Official Name: New Jersey

Name Meaning: New Jersey was named by British colonists after the island of Jersey, situated in the English Channel.

Nickname: The Garden State

Constitution Ratified: 1787

Statehood: December 18, 1787 (3rd State)

Capital: Trenton

Total Number of Counties: 21

Largest City: Newark

Largest County (by population): Bergen

Population (as of 2018): 8.908 million

History: New Jersey was home to many Native American tribes before the arrival of European explorers. In the early 1600s, Dutch and Swedish explorers established the first settlements in the area. Several English settlers arrived later, ultimately outnumbering the Dutch and the Swedes. In 1664, the English took control, declaring the land a territory of England. It was named in honor of the island Jersey in the English Channel. A century later, New Jersey was one of thirteen colonies that revolted against the British, starting the American Revolutionary War. After the colonists overthrew British rule, they declared their independence as a new nation in 1776. New Jersey was the 3rd state to join the United States of America on December 18, 1787.

Fast Facts:

• The Atlantic City Boardwalk is the longest in the world at nearly 6 miles, and the oldest boardwalk in the United States.
• New Jersey is the “Diner Capital” of the world with an estimated 525 diners to choose from!
• Add “sports mecca” to New Jersey’s accolades. The first official baseball game in the U.S. was played in Hoboken in 1846. The first intercollegiate football game was played in 1869 in New Brunswick between Rutgers and Princeton Universities. The first professional basketball game was played in Trenton between the Trenton YMCA and Brooklyn YMCA in 1896.
• New Jersey has 7 shopping malls in a 25 square-mile radius, more malls in one area anywhere!
• The Holland Tunnel is the first mechanically ventilated underwater tunnel in the world. Opened in 1927, the tunnel connects New Jersey and New York under the Hudson River.
• Saltwater taffy was created in Atlantic City in 1883. Dentures be damned.
• The street names in the Monopoly board game are named after actual streets in Atlantic City.
• The tallest water tower in the world, the Union Watersphere, stands at 212 feet tall in Union.