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Our
Name
The name of the Borough, of course, comes from its
location near the City of Paterson, which was named for William Paterson,
who had an illustrious record of service for the state and nation
during its early years.
Taxation without representation and services, a
battle cry of the American Colonists in their struggle with Great
Britain, was the battle cry of the residents of the West Park section
of the Township of Little Falls. |
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West
Park residents felt were “assessed to the limit” and were
receiving “no benefits,” while their township neighbors
“received all the cream” and “West Park paid for it.”Added
to the fact that they felt they were not receiving the |
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improvements
they needed, West Park residents were concerned with the fact that
practically all the township officials were elected from Little Falls
and few, if any, were from West Park.
Agitation for the creation of a borough started
about 1905, with bills being unsuccessfully introduced in the legislature
in 1908 and 1909.
A small group of West Park formed an organization
to fight for the creation of a borough. On Jan. 7, 1913 the “Borough
of West Paterson” |
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was
proposed. One of the standard bearers, Anthony Ferrary, later became
the first Mayor of West Paterson. |
"Morris
Canal," National Registered Landmark, flowed through West Paterson
from 1824 to 1924 |
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State
Senator Peter J. McGinnis, a supporter of a the Borough’s formation
introduced legislation, and on March 25, 1914 “An Act to incorporate
the Borough of West Paterson” received final approval and was
signed by Governor Fielder.
This act provided for the boundaries of the Borough
and called for an election among the voters of West Park, which was
the second election district of Little Falls.
The Elections That Started It All
The election was held on May 1, 1914. Newspaper
reports of the time predicted a one-sided victory, and it was taken
for granted that the Borough would be voted for. When the polls closed
at 9 p.m., the voters of the district had voted 194 to 20 to approve
the new borough. Fireworks, horns, torches, the Totowa Fife and Drum
Corps. and a parade of Borough residents marked the victory at the
polls.
On May 25, 1914, the Borough’s first election
was held for Mayor, six Councilmen, an Assessor, a Tax Collector,
two Justices of the Peace and two Constables. |
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FIRST
ELECTION RESULTS
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| Office |
Elected |
Votes
Rec’d |
Candidates |
| Mayor |
Anthony
M. Ferrary |
119 |
3 |
| Councilman |
Andrew
J. Donnelly |
159 |
12 |
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John
W. Dowling |
180 |
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James
J. Tierney |
118 |
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Patrick
J. McMahon |
105 |
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Joseph
Niblo |
104 |
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Samuel
Simpson |
131 |
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| Assessor |
David
Smith |
103 |
3 |
| Tax
Collector |
Edward
G. Roome |
129 |
2 |
| Justice
of the Peace |
William
Hoyt |
150 |
6 |
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Frank
Reinhart |
3 |
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| Constable |
Amos
I. Glass |
106 |
4 |
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Samuel Whitty |
87 |
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The
first meeting of the governing body was held on June 1, 1914 in Little
Falls School No. 6 (now the former West Paterson School No. 1). The
first ordinance passed was one to change the name of Little Falls
Turnpike to McBride Avenue.
The Borough At the Time of Its Formation
At the time that West Paterson became a new borough,
the community was primarily agricultural, producing dairy products
and various vegetables and fruit.
The Passaic River, then a clean, pleasant waterway,
served as an attraction for amusement parks, ball fields, hotels and
a racetrack.
A few wealthy silk men from Paterson saw the small
suburb as an attractive place to live and located their homes throughout
the area.
Most notably, the farmers of West Paterson played
important roles in the history of the Borough. And, their names are
still well known throughout the community. Today, the farms are all
gone.
Listed below are some of these farms and stables
and the general areas that they covered: |
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| Family
Name |
Location |
| Bartsch |
Bartsch
Avenue |
| Bekes |
Squirrelwood
Road |
| Berpa |
Browertown
Road |
| Bower |
Memorial
Drive and Memorial School |
| Brophy |
Highview
homes and Municipal Building |
| Casson |
Casson’s
Lane |
| Coons |
Rifle
Camp Road opposite Great Notch Reservoir |
| Donnelly |
Missionary
Sisters, now Berkeley College |
| Dowling |
part
of Dowling Estates, Beatrice Gilmore and
Memorial Schools |
| Fritz |
Great
Notch Gardens |
| Fulboam |
Lackawanna
Avenue |
| Geisler |
Rifle
Camp Road |
| Laufenberg |
Mt.
Pleasant Avenue, became Bartsch farm |
| Mulrooney |
part
of Dowling Estates |
| Neeser |
Neeser’s
Lane |
| Panas |
Lackawanna
Avenue |
| Perkins |
Westmount
Country Club |
| Taylor |
Taylor
Lane or Garret Estates |
| Vander
May |
Lackawanna
Avenue, became part of Kearfoot complex |
| Weimer |
Weaseldrift
Road at Garret Drive |
| Whittaker |
Mereline
Avenue and Whittaker Avenue |
| Zurcher |
Rifle
Camp Road |
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Idlewild
Park (now the Kearfoot Co.) was one of the leading amusement parks
in the area. Trolleys brought visitors up McBride Avenue to spend
their time dancing, boating, riding swings or the merry-go-round,
and picnicking.
The area opposite Beatrice Gilmore Elementary School
was once the home of Thomas Ryle, a Paterson silk manufacturer. Later,
a harness racetrack was built, followed by a ball field. The Hudson
River League brought many of baseball’s greats to play on the
Ryle Park field.
Another amusement park was situated on the mountain
where Garret Mountain Reservation is today. The amusement park was
part of a 450-acre purchase made by the Passaic County Park Commission
in the 1920s.
A Borough swimming pool (near the Hillery Street
Bridge), a bowling alley, hotels and rest stops sprung up along the
river for the public who came out to enjoy the “country.”
The Population Rose as the Borough
Grew
In 1920 the population of the Borough was 1,858.
This climbed slowly, but steadily to 3,101 in 1930; 3,306 in 1940;
and 3,931 in 1950.
During the decade from 1950 to 1960, the population
almost doubled, jumping from 3,931 to 7,602. The increase was due
primarily to the new housing developments that sprang up on former
farmlands.
The continually increasing population necessitated
increased municipal services. But, many of these services were made
possible because residents volunteered to carry them out. This is
particularly true with the fire department, first aid squad, civil
defense and the membership of the various municipal boards.
The 1980s and 1990s saw the construction of several
townhouse and condominium complexes with luxury housing units. And,
with the availability of undeveloped land rapidly disappearing, developers
looked to the Borough’s two quarries for buildable space. |
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