Clifton is a city in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Criss-crossed by several major highways, the city is a regional commercial hub for North Jersey, and bedroom suburb of New York City, in the New York Metropolitan Area.Levin, Jay. "Living in Clifton, N.J.: Where a Lot of Little Worlds Commingle" , The New York Times, March 14, 2018. Accessed May 24, 2023. "There are multiple ways to commute to their jobs in Manhattan, some 15 miles away.... Buses provide Clifton transit commuters the most direct way to Manhattan: From Route 3, it is a straight shot to the Lincoln Tunnel." As of the 2020 United States Census, the city retained its position as the state's 11th-most-populous municipality, just behind tenth-ranked Trenton, and well ahead of Cherry Hill in twelfth place,Table1. New Jersey Counties and Most Populous Cities and Townships: 2020 and 2010 Censuses , New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Accessed December 1, 2022. with a population of 90,296, reflecting an overall increase of 6,160 (+7.3%) from the 2010 census count of 84,136, which in turn reflected an overall increase of 5,464 (+6.9%) from the 78,672 counted in the 2000 census.Table 7. Population for the Counties and Municipalities in New Jersey: 1990, 2000 and 2010 , New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, February 2011. Accessed May 1, 2023. The Population Estimates Program calculated a population of 88,461 for 2023, making Clifton the 394th-most populous municipality in the nation.Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places of 20,000 or More, Ranked by July 1, 2023 Population: April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2023, United States Census Bureau, released May 2024. Accessed May 30, 2024. Note that townships (including Edison, Lakewood and Woodbridge, all of which have larger populations) are excluded from these rankings.
Clifton was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 26, 1917, replacing Acquackanonk Township, based on the results of a referendum held two days earlier.Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606–1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. Accessed May 1, 2026. Clifton is listed under five different ZIP codes. 07011, 07012, 07013, 07014, and 07015.Zip Codes , State of New Jersey. Accessed November 18, 2016. Clifton has been named as one of the best cities to live in the United States.
History The City of Clifton turned 100 years old in April 2017, but documented European settlements in the area date back to 1679, when a leader of the Lenape Native Americans gave a deed for along the shores of the Passaic River to Hans Frederick.Gicas, Tony. "Clifton celebrates 100 years of history, change" , The Record, April 26, 2017. Accessed December 27, 2022. "City historical documents show that a community has lived on land comprising present-day Clifton since 1679 when an Indian sachem named Captahem gifted Hans Frederick a deed for 11,000 acres on the shores of the Passaic River. Inspired by the Native American word Haquequenunk, the area was known as Acquackanonk Township from 1693 until 1917. During its early days, portions of what is now Paterson, Woodland Park, Little Falls and the entirety of Passaic fell within Acquackanonk borders." The name "Clifton" was derived from the cliffs of Garrett Mountain, which borders the Albion Place neighborhood in the western part of the city. Clifton was once an agricultural hub, and home to the U.S. Animal Quarantine Station, which was operated in Clifton by the United States Department of Agriculture, starting in 1903. It was served by the Newark Branch of the Erie–Lackawanna Railroad. It was the primary location on the East Coast where animals like poultry, horses, cattle, and zoo animals, were held in quarantine after being brought into the United States, to ensure that the animals were not infected with diseases that could be spread in the U.S. The federal station operated in Clifton until the late 1970s, when the facility was relocated to Stewart International Airport.Prial, Frank J. "U. S. Animal Center to Move From Clifton" , The New York Times, August 9, 1975. Accessed September 16, 2019. "The United States Department of Agriculture's quarantine station for imported animals, in Clifton; N.J., since 1903, will be relocated at Stewart Airport, near Newburgh. ... The center, scheduled to be completed in 1978, will occupy a 74‐acre site, and will be equipped to handle 1,800 head of cattle, 800 horses, 300 lions and tigers and other zoo animals, and 4,000 chickens and other poultry." From 1900 to 1979, the Clifton Animal Quarantine Station inspected more than 95% of cloven-hooved animals entering the United States from abroad and was the only facility of its kind on the East Coast. Animals quarantined there included antelopes, giraffes, camels, sheep, and musk oxen. After the station closed, two of its former barns were converted into the Clifton Arts Center and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Although Clifton has long converted from farmlands to suburban neighborhoods, given its close proximity to Manhattan, the city still has three small working farms that sell fresh and organic vegetables in-season:
Ploch's Farm is a family-run farm since 1867. The farm is still in operation as Clifton's last remaining farm. Ploch's Farm is open seasonally selling fruits and vegetables during the months of August and September.Fagan, Matt. "What's going there? In Clifton, former Ploch's Garden Center is becoming a storage center" , The Record, November 22, 2020. Accessed May 24, 2023. "The former Ploch's Garden Center, which for decades sold items such as garden soil and fresh eggs, is growing girder by girder into a multistory storage facility. ... The plan to replace the garden center with a 5,496-square-foot mini-mart and eight-pump gas station was denied because city zoning doesn't allow more than one use on any property. In the summer of 2018, the city's zoning board approved the new plan for the self-storage facility." City Green Farm Eco Center is an organic farm and 501(c)3 non-profit focused on promoting urban farming and education since 2011. The property, which was the site of the Schultheis Farm, was acquired by the city in 2005 for permanent preservation as open space.The Farm Eco-Center Clifton, NJ , City Green. Accessed May 4, 2023. "The City Green Farm Eco-Center is a five-acre site located on Grove Street in Clifton, New Jersey. In 2005, with the additional support of Passaic County Open Space funding and New Jersey Green Acres funding, the city of Clifton permanently preserved this land, formerly known as Schultheis Farm, to remain as green, open space forever. City Green leased the property in 2011 and has since transformed it into a hub of agricultural and environmental education and recreation." Richfield Farms is a family-run farm and garden center since 1917, which had escaped redevelopment efforts in 2018.Fagan, Matt. "Clifton's Richfield Farms developer withdraws plan" , The Record, June 11, 2018. Accessed May 24, 2023. "Fans and neighbors of Richfield Farms can breathe a sigh of relief, as the beloved 100-plus-year-old farm stand and garden center appears to be keeping its farm intact, at least for now. ... Richfield Mews, the developer that applied to subdivide roughly half the 4.75-acre Richfield Farms site for town homes, has pulled the application before the city zoning board. ... The family's local history began in 1917, when Leenhardt Van Breeman emigrated from Holland. He opened a farm stand and sold produce, and for decades family members grew lettuce, corn and tomatoes to sell in Newark and New York's Hunts Point Market."
Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the city had a total area of 11.43 square miles (29.60 km2), including 11.27 square miles (29.19 km2) of land and 0.16 square miles (0.41 km2) of water (1.37%).
The Passaic River provides part of the boundary of Clifton at its northeastern edge. Weasel Brook is a tributary of the Passaic, which links from Plog Brook, passing through its namesake Weasel Brook Park, before turning south and joining the Passaic River close to Route 21.
Unincorporated communities, localities, and place names, located partially or completely within the city, include:Locality Search , State of New Jersey. Accessed May 21, 2015. Albion Place – mostly residential, and adjacent to Garret Mountain Reservation in the northwestern corner of the city; Allwood – the other main "business district" in the city, along its main highway, State Route 3; Athenia – one of the more centrally located neighborhoods in the city, as well as home to one of the city's two train stations, and adjacent to the 3rd Ward Park neighborhood in Passaic; Botany Village – the northernmost neighborhood in the city, historically containing European ethnic groups, but mostly populated by Hispanic/Latino immigrants in recent years; Delawanna – home to one of the two train stations locally, in the southeastern corner of the city, and adjacent to Nutley/the 3rd Ward Park neighborhood in Passaic; Dutch Hill – mostly residential, and largely situated near downtown and one of the two local train stations; Lakeview – shares its name with the adjacent neighborhood in Paterson, along the western edge of the city, and mostly populated by Arabic and Hispanic/Latino residents; Main Mall – largely considered the main "downtown" section of the city; Montclair Heights – one of the wealthiest neighborhoods locally, adjacent to both Montclair State University, as well as Upper Montclair, in the southwestern corner of the city; Richfield – another of the more centrally located neighborhoods in the city, along with Athenia; Rosemawr – largely residential and wealthier, falling partially within Allwood, and home to an Orthodox Jewish community associated with a neighboring one in the city of Passaic, with which it shares the Passaic/Clifton EruvAllora, Michael. Understanding the Relationship Between the Clifton Fire , Homeland Security Digital Library. Accessed June 1, 2023. "There is a large Orthodox Jewish community that borders the Cities of Clifton and Passaic, NJ. The Orthodox Jewish community in Clifton is concentrated in the Rosemawr Section. The Orthodox Jewish community is concentrated within an area surrounded by the Passaic/Clifton Eruv (See Appendix A)." Styertowne – home to the main namesake shopping plaza in the city; Yanticaw Pond – adjacent to the neighboring municipalities of Bloomfield, Nutley, and Montclair
Clifton is located off both Route 3 and Route 46, and is situated west of Midtown Manhattan, which is accessible via the Lincoln Tunnel. The city is also served by the Garden State Parkway, Route 19, and Route 21; all of those highways pass either around, or through, parts of the city.
The city borders the municipalities of Little Falls, Passaic, Paterson, and Woodland Park in Passaic County; Elmwood Park, Garfield, Lyndhurst, and Rutherford in Bergen County, and Bloomfield, Montclair, and Nutley in Essex County.Areas touching Clifton , MapIt. Accessed March 26, 2020.Passaic County Map , Coalition for a Healthy NJ. Accessed March 26, 2020.New Jersey Municipal Boundaries , New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition