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Top Historical landmarks in Jersey City, United States

Top Rated Historical landmarks in Jersey City

Top Reviewed Historical landmarks in Jersey City

Jersey City, often overshadowed by its more famous neighbor, New York City, is a vibrant and historically rich community with a story to tell. From its industrial past to its diverse cultural heritage, Jersey City boasts a range of historical landmarks that are both intriguing and significant. In this guide, we will take you on a journey through the best historical landmarks in Jersey City, each with its unique charm and all worthy of a place on your must-see list.

1. Liberty Science Center

The Liberty Science Center is not only an iconic science museum but also a piece of Jersey City's history. It offers interactive exhibits, a planetarium, and the famous Hoberman Sphere, which has become a symbol of the center.

2. Central Railroad of New Jersey Terminal

The Central Railroad of New Jersey Terminal, often referred to as Communipaw Terminal, is a historic train terminal that served as a major transportation hub for immigrants arriving at Ellis Island. Today, it's a museum offering insights into immigration history.

3. Liberty State Park

Liberty State Park is a sprawling urban park that features several historical sites. It's home to the Liberty Science Center, Liberty Science Center, and the Liberty Science Center, all of which are significant landmarks in their own right.

4. Colgate Clock

The Colgate Clock is one of the largest clock faces globally and an iconic Jersey City landmark. It once adorned the former Colgate-Palmolive factory and is now a symbol of the city's industrial heritage.

5. The Landmark Loew's Jersey Theatre

The Landmark Loew's Jersey Theatre is a beautifully preserved historic movie palace. It's not only an architectural gem but also a venue for concerts, film screenings, and cultural events.

6. The Central Avenue Shopping District

Jersey City's Central Avenue Shopping District is a bustling commercial area with a historic touch. It's lined with old storefronts and offers a unique shopping and dining experience.

7. Historic Downtown

Jersey City's Historic Downtown area is a designated historic district with charming brownstones, cobblestone streets, and a vibrant arts scene. It's a window into the city's past and present.

8. Van Vorst Park

Van Vorst Park is a historic green space in Jersey City. It's surrounded by 19th-century brownstones and offers a peaceful escape from the city's hustle and bustle.

9. The Apple Tree House

The Apple Tree House is a historic home that served as a Revolutionary War base for George Washington. It's a glimpse into Jersey City's role in the nation's early history.

10. Harsimus Cemetery

Harsimus Cemetery is a historic cemetery with a unique character. It's the final resting place of many Civil War soldiers and offers a tranquil and reflective atmosphere.

Conclusion

Jersey City's historical landmarks are a testament to the city's diverse and evolving history. From the architectural marvels like the Central Railroad of New Jersey Terminal to the cultural hubs like the Landmark Loew's Jersey Theatre, each landmark tells a story that adds to the city's unique character. Whether you're a resident or a visitor, these must-see historical landmarks in Jersey City offer an opportunity to delve into the past and appreciate the heritage of this dynamic and culturally rich community. Jersey City may be lesser-known than its famous neighbor, but its history and landmarks are undoubtedly worth exploring.

Reviews

Great place to walk lots of things to look at
A really nice place if you already visiting the Liberty state park.
I visited Liberty State park to walk around. My Grandfather was a Train Operator for many years and I just fell in love with trains. This place was absolutely amazing! I love that they kept the old tracks. Inside was just beautiful! Free to walk and look around!
Excelsior HH
at 2023 Nov 07
Excelsior HH
at 2023 Nov 07
Komme immer wieder gern hierher, nur von wenigen Orten hat man einen besseren Blick auf Manhattan und es ist selten voll. Gut erreichbar, eine Station ab WTC mit der PATH (Exchange Place).
Roman Jurkovic
at 2023 Nov 02
Roman Jurkovic
at 2023 Nov 02
If you are looking for 'other' point of view of NYC and Statue of Liberty, this is the place.
Daniel Dramshev
at 2023 Oct 16
Daniel Dramshev
at 2023 Oct 16
Perfect place to sit, think and watch the skyline! Great view to Manhattan if you want to creat some videos about New York
Jeffrey Marquez
at 2023 Oct 10
Jeffrey Marquez
at 2023 Oct 10
Great selfie location and view of NYC Skyline
Ramit Gupta
at 2023 Sep 13
Ramit Gupta
at 2023 Sep 13
Grat spot to relax and take some great pictures
You can sit for hours and watch the sun set on New York City and watch the people go by. Very peaceful, just something about watching the lights come on is breathtaking.
Cooler Ort. Man kann einfach rein und rumschauen. Die Gleise sind jedoch abgeriegelt. Hat so ein bisschen "lost place" feeling.
Kann ich nur weiterempfehlen. Aber nur wenn man in der Ecke noch mehr macht. Nur dafür hin ist vll etwas wenig.
A A
at 2023 Aug 17
A A
at 2023 Aug 17
This place is absolutely amazing! You can take a walk along the bay and witness the breathtaking beauty of New York City. The views are truly awe-inspiring, and it's a fantastic spot for a leisurely stroll. Highly recommended for anyone looking to escape the city and enjoy a peaceful walk with magnificent views.
Loved visiting this olace. When youbwalk in it is quiet and away from NYC madness bit it breathes out history with alll the over grown train tracks. Best place to start your visit to Ellis Island and Liberty island to avod the crowds that you have from the Battery Park terminal.
Very cool vintage place. You meet here for the Statue City Cruise ship to Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty! If you are hear for the Statue of liberty, come early since the line might get long. I went in the morning, so not that much wait!
Katy A. A. M.
at 2023 Jul 31
Katy A. A. M.
at 2023 Jul 31
Nice big clock placed in a Waterfront of Jersey City. Shines at night. Worth to see:)
shashank panchal
at 2023 Jul 20
shashank panchal
at 2023 Jul 20
Nice river front place to walk jog or stroll. Amazing view of New York city skyline. Near to one of the Path station.
Amazing Place and blue and white
krazy ISH
at 2023 Jul 09
krazy ISH
at 2023 Jul 09
Pretty sure this is the closest you can get to the Statue of Liberty without a boat. Great park for picnics, exercising and the views
David Fendley
at 2023 May 22
David Fendley
at 2023 May 22
Really awesome serene place. I met a great person here that was a local. First time ive seen lady liberty this close. Got a few pictures. Thank yall for having this place.
Diego Alvarez
at 2023 May 10
Diego Alvarez
at 2023 May 10
It is an amazing place, calm and good energy. perfect for bbq, games and fun with family or friends. It has a very large lot for parking. You must arrive by car, the bus is difficult to access. perfect for walking or playing sports with great vegetation.
Madhu Sudan
at 2023 May 09
Madhu Sudan
at 2023 May 09
A perfect place to have a walk/jog along with the therapeutic NYC skyline views. GoldenHours are the best time to visit this place to sit and enjoy some MeTime.
Limited parking space right next to the Clock, you’d get one if your lucky. Have visit multiple times but never had a parking issue. Get some coffee form the nearby Starbucks/Dunkin and enjoy the view.
Plenty of seating available and the nearest restroom is available inside the paulus Hook ferry terminal.
This is a beautiful little spot by the lighthouse in the Newport area. There is a nice walkway where you can take a stroll or jog or walk your dog. There are also benches where you can have a seat and relax for a bit and enjoy the view of New York City across from the water. It's a great place.
Ivory Crosby
at 2023 Mar 13
Ivory Crosby
at 2023 Mar 13
Black Tom island is very cool from a distance, I never actually set foot on it because the ferries were closed from the Jersey City side, but it was cool.
Deepti Murthy
at 2023 Jan 11
Deepti Murthy
at 2023 Jan 11
I took my dog for a walk here and the place is beautiful. Best views of NYC skyline.. also the place is maintained definitely recommend a walk for relaxation
This historical building is awesome and I love walking past it every day. Please preserve the spirit of Jersey City and keep it. Trying to convert it into some modern building would be a travesty. Signed a lifelong JC local :)
Lovey Legacy
at 2022 Sep 18
Lovey Legacy
at 2022 Sep 18
Had a early morning visit! We truly enjoyed ourselves. The weather was perfect for a morning walk and as a homeschool mom we got some lessons in!
Good place to see NYC skyline. Not much crowded but not much place to sit also. Good for an evening stroll with the breeze.
Zita K. Ume
at 2022 Aug 20
Zita K. Ume
at 2022 Aug 20
Very serene, nice environment. Perfect for a family outing. Plenty of benches and tables, BBQ spots for a nice picnic. Perfect view for the Statue of Liberty 🗽 and lower Manhattan skyline.
You have to visit this place of you want to visit Statue of Liberty. Here you will get tickets. It’s better to book in advance. They will charge one mask for 1$ if you don’t have one. Mask is mandatory.
What an amazing vantage point from Newport New Jersey across the Hudson to New York city..

The Lefrak Point Lighthouse provides a peaceful location at the tip of one of the Hudson riverwalk areas in Newport.

Convenient to Jersey City as well as Hoboken for a nice fresh walk again with an incredible background of Manhattan across the Hudson.
Time to do something with this space. It’s old, dilapidated and an eyesore.
Hahahaha. I've been paddling the river for 20 years now. This thing has never been an actual lighthouse or navigational aid, it is pure decoration for a real estate tycoon's (Samuel J. LeFrak) redevelopment of this once very industrial area back in the 1980's. Before becoming "Newtown", this area was dominated by the rail yards of the Erie Railroad's Pavonia Terminal.
We visited this "place" as a stopover on our "Lighthouses of NJ" tour.
It's shaped like a lighthouse, but whether it was ever a functioning/working Lighthouse is debatable. No touring, visiting, or going inside to explore this tourist site.
Yes, it's nice to look at - and the surrounding area is beautiful- since it is located on the Hudson River, however, it's not IN the Hudson River or working on the Hudson River. So, I don't know if it really counts as a lighthouse. It's more of a toy, or a point of interest. Perhaps it was built as a tribute to lighthouses...
Of course the Manhattan views on the Hudson River, and river walkway make it a great place to visit, which it is, but it's not really a genuine lighthouse. Our tour will commence, elsewhere.
What a surprise it was to discover this place, we enjoyed looking around and at all small items exhibited inside of still functioning station
I simply love the arches, vintage, green tin roof tops and freight rail cars. It is beautiful to enjoy from the outside (to snap pictures in front of) or take a tour inside as it is now it is a museum. It is right on the water and you can take in the view of the skyline, catch a ferry to Ellis Island/ Statue of Liberty or walk through the ghostly empty sky 9/11 memorial.
There are many cracks on the exterior wall from the bottom to the roof. On Google Maps Street View, you can see a 20+ meters-long vertical crack on the outer wall near the entrance of 65 Bay Street. The street view was taken last year, and it will only be more dangerous now.
This people berry somebody us. On a place that my parents have paid long time ago. Now we have to go after them to get the money back.
This amazing jewel of NJ Liberty State Park is a must visit. The historic terminal was the original way folks and goods traveled between NJ and NY before bridges and tunnels. The original port authority, I guess! But so well-crafted and beautiful.
Jersey City landmark, especially for fans of the Soprano's series.
Many historic buildings neglected or torn down in JC to make way for "luxury" housing.
Along with liberty state park this place is on my top 5 places in North jersey to enjoy New York city skyline. You can go here with coffee during sunrise or sunset and you will have a great time. There are benches to sit along the river side so you can relax, watch the colors of sunset or sunrise unfold in-front of you over NYC and just enjoy the views.

Absolutely favorite place to be.
History is best served dilapidated and taking up valuable real estate, according to some.
This building is an absolute eyesore. The roof has collapsed and the structure itself is slowly imploding. I'm sure the environmental issues of the site will prevent any rehab or demolition from ever being done.
The Statue of Liberty ticket office is inside the brick building. The shelters and ferry docks have seen better days. They were hit hard by Sandy. Fortunately the main building fared well and has been restored. You can only access some areas of the building. There are clean bathrooms. You can get water to top up your water bottle. Wandering around waiting for your ferry departure time is well worth an explore into the past of this once mighty facility.
Not sure why they have it just sitting there taking up space. Make use of it already
Jitendra Singh
at 2018 Jun 29
Jitendra Singh
at 2018 Jun 29
This is THE place that i go to when i have free time. The walk besides the river is beautiful and there is a big parking space, good washroom and plenty of space to walk around and fish.
View of new york is breathtaking and Statue of Liberty is visible on a straight line of view. Definetly recommend
This place on Hudson waterfront walk is one of the most beautiful place on either side of Hudson river. You can see amazing skyline of entite Manhattan. I stay here three to four months in a year and find it always fascinating even in snow and rains. Summer is awesome with unless row of flowers on the entire river walk.
Looks fantastic, might be good place if they renovate it and make a sightseeing place!
I was grow up in downtown
Jersey city for 53 years. My house
Was located 208 GRAND ST.
IT WAS TORN DOWN TO MAKE
WAY FOR NEW buildings.
WHAT GREAT MEMORIES
I AM GLAD FOR THE Development
Of Jersey city.
Pastor Wilfredo Robles Vidal.
A beautiful piece of preservation pioneered by the residents of Jersey when abandoned by the city. Home to the famous JC goats, Ghost of Uncle Joes Halloween bash and many great community events.
A great historical landmark! Now FIX IT! RENOVATE IT so the people can make a good use out of it! Get rid of that electricity generator thing for PATH trains! Such an eye sore....
How many people has been buried here?