Pottery works, Trenton
The beds of marl found in the Coastal Plain have already been mentioned. This region also contains very valuable beds of white sand and fine clay. This sand is used in the making of glass, and has caused the establishment of many glass factories in the southwestern part of the state. Molding sand is also found in great quantity. The most extensive beds of clay are found in Mercer and Middlesex counties. In the former they are used in the making of pottery and in the latter in the making of brick, terra cotta, tile, and other clay products. The enormous industries of Trenton and of Perth Amboy and its vicinity are due to the presence of these clays. For the finer pottery, clays brought from other states or countries are used. Much clay is shipped from this state to other states.
Manufacturing.—New Jersey is an important manufacturing state. In this state the manufacturing industries have been developed in a remarkable degree by a combination of conditions and causes. Very early in the history of New Jersey the people of the state were forced by their own needs and the demands of their neighbors to establish manufacturing, and thus this industry has the advantage of many years of growth. The state is rich in certain important natural resources, which have been mentioned. It has profited greatly by its nearness to the coal and iron fields of Pennsylvania and to the two great cities of New York and Philadelphia, with their enormous demands for manufactured products. The number of intelligent and skillful workers in the state is unusually large. The facilities for rapid transportation, both of raw materials from all sources and of finished products to all markets, are unusually abundant. The navigable waters which fringe the state, and the transcontinental railroad systems with their branches, which cross it, facilitate shipments to every part of the world.
Among the most important manufactures of New Jersey are refined copper, silk and silk goods, foundry and machine shop products, petroleum products, packed meats, woolen and felt goods, wire, leather and leather goods, electrical machinery, tobacco manufactures, chemicals, and ships. (See Table II for other manufactures.)
| Warping silk, silk mills, Paterson | Weaving silk, Paterson |
Nearly one sixth of the people of the state are engaged in the manufacturing industries. Only four states, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Hampshire, show a larger proportion of workers engaged in manufacturing. Although New Jersey is forty-fifth in area and ninth in population, this state is sixth in the total value of manufactured goods, first in the manufacture of silk and silk goods, in the smelting and refining of copper, in the manufacture of oil cloth and linoleum and of sewing machines, second in the manufacture of chemicals, rubber goods, pottery, terra cotta, and fine clay products, and of paint and varnish, third in the manufacture of electrical machinery and supplies, and fourth in the manufacture of soap and gold and silver articles.
TRAVEL AND TRANSPORTATION
In the early days of the state communication between the settlements was by Indian trails, which, as travel increased, expanded into roads. Settlements on the coast were also connected by sailing vessels. The roads gradually increased in number and length as the interior of the state was developed. Little effort was made, however, toward keeping the public roads in good condition. The difficulties of travel and transportation led to the construction of many "turnpikes," or roads built by private companies, which charged tolls for their use. With very few exceptions these have been made public roads.
In the early part of the nineteenth century the foundations of transportation by steamboat, canals, and railroads were laid. The Morris Canal, from Phillipsburg to Jersey City, was projected and constructed to bring anthracite coal from Pennsylvania to the iron forges of northern New Jersey and to New York Bay, and to connect the towns along its route with the city of New York. The Delaware and Raritan Canal, from Bordentown to New Brunswick, the Camden and Amboy Railroad, and the New Jersey Railroad were constructed in order to increase transportation facilities between Philadelphia and New York harbor. Now all parts of the state are connected with each other and with those great centers by many railroad lines. The importance of our railroads has been much increased by the development of the West and by the geographical location of the state in the path of direct communication between the western states and the city of New York. All the trunk lines from the Middle West, with one exception, pass through New Jersey, and have terminals in Jersey City, Hoboken, and Weehawken. The state has 2464 miles of railroad, a greater mileage compared with its area than any other state. Besides, there are 1294 miles of electric railway which traverse all parts of the state and connect all important points.
