People of Paterson

Lou Costello and Gaetano Federici were just two of the many people who have called Paterson home

The Paterson Museum

The histories of Paterson and its National Park include people from many different places and backgrounds. Explore different pieces of the puzzle by following the links below:

 

Oral Histories

History is more than just names, dates, places, and events. Through stories, experiences, and anecdotes, historians can construct a social history of an era, preserving astounding and everyday events from those who lived them.

Explore the stories of the people of Paterson through our Oral History Project.

 

Alexander Hamilton

One of America's "Founding Fathers," Alexander Hamilton is one of Paterson's literal founders. Through the Society for the Establishment of Useful Manufacturing (S.U.M), Hamilton's experimentation with a business and industrial economy to support the new nation were founded on the banks of the Passaic River around the Great Falls.

Study his story by reading the National Park Service introductory article on Alexander Hamilton's life.

 

Slavery at the River's Edge

Explore Paterson's history as an active part of the Underground Railroad with "Slavery at the River's Edge," produced by historian and Patersonian Jimmy Richardson.

 

Catholina Lambert

Born in England, Catholina Lambert immigrated to the United States and became the head of one of Paterson's massive silk manufacturers. Explore his life and the castle which bears his name.

 

Gaetano Federici

Born in 1880 in Castelgrande in southern Italy, Gaetano Federici emigrated to the United States at age seven. Settling with his family in Paterson, over the course of a sixty-year career he completed over forty public monuments in the small radius around Paterson's City Hall alone, earning the nickname “sculptor laureate of Paterson.”

Today, Federici’s sculptures, plaques and lunette carvings can be found on city property, on the grounds of private properties and churches, and in galleries such as the Federici Studio Collection at Passaic County Community College or under the care of the Passaic County Historical Society.

Take the self guided Federici Walking Tour to explore his work & legacy.

 

Larry Doby

The first black player in the American League, Larry Doby endured the prejudices of the Jim Crow era and helped dismantle them. His sports career started at Paterson's Eastside High School as a skilled multi-sport athlete, where he was drafted by the Negro National League’s Newark Eagles. From Paterson's Hinchliffe Stadium, he moved onward and continued breaking records with the Cleveland Indians (now Cleveland Guardians) in the American League, and in 1947 fully desegregated baseball shortly after Jackie Robinson broke the National League color barrier. An acclaimed athlete and mentor, Doby was elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on March 3, 1998.

Visit our multimedia page to watch "The Legendary Larry Doby" and learn more about this pioneering Patersonian; review his record at the Baseball Hall of Fame.

 

Rubin "Hurricane" Carter

For members of a generation, Paterson is synonymous with a song. Explore the larger story of the central figure of Bob Dylan's protest song: Rubin "Hurricane" Carter.