page_title: Paulsboro, New Jersey
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Paulsboro, New Jersey / History
caption_attribution_description: paulsboro_aerialIMG_0441
context_page_description: Paulsboro is a borough in Gloucester County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 6,097, reflecting a decline of 63 from the 6,160 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn declined by 417 from the 6,577 counted in the 1990 Census.
  Paulsboro was formed as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 2, 1904, from portions of Greenwich Township. It was named for Samuel Phillip Paul, son of a settler.
context_section_description: Paulsboro is the home of Fort Billingsport, the first land purchase made by the United States, acquired the day after the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence.
  Paulsboro is the location of the Tinicum Island Rear Range Lighthouse, first lit on the night of December 31, 1880. In 1997 a local citizen's group was established with the purpose of providing tours and public access to the structure. The lighthouse is one of New Jersey's few publicly accessible aids to navigation and is the centerpiece of Paulsboro's cultural revitalization.
  The East Jefferson Street railroad bridge over Mantua Creek was built in 1917 and rebuilt in 1940 for the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines (PRSL). It is now part of Conrail's Penns Grove Secondary. On November 30, 2012 it buckled, causing seven cars of a freight train to derail. One of the four tanker cars that fell into the creek was punctured, leaking thousands of gallons of vinyl chloride. Homes in the borough had to be evacuated and dozens of people went to hospitals as a precautionary measure due to exposure to the chemicals. Some residents in the area have filed suit against Conrail and CSX in Pennsylvania State Court having "complained about respiratory and bronchial related illnesses, headaches, eye and skin irritations and multiple other symptoms." In March 2013, Conrail announced that the bridge would be replaced with an expected September 2014 operational date. Normally, between March 1 and November 30 the bridge is left in the open position for maritime traffic and closed when trains approach. It will remain locked in the closed position until the bridge is replaced. In September 2013, another less serious derailment took place along the Paulsboro Gibbstown border, with one car leaving the tracks on a train consisting mostly of empty tanker cars.
caption: Aerial view of 2012 derailment
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