great musicians, including Frank Sinatra, Bruce Springsteen, Whitney Houston and Queen Latifah.