Newark, the largest city in New Jersey, known for being the state's industrial hub, also offers plenty to see and do for the visitor interested in arts, sports, history, music and fine dining.
Philadelphia from the southwest, major inroads include the New Jersey Turnpike,
Garden State Parkway and US 1-9. All provide access to State Road 21,
the major artery to its center.
Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, 89 Ridge Street: The fifth-largest
Cathedral in the United States-also registered with the New Jersey Historical
Society and the National Historical Society-- had its cornerstone set in 1899 and
welcomed the public beginning in 1928. Both the faithful and the curious
visited in spite of the lack of heating or air conditioning in the building until
1954, when the church was finally completed.
This jewel in the city's crown boasts 232-feet-high main front towers,
framing its French Gothic facade and exterior walls made of Vermont
rockport granite. The interior is just as breathtaking, boasting Munich stained-
glass rosette windows,limestone walls and Italian marble medallion carvings
done on-site by artisans during the Roaring Twenties.
Branch Brook Park: across the way from Sacred Heart, breezes blow gently
through the first county park established in the United States, one of Essex
County "˜s largest and Newark's finest, accessible from Route 280 as well as
Bloomfield and Park Avenues. A quarter-mile wide, its green space stretches for four miles and is home to a lake, pedestrian paths and bridges,
large open meadows and thick stands of trees. Remnants of the city's old reservoir system are on site, and athletes can unwind on Branch Brook's tennis courts,ball fields and playgrounds. In the spring, the park hosts an annual Cherry
Blossom Festival. With more cherry blossom trees than Washington, D.C.,
the event rivals its cousin on the Potomac.
Essex County Courthouse, 50 West Market Street: Nestled on the triangle
formed where Market Street and Springfield Avenue meet, the old Courthouse
is a Historical Site built in 1903 and recently renovated. Architect Cass Gilbert,
who designed the U.S. Supreme Court building, Washington, D.C., also drew
the plans for this landmark.
The entire building is a work of art, inside and out: the exterior in a Greco-Roman style with soaring pillars, the interior ornamentation including Tiffany
glass skylights and murals by Edwin Blashfield, artist who decorated the
dome of the Library of Congress. Outside, at the bottom of the courthouse
steps, sits a restored statue of a seated Abraham Lincoln by renowned
sculptor Gutzon Burglum, most noted as the man who carved Mount
Rushmore.
Newark Museum, 49 Washington Street: Just north of the Courthouse,
in the Downtown Arts District, stands another of Newark's architectural
gems, built in 1909. The Museum houses Newark Planetarium and
an extensive collection of natural science and art exhibits from the
Americas, Africa, the Pacific and Asia. It is most noted for its astounding
Tibetan room.
On its grounds are also the Alice Ransom Dreyfus Memorial Garden,
the Newark Fire Museum and the city's oldest schoolhouse. A gift shop
and cafe are also on-site.
Newark Public Library, 5 Washington Street: Just a stroll down the
block from the Museum, the Library features the James Brown African-
American Room, named for a turn-of-the-century librarian in charge.
Special collections offer hefty databases for genealogical research,
vintage photography and include New Jersey newspapers on microfilm
dating back to the 1700's.
Main exhibits change frequently. touching on subjects like female artists,
world wars and global children's literature. Whatever is on display, the
Library captures Newark's diverse multi-ethnic fabric.
NJPAC, 1 Center Street: the New Jersey Performing Arts Center is the right
place to catch local, national and international talent and ongoing special
events. Home of Newark's Arts Ed program for up-and-coming city youth,
the venue offers Prudential Hall, massive and elegant with four tiers, orchestra
and Grand Tier. Its Victoria Theater is smaller but no less impressive.
Newark Symphony Hall, 1020 Broad Street: Built in 1925 as a Masonic
temple, it switched over in the Fifties to secular use as the Mosque Theater.
Influenced by Greek and English styling, the grand old building gave birth
to the New Jersey State Opera, Symphony Orchestra and the renowned
Newark Boys Chorus. It is also home base of the African Globe Theatre
Works.
Newark Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium, Bridge Street and Rte.231 S.:
"The Den", with its 6,000 seats, is where Atlantic League minors Bears
prowl to full stands April through September. The state-of-the-art facility
is one of Newark's newest attractions; the Clubhouse is open on weekdays.
Off-season, the Bears' Street Team is visible for special events.
Pennsylvania Station, 1 Penn Plaza W, Market Street & Raymond Blvd.;
Known to the locals as "Penn Station", the Neo-Classical, Art Deco structure
is the core of the city's rail transport system. Within walking distance of
Bears Stadium, the depot was designed by the firm of McKim,Mead & White,
who also built legendary Penn Station in New York City. Large windows
illuminate the interior, with its walls decorated with murals and medallions
in bas-relief that tell the story of the history of transportation.
Ironbound Historical District, Ferry Street: Just east of the station past
Market Street, the Ironbound emerges, an industrial working community
that got its name from being bordered on all sides by railroad tracks. Its
streets are safe, its inhabitants proud and friendly; the largest Portuguese
immigrant population in the US resides here.
Ferry Street, the Ironbound's main thoroughfare, is loaded with wonderful
restaurants, cafes, bakeries and botanicas. Welcoming shopkeepers and
authentic music make a walking tour of the Ironbound the perfect place
to end a visitor's day in Newark.
