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Welcome To KEY TO THE CITY's Page For
Plainfield
Union County, New Jersey

ZipCodes
07060, 07061, 07062, 07063

Motto
The Queen City



Page Contents for Plainfield, New Jersey

Statistics & Facts

Location

History & History-related items

City Attractions

Government

Historical Events

Chamber of Commerce.

Organizations, Churches, and Sports.

Libraries.

Schools.

Miscellany



Statistics & Facts

The New Jersey state capital is Trenton.
The population of Plainfield is approximately 46567 (1990), 49808 (2010).
The approximate number of families is 16063 (1990), 15180 (2010).
The amount of land area in Plainfield is 15.643 sq. kilometers.
The amount of land area in Plainfield is 6.0 sq. miles.
The amount of surface water is 0.003 sq kilometers.
The distance from Plainfield to Washington DC is 185 miles.
The distance to the New Jersey state capital is 32 miles. (as the crow flies)
Plainfield is positioned 40.61 degrees north of the equator and 74.41 degrees west of the prime meridian.
Plainfield elevation is 95 feet above sea level.
Plainfield per capita income is $ 23,560 (2008).
Plainfield median income is $ 56,976 (2008).
The Plainfield median home price is $ 298,238 (2008).

Location

in northeastern New Jersey about 5.7 miles from Edison and about 24.5 miles from the Brooklyn area of New York City. Other nearby communities include: North Plainfield, Watchung, South Plainfield, Fanwood, Scotch Plains, Dunellen, Berkeley Heights and Westfield.
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Weather


seasonal. Here is a current weather page for Plainfield.
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History & History Related Items

The city was first settled in 1684 by Quakers. There are still some vintage buildings of that era in Plainfield, one being the Friends' meetinghouse of 1788. The Nathaniel Drake House (1746) was used as George Washington's headquarters during the Revolutionary War. Initially, Plainfield was a township, created on 5 April 1847 as part of Essex County. When Union County was created on 19 March 1857, it became part of the new county. It was incorporated as a city on 21 April 1869. Both the city and the township were separate until 6 March 1878 when the township was dissolved with portions going to the city of Plainfield and the rest to Fanwood Township.

Here is a history page for Plainfield
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Attractions

Drake House Museum
602 West Front Street
Plainfield, NJ 07060
Phone: 908-755-5831

The Plainfield Symphony
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Plainfield City Government

City of Plainfield
515 Watchung Avenue
Plainfield, NJ 07060

Plainfield is governed by a Mayor and a seven person city council. All serve four year terms. Three of the seats are at large.

Plainfield Historical Events

1967 07 July
The Plainfield Riots
The riots here were associated with the larger Newark riots of the same time period. Thousands of dollars in damage was done through looting and arson. About 50 people were injured and one Plainfield police officer died. The New Jersey National Guard was called in to calm things down after three days. The riots affected the growth and distribution of race in the area for years later.
1941
The Plainfield Teacher's College Hoax
Two college football fans made up a fake college called Plainfield Teacher's College in 1941. The non-existent football team's scores were published by major newspapers, including the New York Times before the discovery that the school didn't exist, much less the football team.

Plainfield Chamber

Plainfield Chamber of Commerce
126 E. Front Street
Plainfield, NJ 07060

Plainfield Organizations

Plainfield Chamber of Commerce
126 E. Front Street
Plainfield, NJ 07060

Plainfield Libraries

Plainfield Public Library
800 Park Avenue
Plainfield, NJ 07060
Phone: 908-757-1111

Plainfield Schools

Plainfield Public Schools Plainfield

Miscellany

The population of Plainfield was:
1860 - 3,224
1870 - 5,095
1880 - 8,125
1890 - 11,267
1900 - 15,369
1910 - 20,550
1920 - 27,700
1930 - 34,422
1940 - 37,469
1950 - 42,366
1960 - 45,330
1970 - 46,862
1980 - 45,555
1990 - 46,567
2000 - 47,829
2008 - 46,126

The number of housing units was:
1990 - 16,063
2000 - 16,180

Median age:
2000 - 33 years


Median Household Income:
2000 - $ 46,683
2008 - $ 56,976

Per capita Income:
2000 - $ 19,052
2008 - $ 23,560

Median house value:
2000 - $ 137,500
2008 - $ 298,238

Plainfield is located in the Eastern Time Zone and does participate in daylight savings time during a portion of the year.


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