essex county NeW JERSEY real estate
essex
County
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Essex
County was officially established in 1682 by the East Jersey
Legislature as one of the four original counties of present day New
Jersey (Bergen, Monmouth and Middlesex were the others.) By the time
of the Amercian Revolution, Essex County had become quite
prosperous. After the war, the Country entered into a period of
unprecedented industrial growth. This was due in part to the
completion of the New Jersey Railroad, the Morris Canal, and the
establishment of the Morris and Essex Railroad. Factories that grew
up around the rail and canal arteries drew waves of immigrants from
Europe and the population began to swell.
The
central section of the County, once known as the "trolley car
suburbs", grew rapidly after the turn of the century when
trolley lines were built to carry workers from industrial Newark to
the less crowded outlying towns of Irvington, East Orange, Orange
and Bloomfield. Commuter railroads which passed through Newark
carried commuters to Manhattan from suburban towns such as South
Orange, Maplewood, Millburn, Glen Ridge and Montclair.
Since
its inception, Essex County has been the industrial and financial
hub of New Jersey. Countywide, total real property values now exceed
$36 billion with an annual growth in 1996 of $78 million. With the
opening in 1997 of the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark,
Essex will rival New York City as a cultural center for music and
dance showcasing the nation's and the world's best artist. A
County-sponsored baseball and soccer stadium complex will bring
minor league baseball back to Essex County in the 1998 season.
Today
Essex County, with 22 municipalities ranging over 127 square miles,
is New Jersey's second most populous County. The Essex County
economy continues to shift from a manufacturing base to a service
oriented economy and many corporate giants as PSE&G, Bell
Atlantic, ADP, and Prudential have headquarters located in Essex
County.
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