Historical figures in New Jersey
The atlas holds 10 people and 10 moments here, from 1772 to 2011. The most recorded lives are Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla and Sarah Bernhardt. Among them Writers, Performers and Engineers and Inventors, across the Cold War and the Enlightenment.
Notable people
Alexander Hamilton
in 1772
1 moment here
American statesman, lawyer, revolutionary officer, constitutional convention delegate, and first U.S. secretary of the treasury.…
Carl Sagan
in 1948
1 moment here
American astronomer, planetary scientist, educator, author, and science communicator. Sagan studied at the University of Chicago, held appointments…
Henry David Thoreau
in 1856
1 moment here
American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher associated with transcendentalism. Thoreau lived chiefly in and around Concord, Massachusetts,…
John Adams
in 1776
1 moment here
American lawyer, revolutionary leader, diplomat, first vice president of the United States, and second U.S. president.…
Maxim Gorky
in 1906
1 moment here
Aleksey Maksimovich Peshkov, known as Maxim Gorky, was a Russian and Soviet writer, journalist, publisher, and political activist.…
Nikola Tesla
in 1885
1 moment here
Serbian-American engineer and inventor best known for foundational work on alternating-current power systems, the induction motor, high-frequency…
Sarah Bernhardt
in 1880
1 moment here
French stage and early film actress, born Henriette-Rosine Bernard in Paris. Bernhardt became an international theatrical star through performances…
Thomas Edison
in 1876
1 moment here
American inventor and industrialist whose laboratories developed and commercialized technologies in telegraphy, recorded sound, electric lighting and…
Toni Morrison
in 2011
1 moment here
Toni Morrison (Chloe Ardelia Wofford) was an American novelist, editor, and professor whose career moved through Ohio, Washington, D.C., New York,…
Whitney Houston
in 1981
1 moment here
American singer, actress, producer, and cultural icon known for recordings including “I Will Always Love You,” major world tours, film roles, and…
Moments
- 1772 Study at Elizabethtown Academy Alexander Hamilton
- 1776 Staten Island Peace Conference John Adams
- 1856 Eagleswood arrival and surveying Henry David Thoreau
- 1876 Moves to Menlo Park laboratory Thomas Edison
- 1880 Visit with Thomas Edison Sarah Bernhardt
- 1885 Arc-lighting installation Nikola Tesla
- 1906 Stay on Staten Island Maxim Gorky
- 1948 Move to Rahway and high-school attendance Carl Sagan
- 1981 Move to Woodbridge Township Whitney Houston
- 2011 Rutgers commencement address Toni Morrison