Page Intro

Camden is a 

By the end of the nineteenth century Camden began to industrialize with the foundation of the Campbell Soup Company by Joseph Campbell. Other companies such as the New York Shipbuilding Corporation and the Victor Talking Machine Company opened their operations and helped Camden move into an industrial economy.^[5] At the beginning of the twentieth century Camden's population was mostly comprised of European immigrants. German, British, and Irish immigrants, as well as African Americans from the south made up the majority of the city in the mid nineteenth century. Around the turn of the twentieth century Italian and Eastern European immigrants had become the majority of the population.^[6]

The city was consistently prosperous throughout the Great Depression and World War II. After World War II Camden manufacturers began closing their factories and moving out of the city. Camden's cultural history has been greatly affected by both its economic and social position over the years. With the loss of manufacturing jobs came a sharp decline in population.^[5] Suburbanization also had an effect on the drop in population. Civil unrest and crime became common in Camden with the decline in population. Most notable of these crimes were the Camden riots of 1971. The riots came in response to the death of Horacio Jimenez, a Puerto Rican motorist who was killed by two white police officers.^[5]

Camden's industrial and post-industrial history gave rise to distinct neighborhoods and cultural groups that have effected the status of the city over the course of the 20th century. Over the years Camden has made many attempts to restore its economic stature. In the 1980s Mayor Randy Primas campaigned for the city to adopt two different nuisance industries: a prison and a trash-to-steam incinerator.^[5] Despite opposition from Camden residents the Riverfront State Prison was opened in 1985 and the trash-to-steam plant opened in 1989. With the addition of the trash-to-steam plant Camden has faced numerous air and water pollution issues. Camden is also the home of a waste-water treatment facility. In the 1970s, dangerous pollutants were found in the wells from which many Camden citizens received their household water. These pollutants decreased property values in Camden and caused health problems among the city’s residents. Pollution is an ongoing issue that local nonprofits are trying to solve.

Camden is home to hospitals, schools, and attractions. The Camden waterfront holds four tourist attractions, the

In 1626 Fort Nassau was established by the Dutch West India Company in the area that is now knows as Camden, New Jersey. Europeans settled along the Delaware River, attempting to control the local fur trade. Throughout the 17th century more Europeans arrived in the area, developing it and making improvements. After the restoration period the land was controlled by nobles who served under Kind Charles II. ln 1673 the land was sold off to a group of New Jersey Quakers.^[6] The growth of the colony was the result of Philadelphia, a Quaker colony directly across from Camden along the Delaware River. In the Ferry systems were established to facilitate trade between Fort Nassau and Philadelphia. The ferry system operated along the east side of the Delaware River. The ferry system built by William Royden was located along Cooper Street and was turned over to Daniel Cooper in 1695.^[6] The creation of the ferry system resulted in the creation of small settlements along the Delaware River which would eventually develop into Camden.

The initial structures and settlements that formed Camden were largely established by three families: The Coopers, The Kaighns, and the Mickels. The Cooper family had the greatest impact on the formation of Camden. In 1773 Jacob Cooper developed some of the land he had inherited through his family into a “townsite.”^[6] It was Jacob Cooper who gave this town the name Camden after Charles Pratt, the Earl of Camden.^[6] The lands that these families owned would eventually be combined to create the future city.^[6]

19th century

For over 150 years, Camden served as a secondary economic and transportation hub for the Philadelphia area. But that status began to change in the early 19th century. Camden was incorporated as a city on February 13, 1828, from portions of  

Camden and Amboy Railroad, was chartered in Camden in 1830. The Camden and Amboy Railroad allowed travelers to travel between New York City and Philadelphia via ferry terminals in South Amboy, New Jersey and Camden. The railroad terminated on the Camden waterfront, and passengers were ferried across the Delaware River to their final Philadelphia destination. The Camden and Amboy Railroad opened in 1834 and helped to spur an increase in population and commerce in Camden.^[11]

Horse ferries, or team boats served Camden in the early 1800s. The ferries connected Camden and other Southern New Jersey towns to Philadelphia. Ferry systems allowed Camden to generate business and economic growth.^[6] "These businesses included lumber dealers, manufacturers of wooden shingles, pork sausage manufacturers, candle factories, coachmaker shops that manufactured carriages and wagons, tanneries, blacksmiths and harness makers."^[6] The Cooper's Ferry Daybook, 1819–1824, documenting Camden's Point Pleasant Teamboat, survives to this day.^[12] Originally a suburban town with ferry service to Philadelphia, Camden evolved into its own city. Until 1844 Camden was a part of Gloucester County. In 1840 the city's population had reached 3,371 and Camden appealed to state legislature, which resulted in the creation of Camden County in 1844.^[13]

The poet Walt Whitman spent his later years in Camden. He bought a house on Mickle Street in March 1884. Whitman spent the remainder of his life in Camden and died in 1892 of a stroke. Whitman was a prominent member of the Camden community at the end of the nineteenth century.^[14]

Camden quickly became an industrialized city in the later half of the nineteenth century. In 1860 Census takers recorded eighty factories in the city and the number of factories grew to 125 by 1870.

At the turn of the 20th century Camden became an industrialized city. At the height of Camden's industrialization, 12,000 workers were employed at RCA,[16] while another 30,000 worked at New York Shipbuilding.^[17] RCA had 23 out of 25 of its factories inside Camden. Campbell Soup was also a major employer.^[18] In addition to major corporations Camden housed many small manufacturing companies as well as commercial offices.^[5]

From 1899 to 1967, Camden was the home of

In 1919 plans for the Delaware River Bridge were enacted as a means to reduce ferry traffic between Camden and Philadelphia. The bridge was estimated to cost $29 million, but the total cost at the end of the project was $37,103,765.42. New Jersey and Pennsylvania would each pay half of the final cost for the bridge.^[24] The bridge was opened at midnight on July 1, 1926. Thirty years later, in 1956 the bridge was renamed to the Benjamin Franklin Bridge.^[24]

During the 1930s Camden faced a decline in economic prosperity due to the Great Depression. By the mid-1930s the city had to pay its workers in scrip because they could not pay them in currency.^[5] Camden's industrial foundation kept the city from going bankrupt. Major corporations such as Campbell's soup, New York Shipbuilding Corporation and RCA Victor employed close to 25,000 people through the depression years.^[5] New companies were also being created during this time. On June 6, 1933, the city hosted the first drive-in movie.^[25][26]

Camden's ethnic demographic changed drastically at the beginning of the twentieth century. German, British, and Irish immigrants made up the majority of the city at the beginning of the second half of the nineteenth century. By 1920 Italian and Eastern European immigrants had become the majority of the population.^[13] African Americans had also been present in camden since the 1830's. The migration of African Americans from the south increased during World War II.^[5] The different ethnic groups began to form segregated communities within the city formed around religious organizations. Communities formed around figures such as Tony Mecca from the Italian neighborhood, Mario Rodriguez from the Puerto Rican neighborhood, and Ulysses Wiggins from the African American neighborhood.^[5]

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