Fort Lee, New Jersey

Official name	Borough of Fort Lee, New Jersey
Map caption	Map highlighting Fort Lee's location within Bergen County. Inset: Bergen County's location within New Jersey
Image map1	Census Bureau map of Fort Lee, New Jersey.gif
Mapsize1	250x200px
Map caption1	Census Bureau map of Fort Lee, New Jersey
Coordinates region	US-NJ
Subdivision type	Country
Subdivision type1	State
Subdivision type2	County
Subdivision name	United States
Subdivision name1	New Jersey
Subdivision name2	Bergen
Leader title	Mayor
Leader name	Mark Sokolich (D, 2011)
Leader title1	Administrator
Leader name1	Peggy E. Thomas
Government type	Borough (New Jersey)
Settlement type	Borough (New Jersey)
Government footnotes
Postal code type	ZIP code
Postal code	07024
Area code	201
Website	http://www.fortleenj.org/
Blank name	FIPS code
Blank info	34-24420
Blank1 name	GNIS feature ID
Blank1 info	0876418

, viewed from Fort Lee, across the Hudson River towards Manhattan]] Fort Lee is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2000 United States Census, the borough population was 35,461. Located atop the Hudson Palisades, the borough is the western terminus of the George Washington Bridge. Named for the site of an early American Revolution military encampment, it later became the birthplace of the American film industry.

Geography

Fort Lee is located at (40.853423, -73.97481). It is north of Edgewater, New Jersey and is on the peninsula between the Hackensack River and the Hudson River. The borough is bisected by the confluence of roads at GWB Plaza leading to the George Washington Bridge, and lies opposite from the Washington Heights neighborhood in uptown Manhattan.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 2.9 square miles (7.5 km²), of which, 2.5 square miles (6.6 km²) of it is land and 0.3 square miles (0.9 km²) of it (12.15%) is water.

History

Fort Lee was formed by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 29, 1904, from the remaining portions of Ridgefield Township. With the creation of Fort Lee, Ridgefield Township became defunct and was dissolved as of March 29, 1904. The Fort Lee Police Department was formed under borough ordinance on August 9, 1904, and originally consisted of six marshals.

Fort Lee is named for General Charles Lee after George Washington and his troops had camped at Mount Constitution overlooking Burdett's Landing, in defense of New York City. It was during Washington's retreat in November 1776 (beginning along a road which is now Main Street) that Thomas Paine composed his pamphlet, "The American Crisis", which began with the recognized phrase, "These are the times that try men's souls". These events are recalled at Monument Park and Fort Lee Historic Park.

At the turn of the 21st century, Fort Lee saw a large Korean migration which has converted much of the town into a large Koreatown, in that many traditional Korean stores and restaurants may be seen in Fort Lee, and the hangul letters of the Korean alphabet are as common as signs in English in parts of the downtown area.

The rapid increase of the Korean population has seen the decline of many other immigrant communities once centered in Fort Lee, notably the Greek and Italian communities, once quite large but now all but extinct. A sizable Russian immigrant community has also sprung up in recent years, also attracted by the urban setting of Fort Lee.

America's first motion picture industry

The history of cinema in the United States can trace its roots to the East Coast where, at one time, Fort Lee was the motion picture capital of America. The industry got its start at the end of the 19th century with the construction of Thomas Edison's "Black Maria", the first motion picture studio in West Orange, New Jersey. New Jersey offered land at costs considerably less than New York City, and the cities and towns on the North River (Hudson River) and Hudson Palisades benefited greatly as a result of the phenomenal growth of the film industry at the turn of the 20th century.

Filmmaking began attracting both capital and an innovative workforce, and when the Kalem Company began using Fort Lee in 1907 as a location for filming in the area, other filmmakers quickly followed. In 1909, a forerunner of Universal Studios, the Champion Film Company, built the first studio. They were quickly followed by others who either built new studios or who leased facilities in Fort Lee. In the 1910s and 1920s, film companies such as the Independent Moving Pictures Company, Peerless Studios, The Solax Company, Éclair Studios, Goldwyn Picture Corporation, American Méliès (Star Films), World Pictures, Biograph Studios, Fox Film Corporation, Pathé Frères, Metro Pictures Corporation, Victor Film Company, and Selznick Pictures Corporation were all making pictures in Fort Lee. Such notables as Mary Pickford and Miles Remy got their start at Biograph Studios.

With the offshoot businesses that sprang up to service the film studios, for nearly two decades Fort Lee experienced unrivaled prosperity. However, just as the development of Fort Lee production facilities was gaining strength, Nestor Studios of Bayonne, New Jersey, built the first studio in Hollywood in 1911. Nestor Studios, owned by David and William Horsley, later merged with Universal Studios; and William Horsley's other company, Hollywood Film Laboratory, is now the oldest existing company in Hollywood, now called the Hollywood Digital Laboratory. California's more hospitable and cost-effective climate led to the eventual shift of virtually all filmmaking to the West Coast by the 1930s. Another reason for this shift was the distance of Southern California from New Jersey, which made it more difficult for Thomas Edison to enforce his motion picture patents. At the time, Edison owned almost all the patents relevant to motion picture production and, in the East, movie producers acting independently of Edison's Motion Picture Patents Company were often sued or enjoined by Edison and his agents. But movie makers working on the West Coast could work independently of Edison's control. Some companies, such as American Méliès, moved to San Antonio, Texas, and others moved to Jacksonville, Florida.

Television and film in New Jersey remains an important industry. Since 2000 the Fort Lee film commission has been charged with celebrating the history of film in Fort Lee, as well as attracting film and television production companies to the borough.

Birthplace of subliminal advertising

In 1957, market researcher James Vicary claimed that quickly flashing messages on a movie screen, in Fort Lee, had influenced people to purchase more food and drinks. Vicary coined the term subliminal advertising and formed the Subliminal Projection Company based on a six-week test. Vicary claimed that during the presentation of the movie Picnic he used a tachistoscope to project the words "Drink Coca-Cola" and "Hungry? Eat popcorn" for 1/3000 of a second at five-second intervals. Vicary asserted that during the test, sales of popcorn and Coke in that New Jersey theater increased 57.8 percent and 18.1 percent respectively.

However, in 1962 Vicary admitted to lying about the experiment and falsifying the results, the story itself being a marketing ploy. An identical experiment conducted by Henry Link showed no increase in cola or popcorn sales. | footnote=Population 1930 - 1990. }} As of the census of 2000, there were 35,461 people, 16,544 households, and 9,396 families residing in the borough. The population density was 14,001.7 people per square mile (5,411.7/km²). There were 17,446 housing units at an average density of 6,888.5 per square mile (2,662.4/km²). The racial makeup of the borough was 62.75% White, 1.73% African American, 0.07% Native American, 31.43% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 1.69% from other races, and 2.26% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.87% of the population.

There were 16,544 households out of which 22.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.7% were married couples living together, 7.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.2% were non-families. 39.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the borough the population was spread out with 17.5% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 24.7% from 45 to 64, and 20.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 87.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.1 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $58,161, and the median income for a family was $72,140 (these figures had risen to $67,500 and $83,503 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $54,730 versus $41,783 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $37,899. About 5.7% of families and 7.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.9% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

As of the 2000 census, 17.18% of Fort Lee's residents identified themselves as being of Korean ancestry, which was the fifth highest in the United States and third highest of any municipality in New Jersey; behind neighboring Palisades Park (36.38%) and Leonia (17.24%) — for all places with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry. In the same census, 5.56% of Fort Lee's residents identified themselves as being of Chinese ancestry, and 6.09% of Fort Lee's residents identified themselves as being of Japanese ancestry, the highest of any municipality in New Jersey for all places with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry.

Fort Lee residents who filed claims to recover lost money from the Madoff investment scandal numbered 1,119, the most from any zip code.

Government

Local government

Fort Lee is governed under the Borough form of New Jersey municipal government. The government consists of a Mayor and a Borough Council comprising six council members, with all positions elected at large. A Mayor is elected directly by the voters to a four-year term of office, and only votes to break a tie. The Borough Council consists of six members elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats coming up for election each year.

, the Mayor of Fort Lee is Mark J. Sokolich (D, term ends December 31, 2011). Members of the Borough Council are Council President Armand Pohan (2011), Joseph L. Cervieri, Jr. (2012), Jan Goldberg (2013), Ila Kasofsky (2013), Michael Sargenti (2011) and Harvey Sohmer (2012).

Federal, state and county representation

Fort Lee is in the Ninth Congressional District, and is part of New Jersey's 38th state legislative district.

Politics

As of April 1, 2006, out of a 2004 Census estimated population of 37,310 in Fort Lee, there were 17,434 registered voters (46.7% of the population, vs. 55.4% in all of Bergen County). Of registered voters, 4,788 (27.5% vs. 20.7% countywide) were registered as Democrats, 2,016 (11.6% vs. 19.2% countywide) were registered as Republicans and 10,628 (61.0% vs. 60.1% countywide) were registered as Undeclared. There were two voters registered to other parties.

In the 2008 presidential election Democrat Barack Obama received 61% of the vote here defeating Republican John McCain who received around 37%. In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat John Kerry received 61% of the vote here, defeating Republican George W. Bush, who received around 38%.

Education

The Fort Lee School District serves public school students in Kindergarten through twelfth grade. Schools in the district (with 2008-09 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics) are four K-6 elementary schools — School 1 (528 students), School 2 (418), School 3 (496) and School 4 (493) — Lewis F.Cole Middle School (477) for grades 7&8 and Fort Lee High School (1,042) for grades 9-12.

During the 2010-11 school year, School #3 was awarded the Blue Ribbon School Award of Excellence by the United States Department of Education, the highest award an American school can receive, one of only ten schools statewide to be honored. The school was one of three in Bergen County honored that year.

Private schools

Private schools in the area include Christ the Teacher (PK-8, 314 students), First Step Day Care Center (PK, 101 students), Fort Lee Education Center (7-12, 78 students), Fort Lee Montessori Pre-School (PK, 49 students), Fort Lee Youth Center Playgroup (PK, 30 students), Futures Best Nursery Academy (PK, 98 students), Green House Preschool and Kindergarten (PK-K, 125 students), Happy Kids Pre-School (PK, 75 students), Hooks Lane School (PK, 54 students), Les Enfants Day Care Center (PK, 60 students), Palisades Pre-School (PK, 108 students), Rainbow School DC (PK, 88 students), and Small World Montessori School (PK, 51 students).

Transportation

, connecting Fort Lee to New York City, is the world's busiest motor vehicle bridge.]] Fort Lee is served by the Palisades Interstate Parkway, Route 4, Route 5, Route 67, Interstate 95 (the northern terminus of the New Jersey Turnpike), U.S. Route 9W, U.S. Route 1-9, U.S. Route 46, and County Route 505. The George Washington Bridge (signed as I-95/US 1-9/US 46) crosses the Hudson River from Fort Lee to the Washington Heights neighborhood of Upper Manhattan in New York City and is the world's busiest motor vehicle bridge. Many of these roads converge at GWB Plaza, a busy crossroads at the northern end of the borough.

Fort Lee is also served by New Jersey Transit buses 154, 156, 158 and 159 to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan; the 171, 175, 178, 181, 182, 186 and 188 lines to the George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal; and local service on the 751, 753, 755 and 756.

In addition, China Airlines provides private bus service to John F. Kennedy International Airport from the Citibank to feed its flight to Taipei, Taiwan.

In media

Martin Scorsese directed several scenes of Goodfellas in Fort Lee. Fort Lee is used as the filming location for the Queens, New York residence of Detective Elliot Stabler on . In late March 2011, a group of teenagers reported that they had been detained by the Fort Lee Police Department who left them in a police van parked for 14 hours overnight at headquarters. The detainees, who said that they had no food, water or access to bathrooms during that time, were released after passers-by heard their screams.

Notable residents

Albert Anastasia (1902–1957), Mafia boss. Mickey Appleman, professional poker player. Allan Arkush (born 1948), film director and television producer. Known for Rock and Roll High School and the NBC series Heroes. Constance Bennett (1904-1965), American stage and film actress Joan Bennett (1910-1990), American stage and film actress Balfour Brickner (1926–2005), was rabbi emeritus of the Stephen Wise Free Synagogue in Manhattan. Dr. Joyce Brothers (born 1925), psychologist, television personality, current resident. Cam'ron (born 1976), rapper. Jay Chiat (1931–2002), Advertising agency executive. Liz Claman (born 1963), Fox Business News anchor. Émile Cohl (1857–1938), French caricaturist, cartoonist, and animator Celia Cruz (1925–2003), Cuban-born singer. Bill Evans (1929–1980), jazz pianist and composer. Buddy Hackett (1924–2003), comedian and actor. Whitney Houston (born 1963), Singer, Actress. Jay-Z, rapper. Ali Khatami (born 1953), former Iranian Presidential Chief of Staff. Ron Johnson (born 1947), former NFL running back for the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants. Samm Levine (born 1982), actor on Freaks and Geeks. D. Bennett Mazur (c. 1925-1994), member of the New Jersey General Assembly. Richard Reines, co-owner of Drive-Thru Records, a record label specializing largely in pop punk music. Freddie Roman (born 1937), comedian, New York Friars' Club notable. Joe Rosario (born 1959), actor, writer, director. Anton Sikharulidze (born 1976), gold medal winning pairs figure skater. Phoebe Snow (born 1952), singer. Darryl Strawberry (born 1962), Major League Baseball Outfielder who played for both the New York Mets and New York Yankees. Lyle Stuart (1922–2006), independent publisher of controversial books. Chien-Ming Wang (born 1980), pitcher for the Washington Nationals. Mr. Richard Feder, a fictional person who often wrote to Roseanne Roseannadanna, a character played by Gilda Radner on Saturday Night Live

Sources

"History of Bergen County, New Jersey, 1630-1923;" by "Westervelt, Frances A. (Frances Augusta), 1858-1942."

"Municipal Incorporations of the State of New Jersey (according to Counties)" prepared by the Division of Local Government, Department of the Treasury (New Jersey); December 1, 1958.

References

External links

The Borough's web site

Fort Lee Police Department

Fort Lee Volunteer Fire Department

Fort Lee Volunteer Ambulance Corps

Fort Lee School District

Data for the Fort Lee School District, National Center for Education Statistics

Fort Lee Online community web site

Fort Lee Film Commission web site

an enlarged view of road jurisdiction at the Fort Lee approaches to the George Washington Bridge

Category:Fort Lee, New Jersey Category:Populated places in Bergen County, New Jersey Category:Boroughs in New Jersey Lee