Editing Hillside, New Jersey (section)

==History==
Hillside was created from parcels of land carved out of neighboring [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]], [[Elizabeth, New Jersey|Elizabeth]], and [[Union Township, Union County, New Jersey|Union]]. It originally contained the farms of Woodruff, Conant and Saybrook. Local streets still bear their names.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}}

Hillside was incorporated shortly after the appearance of [[Halley's Comet]] in 1910, and for that reason, the [[mascot|team nickname]] of [[Hillside High School (New Jersey)|Hillside High School]] was made the "Comets" when the high school opened in 1940. Several local businesses take the name "Comet" for the same reason.{{citation needed|date=December 2022}}

The Hillside Historical Society was established in the 1980s in the Woodruff home on Conant Street, perhaps the township's oldest. The Woodruff House and Eaton Store Museum is operated and maintained by the Hillside Historical Society. Purchased by the society in 1978, the house has been faithfully restored to its original grandeur. The Woodruff House spans three centuries in one structure, including the original 1735 building, the 1790 addition, the 1890s kitchen and the 1900s store.<ref>[http://www.woodruffhouse.org/overview.htm Historical Overview], Woodruff House and Eaton Store Museum. Accessed October 12, 2013.</ref> The society has also added to the grounds an authentic post and beam barn, a Phil Rizzuto and All Sports Museum honoring the Hillside legend as well as an archive to house the many documents the society has obtained over the years.

Jean-Ray Turner, a reporter for the ''Elizabeth Daily Journal'', wrote ''Along the Upper Road'' in the 1970s, a book of the history of Hillside.

Hillside has been the home of [[Bristol-Myers Squibb]]. [[Lionel Trains]] were manufactured from 1929 to 1974 at a factory located in Hillside that employed as many as 2,000 employees.<ref>Hatala, Greg. [http://www.nj.com/business/index.ssf/2013/12/made_in_jersey_lionel_trains_-_chuggin_around_the_christmas_tree.html#incart_river#incart_hbx#incart_best-of "Made in Jersey: Lionel trains - chuggin' around the Christmas tree"], ''[[The Star-Ledger]]'', December 24, 2013. Accessed December 24, 2013. "A plant was built in Hillside in 1929 exclusively to manufacture toy trains; business grew so much that the factory was expanded in 1940, 1941, 1950 and again in 1952. At its peak, the factory employed more than 2,000. Lionel Trains were produced independently from 1901 to 1969, when the rights to the product line were sold to General Mills following Lionel's bankruptcy. Continuing financial difficulties led to the closing of the Hillside plant in 1974."</ref> The town thrived for decades and reached an economic peak in the 1960s. Blue collar workers who lived primarily in the central part of town were employed in local manufacturing concerns. White collar workers established the neighborhood known as Westminster where Yankee shortstop and broadcaster [[Phil Rizzuto]] lived for most of his adult life, until his death. That section of town also included the private [[Pingry School]] for boys (which left the township) and is now the East Campus of [[Kean University]].<ref>[http://www.kean.edu/conferences/business_meetings.asp Business & Meetings] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130619085811/http://www.kean.edu/conferences/business_meetings.asp |date=2013-06-19 }}, [[Kean University]]. Accessed October 12, 2013.Located in the renovated East Campus building, formerly the Pingry School, featuring a small kitchen and views of the Butterfly Garden."</ref>

In the 1950s and 1960s the township was approximately one-half Jewish, many of whom lived either in Westminster or in the area of Hillside near Chancellor Avenue, adjacent to the [[Weequahic, Newark, New Jersey|Weequahic]] section of Newark, which was the early home of comedian [[Jerry Lewis]] and writer [[Philip Roth]] (''Portnoy's Complaint'').

In the early 1950s the township established Conant Park, its largest. The park is bounded by the Elizabeth River and Conant Street. At the rear area of the park near Pingry School was the boundary of the Kean Estate, the boyhood home of Governor [[Thomas Kean]] (1982–1990). The wealthy Kean family also donated the land on Morris Avenue and helped to establish Newark Normal College in 1885, which was renamed Kean College, and later [[Kean University]], in the family's honor.<ref>[http://www.kean.edu/~keanhist/keanhistory.htm 150 Years: Kean's History] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110817183535/http://www.kean.edu/~keanhist/keanhistory.htm |date=2011-08-17 }}, [[Kean University]]. Accessed August 10, 2011.</ref> Also in the 1950s the Town Hall, Police Headquarters and Municipal Library were constructed at the corner of Liberty and Hillside Avenues.

Township organizations include [[Rotary International]], [[Kiwanis]], [[Knights of Columbus]], [[Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks|Elks]], the Hillside Industrial Association, the Hillside Business and Professional Women's Club, the Republican Club and the Democratic Club, as well as a number of ethnic clubs and associations.

In 1991, police from both Hillside and Newark fired nearly 40 shots at a van that had rammed a Hillside police vehicle after a high-speed chase. The pursuit had started after the van had been reported stolen at gunpoint in Newark and was being followed by three Newark police cars before crossing into Hillside. Two of the people inside the vehicle were killed and four of the five other passengers were wounded, though the Union County Prosecutor indicated that there was no clear explanation for why the police had started shooting.<ref>Sullivan, Joseph F. [https://www.nytimes.com/1991/06/11/nyregion/question-in-hillside-chase-what-caused-police-to-fire.html "Question in Hillside Chase: What Caused Police to Fire?"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', June 11, 1991. Accessed August 10, 2011.</ref> The Reverend [[Al Sharpton]] held a rally outside Town Hall on Hillside Avenue demanding that the police officers involved in the shootings should be prosecuted for their actions.<ref>via [[Associated Press]]. [http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=AC&p_theme=ac&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EAEA90F5862800C&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM "Sharpton, 250 Protest Hillside Police Shootings"], ''[[The Press of Atlantic City]]'', June 13, 1991. Accessed August 10, 2011. "The Rev. Al Sharpton led about 250 people in a march on City Hall and police headquarters Wednesday to demand that the police officers who killed a pregnant teenager in a stolen van be prosecuted."</ref>