Bayonne is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, south of Jersey City. As of the United States 2000 Census, the city had a total population of 61,842.

According to tradition, the city derives its name from the city of Bayonne in France. It is said that French Huguenots settled there some time before New Amsterdam was founded. French-speaking Walloons were a large percentage of the population of New Netherland during the mid-seventeenth century and may have given the name. However, there are no historical records to prove this. A 1904 history suggests that the area's developers named it Bayonne because it is on the shores of two bays, Newark and New York, hence Bay-on, or "on the Bays". Bayonne is a diverse city, with large communities of Italian, Irish and Polish Americans.

Bayonne was originally formed as a township on April 1, 1861, from portions of Bergen Township. Bayonne was reincorporated as a city by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 10, 1869, replacing Bayonne Township, subject to the results of a referendum held nine days later.

Bayonne is connected to Staten Island, New York by the Bayonne Bridge. The Bayonne Bridge is lit in patriotic colors (red, white & blue) in the evenings, as a 9/11 memorial initiated by a then 8-year-old girl in the summer of 2002, Veronica Marie Granite, with the assistance of then-Municipal Councilmember-at-Large Maria Karczewski.

Geography

Bayonne is located at (40.666552, -74.117680), south of Jersey City on a peninsula surrounded by New York Bay to the east, Newark Bay to the west, and the Kill van Kull to the south.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.2 square miles (29.1 km²), of which, 5.6 square miles (14.6 km²) of it is land and 5.6 square miles (14.6 km²) of it (50.04%) is water.

Communities within Bayonne include Bergen Point and Constable Hook.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 61,842 people, 25,545 households, and 16,016 families residing in the city. The population density was 10,992.2 people per square mile (4,241.1/km²). There were 26,826 housing units at an average density of 4,768.2/sq mi (1,839.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 78.64% White, 5.52% African American, 0.17% Native American, 4.14% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 7.46% from other races, and 4.02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 17.81% of the population.

As of the 2000 census, the ancestry of Bayonne residents was: Italian (20.1%), Irish (18.8%), Polish (17.9%), German (6.1%), Arab (3.8%), United States (2.5%).

There were 25,545 households out of which 28.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.8% were married couples living together, 15.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.3% were non-families. 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.10.

In the city the population was spread out with 22.1% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $41,566, and the median income for a family was $52,413. Males had a median income of $39,790 versus $33,747 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,553. About 8.4% of families and 10.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.9% of those under age 18 and 11.0% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Local government

The City of Bayonne is governed under the Faulkner Act (Mayor-Council) system of municipal government by a mayor and a five-member city council. The council has three members from wards and two elected at large, all of whom serve four-terms in office, elected concurrently in non-partisan elections.

The current Mayor of Bayonne is Terrence Malloy, who was selected by the City Council in October 2007 to serve as mayor on an interim basis, after the resignation of former mayor Joseph Doria on September 18, 2007 to serve as Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs. Malloy will serve as interim mayor until a November 2008 special election.

Members of the Bayonne City Council are:

• Vincent Lo Re Jr. - Council President- At-large
• Anthony Chiappone - At-large
• Theodore Connolly - First Ward
• John Halecky - Second Ward
• Gary La Pelusa - Third Ward

Mayors of Bayonne

• Mayors have been governing the community ever since the year Bayonne was established in 1869.
• The first mayor of Bayonne was Henry Meigs who served from 1869-1879.
• The mayor with the longest term in office was Dennis P. Collins, who served from 1974-1990.
• Pierre P. Garven served two non-consecutive terms from 1906-1910 and 1915-1919
• Dr. Bert J. Daly served three non-consecutive terms from 1914-1915, 1927-1931 and 1943-1947.
• Henry Meigs, Jr. 1869-1879
• Stephen K. Lane 1879-1883
• David W. Oliver 1883-1887
• John Newman 1887-1891
• William C. Farr 1891-1895
• Egbert Seymour 1895-1904
• Thomas Brady 1904-1906
• Pierre P. Garven 1906-1910
• John J. Cain 1910-1912
• Matthew T. Cronin 1912-1914
• Dr. Bart J. Daly 1914-1915
• Pierre P. Garven 1915-1919
• W. Homer Axford 1919-1923
• Robert J. Talbot 1923-1927
• Dr. Bert J. Daly 1927-1931
• Lucius F. Donohue 1931-1939
• James J. Donovan 1939-1943
• Dr. Bert J. Daly 1943-1947
• Charles A. Heiser 1947-1951
• Edward F. Clark 1951-1955
• G. Thomas DiDomenico 1955-1959
• Alfred V. Brady 1959-1962
• Francis G. Fitzpatrick 1962-1974
• Dennis P. Collins 1974-1990
• Richard A. Rutkowski 1990-1994
• Leonard P. Kiczek 1994-1998
• Joseph V. Doria, Jr. 1998-2007
• Terrance Malloy 2007-present

Federal, state and county representation

Bayonne is split between the Tenth and Thirteenth Congressional Districts and is part of New Jersey's 31st Legislative District.

Education

The Bayonne Board of Education serves students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. Schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are ten PreK-8 elementary schools — Henry E. Harris No. 1 (710 students), Phillip G. Vroom No. 2 (405), Dr. Walter F. Robinson No. 3 (583), Mary J. Donohoe No. 4 (471), Lincoln No. 5 (471), Horace Mann No. 6 (603), Midtown Community School No. 8 (1,099), George Washington School No. 9 (688), Woodrow Wilson No. 10 (562) and John M. Bailey No. 12 (734) — P.S. #14, an advanced school for gifted and talented students in academics, the arts, and physical education, for students in grades 4-8 (254); and Bayonne High School for grades 9-12 (3,005). Bayonne High School is the only public school in the state to have an on-campus ice rink for its hockey team.

For the 2004-05 school year, Mary J. Donohoe No. 4 School was named a "Star School" by the New Jersey Department of Education, the highest honor that a New Jersey school can achieve. It is the fourth school in Bayonne to receive this honor. The other three are Bayonne High School in 1995-96, Midtown Community School in 1996-97 and P.S. #14 in the 1998-99 school year.

The Board of Education has implemented a dress code that will take effect in the 2006-07 school year for students in Pre-K through eighth grade. Under this code students will wear a school logo shirt and a variety of pants, skirts, shorts, and other prescribed items. The plan is intended to "increase student identification with their schools and the district, Eliminate many of the distractions associated with differences in social or economic status, Allow the children, their teachers and the Board of Education to concentrate on shared pursuit of educational excellence [and] Instill a sense of belonging and school pride". A heated battle is currently being fought between enraged parents and the Board, with parents upset at the manner in which the policy was imposed, the cost of the uniforms, the loss of freedom of expression to students in choosing the clothing they wear and issues regarding the manner in which the contract was awarded.

Transportation

Car

The Bayonne Bridge provides a direct link to New York City, i.e. Staten Island.

The Newark Bay Extension of the New Jersey Turnpike (Interstate 78) provides access to Jersey City and, via the Holland Tunnel, Manhattan. In the opposite direction on the Newark Bay Extension, the Newark Bay Bridge provides access to Newark, Newark Liberty International Airport and the rest of the Turnpike (Interstate 95).

Route 440 runs along the east side of Bayonne, and the west side of Jersey City, following the old Morris Canal route. Although it has traffic lights it is usually the quickest way to go north-south within Bayonne. It connects to the Bayonne Bridge, I-78, and to Route 185 to Liberty State Park.

Bus

Bus transportation is provided on three main north-south streets of the city: Broadway, Kennedy Boulevard, and Avenue C, both by the state-operated New Jersey Transit and several private bus lines. The Broadway line runs solely inside Bayonne city limits, while bus lines on Avenue C and Kennedy Boulevard run to various end points in Jersey City. One Kennedy Boulevard service (the Coach USA 99S) runs to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in midtown Manhattan, New York City, and rush hours peak direction the NJ Transit 120 runs between Avenue C in Bayonne and Battery Park in Downtown Manhattan, while the 81 provides service to New Jersey.

Light Rail

The Hudson-Bergen Light Rail, which was completed in the year 2000, has been a popular form of transportation which currently has stops throughout Bayonne, Jersey City, Hoboken, Weehawken, Union City and North Bergen.

Stations in Bayonne are:

• 45th Street: Avenue E at East 45th Street
• 34th Street: Avenue E at East 34th Street
• 22nd Street: Avenue E at East 22nd Street

A fourth station, 8th Street, which will be located at Avenue C, is under construction. Incidentally, all of these stations were the original train stations for the old Central Jersey rail system.

Service within Bayonne is available between these three stations. Northbound service from Bayonne runs through Jersey City, mostly near the waterfront, to Hoboken Terminal. Other parts of the system can be accessed via transfers. The Tonnelle Avenue (in North Bergen) and other stations north of Hoboken Terminal can also be reached by transferring at stations between Liberty State Park and Pavonia-Newport for the West Side Avenue-Tonnelle Avenue route, or at Hoboken Terminal for the Tonelle Avenue-Hoboken route. The Liberty State Park station is a transfer point for those traveling between Bayonne and stations on the West Side Avenue (Jersey City) line. Connection to PATH trains to midtown Manhattan and to New Jersey Transit commuter train service are available at Hoboken Terminal, and connections to PATH trains to midtown Manhattan are available at the Hoboken Terminal and Pavonia-Newport stations. Transfers to PATH trains to Newark, Harrison, and downtown Manhattan are available at Exchange Place.

Current building projects

Currently, the city of Bayonne is working on building projects on the former Military Ocean Terminal (MOTBY). Plans for the site include new housing and businesses.

Bayonne Golf Club, a private Irish/Scottish-links style golf course is planned to be constructed on the site of the former city dump. A flagpole, displaying a large American flag that is visible from Manhattan and surrounding communities, has been erected at the site where the clubhouse will be built in 2007.

Proposed projects include construction of the September 11th memorial park for the Tear of Grief monument, and completing Bayonne's section of the 18-mile Hackensack RiverWalk, stretching from Newark Bay in Bayonne to Bellman's Creek in North Bergen.

The RiverWalk section in Bayonne, if fully completed, would run from the southwest corner of the town in an area where the Kill Van Kull meets the Newark Bay, to the northwestern point of the area. That is according to Joseph Ryan, spokesperson for Bayonne Mayor Joseph Doria.

The ribbon was cut and the plaque unveiled on May 2, 2006, for the new Richard A. Rutkowski Park in Bayonne, a wetlands preserve on the northwestern end of Bayonne, which will be part of the future RiverWalk. Also known as the Waterfront Park and Environmental Walkway, it is located immediately north of the Stephen R. Gregg Hudson County Park.

Governor of New Jersey Jon Corzine joined a contingent of state and federal officials to announce on May 6, 2006. that funding was in place to extend the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail system to Eighth Street in Bayonne. With the engineering work nearly complete, work on the rail line and the station is expected to start by 2008 and should be complete by 2009.

Bayonne Crossing

The long-planne Bayonne Crossing, a power center, on Route 440 in Bayonne has finally gotten the green light to begin construction, according to a statement made by Michael O'Connor, executive director of the Bayonne Economic Development Corp. Cameron Group, the conditional developer for the site, will soon begin construction. Announced tenants include anchor stores Circuit City, Lowe's Home Improvement, and New York Sports Club, as well as Starbucks Coffee, Chili's, and Sleepys.

Local media

• Bayonne Community News
• Bayonne Evening Star-Telegram (B.E.S.T.)

Fauna

Bayonne currently plays host to a many animal species including aquatic animals, semi-aquatic animals, and land-dwelling animals. Most populations thrive.

• Mammals: Raccoons, bats, opossums, rabbits, feral cats and dogs, mice, rats, squirrels.
• Birds: Geese, ducks, pigeons, seagulls, cardinals, bluejays, robins, sparrows, crows, doves, partridges, pheasants, starlings, falcons, egrets.
• Reptiles: Painted turtles, red-ear slider turtles, snapping turtles, toads.
• Fish: Striped Bass, Bluefish, Summer and Winter Flounder, Weakfish.
• Insects: Grasshoppers, Praying Mantis, ants, beetles, wasps and hornets, bees, butterflies, cicadas.
• Crustaceans: Blue crabs, Horseshoe crabs

Trivia

• The inspiration for the film Rocky, Chuck Wepner, hails from Bayonne. The "Bayonne Bleeder" went fifteen rounds against Muhammad Ali.
• The 19th Century town of Saltersville, New Jersey (a Civil War training area) is now a part of Bayonne. A notable regiment stationed there was the Anderson Zouaves who were encamped and mustered in on June 30 and July 1, 1861 at Newark Bay House, a resort hotel on the western shore of the Bayonne peninsula.
• The main street in Bayonne is known as Broadway, and was named after the avenue in New York City. It was originally named Avenue D, since it is bounded on either side by Avenues C and E.
* The Bayonne Bridge, which connects Bayonne to Staten Island, was completed in November, 1931. At the time, it was the longest steel arch bridge ever constructed. Today, it is the third-longest such bridge, with the Lupu Bridge in Shanghai, China and the New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia being first- and second-longest respectively.
• Standard Oil began its initial operations in Bayonne when John D. Rockefeller bought a kerosene works on the eastern shore. It eventually encompassed all of the Constable Hook section of Bayonne; Avenues J and East 22nd Street are all that remain.
• Many PT boats (for "Patrol Torpedo"), small, fast vessel used by the United States Navy in World War II to attack larger surface ships were built between 1942 and 1945 by Elco (Electric Launch Corporation) at Bayonne. Elco later merged with its sister company, Electric Boat Corporation, in 1948, to form General Dynamics.
• Bayonne was a bedroom community and shore resort for the wealthy and elite as early as 1889. The La Tourette Hotel on the southern shore along Kill Van Kull was its centerpiece.
• The Peninsula at Bayonne Harbor (formerly the Military Ocean Terminal), located on the Eastern Side of Bayonne is now home to television and movie studios for shows such as HBO's Oz (1997-2003), A Beautiful Mind (2001) and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004).
• Films such as Hysterical Blindness (2002), Mortal Thoughts (1991), Swimfan (2002), and War of the Worlds were all shot on location in Bayonne.
• The Bayonne Bridge and some of the downtown streets were filmed for the making of Spielberg's War of the Worlds. The bridge and major portions of Bayonne were destroyed by aliens in the film.
• Some scenes from the Nickelodeon television show The Adventures of Pete and Pete were shot in Bayonne. Scenes that took place in Wellsville High School were shot in Bayonne High School and P.S. #14.
• The 1996 TV show Matt Waters starring Montel Williams, with Williams portraying a fictional high school teacher, was filmed almost entirely in Bayonne, with scenes shot at Bayonne High School.
• The music videos Someday by Mariah Carey and Popular by Nada Surf were filmed on location at Bayonne High School, as were the classroom scenes of Pearl Jam's Jeremy video.
• The film version of Strangers with Candy filmed scenes taking place at Flatpoint High inside Bayonne High School.
• The movie "Crooks", starring comedian Jim Norton and directed by Paul Battista was filmed on location in Bayonne.
• Ozzy Osbourne's famed guitarist Zakk Wylde was born and raised here.
• After the collapse of the World Trade Center there were proposals for the construction of a 2,000-foot TV tower at Bayonne. These plans seemed to be cancelled.
• When The Tonight Show was broadcast from New York City during the 1960s, host Johnny Carson liked to make jokes about various New Jersey cities. He claimed on several occasions that his personal tailor was "Raul of Bayonne".
• Bayonne police officers were the first to have police radios in their police cars. They also were one of the first to use the police walkie-talkie.
• In the 1997 film Men in Black, starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, they mention that Bayonne has been taken over by aliens.
• The Bayonne Bridge is the sister bridge of the Sydney Harbour Bridge located in Sydney, Australia.
• Bayonne is often used as the butt of jokes on television shows such as The Odd Couple (Frosty the maid was hailed as the "Beast from Bayonne") another episode Oscar says about his loyal poker buddies "Guys I got my hand stamped together at Bayonne High" , Barney Miller, The Golden Girls (episode with Mickey Rooney Season 3) and All in the Family, among many others.
• Bayonne is also mentioned in the movie "How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days" when actor Matthew McConaughey says "Whenever someone flushes a toilet in Bayonne, you are going to get scolded."
• Men of Honor starring Robert De Niro and Cuba Gooding Jr. takes place in Bayonne, the character played by De Niro also mentions Bayonne during a welcome.
• Bayonne is also mentioned several times in the original 39 episodes of the 1950s TV Classic, The Honeymooners.
• Harrington's Auto Body was recreated and destroyed in the movie War of the Worlds starring Tom Cruise.

Notable residents

Notable current and former residents of Bayonne include:

• Joe Borowski, professional baseball player for the Cleveland Indians.
• Sandra Dee, actress best known for her role as 'Gidget''.
• Herman Kahn, military strategist.
• Jammal Lord (1981-), former safety for the Houston Texans.
• George R. R. Martin, author and screenwriter of science fiction, horror, and fantasy.
• Chuck Wepner, hard-luck boxer who was known as "The Bayonne Bleeder".
• Zakk Wylde, hard rock and heavy metal guitar virtuoso.

Famous people born in Bayonne

• Jordan Alan, director, writer and producer
• Ben Bernie (1891-1943), bandleader, author, violinist, composer and conductor who wrote Sweet Georgia Brown.
• Horace Davey, silent film actor who appeared in over 80 films
• Barney Frank, member of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts since 1981.
• Joshua Gomez, actor who currently appears in the NBC television program, Chuck.
• Rick Gomez, actor who appeared in over 30 productions including Band of Brothers as Sgt. George Luz.
• David Horsley (1873-1933), actor who appeared in over 25 films in the 1930s and 40s including 1937's Charlie Chan at the Olympics
• Neil Kaplan (1967-), actor whose voice appears in over 40 productions.
• Brian Keith (1921-1997), film and TV actor who appeared in The Russians Are Coming, the Russians Are Coming and as Uncle Bill in Family Affair.
• Frank Langella (1940-), actor who has appeared in over 70 productions including Dave and Good Night, and Good Luck..
• Peter Leeds, character actor who played straight man to Bob Hope, Milton Berle, Jerry Lewis & Dean Martin, Jack Benny and Red Skelton in over 170 films and appeared in Dragnet at age 70
• Jim Norton, Comedian and sidekick on The Opie and Anthony Show, broadcast on XM Satellite Radio and 92.3 WXRK.
• Gene Olaff (1920-), early professional soccer goalie.
• Walter Olkewicz, TV and film actor who appeared in over 80 productions including playing Jerome 'Romey' Clifford in The Client
• Todd Paradine, former guitarist/vocalist of The Evil Beats
• Tim Ryan, actor who appeared in 179 films between 1935 and 1957
• James Urbaniak, film and TV actor best known for his role as the voice of Dr. Thaddeus Venture in The Venture Bros..
• Edythe Wright , (1916 - 1965), vocalist with Tommy Dorsey's Orchestra, 1935 - 1939
• Zakk Wylde, hard rock and heavy metal guitarist.

References

External links

• Official City of Bayonne Website
• Bayonne Board of Education
• Data for the Bayonne Board of Education, National Center for Education Statistics