Summit, New Jersey

City of Summit
—  City (New Jersey)  —
Downtown Summit from the southwest
Seal
Nickname(s): Hill City
Location of Summit within Union County and state of New Jersey
Census Bureau map of Summit, New Jersey
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	New Jersey
County	Union
Settled	1710
Incorporation	March 23, 1869 as Township
Incorporation	March 8, 1899 as City
Government
- Type	Faulkner Act Council-Manager
- Mayor	Jordan Glatt
- Administrator	Christopher Cotter
Area
- Total	6.1 sq mi (15.7 km2)
- Land	6.1 sq mi (15.6 km2)
- Water	0.04 sq mi (0.1 km2)  0.33%
Elevation[1]	374 ft (114 m)
Population (2006)[2]
- Total	21,103
- Density	3,490.2/sq mi (1,348.5/km2)
Time zone	U.S. EST (UTC-5)
- Summer (DST)	U.S. EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP codes	07901, 07902
Area code(s)	908
FIPS code	34-71430[3][4]
GNIS feature ID	0880992[5]
Website	http://www.cityofsummit.org/

Summit is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States, and an affluent suburb of New York City. At the United States 2000 Census, the city population was 21,131. Summit has the 16th-highest per capita income in the state.

What is now the city of Summit was created as Summit Township by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 23, 1869, from portions of New Providence Township (now Berkeley Heights) and Springfield Township. Summit was reincorporated as a city on March 8, 1899.^[6]

Beyond the obvious derivation from its position atop the Second Watchung Mountain, other theories have been offered to account for the city's name. The house in which Jurist James Kent lived starting in 1837 called Summit Lodge (today standing at 50 Kent Place Boulevard), and a local sawmill owner who granted passage to the Morris and Essex Railroad for a route required to climb to "the summit of the Short Hills" have both been offered as the source of the city's name.^[7]

Geography

Springfield Avenue, the main shopping street.

Summit is located at (40.716201, -74.362459), ^[8] approximately 20 miles from Manhattan and is bordered to the northeast by Millburn in Essex County, to the northwest by Chatham and Chatham Township, both in Morris County, to the west by New Providence, to the southwest by Berkeley Heights, to the south by Mountainside and to the southeast by Springfield Township. Springfield Avenue is the town's main street.^[9]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.1 square miles (15.7 km²), of which, 6.1 square miles (15.7 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.33%) is water.

Demographics

At the 2000 census^[3], there were 21,131 people, 7,897 households and 5,606 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,490.7 per square mile (1,348.5/km²). There were 8,146 housing units at an average density of 1,345.7/sq mi (519.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 87.77% White, 4.33% African American, 0.09% Native American, 4.45% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.70% from other races, and 1.65% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.17% of the population. Another estimate suggests the rapidly growing Hispanic population now accounts for 20% of Summit's residents.^[11]

There were 7,897 households of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.1% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.0% were non-families. 23.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.18.

Age distribution was 27.0% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 33.0% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 93.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.1 males.

According to a 2008 estimate from the U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income in the city was $115,606,^[12] and the median family was $141,659. A second estimate was that in 2005, the median household income was $168,045, with 14.4 percent of households earning above $200,000, according to a private marketing research firm.^[9] Males had a median income of $85,625 versus $46,811 for females. The per capita income for the city was $62,598. About 2.5% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.1% of those under age 18 and 4.3% of those age 65 or over.

One report was that Manhattan's financial elite prefers Summit real estate because of big houses, good schools and New Jersey Transit rail link to Manhattan's financial district.^[13] Others suggested that nearly 20% of Summit's residents work in finance and real estate,^[9] and that the city has long been popular with traders, investment bankers, and money managers.^[9]

History

The region in which Summit is located was purchased from Native Americans on October 28, 1664. Summit's earliest European settlers came to the area around the year 1710.^[14] The original name of Summit was "Turkey Hill" to distinguish it from the area then known as "Turkey" (New Providence's original name until 1759). During the American Revolutionary War period, Summit was known as "Beacon Hill", because bonfire beacons were lit on an eastern ridge in Summit to warn the New Jersey militiamen of approaching British troops.^[15]

Summit was called the "Heights over Springfield" during the late 18th century and most of the 19th century, and was considered a part of New Providence. During this period, Summit was part of a regional government called Springfield Township, which eventually broke up into separate municipalities. Eventually only Summit and New Providence remained joined.

Lord Chancellor James Kent, who was the Chancellor of New York State and who wrote Commentaries on American Law, retired to this area in 1837 in a house he called Summit Lodge, a source that has been cited as naming the City of Summit.^[7] He lived in Summit between 1837 and 1847 in a small lodge on what is now called Kent Place Boulevard. The original lodge is now part of a large mansion, at 50 Kent Place Boulevard, opposite Kent Place School.

In 1837, the Morris and Essex Railroad, which became the Delaware Lackawanna and Western Railroad and is now the New Jersey Transit's Morris and Essex Lines, was built over what was then called the "The Summit" hill, and the name was later shortened to Summit. Before the railroad, neighboring New Providence had more residents than Summit, but the railroad line changed that, with Summit outgrowing its neighbor which didn't have a train station at first. In 1868, a hotel named "The Summit House" burned beside the railroad.^[16] In 1869, Summit and New Providence separated and the Summit area became the "Township of Summit". In the late 1800s, the area began shifting from farmland to wealthy estates; in 1892, renowned architect C. Abbott French cleared away a crest of a "summit ridge", removing "an impenetrable tangle of wild vines ... and myriads of rattlesnakes," to build a house with a view of New York City, The Times Building, and the Brooklyn Bridge.^[17] The present-day incarnation of Summit, known formally as the City of Summit, was incorporated on April 11, 1899.^[14] During this time, Summit was the home of America's "antivice crusader" Anthony Comstock who "for decades almost singlehandedly decided what was obscene and what was not" and lived in a house built in 1892 at 35 Beekman Road.^[18] In 1913, Comstock walked by an art dealer and saw a print of a nude woman and instructed a clerk to remove it; "But that is the famous 'September Morning," said the clerk, but Comstock replied "There's too little morning and too much maid."^[18]

Calvary Episcopal Church

Increasingly, in the 19th century, Summit served as a nearby getaway spot for wealthy residents of New York City in search of fresh air and a convenient weekend getaway. Weekenders would reach Summit by train and relax at large hotels and smaller inns and guest houses. In addition, it was often a "summer destination" for residents of New York City.^[19] Calvary Episcopal Church was built in 1894-1895 and was described as a "handsome new house of Worship".^[20]

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, silk weaving was a significant business in the city, but it declined in the early decades of the twentieth century; in 1915, there was a strike at the Summit Silk Company on Weaver Street.^[21] In the early 1900s, there was much building activity; in 1909, one report suggested at least 40 residences were being built with costs varying from $4,500 to $45,000, making it "one of the greatest periods of building activity this place, the Hill City, has known."^[22] Some houses had stables.^[22]

Quiet, leafy neighborhoods make Summit attractive to affluent home buyers

A new railway was constructed from what was then-called New Orange.^[23] The Rahway Valley Railroad connected Summit with the defunct Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W). In the early 20th century, both freight and passenger service were offered by this line which is currently out of service, although in 2009, Union County was exploring the possibility of reactivating the line for freight traffic. A trolley line called the Morris County Traction Company, once ran a passenger trolley through Summit to/from Newark and Morris County, in the early part of the 20th century. Broad Street in Summit was designed and built for the trolley, which is why it is wider and straighter than most streets in the city. Portions of the rails could still be seen on it as late as the 1980s.

Late in the 20th century, parking became an issue. Summit built large garages like this one, and designated special lots for commuters, employees, shoppers. 15-minute limits on selected metered downtown spaces encourage shoppers to shop quickly and free the space for others.

Relations between city authorities and businesses have not always been smooth; in 1898, city authorities and the New York and New Jersey Telephone Company had disputes about wires and telephone poles; the city acted and "wires and cables of the company were cut from the poles."^[24] There were disputes between Summit's commuters and the Lackawanna railroad about walkways; in one incident in 1905, "a number of passengers seeking to board the 6:35 train found their way barred. They made a united rush, and when the dust cleared away, the door wasn't there. It is said the company will put the door back. The commuters say they will remove it as often as it is replaced."^[25]

Following World War II, the city experienced a great building boom, as living outside New York City and commuting to work became more common and the population of New Jersey grew. At this point, Summit took on its suburban character of tree lined streets and architect-designed houses that it is known for today.^[26] Summit had a mini-bus system, with three routes, in the late 1970s. The mini-buses ran through most parts of Summit on long circular routes that were primarily designed to bring commuters to the railroad station in downtown Summit. The Velvet Underground played their first paid concert at a Summit High School prom.^[27]

The Summit YMCA has indoor gymnasiums, exercise equipment, two swimming pools, and other facilities. To the right is the Summit Fire Station.

During the 9/11 attacks, Summit lost more than a dozen residents.^[13] Many residents worked in the World Trade Center because of the Midtown Direct rail connection.^[13] A few days after the attacks, townspeople assembled on the broad town green while a minister "called out the names of a dozen residents still unaccounted for after Tuesday's attack on the World Trade Center. Others in the crowd of nearly 2,000 called out names he had left out."^[13] A few World Trade Center firms relocated to Summit.^[28] In 2004, an Infiniti car dealership burned, which caused New Jersey Transit officials to suspend train service for a few hours while the four-alarm fire was extinguished; the site has not been redeveloped in 2009 because of zoning disputes.^[29][30] Star baseball athlete Willie Wilson and former Summit graduate returned to Summit High School in 2005.^[11] He "signed with the Kansas City Royals and went on to a highlight-filled 19-year major league career. He became one of baseball's most electrifying players, a whippet-fast outfielder and catalyst for some terrific Kansas City teams in the late 1970's and 80's."^[11] Wilson said: "To me, Summit is a special place ... It's where it all began and I have great memories. This is where I want to help kids and youth baseball, and I want my own son and daughter to come and help me create something here."^[11] During the economic downturn of 2008-2009, Summit was listed as #6 on a list of American communities "likely to be pummeled by the economic crisis."^[9] Some local merchants have been hurt by the economic downturn.^[9]

Government

Local government

City Hall at the intersection of Springfield Avenue and Broad Street has the city's police station, municipal court, municipal departments, and other offices.

On April 11, 1899, Summit voters adopted as the Charter of the City of Summit the Statute of 1899 applicable to cities of less than 12,000 population. On December 15, 1987, the New Jersey Legislature enacted a law that repealed all of the remaining provisions of Summit's original Charter and replaced and retained sections not covered by general law and specific to Summit's original Charter. Summit's Charter now allows that "1) The council may, by referendum, change the term of the councilman at large from a two year term to a four year term. 2) Resolutions adopted by the council do not have to be approved by the mayor. 3) The council pro tempore shall be the acting mayor in the mayor's absence due to sickness or other cause. 4) The municipality may appoint an administrator in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S. 40A:9-136. 5) The municipality may adopt an administrative code."^[31]

The US Post Office is centrally located on Maple Street near the downtown, across from the YMCA.

The mayor is elected by the city for a four year term and is the city's official spokesman and chief elected official. The mayor can appoint various officials, including the Police Chief and the Board of Education. He serves as the Chairman of the Board of School Estimate and on various committees, and has the right to speak at Common Council meetings. The mayor can only vote to break ties in the Council and has the right to speak out on issues. This bully pulpit role is considered the mayor's strongest power.

The Common Council has the chief policy making and administrative oversight role in city government. The Council approves all laws and adopts the city budget. The Council also oversees the work of city department heads. The Council consists of three members from Ward I and three members from Ward II and one member elected at-large. The six ward members serve three year terms and the at-large member serves a two year term. The Council elects from its membership a President for a one year term and a President Pro Tem for a one year term. The President presides at all Council meetings and the President Pro Tem presides in the President's absence. The President Pro Tem also serves as Acting Mayor in the absence of the Mayor.

Summit has been considered a stronghold for the Republican Party for years. From 1921 to 2001 no Democrats served in elective office and very few ran for office. The real elections occurred in the Republican Primary. In 2001, Democratic candidates Michel Bitritto won a Council seat in Ward I and Jordan Glatt won the at-large council seat. Summit had never elected a Democratic Mayor until 2003, when Jordan Glatt was elected.

Jordan L. Glatt, a Democrat, is the current Mayor of Summit. Current members of the Common Council, are:^[32]

• At-large: Steve Murphy - Democrat
• Ward I: Ellen K. Dickson
• Ward I: Thomas Getzendanner
• Ward I: Nuris Portuondo
• Ward II: Dave A. Bomgaars
• Ward II: Rich Madden
• Ward II: Michael J. Vernotico

Christopher Cotter is the City Administrator of Summit. In this role he directs day to day operations of city government and the city departments. He is a former Fire Chief and Director of Community Services.

Summit has a broad expanse of green space on either side of Broad Street near the downtown; in summer, concerts are given; a memorial (center) commemorates residents who fought and died in the nation's wars.

The Department of Community Services is responsible for engineering, public works, and code administration.^[33] The engineering division manages city infrastructure such as roads, curbs, sewers, and provide support to the planning and zoning boards.^[33] Public works maintains streets, trees, traffic signs, public parks, traffic islands, playgrounds, public buildings, support vehicles, equipment, and has other responsibilities.^[33] The city runs a municipal disposal area or solid waste transfer station where recyclables are collected, including bulky trash; residents must have a town-generated sticker on their cars to use this facility.^[33] Trash is picked up from garbage cans once a week for most residents, and recycling materials are picked up every two weeks.^[33] Certain trees need permits before being removed.^[33] Summit plows 66 miles of city streets except for county roads.^[33] Residents are asked to put leaves in biodegradable bags for pickup on selected times during autumn and spring.^[33] Recently the city has embarked on a program of "Bringing Art to Public Spaces in Summit"; this program, established in 2002, has placed sculptures at different venues around the town and is supported by private donations.^[34] The Summit Chamber of Commerce advertises the town on cable television.^[9]

Federal, state and county representation

Summit is in the Seventh Congressional District and is part of New Jersey's 21st Legislative District.^[35]

New Jersey's Seventh Congressional District is represented by Leonard Lance (R, Clinton Township). New Jersey is represented in the United States Senate by Frank Lautenberg (D, Cliffside Park) and Bob Menendez (D, Hoboken).

The 21st Legislative District of the New Jersey Legislature is represented in the New Jersey Senate by Thomas Kean, Jr. (R, Westfield) and in the New Jersey General Assembly by Jon Bramnick (R, Westfield) and Nancy Munoz (R, Summit).^[36] The Governor of New Jersey is Chris Christie (R, Mendham).^[37] The Lieutenant Governor of New Jersey is Kim Guadagno (R, Monmouth Beach).^[38]

Union County is governed by a nine-member Board of Chosen Freeholders, elected at-large to three-year terms on a staggered basis. Union County's Freeholders are Freeholder Chairman Alexander Mirabella (Roselle Park), Freeholder Vice Chairman Daniel P. Sullivan (Elizabeth), Angel G. Estrada (Elizabeth), Chester Holmes (Rahway), Bette Jane Kowalski (Cranford), Rick Proctor (Rahway), Deborah P. Scanlon (Union), Rayland Van Blake (Plainfield), and Nancy Ward (Linden).^[39]

Education

Students in Pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade are educated by the Summit Public Schools. Schools in the district (with 2005-06 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics^[40]) are:

Summit's Memorial Field has eight newly-refurbished (2008) tennis courts; Brayton elementary school is in the background. Memorial Field also has (not visible in this picture) 2 outdoor basketball courts, a children's play area, several large fields used for baseball and soccer, a track, parking, and the Cornog Field House.

Elementary Schools

• Wilson Primary School (PK-K)
• Jefferson Primary School (PK-K)
• Brayton School with 489 students (1-5) principal: Dr. Cheryl Moretz.
• Franklin School with 400 students (1-5) Principal: Sheila Cole
• Jefferson School with 233 students (1-5) Principal: Ron Poles
• Lincoln-Hubbard School with 382 students (1-5) Principal: Matthew Carlin
• Washington School with 350 students (1-5)Principal: Lauren Banker

Middle School Principal: Matthew Block; Vice Principal: Jeffery Heaney

• Lawton C. Johnson Summit Middle School with 843 students (6-8)

High School

• Summit High School with 1045 students for the 2008 - 2009 School Year (9-12) ^[41]

Summit High School was ranked as Number 149 nationwide in Newsweek magazine's 2005 listing of "America's Best High Schools" in the August 5, 2005 issue.^[42]

Private Schools:

• Kent Place School (NS-12)
• Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child (K-12)
• Oratory Preparatory School (7-12)

Real estate and housing

Summit residential real estate is expensive. In October 2009, the median house price was $655,500—half of Summit's houses were valued at a price more than this one, half less.^[43] Real estate taxes vary; an $800,000 four-bedroom, 2 full bath, 2 partial bath single family home built in 1939 had taxes of $16,000 in 2009.^[44] Summit, along with many suburban communities in the United States, adopted a policy of zoning ordinances requiring a single family house on a large lot and could thereby "exclude any undesirable influences that might erode property values."^[45] The requirement excluded apartment buildings and multi-family dwellings, and tended to raise the price of houses. One study found that since 1945, the single family house on a large lot zoning mechanism "has been increasingly used in suburban and rural areas to safeguard particular vested interests."^[45] A New York Times reporter and Summit resident criticized the city for being an "economically, racially and ideologically homogenized populace" with "a growing divide between Summit's haves and have-nots."^[46] He elaborated in 2006: "there's an ever-diminishing corner of the city akin to the so-called slums of Beverly Hills, where middle-income homeowners like me can take advantage of the schools and services of Summit without the million-dollar price tags so ubiquitous on the other side of the Midtown Direct tracks."^[46] But he preferred the city as a place to raise and educate his children.^[46] One developer sued the city in 2005 to comply with New Jersey's Fair Housing Act to provide more affordable housing units.^[46] The city is working on a "housing master plan" to avoid future lawsuits from developers.^[46]

Landmarks

The Summit Diner at the corner of Summit Avenue and Union Place.

• The Summit Diner, located on the corner of Union Place & Summit Ave., is an O'Mahony diner that has wood paneled walls, eight booths and 20 stools. It is a historic diner known for its Taylor Ham, Egg & Cheese sandwiches. Local legend says author Ernest Hemingway visited the diner and later used it as a setting for his short story "The Killers". In the story, two men are sitting at a lunch counter in a diner, and one turns to the other and says, “This is a hot town, ... What do they call it?” “Summit,” says the other. However, this is highly unlikely as the Summit Diner is a O'Mahony 1938 model and Hemingway published his story in 1926. Also, in his definitive biography of Hemingway, Carlos Baker states that the reference by Hemingway was to Summit, Illinois, a small town outside of Chicago (and not to Summit, New Jersey). Carlos Baker, "Ernest Hemingway: A Life Story" (1969).

• Newman Hall is one of Summit's first mansions, built in the late 1800s. It stands at the corner of Morris Avenue and Bedford Road, and was lived in for many years by the Truslow family. Today it houses offices and classrooms used by its owner, Oratory Prep School.

Summit Public Library in 2009, looking west, across Maple Street.

• Twin Maples is another Registered Historic Place, at Springfield Avenue and Edgewood Road. It is home to the Summit Fortnightly Club and the Junior Fortnightly.

• The Summit Opera House was originally built in the 1890s by the Woman's Christian Temperance Union as a dry entertainment hall and local W.C.T.U. meeting place. It currently houses Winberie's restaurant on the ground floor, and a church, office space, and apartments on the upper floors. It is located at Springfield Avenue and Kent Place Boulevard in downtown Summit.

• The Reeves-Reed Arboretum is a suburban conservancy dedicated to environmental and horticultural education for children and adults and enjoyment of nature through the professional care and preservation of a historic country estate.

• Summit Public Library offers a wide range of books, CDs, DVDs, internet access, special programs, and is centrally located at the corner of Maple Street and Morris Avenue.^[47]

• Our Lady of the Rosary monastery is located on Springfield Avenue.^[48]

The Summit Playhouse

• The Grand Summit Hotel hosts different events, including stockholder meetings.^[49]

• Another historic building in Summit is The DeBary Inn built in 1880 by Frederick DeBary. It remained a private residence until 1923 when it became an inn and has been one ever since.

• The Short Hills Mall in Millburn, New Jersey is a mile away from the Summit downtown.^[13]

• Downtown Summit has a variety of restaurants of different cuisines, including Persian.^[50]

• The Summit Playhouse features live dramatic performances.

• The Visual Arts Center of New Jersey on Elm Street diagonally across from the Summit Middle School is a regional art center with a professionally recognized art school and an exhibition program.

• The United States Post Office is on Maple Street near the downtown.

Sports

In 2009, the Summit high school football team won the New Jersey state championship at a game played in Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands.

More information about sports can be found on links at the bottom of the page.

Transportation

Summit Station.

Service on the New Jersey Transit Gladstone Branch and Morristown Line is available at the Summit station. Trains go to Hoboken Terminal, and from there, a PATH subway train can take passengers to downtown Manhattan or to 33rd street at Sixth Avenue. There is direct service from Summit to New York's Penn Station in midtown. Trains run hourly to Manhattan, and run more frequently during rush hours which also have express trains which bypass local stops between Summit and Newark. The train ride from Summit to midtown is about 50 minutes (local) and 35 minutes (express). Trains don't run from midnight to 5:30am. One reporter wrote: "The train line dominates Summit, bisecting its handsome commercial district from the town green on a sunken track, like a Dutch canal."^[13]

Route 24 runs along the eastern boundary of Summit. Interstate 78 runs along the southern boundary of Summit. Route 124 and County Route 512 also pass through Summit.

Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark / Elizabeth is approximately 15 minutes away via Interstate 78.

Media

Due to its proximity to New York City and Newark, daily newspapers serving the community are The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Star-Ledger.

Locally, Summit is served by the Summit Herald-Dispatch and the Independent Press, the latter of which is based in New Providence and serves the City of Summit and several surrounding communities. Both newspapers are published on a weekly basis. Summit is also served by an online paper called The Alternative Press.^{[51][52][53][54]}

Employers

• Schering Plough pharmaceuticals is one of Summit's largest corporate tax-payers. Its facilities in the western part of Summit were previously home to Novartis and, before that, Ciba.^[55] In April, the firm completed a 1.7 megawatt solar energy rooftop panel system drawing energy atop seven buildings.^[55]

Overlook Hospital is on a hill above the town with views of the Manhattan skyline.

• Overlook Hospital is located on a hill with views of the Manhattan skyline and is operated by the Atlantic Health System and features the "Atlantic Neuroscience Institute" and "Carol G. Simon Cancer Center" and the "Gagnon Cardiovascular Institute."^[56]
• Celgene is a biotechnology company and another large corporate tax-payer that is headquartered in Summit. Its facilities are in the southern part of Summit. Presidential candidate John Edwards visited the firm in May 2007.^[57]
• Whiptail Technologies is a maker of "solid state storage appliances".^[58]
• Cogent Consulting is a privately-owned developer of "commission management systems" for Wall Street.^[59]
• Hibernia Atlantic is headquartered in Summit and is a transatlantic submarine cable network provider.^[60]

In popular culture

In the series finale of the popular cable TV show Monk, the fictional character of Randy Disher reveals he is leaving San Francisco because he has been offered the job as the chief of police of Summit, New Jersey. Additionally, he is also going there to to marry his long-time crush, Sharona Fleming.

Notable natives

Notable current and former residents of Summit include:

• Jack Belden, award winning China journalist.^[61]
• Brett Ellen Block, award winning short story author and novelist.
• Anthony Comstock legal reformer, famous for the anti-pornography laws named after him.^[18][62]
• Paul Davenport (born 1946), ninth president of the University of Western Ontario.^[63]
• Mark Donohue (1937–1975), racecar, Indy, Formula 1 and NASCAR driver, Winner of the 1972 Indy 500.
• Frank Edgar (born Oct. 16, 1981) Professional U.F.C. fighter.
• Brian Edwards (born Oct. 6, 1984) goalkeeper for Toronto FC.^[64]
• Ice T (born 1958 as Tracy Lauren Marrow), rapper/actor.^[65] He attended Brayton Elementary School and Summit Junior High (now Summit Middle) School. He moved to Los Angeles to live with family members after the death of his parents.
• Hamilton Wright Mabie, author, lived in Summit.^[66]
• Holbrook Mann MacNeille (1907–1973), mathematician, developed radar systems for the Office of Scientific Research and Development in England during World War II.
• Jack Rabid, publisher of music magazine The Big Takeover^[67]
• Bobby Sheehan (1968–1999), original bass player for Blues Traveler.
• Rat Skates, (birth name Lee Kundrat, born 1961), was the first drummer for heavy metal band Overkill, and is now a filmmaker and animator.
• Meryl Streep (born 1949), actress.^[68]
• Ray Toro (born 1977), lead guitar player of the New Jersey based band My Chemical Romance.
• Gerard Way (born 1977), lead singer of the New Jersey based band My Chemical Romance.
• Willie Wilson (born 1955), retired professional baseball player with the Kansas City Royals (1976–1990), Oakland Athletics (1991–1992) and Chicago Cubs (1993–1994). He was a 2-time All-Star and won the AL batting title in 1982 with a .332 average.^[69]

Notable residents

• Abelino Mazariego-Torres (killed in Summit, 2010), originally from El Salvador. He was fatally beaten on July 17, 2010, allegedly by two teenage males as he sat on a park bench near Dabbawalla, the downtown Summit restaurant where he had worked as a dishwasher. He died at Overlook Hospital on July 20, 2010, at the age of 47. (source: accessed on July 30, 2010, http://www.trendsinhate.com/hatedates/JulyHateDates/July17.html).
• Rex Ryan (born 1962), head coach of the New York Jets.
• John Bardeen (1908–1991), physicist who was the only person to have won two Nobel prizes in physics: in 1956 for the transistor, along with William Shockley and Walter Houser Brattain, and in 1972 for a fundamental theory of conventional superconductivity together with Leon Neil Cooper and John Robert Schrieffer, now called BCS theory.^[70]
• Walter Houser Brattain (1902–1987), physicist who shared the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics for the transistor.^[71]
• Fritz Buehning (born 1960), former professional tennis player.^[72]
• Mark Cesark (born 1965), sculptor, best known for his use of found and scrap steel.^[73]
• Greg Cohen, jazz artist.^[74]
• Anthony Comstock (1844–1915), censor and postal inspector.^[18][75]
• William A. Conway (1910–2006), former President and CEO of Garden State National Bank.
• Jon Corzine, former Governor of New Jersey.^{[9][13][76][77]}
• Jim Cramer (born 1955), stock trader and CNBC's former Kudlow & Cramer and present Mad Money anchor.^[9][78]
• Carl Frosch, Bell Labs researcher who pioneered deposition and etching of silicon dioxide on silicon.
• Charles Gibson (born 1943), former anchor of ABC News' World News Tonight and Good Morning America.
• Scott Goldblatt (born 1979), freestyle swimmer who won a gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens in the 4x200m Freestyle.^[79]
• Lord Chancellor Kent (1763–1847), Lord Chancellor of New York State (1814–1823).
• William "Bill" Larned (1872–1926), a professional tennis player who won the U.S. Open several times around the turn of the century was a Summit resident. Larned Road, which runs by municipal tennis courts at Memorial Field, is named for both him and his father, who once owned the land. Ranked #40 on the Sports Illustrated list of The 50 Greatest New Jersey Sports Figures.^[80]
• Margareta Pâslaru (born 1943), one of the most prolific Romanian singer. Immigrated to the USA in 1983.
• Worthington Whittredge (1820–1910), an American landscape artist and important member of the Hudson River School. (A street in town, Whittredge Road, is named for him).^[81]

Points of interest

• Reeves-Reed Arboretum - owned by the city, at 165 Hobart Ave., and open to the public from sunrise to sunset, free of charge, every day of the year
• Watchung Reservation - Borders Summit to the south
• Carter House - at 90 Butler Parkway, Summit's oldest known structure, built in 1741, now home to the Summit Historical Society
• Canoe Brook Country Club

See also

• Summit Public Schools
• Overlook Hospital
• Reeves-Reed Arboretum
• Summit Public Library

References

External links

• The Official City of Summit Website
• The Official Summit Police Website
• The Official Summit Chamber of Commerce Website
• Summit Historical Society
• Visual Arts Center of New Jersey

Municipalities and communities of Union County, New Jersey County seat: Elizabeth Cities Elizabeth | Linden | Plainfield | Rahway | Summit Boroughs Fanwood | Garwood | Kenilworth | Mountainside | New Providence | Roselle | Roselle Park Town Westfield Townships Berkeley Heights | Clark | Cranford | Hillside | Scotch Plains | Springfield | Union | Winfield Unincorporated communities Free Acres | Murray Hill | Vauxhall

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