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HISTORY
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The city
of Trenton was established by Quakers in 1679, in the region then called the
Falls of the Delaware[1].
The Quakers were led by Mahlon Stacy from Handsworth, Sheffield,
UK[2].
During this time, Quakers were being persecuted in England because of their
religious beliefs and North America
provided the perfect opportunity for them to practice their religion.
By 1719, the town adopted the name "Trent-towne", after William Trent, one of its leading landholders who purchased much of the land from Mahlon Stacy's family[3]. This name later was shortened to "Trenton ". During the American Revolutionary War, the city was the site of George Washington’s first military victory. On December 26, 1776, Washington and his army, after crossing the icy Delaware River to Trenton, defeated the Hessian troops that were stationed there[4]. This battle became known as the Battle of Trenton.
After the war, Trenton was briefly the national capital of the United States in November and December of 1784[5]. The city was considered as a permanent capital for the new country, but the southern states favored a location south of the Mason-Dixon-Line[6]. Trenton became the capital of New Jersey in 1790. Trenton was a major manufacturing center in the late 1800s and early 1900s; and during this time it coined the phrase "Trenton Makes, The World Takes" which is displayed on a bridge. The city adopted the slogan in the 1920s to represent Trenton's then-leading role as a major manufacturing center for steel, rubber, wire, rope, linoleum and ceramics[7]. |
