New Jersey in The 20th Century - 1950s and 1960s

1950s and 1960s

In the 1950s, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey planned and built the Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal in the cities of Newark and Elizabeth. This was the first port in the world to containerize due to the innovation of Malcolm McLean and the founding of the Sea-Land Corporation. The newly opened port quickly made the docks of Brooklyn, Lower Manhattan and Hoboken obsolete. In 1985 the port was the busiest in the world.

In the early 1950s, the cities of New Jersey began experiencing urban decay. Governments attempted to intervene with the urban decay, focusing on the office Gateway Center and several other projects. However, suburbs continued to grow. Revolts occurred, often due to frustration about the poor urban conditions. As urban decay started a gap between the wealthier suburbs and poorer cities, state income taxes were implemented to stop the gap. Around the 1970s, urbanization started increasing again.

During the 1960s, many African Americans felt disenfranchised. This feeling was exacerbated by police forces, which often sided against African Americans. This tension led to race riots, the first of which occurred in Jersey City on August 2, 1964, causing heavy damage to the Jersey City area. 71 stores were damaged and 46 people were injured. From August 11 to August 13, 1964, similar riots occurred in Paterson and Elizabeth. In the Paterson riot, twenty stores and other buildings were damaged, and eight people were injured. In the Elizabeth riot, six people were injured and seventeen stores were damaged. In the aftermath of these riots, 135 people were arrested.

In the middle of the Cold War from June 23 to June 25, 1967, president Lyndon Johnson met with Soviet premier Alexei Kosygin in Glassboro, New Jersey at the Glassboro State College. No specific agreements were reached, especially in the area of restrictions on anti-ballistic missile systems. However, the meeting helped improve the strained relationships between the Soviet Union and the US.

Also in the summer of 1967, urban residents, primarily African Americans, rioted for 5 days in Newark and the neighboring city of Plainfield. These two riots are known as the 1967 Newark riots and the 1967 Plainfield riots. The cause was the feeling that African Americans were being disenfranchised. 24 people died in the riots, and nearly 1,600 were arrested. The riots are often cited as a major factor in the decline of Newark and its neighboring communities, as many residents fled to the suburbs following the riots.