67-863: The Great Falls of the Passaic River is a prominent waterfall , 77 feet (23 m) high, on the Passaic River in the city of Paterson in Passaic County , New Jersey . The falls and surrounding area are protected as part of the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park , administered by the National Park Service . Congress authorized its establishment in 2009. One of the United States' largest waterfalls , it played
134-555: A National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark in 1977. Geologically , the falls were formed at the end of the last ice age approximately 13,000 years ago. Formerly the Passaic had followed a shorter course through the Watchung Mountains near present-day Summit . As the glacier receded, the river's previous course was blocked by a newly formed moraine . A large lake, called Glacial Lake Passaic , formed behind
201-496: A rock shelter under and behind the waterfall. Eventually, the outcropping , more resistant cap rock will collapse under pressure to add blocks of rock to the base of the waterfall. These blocks of rock are then broken down into smaller boulders by attrition as they collide with each other, and they also erode the base of the waterfall by abrasion , creating a deep plunge pool in the gorge downstream. Streams can become wider and shallower just above waterfalls due to flowing over
268-528: A community here beginning in the 1690s. In 1778, Alexander Hamilton visited the falls and was impressed by its potential for industry. Later when Hamilton was the nation's Secretary of Treasury , he selected the site of the nation's first planned industrial city, which he called a "national manufactory." In 1791, Hamilton helped found the Society for the Establishment of Useful Manufactures (S.U.M.),
335-418: A distinct relationship with waterfalls since prehistory, travelling to see them, exploring and naming them. They can present formidable barriers to navigation along rivers. Waterfalls are religious sites in many cultures. Since the 18th century, they have received increased attention as tourist destinations, sources of hydropower , and—particularly since the mid-20th century—as subjects of research. A waterfall
402-473: A long period of being fully formed, the water falling off the ledge will retreat, causing a horizontal pit parallel to the waterfall wall. Eventually, as the pit grows deeper, the waterfall collapses to be replaced by a steeply sloping stretch of river bed. In addition to gradual processes such as erosion, earth movement caused by earthquakes or landslides or volcanoes can lead to the formation of waterfalls. Waterfalls are an important factor in determining
469-464: A much higher cost. In response to these much larger corporate mills with multiple-loom systems – and in order to stay in business in the long run – New Jersey's mills had to respond by adopting the more efficient technology. High skilled weavers such as those in ribbon shops thus fought against multiple-loom systems. The reduced labor intensity of the new silk industry also meant that low skilled broad-silk weavers would be displaced and hurt by
536-480: A much higher extent than previously thought. Waterfalls also affect terrestrial species. They create a small microclimate in their immediate vicinity characterized by cooler temperatures and higher humidity than the surrounding region, which may support diverse communities of mosses and liverworts . Species of these plants may have disjunct populations at waterfall zones far from their core range. Waterfalls provide nesting cover for several species of bird, such as
603-547: A period of restructuring that resulted in a steep decline of industry in the region during the mid to late 20th century. In 1971, concerned residents established the Great Falls Preservation and Development Corporation to restore and redevelop the historic mill buildings and raceways as artifacts of industrial history. The State of New Jersey announced plans for a new urban state park in Paterson surrounding
670-465: A pioneering work on waterfalls. In 1942 Oscar von Engeln wrote of the lack of research on waterfalls: Waterfall sites more than any other geomorphic feature attract and hold the interest of the general public. Because they have such a popular approval waterfalls are not given serious attention by some students of systematic geomorphology. This attitude is not to be commended. Waterfalls are significant items for geomorphic investigation. As late as 1985
737-562: A public ritual. Despite the minor success of the pageant, which still came at a loss (since the strikers were allowed in for 10 cents a piece or free instead of the full price of the dollar seats each) which operated at a loss of $ 2,000, the strikers were defeated. Still the IWW managed to help the hungry strikers children into foster homes to ease their way of life and provide food and aid while their parents and workers were striking. Although they had shut down Paterson and beaten off an attempt by
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#1732776766796804-795: A role in many cultures, as religious sites and subjects of art and music. Many artists have painted waterfalls and they are referenced in many songs, such as those of the Kaluli people in Papua New Guinea . Michael Harner titled his study of the Jivaroan peoples of Ecuador The Jivaro: People of the Sacred Waterfalls. Artists such as those of the Hudson River School and J. M. W. Turner and John Sell Cotman painted particularly notable pictures of waterfalls in
871-603: A scholar felt that "waterfalls remain a very much neglected aspect of river studies". Studies of waterfalls increased dramatically in the second half of the 20th century. Numerous waterfall guidebooks exist, and the World Waterfall Database is a website cataloging thousands of waterfalls. Many explorers have visited waterfalls. European explorers recorded waterfalls they came across. In 1493, Christopher Columbus noted Carbet Falls in Guadeloupe , which
938-470: A series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf . Waterfalls can be formed in several ways, but the most common method of formation is that a river courses over a top layer of resistant bedrock before falling onto softer rock, which erodes faster, leading to an increasingly high fall. Waterfalls have been studied for their impact on species living in and around them. Humans have had
1005-646: A seven-part statement criticizing the economic viability of the demands, among other concerns. Ultimately, the strike ended in failure on July 28, 1913. Scholars cite an important reason for this failure as Paterson's necessary adaptation to the new machinery and new economics of the silk industry. Manufacturers would not acquiesce to the demands of strikers because they simply could not. Without producing goods at competitive prices through new machinery and cheap labor, they would otherwise have been put out of business by firms in Pennsylvania. In an effort to support
1072-537: A significant role in the early industrial development of New Jersey starting in the earliest days of the nation. It is part of the Great Falls of Paterson–Garret Mountain National Natural Landmark . It has also been designated as a National Historic Landmark District since 1976. The Great Falls' raceway and power systems were designated a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark and
1139-420: A state-chartered private corporation to fulfill this vision. The town of Paterson was founded by the society and named after New Jersey Governor William Paterson , in appreciation of his efforts to promote the society. Hamilton commissioned civil engineer Pierre Charles L'Enfant , responsible for the layout of the new capital at Washington, D.C. , to design the system of canals known as raceways to supply
1206-421: A waterfall continues to be debated. Waterfalls are sometimes interchangeably referred to as "cascades" and "cataracts", though some sources specify a cataract as being a larger and more powerful waterfall and a cascade as being smaller. A plunge pool is a type of stream pool formed at the bottom of a waterfall. A waterfall may also be referred to as a "foss" or "force". Waterfalls are commonly formed in
1273-595: Is a National Natural Landmark designated in January 1967 and were expanded in April 1967 to include nearby Garret Mountain . Together they help demonstrate how jointed basaltic lava flow shaped the geology of the area during the Early Mesozoic period through both extrusion and intrusion . The designation protects the site from federal development, but not from local and state development. Redevelopment of
1340-824: Is also no agreement how to measure the height of a waterfall, or even what constitutes one. Angel Falls in Venezuela is the tallest waterfall in the world , the Khone Phapheng Falls in Laos are the widest, and the Inga Falls on the Congo River are the biggest by flow rate , while the Dry Falls in Washington are the largest confirmed waterfalls ever. The highest known subterranean waterfall
1407-470: Is dominated by impacts of water-borne sediment on the rock, while downstream the erosion occurs more rapidly. As the watercourse increases its velocity at the edge of the waterfall, it may pluck material from the riverbed, if the bed is fractured or otherwise more erodible. Hydraulic jets and hydraulic jumps at the toe of a falls can generate large forces to erode the bed, especially when forces are amplified by water-borne sediment. Horseshoe-shaped falls focus
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#17327767667961474-419: Is generally defined as a point in a river where water flows over a steep drop that is close to or directly vertical. In 2000 Mabin specified that "The horizontal distance between the positions of the lip and plunge pool should be no more than c 25% of the waterfall height." There are various types and methods to classify waterfalls. Some scholars have included rapids as a subsection. What actually constitutes
1541-612: Is in Vrtoglavica Cave in Slovenia . The Denmark Strait cataract is an undersea overflow which could be considered a "waterfall" under a very broad usage of that term; if so included, it is the largest known waterfall. Artificial waterfalls are water features or fountains that imitate a natural waterfall. The Cascata delle Marmore is the tallest artificially built waterfall at 541 feet (165 m). 1913 Paterson silk strike The 1913 Paterson silk strike
1608-408: Is referred to as a hanging valley . Another reason hanging valleys may form is where two rivers join and one is flowing faster than the other. When warm and cold water meets by a gorge in the ocean, large underwater waterfalls can form as the cold water rushes to the bottom. The caprock model of waterfall formation states that the river courses over resistant bedrock , erosion happens slowly and
1675-804: Is undoubtedly presented by the continent of Africa, the 'darkness' of which is almost entirely due to this cause." Waterfalls are often visited by people simply to see them. Hudson theorizes that they make good tourism sites because they are generally considered beautiful and are relatively uncommon. Activities at waterfalls can include bathing, swimming, photography, rafting , canyoning , abseiling , rock climbing , and ice climbing . Waterfalls can also be sites for generating hydroelectric power and can hold good fishing opportunities. Wealthy people were known to visit areas with features such as waterfalls at least as early as in Ancient Rome and China . However, many waterfalls were essentially inaccessible due to
1742-477: The Gocta Cataracts were first announced to the world in 2006. Waterfalls can pose major barriers to travel. Canals are sometimes built as a method to go around them, other times things must be physically carried around or a railway built . In 1885, the geographer George Chisholm wrote that, "The most signal example of the effect of waterfalls and rapids in retarding the development of civilisation
1809-707: The Lawrence textile strike in Lawrence, Massachusetts, where laborers were able to successfully pressure mill owners to raise wages, later galvanizing support from left-leaning intellectual groups. The successful strike helped attract interest from intellectual circles in Paterson's labor movements, and gave union organizers confidence in also achieving improved working conditions and wages for Paterson's silk weavers. The Paterson strikers mobilized after years of declining wages, continued poor working conditions, and long work days. The increasing number of women and children in
1876-541: The black swift and white-throated dipper . These species preferentially nest in the space behind the falling water, which is thought to be a strategy to avoid predation. Some waterfalls are also distinct in that they do not flow continuously. Ephemeral waterfalls only flow after a rain or a significant snowmelt. Waterfalls can also be found underground and in oceans. The geographer Andrew Goudie wrote in 2020 that waterfalls have received "surprisingly limited research." Alexander von Humboldt wrote about them in
1943-400: The 1820s. There is no name for the specific field of researching waterfalls, and in the published literature been described as "scattered", though it is popular to describe studying waterfalls as "waterfallology". An early paper written on waterfalls was published in 1884 by William Morris Davis , a geologist known as the "father of American geography". In the 1930s Edward Rashleigh published
2010-703: The 19th century. One of the versions of the Shinto purification ceremony of misogi involves standing underneath a waterfall in ritual clothing. In Japan the Nachi Falls are a site of pilgrimage, as are falls near Tirupati , India, and the Saut-d'Eau , Haiti. The Otavalos use Piguchi waterfall as part of the Churru ritual which serves as a coming of age ceremony. Many waterfalls in Africa were places of worship for
2077-546: The AFL ( American Federation of Labor ) to undercut the strike, they were unable to extend the strike to the annexes of the Paterson mills in Pennsylvania. Paterson manufacturers, victorious but frightened, held back for another decade. Strike supporters were torn apart as a result of the defeat, and the IWW never fully recovered in Eastern America. Two were killed in the strike: bystander Valentino Modestino, fatally shot by
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2144-610: The Falls gorge (historically, the eighth such bridge to span this chasm) also serves as an outlook point. A visitor's center at the corner of Spruce and McBride avenues, in the Great Falls Historic District , provides a historical overview of the falls and the industrial and cultural history of Paterson. A record 177,000 visitors went to the Great Falls in 2016. The Great Falls of Paterson – Garret Mountain
2211-469: The Great Falls and the city were described in the five-volume philosophical poem Paterson by William Carlos Williams . Among the episodes described in Williams' poem is the 1827 leap over the falls by Sam Patch , who later became the first known person to perform a stunt at Niagara Falls . The 2016 film Paterson , directed by Jim Jarmusch , is partly inspired by the works of Williams and features
2278-519: The Great Falls, called Great Falls State Park, in 2007. The master plan for the park called for utilizing surrounding industrial areas for parklands that include a trail network and recreation areas, and creating new areas to view the falls. These plans were superseded by the establishment of Great Falls National Historical Park. On March 30, 2009, President Obama signed the Omnibus Public Land Management Act authorizing
2345-534: The Interior , which took place November 7, 2011, when Secretary Salazar formally accepted lands on behalf of the United States, and dedicated the park as the nation's 397th park system unit. The Falls are viewable from Haines Overlook Park on the south and Mary Ellen Kramer Park on the north. Drive-by viewing is available from McBride Avenue where it crosses the river just above the Falls. A footbridge over
2412-547: The Senate Commission on Industrial Relations, police captain Andrew J. McBride upheld these charges, claiming that the revolutionary air among the textile mills was caused by and could be attributed to the IWW. Paterson's mayor at the time, Dr. Andrew F. McBride , also supported the idea that the strikes were primarily the result of the IWW's propaganda. Regardless, the strikes were carried out for months even after
2479-492: The Watchungs. As the ice receded, the river found a new circuitous route around the north end of the Watchungs, carving the spectacular falls through the underlying basalt , which was formed approximately 200 million years ago. The falls later became the site of a habitation of the historic Lenape Native Americans , who followed earlier indigenous cultures in the region. Later, in the colonial era, Dutch settlers developed
2546-500: The arrest of IWW leaders, dispelling the notion that the workers were only agitated by outsiders. The city's suspicion that IWW was responsible for radical protest tactics was in direct conflict with IWW philosophy. Labor leaders within the IWW promoted grassroots mobilization and allowed the strikers freedom to choose the direction of their militancy. Bill Haywood , a founding member of the IWW, helped Paterson strikers create democratically organized strike committee, representing all of
2613-412: The decayed adjacent industrial areas has been an ongoing controversial topic. An attempt in the 1990s to redevelop the adjacent Allied Textile Printing Co. (ATP) facility, destroyed by fire in the 1980s, into prefabricated townhouses was initially approved by the city but later repelled by a coalition of local citizens seeking to preserve the historic character of the district. The hydroelectric plant at
2680-531: The distribution of lotic organisms such as fish and aquatic invertebrates, as they may restrict dispersal along streams. The presence or absence of certain species can have cascading ecological effects, and thus cause differences in trophic regimes above and below waterfalls. Certain aquatic plants and insects also specialize in the environment of the waterfall itself. A 2012 study of the Agbokim Waterfalls , has suggested that they hold biodiversity to
2747-435: The erosion to a central point, also enhancing riverbed change below a waterfall. A process known as "potholing" involves local erosion of a potentially deep hole in bedrock due to turbulent whirlpools spinning stones around on the bed, drilling it out. Sand and stones carried by the watercourse therefore increase erosion capacity. This causes the waterfall to carve deeper into the bed and to recede upstream. Often over time,
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2814-636: The falls as a national historical park , which would provide additional federal protections for the 77-foot waterfall. By 2011, Great Falls State Park and other land along the Passaic River were transferred to the federal government for the creation of the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park. Formal establishment as a unit of the National Park System required action by the Secretary of
2881-700: The falls as a power source include the Rogers Locomotive Works (1832), Colt's Manufacturing Company , for the Colt revolver (1837), and the construction of the USS Holland (SS-1) (1898). The oldest extant structure in the historic district is the Phoenix Mill, built in 1813. Workers were exploited, especially new immigrants from Europe, who often did not speak English. They began to seek better working conditions. The industrial area became
2948-447: The falls as a primary location. The Great Falls were also featured in the pilot of the HBO crime drama The Sopranos , as well as in the series' sixth episode , in which Mikey Palmice and another associate throw a drug dealer off the bridge and into the falls to his death. Waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or
3015-506: The falls is operated by Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, which is considering commissioning another facility downstream at the Dundee Dam . The Great Falls hydroelectric plant has three Kaplan type turbines with a total capacity of 10.95 Mwe. Flow through each turbine is 710 cfs, with a total flow of 2,130 cfs, 1,377 MGD. Three 8.5' diameter penstocks feed the turbines, with a velocity 12.5 ft/sec and 8.5 mph. The unique history of
3082-579: The help of the IWW, Paterson silk workers were able to put together a general strike by recruiting thousands of workers. Two weeks into the strike, all types of weavers united to create a list of demands directed to mill owners and employers, ranging from minimum age restrictions to protect children to abolishing the multiple-loom systems to ensure the presence of jobs. It became clear that the protesters had different roles based on which job they were striking against. The ribbon weavers were skilled workers who, having previous militant struggles, helped to educate
3149-610: The industry changes. All weavers also wanted to shorten their work days and establish a certain minimum wage. The Industrial Workers of the World organization was the main outside agent behind both the Lawrence textile strike and the Paterson silk strike. On February 25, 1913, the first day of the strike, the IWW's prominent feminist leader Elizabeth Gurley Flynn was arrested after giving a talk on uniting strikers across racial boundaries. The authorities charged her and her fellow speakers with inciting violence through radical speech. Before
3216-477: The inevitable transformation of all of Paterson's mills and the subsequent loss of jobs. In response, sixty weavers struck, beginning a string of union meetings with business agents to negotiate wages for silk workers in Paterson. The following year, Edwald Koettgen formed the Eight-Hour League in Paterson, championing the idea of an eight-hour work day, sowing the final seeds of the 1913 strike. With
3283-411: The introduction of these mills was stealing jobs away from them and was also lowering their wages. Furthermore, socialism had long been a strong belief of the ribbon weavers, directly clashing with the capitalistic manufacturers and bosses. This resentment finally bubbled over in 1913 during the strikes under the ribbon workers rule of their then-current spokesman, Louis Magnet. Manufacturers responded with
3350-578: The labor supply due to changing social customs and improved health through technological advances provided cheaper labor for mill owners and reduced demand for more expensive male laborers, bidding down their wages. In addition, technological advances in silk production reduced demand for skilled labor in the silk mills of Paterson. New technology in silk mills in Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts which allowed weavers to run multiple looms at once posed significant competition to smaller New Jersey shops which manufactured silk much less efficiently and at
3417-661: The native peoples and got their names from gods in the local religion. "In Chinese tradition, the waterfall represents" the season of autumn , yin , and the Chinese dragon 's power over water that comes from the former two. There are thousands of waterfalls in the world, though no exact number has been calculated. The World Waterfall Database lists 7,827 as of 2013, but this is likely incomplete; as noted by Hudson, over 90% of their listings are in North America. Many guidebooks to local waterfalls have been published. There
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#17327767667963484-401: The pageant, which integrated the strikers' ideas and lived experiences. Labor leaders involved developed and repurposed their own speeches for inclusion in the pageant and even wrote some of the music. Robert Edmond Jones , one of Reed's former classmates, was commissioned to design the set for the pageant. All in all between 800 and 1000 workers participated in the Paterson strike pageant, which
3551-510: The power for the watermills in the new town. As a result, Paterson became the nucleus for a burgeoning mill industry. In 1792, David Godwin was commissioned to build the first water-powered cotton spinning mill in New Jersey. He subsequently built the first dam on the falls; it was a structure made of wood. In 1812, this was the site of the state's first continuous roll paper mill. Other 19th-century industries that produced goods using
3618-728: The rise of Romanticism , and increased importance of hydropower with the Industrial Revolution . European explorers often preferred to give waterfalls names in their own language; for instance, David Livingstone named Victoria Falls after Queen Victoria , though it was known by local peoples as Mosi-oa-Tunya. Many waterfalls have descriptive names which can come from the river they are on, places they are near, their features, or events that happened near them. Some countries that were colonized by European nations have taken steps to return names to waterfalls previously renamed by European explorers. Exploration of waterfalls continues;
3685-404: The rock shelf, and there is usually a deep area just below the waterfall because of the kinetic energy of the water hitting the bottom. However, a study of waterfalls systematics reported that waterfalls can be wider or narrower above or below a falls, so almost anything is possible given the right geological and hydrological setting. Waterfalls normally form in a rocky area due to erosion. After
3752-502: The site of labor unrest, and it was a center for the 1913 Paterson silk strike . Facing harsh conditions in factories, immigrant workers staged numerous strikes during and after the Great War , adding to social tensions of the time. They organized the first labor movements in the United States. The SUM society continued operation until 1945, when its charter and property were sold to the city of Paterson. The area fell into disuse during
3819-471: The strike financially and gain public support, several radical artists and intellectuals in New York City including Walter Lippman , Max Eastman , Mabel Dodge , and John Reed sympathetic to the striker's cause came up with the idea to organize a pageant play in which the events of the strike were reenacted. Haywood and the strike committee worked closely with John Reed on the writing and staging of
3886-399: The strikers on their rights. Ribbon weavers were also advocates for higher wages, as they believed that since they were being more productive with the introduction of the looms, and thus their productivity rate was also higher, they should be getting paid more. They even went so far as to demand that the three- and four-loom systems be completely removed from the mills. The workers believed that
3953-546: The treacherous terrain surrounding them until improvements began to be made such as paths to the falls, becoming common across the United Kingdom and America in the 1800s and continuing through the 1900s and into the 21st century. Remote waterfalls are now often visited by air travel. Human development has also threatened many waterfalls. For instance, the Guaíra Falls , once one of the most powerful waterfalls in
4020-508: The upper course of a river where lakes flow into valleys in steep mountains. A river sometimes flows over a large step in the rocks that may have been formed by a fault line . Waterfalls can occur along the edge of a glacial trough , where a stream or river flowing into a glacier continues to flow into a valley after the glacier has receded or melted. The large waterfalls in Yosemite Valley are examples of this phenomenon, which
4087-426: The waterfall will recede back to form a canyon or gorge downstream as it recedes upstream, and it will carve deeper into the ridge above it. The rate of retreat for a waterfall can be as high as one-and-a-half metres per year. Often, the rock stratum just below the more resistant shelf will be of a softer type, meaning that undercutting due to splashback will occur here to form a shallow cave-like formation known as
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#17327767667964154-473: The workers’ nationalities and not subject to the supervision of other more conservative and centralized labor groups. Paterson's strike was distinguished because of this decentralization. The 1913 strike in Paterson was preempted by the Doherty Silk Company's construction of a modernized mill in nearby Clifton, New Jersey in 1911. The multiple-loom system of this mill upset workers who feared
4221-677: The world, were submerged in 1982 by a human-made dam, as were the Ripon Falls in 1952. Conversely, other waterfalls have seen significantly lower water levels as a result of diversion for hydroelectricity , such as the Tyssestrengene in Norway. Development of the areas around falls as tourist attractions has also destroyed the natural scene around many of them. Waterfalls are included on thirty-eight World Heritage Sites and many others are protected by governments. Waterfalls play
4288-566: Was a work stoppage involving silk mill workers in Paterson, New Jersey . The strike involved demands for establishment of an eight-hour day and improved working conditions. The strike began in February 1913, and ended five months later, on July 28. During the course of the strike, approximately 1,850 strikers were arrested, including Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) leaders Bill Haywood and Elizabeth Gurley Flynn . Paterson's strike
4355-402: Was held at Madison Square Garden on June 7, 1913, and drew 150,000 attendees. The strikers were brought into Manhattan on a hired train and marched up Fifth Avenue in what was either a pre-show rally or performative protest before reaching the performance venue. The pageant was organized episodically and invited audience involvement to the extent that some critics have referred to the pageant as
4422-551: Was likely the first waterfall Europeans recorded seeing in the Americas. In the late 1600s, Louis Hennepin visited North America, providing early descriptions of Niagara Falls and the Saint Anthony Falls . The geographer Brian J. Hudson argues that it was uncommon to specifically name waterfalls until the 1700s. The trend of Europeans specifically naming falls was in tandem with increased scientific focus on nature,
4489-630: Was part of a series of industrial strikes in the garment and textile industries of the American East from 1909 to 1913. The participants of these strikes were largely immigrant factory workers from southern and eastern Europe. Class division , race, gender, and manufacturing expertise all caused internal dissension among the striking parties and this led many reformist intellectuals in the Northeast to question their effectiveness. A major turning point for these labor movements occurred in 1912 during
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