Plainfield, New Jersey
|
Map of Plainfield in Union County |
Plainfield is a
City in
Union County,
New Jersey,
United States. As of the
United States 2000 Census, the city population was 47,829.
Originally a part of Elizabeth and Westfield townships, Plainfield became it own township on
March 4,
1847. It was incorporated as a village in 1867. On
April 2,
1869, Plainfield became a city.
It was settled in 1684 by
Quakers, and incorporated as a city in 1869. Formerly a bedroom suburb in the
New York metropolitan area, it has become the urban center of 10 closely allied municipalities, with diversified industries, including printing and the manufacture of
chemicals,
clothing,
electronic equipment, and
vehicular parts. Among the several 18th-century buildings remaining are a Friends' meetinghouse (1788), the Martine house (1717), and the Nathaniel Drake House (1746), known as
George Washington's headquarters. Nearby
Washington Rock is a prominent point of the
Watchung Mountains and is reputed to be the vantage point from which Washington watched British troop movements.
In music history, Plainfield is known as the birthplace of
P-Funk.
George Clinton founded
The Parliaments while working in a barber shop in Plainfield. Parliament - Funkadelic was inducted in the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.
Civil disturbance
Plainfield was affected by the
Plainfield riots in 1967. This
civil disturbance was directly related to the much larger
Newark riots that occurred at the same time.
Plainfield is located at (40.615352, -74.416070).
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 15.6
km² (6.0
mi²), all land.
As of the
census of 2000, there were 47,829 people, 15,137 households, and 10,898 families residing in the city. The
population density was 3,057.4/km² (7,921.7/mi²). There were 16,180 housing units at an average density of 1,034.3/km² (2,679.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 21.45%
White, 61.78%
African American, 0.41%
Native American, 0.93%
Asian, 0.10%
Pacific Islander, 10.78% from
other races, and 4.55% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 25.16% of the population.
There were 15,137 households out of which 35.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.3% were
married couples living together, 24.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.0% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.10 and the average family size was 3.49.
In the city the population was spread out with 27.5% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 95.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $46,683, and the median income for a family was $50,774. Males had a median income of $33,460 versus $30,408 for females. The
per capita income for the city was $19,052. About 12.2% of families and 15.9% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 21.3% of those under age 18 and 12.6% of those age 65 or over.
Local government
The Mayor, elected for a four year term of office, is the chief elected official. The Mayor exercises executive powers for the City of Plainfield and is responsible for direct appointments as well as advise and consent appointments of the Executive Cabinet, Corporation Counsel, and members of boards, commissions and committees. The
Mayor of Plainfield is Sharon Robinson-Briggs, whose 4-year term ends on
December 31,
2009. Robinson-Briggs is the city's first female mayor
[Office of the Mayor, accessed July 9, 2006].
The Plainfield City Council is the governing/legislative body of the City. Composed of seven elected officials, the primary purpose is to enact municipal laws via ordinances and resolutions. Formal meetings are held on the first and third Monday of every month except in the case of a holiday, then the meeting is held the next evening. Members of the City Council are
[Plainfield City Council, accessed July 9, 2006]:
*Ward 1 - Rayland Van Blake (2006)
*Ward 2 - Cory Storch (2007)
*Ward 3 - Don Davis (2008)
*Ward 4 - Elliott Simmons (2009)
*Council-at-Large - Ray Blanco (2008)
*Council-at-Large, Wards 1 and 4 - Linda Carter (2007)
*Council-at-Large, Wards 2 and 3 - Rashid Burney (Appointed
January 19,
2005 until the next General Election to fill the unexpired term of Adrian O. Mapp)
Federal, state and county representation
Plainfield is in the Seventh Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 22nd Legislative District.
The
Plainfield Public School District includes the following schools (with 2003-04 enrollment data from the
National Center for Education Statistics:
Elementary Schools (grades K-5)*
Barlow Elementary School - 383 students
*
Cedarbrook Elementary School - 527 students
*
Clinton Elementary School - 273 students
*
Cook Elementary School - 286 students
*
Emerson Elementary School - 591 students
*
Evergreen Elementary School - 503 students
*
Jefferson Elementary School - 438 students
*
Stillman Elementary School - 262 students
*
Washington Community School - 601 students (including pre-K)
*
Woodland Elementary School - 267 students
Middle Schools (grades 6-8)*
Hubbard Middle School - 681 students
*
Maxson Middle School - 985 students
High School (grades 9-12)*
Plainfield High School [
1] - 1,895 students
"College"*
Plainfield Teacher's College, a mythical institution created as a hoax by a duo of college football fans in 1941. The phony college's equally nonexistent football team had its scores carried by major newspapers including the
New York Times before the hoax was discovered.
*
Margaret Bourke-White (1904-1971), actually resided in
Bound Brook and
Middlesex as a child, but attended and graduated from
Plainfield High School.
*
Van Wyck Brooks (1886-1963)
*
Milt Campbell (b. 1933), childhood home
*
George Clinton (b. 1941), childhood home
*
Harriet Theresa Comstock (1860-ca. 1943), educated there
*
Archibald Cox (1912-2004), childhood home
*
Joe Black (1924-2002), childhood home
*
Bill Evans (1929-1980), childhood home
*
Robert Hand (b. 1942), childhood home
*
Bret Harte (1836-1902)
*
Robyn Kenney (b. 1979), birthplace
*
Burke Marshall (1922-2003), childhood home
*
James Edgar Martine (1850-1925),
United States Senator from
New Jersey - childhood home
*
Mary McCormack (b. 1969), birthplace
*
Jim McGreevey (b. 1957),
Governor of New Jersey, 2002-2004
*
Dudley Moore (1935-2002), died there
*
Boogie Mosson (b. 1952), childhood home
*
James S. Negley (1826-1901), died there
*
Billy Bass Nelson (b. 1951), childhood home
*
Jane Rule (b. 1931), birthplace
*
Sam Scarfo Rapper (b. 1980), grew up there
*
Robert Shapiro (b. 1942), childhood home
*
Garry Shider (b. 1953), childhood home
*
Edward Herbert Thompson (1856-1935), died there
*
Jeff Torborg (b. 1941), birthplace
*
George van Epps, virtuoso
seven-string guitarist
*
David S. Ware, jazz saxophonist (b. 1949), birthplace
*
Harrison A. Williams (1919-2001), birthplace
*
Jay Williams (b. 1981), birthplace
*
Bernie Worrell (b. 1944), childhood home
*
James A. Yorke (b. 1941), childhood home
*
Plainfield, New Jersey's Homepage*
Plainfield Public School District*
National Center for Education Statistics data for the Plainfield Public School District*
Plainfield Symphony*
Plainfield Area YMCA*
Plainfield Rescue Squad*
Cedarbrook Park & Shakespeare Garden*
Plainfield High School - NJ's 2nd oldest
