The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-04-09
THE new JERSEY SUBURBS.
RAPID GROTTH or THE HIGH
LAND SETTLEMENTS.

NlAes FOpulbuVu uut tI inc wv
The influences which govern the growth
Of a city like New York are, Of course
exceedingly complex Many Of them are,
indeed. 80 little UNDERWOOD as TO escape
recognition. It Is evident that the popu-
lation IL growing at an unprecedented
rate. The city, however draws It's sus-
tenance and receives it's power Of expsn-
sion from III, industry Of the nation as a
whole What change Is taking place In
the country's economic life to make room
for an annual addition to the army Of wage
eRrners In New York exceeding the entire
population Of a city OF the rank Of Albany
A few years ago it was argued that the
future expansion Of the country's princi-
pal seaport would be comparatively slow,
because all the Western lands had been
taken up for settlement, shutting out the,
prospect Of new interior markets for manu-
featured products, Instead, the growth
OF New York at present is on a larger scale
than 1t has ever been in the past
Perhaps the city is drawing renewed
vitality for the development of the nation
into a manufacturing community. Here
tofore the countrys chief source OF wealth
has been agriculture. II the nation Is now
turning it's capital and energy mainly to-
ward manufactures and commerce, then
the accretion Of population in New York
Is likely to be accelerated even beyond
its present rate. Experience has shown
that In nation passing from agriculture
to manufacturing industries the great
centres of distribution grow faster than the
| country as a whole
In the absence Of an actual census, II
would perhaps be impossible TO determine
whether OF not the present growth OF New
York exceeds that OF the decennial period
ended in 1880 except by observing the
pressure Of population upon housing
| That a great speculation in real estate
would follow the opening OF the subway
was expected. II was not foreseen, how
! ever. that the huge tracts Of land in upper
! Manhattan and The Bronx made accessible
/ by the rapid transit road would be promptly
/ reserved for tenement houses.
That they have been appropriated for
/ this purpose ia very extraordinary cir
/ cumstance, 1t implies a larger recent
/ addition to the tenantry drawn from the
/ laboring classes than the closest Observers
were aware Of. If the buying ant build
| ing along the subway had been an isolated
! MOVEMENT II ulbHA ioN' hS'Ai a. ''N'' W.
/ for, IN sTite of it's special clj -acter,
/ on the theory that II was the QUITO me of
/ wild speculation. 1t is not an isolated
movement however. Throughout the en-
/ tire metropolitan AREA every important
residence community is making unusual
efforts TO meet require ents for new hous-
I ing.
boom is that the MIDDLE classes are be ing
! crowded out Of Manhattan and Tho Bronx.
! Though widely distributed, and oonse-
ouently less conspicuous, the growth OF
| the middle classes, as indicated by housing
| conditions In the suburbs, Is hardly less
/ notable than the growth of the Cty's tone
ment house population.
The great building activity in Brooklyn
! and Queens might be accounted for by
the speculative influence of proposed ra pid
! transit improvements. The expansion
no viewer. Of an important group Of subur is
like that IN the slopes and plateaus OF the
Orange Mountains cannot be Interpreted
| in this way.
Tho communities there gro purely resi-
dental and are made up almost wholly Of
/ commuters T. Now York. They have no
expectation of any radical change in their
/ transportation service, which i as good
! now "a tho steam railways can make It.
Their progress Is unqucstionsbiy disasso-
! ciated from realty speculation, resulting
from conditions in New York and from the
Rttractv mCsi Of their location.
The majority Of them are on First and
Second mountains First Mountain is
about thirteen miles long and extends in
a northcastory -southwesterly direction
| from Wost Paterson to wyoming. The
! Passaic makes a bend around the northcrly
end Of the mountain, and the Railway,
| which has its source in the valley between
First and Second mountains, meets its
east branch at the southerly end. The
rise Of the plateau from the Passaic River
70 the foot OF tho mountain is rolling and
gradual, but from the base the ascent 10
| Tho Great on the hther side Is generally
very steep. The average elevation Is from
about 500 TO about ESQ feet, and the noun
| tain is densely wooded, except where II has
been cleared for Improvement and cultiva-
ton
/ Roscyille station, in Newark, Just across
the Passaic River Here the elevation is
/ i43 fcet, and the grad continues to rise
from hero to the base Of the mountain At
! Grove street Fast Orangn, II is i5 feet;
/ at E1st Orange station IL is l73 feet; at
Brick Church II is lsl feet; at Orange 1884
feet. and just before II turns OF 70 tho
/ s,uth into the valley, the grade Of the rail-
road Is 1877 feet. This is not all continuous.
for the forms ton il rolling. and there are
/ higher as well as lower levels between the
POINTS indicated. From Rosevile TO Lew
! ellyn Park, through East Orange and Orange,
! rtns Park avenue, 100 feet wido all tho way,
/ VOL paved and lined with shade trees and
! attractive houses and grounds.
The growth Of East Orange, in the Park
avenue Springdale avenue. Central avenue
and Harrison street sections was never
better than it is now. In the northerly
section new streets are rapidly being built
up with houses costing all the way from
81, 900 TO $4,000.
The mountain settlements begin at West
| Paterson, a residence suburb OF the city Of
! paterson Then comes the great notch,
through which the Greenwood Lake Rail-
road gets to Verona, Caldwell, Essex Fells
and beyond and then come in order Mont
clair Heights, Upper Montclair Watching.
. Nontclair. Orange, Llewellyn Park, West
Orange. Highland avenue Mountain Sta
tion, South Orange, Maplewood, Wyoming,
! Nillburn. Short Hills and Summit These
are all important places, some Of a popular
/ character others more exclusive. or the
| exclusive class are Llewellyn Park and
! short Hills-where only dwellings Of some
cost are permitted. and the building plot
| i fyed at a minimum calculated 10 preserve
/ The architectural standard Of the settle
. ment,
Houses, erected for sale in this great
chain OF highland suburbs, cost from 1900
TO $4,000, a range Of prices which indicates
that the buyers are thoroughly repre-
sentative Of New Yorks middle classes.
I That they are being constructed in greater