Liberty State Park: Liberty State Park

Liberty State Park
Morris Pesin Drive
New York Harbor (Upper New York Bay)

Opened on Flag Day, June 14, 1976, Liberty State Park is the largest urban park in New Jersey. It welcomes some 5.1 million visitors annually.  The park spans over 1,200 acres and approximately 300 acres of developed space for active and passive recreation, including the two-mile Liberty Walk along the Hudson River waterfront. 

The western edge of Liberty State Park was once the waterfront home of the Lenape, New Jersey's Native Americans. During the Colonial Era, in 1661, Dutch settlers of New Netherland ran a ferry service on the waterfront to Manhattan. The northern edge follows the path of the nineteenth-century Morris Canal.  The canal's barges transported coal from Pennsylvania eastward to the industrial and urban markets on New York Bay.  By the mid-19th century, the railroad companies had filled in the park's eastern ledge.  The waterfront's tidal flats were soon transformed into expanses of railroad yards and passenger and cargo transportation facilities.

The Central Railroad of New Jersey (CRRNJ) managed the terminal complex from 1849 until 1967. Located at the park's northern end, the three-story brick terminal, designed by the architectural firm of Stearns and Peabody of Boston, features a five-part Palladian facade dominated by a clock above sets of arched windows. Buff-colored English glazed tiles adorn the terminal's interior walls. The ceiling, supported by exposed red iron trusses with sunburst decor, has a skylight above the waiting room on the ground floor

The present terminal, completed in 1889, received the stream of immigrants entering America from Ellis Island off Jersey City's coast. The new arrivals, once examined and proven "clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to land," more than 50 percent, boarded barges for the mainland at the CRRNJ terminal. Thousands of workers and travelers boarded ferries or trains daily at the terminal for their destinations. By 1967, the railways' decline nationally contributed to the bankruptcy of the Central Railroad and the closing of the terminal. It gradually fell into disrepair with an uncertain future.

The Lehigh Valley Railroad (LVRR) also operated in the location of today's Liberty State Park, at the present-day Morris Pesin Drive. Begun in 1855, the LVRR transported anthracite coal from Pennsylvania through New Jersey to the industrial cities of Paterson, Newark, Jersey City, and New York. In 1871, the railway leased property in Jersey City from the CRRNJ and constructed a terminal and freight yard on its waterfront property. To develop its facility, the LVRR filled the area between Black Tom Island in New York Harbor and the mainland. The LVRR went bankrupt in 1968, and its railway tracks were made part of Conrail.

Park Development

Some residents, believing the site had potential as a public natural resource, sought support from the state and federal governments to transform it into a waterfront park. On June 13, 1958, community activist and former City Councilman Morris Pesin introduced a public awareness movement about the site's proximity to Liberty Island. With a reporter from the Jersey Journal, Tom Durkin, Pesin canoed between the two locations, a 2,000-foot journey of only eight minutes.

Other early advocates for a park were Audrey Zapp and Ted Conrad. Backed by community support, they obtained Green Acres Bond Funds and Land and Water Conservation funds and convinced the state to purchase the land from the railroads. Jersey City donated 156 acres for the park grounds. The Department of Environmental Protection and the US Army Corps of Engineers joined the project to clear the harbor. Bill Vibbert was the park's first superintendent from 1969 to 1976. In 1976, the National Park Service restored the terminal and waterfront property. The firm of Geddes Brecher Qualls Cunningham drew up the architectural plans for the park.

Robert Geddes, the first dean of Princeton University's School of Architecture, designed the master plan to transform acres of the dilapidated waterfront into a walkway with expansive views of Manhattan. In a 2021 interview with the New York Times, Geddes commented: "In terms of impact, the plan for the park is doing very well. . .. The crescent stone edge is spectacularly successful, as a place for people to walk, and as an image of the park."

As one enters the park on Morris Pesin Drive, the flags of the fifty states are assembled in order of their admission to the union. Flag Plaza, in front of the Park Administration Building and Visitors' Center, displays thirteen American flags for the original states of the Union. To the right are flags that were flown during the Revolutionary War era.  A plaque commemorating the Black Tom explosion of 1916 is at the park's south end.

An imposing Holocaust memorial statue stands before the flag plaza in the South Overlook Field. Dedicated on May 30, 1985, the twenty-foot, two-ton bronze statue, cast at the Tallix foundry in Peekskill, NY, rests on a black marble base. Named Liberation Monument by sculptor Nathan (Natan) Rapoport (1911-1987), the statue depicts a World War II concentration camp survivor carried to freedom by an unarmed American soldier. Its placement opposite the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island forms a triad of symbolism for liberty and freedom. Born in Warsaw, Poland, Rapoport is known for his Holocaust-related monuments, including the Monument to the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, erected in Warsaw in 1948.

In 1986, Liberty Walk, a two-mile promenade along the Hudson River, opened. It extends from the Statue of Liberty Overlook to the CRRNJ Terminal with a panoramic view of New York Harbor, the Manhattan skyline, Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, and the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. The promenade is a segment of the Hudson River Walkway.

La Vela di Colombo, or "The Sail of Columbus," Monument at North Cove, is at the center of the circular Christopher Columbus Plaza. Designed by Italian sculptor Gino Gianetti, the two-story sail-shaped bronze monument commemorates the 500th anniversary of the sailing of Christopher Columbus to America in 1492. It is within view of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, symbols of the nation's gateway to America.

In 1998, the National Italian-American Foundation and the Christopher Columbus Citizens Foundation dedicated the sculpture donated by the Italian government and the City of Genoa. The architect for the project was John Maiorano of the RBA Group. "The Sail of Columbus" sits atop four bronze mooring posts mounted on a stone base shaped like a ship. The waterfront side of the sail depicts scenes of the explorer's travels. The inland side portrays Columbus at the ship's helm.

Environmental Sciences

The Environmental Educational Center, now the LSP Nature Center, was designed by Princeton architect Michael Graves. It opened in 1982 at the park's 36-acre natural area, a tidal marsh of the Hudson River estuary, at 275 Freedom Way. It has a prominent view of the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and the southern end of Manhattan Island. The post-modern-style two-story stucco-glazed timber building originally featured a colonnaded entrance, combining two pavilions designed to integrate their interior with the unique external landscape.  According to New Jersey journalist Gordon Bishop, the center "resembles a Roman cathedral with a natural beauty" and "was inspired by the Madonna de Villa in Italy" (Bishop 13).

The devastating flood waters of Hurricane Sandy in 2012 destroyed much of the center's interior. The building was closed for repairs and a $3.5 million renovation. It reopened as the Nature Center in 2021. Among the changes are the vestibule, the enclosed lobby at the entrance, and new water bottle filling stations. It features a multi-media auditorium and exhibit spaces for nature interpretive programs, such as the Salt Marsh Room, Discovery Room, and Pond Room. A Night Theatre has a high-tech periscope to highlight the Hudson River Estuary and its surroundings. 

The Liberty Science Center, at Phillip Drive and Communipaw Avenue, opened in 1993. The three-story not-for-profit educational facility, with a 170-foot tower, covers 60,000 square feet. The center displays permanent and rotating science exhibits and multimedia/interactive exhibits for environmental, health, and innovative studies. A 180-degree Kodak Omni Theater shows films designed for the IMAX dome screen.

In 2005, Liberty Science Center closed for renovation and the addition of 125,000 square feet of floor space. It reopened in 2007 with the Center for Science Learning and Teaching. In March 2017, the Jersey City Municipal Council transferred approximately 17 acres to the Center for the $280 million SciTech projects, which include a K-12 school, conference center, and Scholars Village.

9/11 Memorials

On April 25, 2003, Arbor Day, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and volunteers planted trees at the "Grove of Remembrance," south of cobblestone Audrey Zapp Drive. It is a memorial of trees to the 697 New Jersey residents who died during the September 11, 2001, tragedy at the World Trade Center Twin Towers in Lower Manhattan. The trees, such as birch and dogwood, were selected for the environment. Two walkways allow visitors to travel the 10.8 acres in the park. A Memorial Circle of weeping cherry trees and benches is a quiet space for reflection by visitors.

Opposite Ground Zero at the waterfront near the Central Railroad Terminal is Empty Sky, a monument named after a Bruce Springsteen song. It was dedicated on September 10, 2011, to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. It honors the 749 New Jersey residents and those associated with New Jersey who died at the Twin Towers.  Architect Frederic Schwartz and Jessica Jamroz designed the $12 million memorial sponsored by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the State of New Jersey and the New Jersey Building Authority. It rests on a 10-foot grassy mound surrounded by weeping cherry trees.

Two parallel 30-foot-high panels of brushed-reflective stainless steel have the names of the deceased in random order etched on the panels and are illuminated from the base of the walkway. The exterior free-standing concrete walls of the memorial span 208 feet,10 inches, as a reminder of the width of the Twin Towers. A steel remnant from the towers complements the monument.

Frederic Schwartz, who witnessed the towers' collapse, also designed the 9/11 memorial for Westchester County at the Kensico Dam Plaza in Valhalla. It is named The Rising for the commemorative song by New Jersey's Bruce Springsteen.

Future Plans

Visitors to Liberty State Park enjoy its free open space, cultural events, and outdoor recreation with picnic areas, playgrounds, boat launches, 100-acre Green Park, and Liberty Landing Marina (opened in 1998).  Its undeveloped acres have been reclaimed for freshwater wetlands at Freedom Way and a wildlife refuge supervised by the Division of Parks and Forestry. The ferry service takes visitors from the park to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. 

The park's interior of 250 acres, once used by the railroad, has undergone successful ecological restoration to transform the area for tourism and the community. In 1983, New Jersey's Registry of Natural Areas designated Caven Point Cove for wildlife preservation. The Department of Environmental Protection has proposed remediating the interior with a maze of trails for public use and developing active recreation facilities with athletic fields and new public space at the train shed.
The Liberty National Golf Club, owned by Paul Fireman, is adjacent to the park and opened in 2006. 

Baer, Marilyn. "Liberty State Park Nature Interpretive Center Reopens." Bayonne Community News 1 July 2021.
Bernstein, Fred A. "Robert Geddes, Visionary Architecture Dean at Princeton, Dies at 99." New York Times 14 February 2023.
Bishop, Gordon. Gems of New Jersey. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1985.
Martin, Douglas. "Frederic Schwarz, 63, Dies; Designed Sept. 11 Memorials." New York Times 30 April 2014.
Hack, Charles. "746 Names on New Jersey Memorial Opening Today." Jersey Journal 10 September 2011.
Liberty Science Center: http://www.lsc.org/
Liberty State Park: http://libertystatepark.com
Martin, Douglas. "Frederic Schwartz, 63, Dies; Designed Sept. 11 Memorials." New York Times 30 April 2014.
Lovero, Joan D. "From Urban Blight to Urban Delight." Yesterday Today in New Jersey. June/July 1993: 4-6, 9.
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Rotundo, Mark. "LSP Nature Center Reopens." Jersey Journal 13 July 2021.
West, Teri. "What Will LSP Look Like in Years to Come?" Jersey Journal 17 January 2025.
Vibbert, Bill. "Liberty State Park Retrospective: A Vision Emerges." Jersey Journal 22 Juve 2024.