Winner of the New Jersey Studies Academic Alliance Authors Award for Nonfiction New Jersey's land records and deeds are unlikely sources for a thrilling tale but reveal little-known, fascinating history. A detailed story of the founding of the Garden State 350 years ago is preserved in these papers. The state's boundaries were drawn in such documents centuries ago, even if the authors never stepped foot in North America. The archives hide heroes, like the freed African Americans who fought for their right to own their piece of the state. And of course, there are the bizarre and mysterious tales, like the silk baron's castle and the assault against a sixteen-year-old maiden during the throes of the American Revolution. Join land title expert Joseph Grabas as he combs through these all-but-forgotten stories of the pursuit of happiness and property in early New Jersey.

New Jersey: A History of the Garden State presents a fresh, comprehensive overview of New Jersey’s history from the prehistoric era to the present. The findings of archaeologists, political, social, and economic historians provide a new look at how the Garden State has evolved. The state has a rich Native American heritage and complex colonial history. It played a pivotal role in the American Revolution, early industrialization, and technological developments in transportation, including turnpikes, canals, and railroads. The nineteenth century saw major debates over slavery. While no Civil War battles were fought in New Jersey, most residents supported it while questioning the policies of the federal government. Next, the contributors turn to industry, urbanization, and the growth of shore communities. A destination for immigrants, New Jersey continued to be one of the most diverse states in the nation. Many of these changes created a host of social problems that reformers tried to minimize during the Progressive Era. Settlement houses were established, educational institutions grew, and utopian communities were founded. Most notably, women gained the right to vote in 1920. In the decades leading up to World War II, New Jersey benefited from back-to-work projects, but the rise of the local Ku Klux Klan and the German American Bund were sad episodes during this period. The story then moves to the rise of suburbs, the concomitant decline of the state’s cities, growing population density, and changing patterns of wealth. Deep-seated racial inequities led to urban unrest as well as political change, including such landmark legislation as the Mount Laurel decision. Today, immigration continues to shape the state, as does the tension between the needs of the suburbs, cities, and modest amounts of remaining farmland. Well-known personalities, such as Jonathan Edwards, George Washington, Woodrow Wilson, Dorothea Dix, Thomas Edison, Frank Hague, and Albert Einstein appear in the narrative. Contributors also mine new and existing sources to incorporate fully scholarship on women, minorities, and immigrants. All chapters are set in the context of the history of the United States as a whole, illustrating how New Jersey is often a bellwether for the nation..

New Jersey enacted its domestic partnership law in 2004, becoming the fourth U.S. state to mandate legal protection for same-sex couples. Although the new law provides some important rights and responsibilities to couples who register their partnership, there are significant legal issues that are not adequately addressed or, in some cases, missing entirely. New Jersey Domestic Partners is designed to help same-sex couples who may be considering domestic partnership in New Jersey, or who may already have registered, understand the extent of these newly won rights and responsibilities.This guide also looks at alternatives to domestic partnership and the ways in which a same-sex couple can extend their rights if they do register. Attorney Stephen J. Hyland adresses the significant items that are missing from the law, such as parenting, guardianship, wills and estate planning, and taxation, and he examines the difficult issues associated with ending a registered domestic partnership. Written by one of New Jersey's leading experts on the Domestic Partnership Act, New Jersey Domestic Partners is directed at the layperson and is designed to provide practical advice to same-sex couples who want to protect themselves and their families. The guide is supplemented with a frequently updated website, www.njdomesticpartnership.com, which provides up-to-date information on the rights of same-sex couples in New Jersey.