"In 1669, lord proprietors Sir George Carteret and Lord John Berkeley awarded a land grant to Capt. John Berry. The territory extended approximately from Hackensack to Newark between the Hackensack, Passaic, and Saddle Rivers. At the time, the Lenni Lenape Indians inhabited the area. The tract was gradually divided into farms, and by the early 1700s, the area that is now Wood-Ridge began to appear in county records. An old Indian trail extending from the northern part of Bergen County to points south was laid out by Berry as a roadway c. 1707. Named Polifly Road, it is now known in Wood-Ridge as Hackensack Street." The land became part of the township of New Barbadoes. In 1825, when Lodi Township was formed, it split off from New Barbadoes. Wood-Ridge and its surrounding areas became a part of Lodi Township. Wood-Ridge was an area used as a hunting ground by the Indians. Artifacts found in the vicinity lead historians to believe that the Indians inhabited land closer to the surrounding rivers." "The eastern section of the land consisted of marshes and swamps, but upland from these were dense woods. Chestnut, hickory, maple, and ash were among the variety of trees found. When the land was cleared, the soil was found to be rich for farming." "By the early 19th century, farms began to appear, with some of the earliest names found in borough records being Schoonmaker, Van Bussum, Brinkerhoff, Anderson, Berry, Engel, Terhune, and Vreeland." "At first the farms were established to sustain the inhabitants and the surplus was either bartered or sold. By the time of the American Revolution, farms had begun to take produce to markets in Newark and New York City, transporting the crops by horse-drawn wagons and by boats in nearby creeks that sailed down the Hackensack and Hudson Rivers." "Besides farming, inn keeping became one of the oldest types of businesses. The first known tavern in Wood-Ridge was the Windisch Hotel, located on old Polifly Road. John Adelung built a hotel in the southeast corner of the town after the railroad came to Wood-Ridge c. 1870. His hotel sat across from the depot, along with a few stores and the Lobravico Cigar Factory." "By 1890, shops began to appear up the hill. A bakery was established on the southeast end of Hackensack and Center Streets, followed by a butcher shop, and a small grocery store. Industry began in Wood-Ridge as early as 1880, when the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey built a large pumping station on the west side of town where the Curtiss-Wright Company would later stand. Standard Oil had established a pipeline extending from the oil fields of Pennsylvania to the refineries in New Jersey, providing pumping stations about every 20 miles and ending in Bayonne. The Wood-Ridge plant was the last on its line." "In 1889, Anton Molinari built a house and factory for the manufacture of surgical instruments on the site where Assumption School now stands. Other industries followed, but Wood-Ridge remained predominantly a residential town, as it still is today. Around this time the people began to consider forming a separate town, and in 1894, the borough of Wood-Ridge was incorporated." Recognition: This abbreviated history of Wood-Ridge is quoted by permission from the book "Images of America Wood-Ridge", Copyright (c) 2004 by Patricia Helbig Sloan and Catherine Cassidy for the Wood-Ridge Historical Society. Link: Wood-Ridge Historical Society
From the review of plans for signs, awnings and other facade changes on buildings; To administering a grant program to help business and property owners finance those changes , To running a summer Jersey Fresh Farmers' Market, the Taste of Rutherford, Dining under the Stars, and our Holiday Festival; To developing promotional materials and distributing them; To purchasing holiday decorations for the downtown; To consulting with new and prospective businesses and helping them find their way through the Borough's permit process; To managing welcome/ribbon cutting ceremonies for those new business; To hiring staff to help businesses sweep their sidewalks; To purchasing extra garbage cans, cigarette urns, and signage for the downtown; And more...the RDP works to help keep downtown Rutherford as attractuve and successful as possible.
The William Carlos Williams Center is a private, not for profit performing arts and cinema complex located in downtown Rutherford, New Jersey. The center was named after the Pulitzer prize winning poet and physician William Carlos Williams. The building that the center occupies was originally built in the 1920s as a Vaudeville theater known as the Rivoli. The Rivoli soon started showing silent movies and eventually "talkies". The theater enjoyed success until a fire destroyed part of the building in 1977. In 1978 a group of philanthropists started the Williams Center Project which open the Center in 1982. The center currently has two live theaters, three cinemas, and an open air meeting gallery.Current UseOn July 29th 2016, the three cinemas and downstairs floor reopened for first run movies after successful fundraising to switch from 35mm projectors to digital. This includes a refurbished concession stand, lobby and a party room which has now been turned into an Arcade.
With more than 20 years servicing families in the Bergen County area, Dr. Fruchtman has the expertise and experience to offer your family the quality comprehensive eyecare they deserve.
Scott Shacknow DMD Dr. Scott Shacknow has been serving the East Rutherford area for almost 30 years. After graduating from Lafayette College in 1981, he received his dental degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University dental school in 1985. There he received The Senior Honors Teaching Fellowship in prosthetic dentistry, and The Dental Materials Award in restorative dentistry. He then completed a residency in general dentistry at the prestigious Albert Einstein University Hospital in New York City. Dr. Shacknow takes many hours of continuing education to stay current. Dr. Shacknow considers his patients his friends and thinks that most of them feel that way about him as well. His main practice philosophy is to take care of his patients as if they were his family!