Plainfield, New Jersey

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File:Plainfield Station from North Avenue.jpg

Downtown Plainfield Train Station, one of two stations running to New York City on the Raritan Valley Line

File:NETHERWOOD STATION, UNION COUNTY, NJ.jpg

Netherwood station on the Raritan Valley Line to Newark/New York, one of two train stations in Plainfield

Plainfield is a city in Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Nicknamed "The Queen City",<ref name=Queen>About, City of Plainfield. Accessed December 29, 2021. "Plainfield Is Nicknamed 'The Queen City.'"</ref> it serves as both a regional hub for Central New Jersey and a bedroom suburb of the New York Metropolitan area, located in the Raritan Valley region. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population, majority Latino for the first time, was 54,586.<ref name=Census2020/><ref name=LWD2020/> This was an increase of 4,778 (+9.6%) from the 2010 census count of 49,808,<ref name=Census2010/><ref name=LWD2010/> which in turn reflected an increase of 1,979 (+4.1%) from the 47,829 counted in the 2000 census.<ref name=Census2010XLS>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.</ref> In 2023, the Census Bureau estimated the city's population to be 54,670.<ref name=PopEst/>

The area of present-day Plainfield was originally formed as Plainfield Township, a township that was created on April 5, 1847, from portions of Westfield Township, while the area was still part of Essex County. On March 19, 1857, Plainfield Township became part of the newly created Union County.<ref name=Story/>

Plainfield was incorporated as a city by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on April 21, 1869, from portions of Plainfield Township, based on the results of a referendum held that same day. The city and township coexisted until March 6, 1878, when Plainfield Township was dissolved and parts were absorbed by Plainfield city, with the remainder becoming Fanwood Township (now known as Scotch Plains).<ref name=Story>Snyder, John P. The Story of New Jersey's Civil Boundaries: 1606-1968, Bureau of Geology and Topography; Trenton, New Jersey; 1969. p. 240. Accessed May 30, 2024.</ref>

The name "Plainfield", also used in both North Plainfield and South Plainfield, is derived from a local estate<ref>Hutchinson, Viola L. The Origin of New Jersey Place Names, New Jersey Public Library Commission, May 1945. Accessed September 20, 2015.</ref> or from its scenic location.<ref>Gannett, Henry. The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States, p. 247. United States Government Printing Office, 1905. Accessed September 11, 2015.</ref>

History

File:McGreevyPlainfieldHouse.jpg

Home of former Governor Jim McGreevey

Plainfield was settled in 1684 by Quakers,<ref>Dudley, William L. "Friendly Families: The Shotwells", in The Story of the Friends in Plainfield Including A History of Early Quaker Families, Rahway & Plainfield Friends (Quaker) Meeting, March 29, 1929. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref> and incorporated as a city in 1869. Formerly a bedroom suburb in the New York metropolitan area, it has become the urban center of 10 closely allied municipalities, with diversified industries, including printing and the manufacture of chemicals, clothing, electronic equipment, and vehicular parts. Among the several 18th-century buildings remaining are a Friends' meetinghouse (1788),<ref>Nutt, Bill. "Plainfield places", Courier News, September 3, 2003. Accessed July 11, 2013. "The Society of Friends Meeting House, an apparently unassuming structure on Watchung Avenue in the North Avenue Commercial Historic District, is the oldest continuously used house of worship in the city."</ref> the Martine house (1717), and the Nathaniel Drake House (1746), known as George Washington's headquarters during the Battle of Short Hills in June 1777.<ref>Nathaniel Drake House Template:Webarchive, Connolly & Hickey Historical Architects. Accessed July 11, 2013. "The Nathaniel Drake House was constructed for Nathaniel Drake and his new wife circa 1746, and remained in the Drake family until c. 1860 when Daniel Drake sold the property to John S. Harberger of New York City.... The Nathaniel Drake House is significant for its architecture and how the evolution of the building reflects the changes within Plainfield from an early colonial settlement to a modern suburb, its association with the Drake family, who were prominent early settlers in the region, as well as its association with General George Washington during the Battle of Short Hills."</ref><ref>Home Page, Drake House Museum. Accessed July 11, 2013. "It was at the Drake House that George Washington consulted with his officers during and after the Battle of Short Hills fought over the entire Plainfield area on June 25–27, 1777."</ref> Nearby Washington Rock is a prominent point of the Watchung Mountains and is reputed to be the vantage point from which Washington watched British troop movements.<ref>Washington Rock State Park, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Accessed July 11, 2013.</ref><ref>Washington Rock Template:Webarchive, Drake House Museum. Accessed July 11, 2013.</ref>

The "Queen City" moniker arose in the second half of the 19th century. Plainfield had been developing a reputation during this period as featuring a climate that was beneficial for respiratory ailments. In 1886, in an effort to publicize the climate, local newspaper publisher Thomas W. Morrison began to use the slogan "Colorado of the East" to promote Plainfield. As Denver, Colorado, was known as the "Queen City of the Plains," the slogan for Plainfield eventually became abbreviated to "The Queen City."<ref>Plainfield, Past and Present, WestfieldNJ.com. Accessed August 26, 2018.</ref><ref>Staff. loindex.ssf/2012/04/1940_census_release_causes_cra.html "1940 census release causes a craze among geneaologists, offers a peek into the past", The Star-Ledger, April 3, 2012. Accessed August 26, 2018. "In the 19th century Plainfield was called the 'Colorado of the East,' and as the sister city of Denver, which was known as the 'Queen City of the Plains,' was known simply as 'Queen City.'"</ref>

In 1902, the New Jersey Legislature approved measures that would have allowed the borough of North Plainfield to become part of Union County (a measure repealed in 1903) and to allow for a merger of North Plainfield with the City of Plainfield subject to the approval of a referendum by voters in both municipalities.<ref>Honeyman, Abraham Van Doren. Index-analysis of the Statutes of New Jersey, 1896-1909: Together with References to All Acts, and Parts of Acts, in the 'General Statutes' and Pamphlet Laws Expressly Repealed : and the Statutory Crimes of New Jersey During the Same Period, p. 208. New Jersey Law Journal Publishing Company, 1910. Accessed September 20, 2015.</ref><ref>Staff. "North Plainfield Annexation Bills.", The New York Times, April 15, 1902. Accessed August 26, 2018.</ref>

Plainfield is the birthplace of P-Funk. George Clinton founded The Parliaments while working in a Plainfield barber shop. Parliament-Funkadelic was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997. Plainfield has been home to former New Jersey governor James McGreevey.<ref name=McGreevey/>

In sports history, Plainfield is the birthplace and/or home of several current and former athletes, including professionals and well-known amateurs. Included in their number are Milt Campbell, the 1956 Olympic Decathlon gold medalist (the first African-American to earn this title),<ref name=Campbell/> Joe Black, the first African-American pitcher to win a World Series game, Jeff Torborg, former MLB player, coach and manager, former Duke University and Chicago Bull basketball player Jay Williams, and Vic Washington, NFL player.<ref name=Black/>

Plainfield's history as a place to call home for the 19th and 20th century wealthy has led to a significant and preserved suburban architectural legacy. An influx of Wall Street money led to the creation of what was called Millionaires' Row after the opening of the railway in the 19th century.<ref name="njmonthly">Payne, Lauren. "History Lesson: Preserving An AchitecturalTemplate:Sic Treasure in Plainfield A Plainfield couple prove that preserving an architectural treasure—while challenging, time-consuming and, yes, costly—is well worth the effort.", New Jersey Monthly, October 16, 2012. Accessed March 3, 2020.</ref>

There are numerous sites, including homes, parks, and districts in the city that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. While not listed, the Plainfield Armory, a prominent landmark completed in 1932, was sold by the state in 2013 as surplus property.<ref>The Plainfield Armory Template:Webarchive, The New Jersey Naval Militia Foundation. Accessed July 11, 2013. "The armory at Plainfield was constructed between 1931 and 1932 to house the Headquarters Company of the 44th Division."</ref>

Plainfield's wealthy northeast corner, known as the "Sleepy Hollow" section of the city, was and still is characterized by its array of finely landscaped streets and neighborhoods with homes defined by a broad array of architectural styles, most built during the first half of the twentieth century. From the tree-lines neighborhoods, it can be seen that the lot sizes vary, but the stateliness and distinction of each house is evident, whether a stately Queen Anne mansion or gingerbread cottage. Most lots are nicely landscaped and semi or fully private.<ref>Cheslow, Jerry. "If You're Thinking of Living in: Plainfield", The New York Times, May 9, 1993. Accessed July 29, 2016. "Although some neighborhoods, such as the Sleepy Hollow area on the east side of town, with its winding, tree-lined streets and large, custom houses, remain well-manicured, many formerly gracious streets near the center of town, like West Fourth, are blighted, with boarded-up buildings and shards of auto glass on the streets."</ref>

Plainfield was affected by the Plainfield Rebellion in July 1967. This civil disturbance occurred in the wake of the larger Newark riots. A Plainfield police officer was killed, about fifty people were injured, and several hundred thousand dollars of property was damaged by looting and arson. The New Jersey National Guard restored order after three days of unrest.<ref name="Riot">"Plainfield Burning: Black Rebellion in the Suburban North", Thomas J. Sugrue and Andrew M. Goodman, Journal of Urban History, vol. 33 (May 2007), pp. 368–401.</ref> This civil unrest caused a massive white flight, characterized by the percentage of Black residents rising from 40% in 1970 to 60% a decade later.<ref>Dreier, Peter. "Riot and Reunion: Forty Years Later", The Nation, July 30, 2007. Accessed April 10, 2012. "In 1971, after more protests and litigation, the school district initiated a desegregation plan. But because white flight had dramatically accelerated, real school integration between Blacks and whites was difficult to achieve. Between 1970 and 1980, blacks' share of Plainfield's population grew from 40 percent to 60 percent."</ref>

Author and Plainfield native Isaiah Tremaine published Insurrection in 2017 as a mournful accounting of the Plainfield riots—and subsequent racial tensions at Plainfield High School—from his perspective as a Black teenager living in the city with both white and Black friends at the time.<ref>Tremaine, Isaiah; and Pottackal, Joseph. "Recalling the 1967 Plainfield riots", Courier News, July 16, 2017. Accessed April 25, 2021.</ref><ref name="isaiahtremainebooks">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Prior to the rebellion, Plainfield was a regional shopping and entertainment center. Residents of nearby Union, Middlesex and Somerset counties would drive to shop and explore the business districts of Plainfield. Other than during the holidays, peak shopping times Plainfield were Thursday nights and Saturday, when Front Street and the areas around it bustled.<ref>Id.</ref>

Plainfield had several entertainment venues at that time. At the peak, there were four operating movie theaters: the Strand, the Liberty, the Paramount and the Oxford theaters.

Manufacturers of heavy goods included Chelsea Fan Corp., Mack Truck and National Starch and Chemical Corp. Plainfield Iron and Metal maintained a large scrapyard in the West End.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city had a total area of Template:Convert, including Template:Convert of land and Template:Convert of water (0.15%).<ref name=CensusArea/><ref name=GR1 />

Unincorporated communities, localities and place names located partially or completely within the city include Netherwood.<ref>Locality Search, State of New Jersey. Accessed May 21, 2015.</ref>

The city is located in Central Jersey on the southwestern edge of Union County and is bordered by nine municipalities. In Union County are Scotch Plains to the north and east and Fanwood to the northeast. In Middlesex County, are South Plainfield and Piscataway to the south; Dunellen to the southwest and Edison to the southeast. In Somerset County, Green Brook Township lies to the northwest, North Plainfield lies to the north and Watchung borders to the northwest.<ref>Areas touching Plainfield, MapIt. Accessed March 3, 2020.</ref><ref>Union County Municipal Profiles, Union County, New Jersey. Accessed March 3, 2020.</ref><ref>New Jersey Municipal Boundaries, New Jersey Department of Transportation. Accessed November 15, 2019.</ref>

Plainfield is in the Raritan Valley, a line of cities in central New Jersey, and lies on the east side of the Raritan Valley along with Edison.

The Robinson's Branch of the Rahway River additionally flows through Plainfield en route to the Robinson's Branch Reservoir.

Climate

Plainfield has a humid continental climate, characterized by brisk to cold winters and hot, muggy summers. The lowest temperature ever recorded was Template:Convert on February 9, 1934, and the highest temperature ever recorded was Template:Convert on July 10, 1936, and August 11, 1949.<ref name=NOAA>NowData - NOAA Online Weather Data Template:Webarchive, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Accessed March 2, 2012.</ref> According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Plainfield has a humid subtropical climate, which is abbreviated as "Cfa" on climate maps.<ref>Plainfield, New Jersey, Weatherbase. Accessed April 25, 2021. "Köppen Classification: Humid Subtropical Climate"</ref> Template:Weather box

Demographics

Plainfield has seen a rapid rise in its Latino community in recent decades. The city's population is now majority Hispanic for the first time, as of the 2020 census. Template:US Census population

2020 census

Plainfield city, New Jersey – Racial and ethnic composition
Template:Nobold

Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Partial<ref name=2020CensusP2>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	% 1990	% 2000	% 2010	Template:Partial
White alone (NH)	9,140	5,508	4,139	3,383	19.63%	11.52%	8.31%	6.20%
Black or African American alone (NH)	29,641	28,698	24,069	19,034	63.65%	60.00%	48.32%	34.87%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	203	91	97	104	0.44%	0.19%	0.19%	0.19%
Asian alone (NH)	419	428	439	500	0.90%	0.89%	0.88%	0.92%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	N/A	31	18	8	N/A	0.06%	0.04%	0.01%
Other Race alone (NH)	168	120	192	634	0.36%	0.25%	0.39%	1.16%
Mixed Race or Multi-Racial (NH)	N/A	920	749	1,131	N/A	1.92%	1.50%	2.07%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	6,996	12,033	20,105	29,792	15.02%	25.16%	40.37%	54.58%
Total	46,567	47,829	49,808	54,586	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%	100.00%

2010 census

The 2010 United States census counted 49,808 people, 15,180 households, and 10,884 families in the city. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 16,621 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup was 23.54% (11,724) White, 50.20% (25,006) Black or African American, 0.91% (455) Native American, 0.95% (474) Asian, 0.05% (26) Pacific Islander, 20.13% (10,024) from other races, and 4.21% (2,099) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 40.37% (20,105) of the population.<ref name=Census2010/>

Of the 15,180 households, 35.2% had children under the age of 18; 37.9% were married couples living together; 24.1% had a female householder with no husband present and 28.3% were non-families. Of all households, 21.3% were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.23 and the average family size was 3.60.<ref name=Census2010/>

25.8% of the population were under the age of 18, 10.5% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 23.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33.3 years. For every 100 females, the population had 101.3 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 100.4 males.<ref name=Census2010/>

The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $52,056 (with a margin of error of +/− $3,048) and the median family income was $58,942 (+/− $4,261). Males had a median income of $33,306 (+/− $4,132) versus $37,265 (+/− $3,034) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $23,767 (+/− $1,013). About 12.2% of families and 16.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.5% of those under age 18 and 16.0% of those age 65 or over.<ref>DP03: Selected Economic Characteristics from the 2006-2010 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates for Plainfield city, Union County, New Jersey Template:Webarchive, United States Census Bureau. Accessed April 10, 2012.</ref>

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States census<ref name="GR2" /> of 2000, there were 47,829 people, 15,137 households, and 10,898 families residing in the city. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 16,180 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the city was 21.45% White, 61.78% African American, 0.41% Native American, 0.93% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 10.78% from other races, and 4.55% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 25.16% of the population.<ref name=Census2000>Census 2000 Profiles of Demographic / Social / Economic / Housing Characteristics for Plainfield city, New Jersey Template:Webarchive, United States Census Bureau. Accessed August 6, 2012.</ref><ref name=Census2000SF1>DP-1: Profile of General Demographic Characteristics: 2000 - Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data for Plainfield city, Union County, New Jersey Template:Webarchive, United States Census Bureau. Accessed August 6, 2012.</ref>

There were 15,137 households, out of which 35.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.3% were married couples living together, 24.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.0% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.10 and the average family size was 3.49.<ref name=Census2000/><ref name=Census2000SF1/>

In the city the population was spread out, with 27.5% under the age of 18, 10.2% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.<ref name=Census2000/><ref name=Census2000SF1/>

The median income for a household in the city was $46,683, and the median income for a family was $50,774. Males had a median income of $33,460 versus $30,408 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,052. About 12.2% of families and 15.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.3% of those under age 18 and 12.6% of those age 65 or over.<ref name=Census2000/><ref name=Census2000SF1/>

Economy

File:171-185 North Avenue, Plainfield, NJ.jpg

North Avenue Commercial District

File:City Hall, Plainfield, NJ.jpg

City Hall in the Plainfield Civic District

File:Antique Castle (WT Orville House); Plainfield, NJ.jpg

Orville Taylor Waring House; Plainfield, NJ

Portions of Plainfield are part of an Urban Enterprise Zone. The city was selected in 1983 as one of the initial group of 10 zones chosen to participate in the program.<ref>Urban Enterprise Zone Tax Questions and Answers, New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, May 2009. Accessed October 28, 2019. "The Urban Enterprise Zone Program (UEZ) was enacted in 1983. It authorized the designation of ten zones by the New Jersey Urban Enterprise Zone Authority: Camden, Newark, Bridgeton, Trenton, Plainfield, Elizabeth, Jersey City, Kearny, Orange and Millville/Vineland (joint zone)."</ref> In addition to other benefits to encourage employment within the Zone, shoppers can take advantage of a reduced 3.3125% sales tax rate (half of the Template:Frac% rate charged statewide) at eligible merchants.<ref>Urban Enterprise Zone Program, New Jersey Department of Community Affairs. Accessed October 27, 2019. "Businesses participating in the UEZ Program can charge half the standard sales tax rate on certain purchases, currently 3.3125% effective 1/1/2018"</ref> Established in January 1986, the city's Urban Enterprise Zone status expires in December 2023.<ref>Urban Enterprise Zone Effective and Expiration Dates, New Jersey Department of Community Affairs. Accessed January 8, 2018.</ref>

The UEZ program in Plainfield and four other original UEZ cities had been allowed to lapse as of January 1, 2017, after Governor Chris Christie, who called the program an "abject failure", vetoed a compromise bill that would have extended the status for two years.<ref>Racioppi, Dustin. "Christie vetoes urban enterprise zone extension", The Record, February 10, 2017. Accessed November 19, 2019. "Gov. Chris Christie on Friday conditionally vetoed the Legislature's attempt to extend the Urban Enterprise Zone status for its five charter communities, calling the economic revitalization program an 'abject failure' with a 'devastating impact' on state revenue.... The Legislature returned with what it called a compromise bill, A-4189, to extend the designation for two years instead of 10 for the first five UEZs – Bridgeton, Camden, Newark, Plainfield and Trenton – which expired on Jan. 1."</ref> In May 2018, Governor Phil Murphy signed a law that reinstated the program in these five cities and extended the expiration date in other zones.<ref>"Notice: Law Reinstates Five Urban Enterprise Zones And Also Extends The Expiration Date Of 12 Other UEZs", New Jersey Department of the Treasury Division of Taxation, May 30, 2018. Accessed November 19, 2019. "On May 30, 2018, Governor Murphy signed Senate Bill 846 (A3549). The law reinstated five expired Urban Enterprise Zones (UEZs). If your business is located in one of these zones, you may file an application to establish qualified business status. (Past certifications are no longer valid in these five zones). The five UEZs are in: *Bridgeton *Camden *Newark *Plainfield *Trenton. The UEZs in the five locations listed above expire on December 31, 2023."</ref>

Downtown Plainfield has two historic commercial districts: the North Avenue Commercial District and the Plainfield Civic District. Both are on the National Register of Historic Places.<ref>Historic Districts Template:Webarchive, Downtown Plainfield Alliance. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref>

• The North Avenue Commercial District features the Downtown train station, post office, and Plainfield National Bank (now PNC Bank). The architecture of the district reflects original exterior 19th and early 20th century façade architecture.
• The Plainfield Civic District features architecture reflective of the turn-of-the-century City Beautiful Movement, including the City Hall building, YMCA, City Hall Annex, and World War I monument on Watchung Avenue.

Events such as the Christmas Tree Lighting, the Queen City 5k, Fire Safety Fair, and Mayor's Wellness Walk take place in the Downtown each year.<ref name="downtownplainfield"/>

Downtown Plainfield Alliance (DPA) is a "nonpolitical, nonprofit grassroots group that supports the improvement of Downtown Plainfield through beautification, volunteerism, economic development, marketing, community development, and activism."<ref name="downtownplainfield">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Historic districts

File:Van Wyck Brooks by John Butler Yeats, 1909, oil on canvas, from the National Portrait Gallery - NPG-NPG 82 129Brooks-000001.jpg

Portrait of Van Wyck Brooks, for which the district is named, by John Butler Yeats, 1909

The restoration of large 19th century-era Plainfield estates to their original glory, such as the Craig Marsh home, has been featured in various home design magazine coverage.<ref>Coleman, Brian D. "Rich Rewards for a Labor of Love; Hard to believe this house had been cut up into four shabby apartments, or the woodwork painted industrial green and the verandah enclosed with aluminum siding and jalousie windows. Then there were the structural problems." Template:Webarchive, The Old-House Journal, July 2, 2015. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref><ref>Payne, Lauren. "History Lesson: Preserving An Architectural Treasure in Plainfield; A Plainfield couple prove that preserving an architectural treasure—while challenging, time-consuming and, yes, costly—is well worth the effort.", New Jersey Monthly, October 16, 2012. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref><ref>Jackson, Kimberly L. "This old house: Restoring homes and building community in Plainfield's Van Wyck Brooks Historic District", The Star-Ledger, September 21, 2012. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref> Residential districts include:

File:935 Central Avenue, Plainfield, NJ.jpg

Van Wyck Brooks Historic District

• Van Wyck Brooks Historic District, which includes more than 150 properties, was listed in This Old House magazine's 2012 list of "Best Old House Neighborhoods." Roughly bounded by Plainfield Avenue, West Eighth Street, Park Avenue, West Ninth Street and Madison Avenue, and Randolph Road, it was named for literary critic and native son Van Wyck Brooks.<ref name="vwbhd">Our History, The Van Wyck Brooks Historic District. Accessed April 25, 2021. "Van Wyck Brooks Historic District is the largest of the six residential Historic Districts in Plainfield and encompasses 152 properties.... In 1982 the Van Wyck Brooks Historic District was designated by the City of Plainfield as a Historic District and placed on the National Register in 1986."</ref> In addition to the above-mentioned Craig Marsh home, it also contains the largest residence in Plainfield (The Coriell Mansion) and a wide variety of other historically and architecturally notable homes. The Van Wyck Brooks Historic District is the largest of the six residential Historic Districts in Plainfield, its oldest structure the Manning Stelle Farmhouse, parts of which date back to 1803. It has been a designated historic district by the City of Plainfield since 1982, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.<ref>Template:NRISref</ref>
• Netherwood Heights Historic District is named for the Netherwood Hotel which stood at what is now the blocks bordered by Denmark Road, Park Terrace, Belvidere Avenue, Berkeley Avenue. This district is located near the Netherwood Train Station<ref name="drakehouseplainfieldnj">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="plainfieldnj">Do I live in a Historic District? Template:Webarchive, City of Plainfield. Accessed May 13, 2020.</ref>

• Crescent Area Historic District
• Hillside Avenue Historic District
• Sleepy Hollow is, as of 2018, a section of stately homes on winding roads on the northeast side of the city. Some have pushed to formalize its boundaries.<ref name="blogspot">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The West End

While the more affluent eastern part of the city has been relatively integrated over the decades, with both Black and white upper-middle-class-to-wealthy families, the West End of Plainfield is the historically middle-class and working-class Black district in the city and features a close-knit African-American community.<ref>Lisick, Michael J. Bamberger's: New Jersey's Greatest Store (2016).</ref>

Part of the West End is known to locals as Soulville.<ref>Plainfield Ponders the Legacy of Its Own Bloody '67 Riots https://nyti.ms/2pH3qeP</ref><ref>Deak, Mike. '50 years in Plainfield's history: From devastating riots to long-awaited rebirth", Courier News, July 16, 2017. Accessed March 3, 2020. "Appliances stolen from a store became barricades to block outsiders from entering a part of the West End now called 'Soulville.'"</ref>

Mount Olive Baptist Church has been serving the West End as a community of faith since 1870. It is considered Plainfield's first Black church.<ref name="plainfieldlibrary">Mount Olive Baptist Church, Plainfield Public Library. Accessed March 3, 2020. "Mount Olive Baptist Church was organized in 1870 and groundbreaking for what was to be Plainfield's first Black church occurred on March 1, 1871, at the intersection of Third and Liberty streets."</ref> As the Black community grew, other congregations branched off from Mount Olive.

Calvary Baptist Church began in 1897 among a group of Black congregants from Mount Olive, and celebrated its 120th anniversary in 2017 with a series of events.<ref name="tapinto">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="wordpress">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="plainfieldlibrary2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Nearby, Shiloh Baptist Church was founded in 1908, also by Mount Olive congregants, and offers many faith-based events to the community, including its Jazz for Jesus program.<ref name="plainfieldlibrary3">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The West End has been eyed recently for redevelopment.<ref name="tapinto2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="blogspot2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="goo">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The White Star, a diner in the West End on West Front Street near Green Brook Park, has been an area meeting spot and landmark for over half a century.<ref name="mycentraljersey2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="goo2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The West End has grown more Latino in recent years. As of the 2020 census, 51% of all people living in Plainfield were of Hispanic origin.<ref name=Census2020/> This was up from 25% in 2000<ref name=Census2000/> and 40% in 2010.<ref name=Census2010/>

In his book Insurrection, Isaiah Tremaine, a Black Plainfield native, credits the influx of Latinos for breathing new life and energy into a city hurting from racism and racial strife in the 1970s.Template:Citation needed

Parliament-Funkadelic Way

The West End was once home to the Silk Palace, a barbershop at 216 Plainfield Avenue owned in part by funk music legend George Clinton, staffed by various members of Parliament-Funkadelic, and known as the "hangout for all the local singers and musicians" in Plainfield's 1950s and 1960s doo-wop, soul, rock and proto-funk music scene.<ref>George Clinton And Killer Mike: Talking (Barber) Shop https://n.pr/2pRRTH9</ref><ref>Sammy Campbell and the Del Larks - Classic Urban Harmony. classicurbanharmony.net/wp-content/uploads/.../Sammy-Campbell-The-Del-Larks.pdf by T Ashley. The story of the Del Larks revolves around the extensive music careers of two individuals; Sammy. Campbell and Ron Taylor.</ref><ref>Krehbiel, Jeff. "George Clinton and the Parliaments – (Part One of Two)" Template:Webarchive, Rock 'N' Roll Spotlight, December 3, 2015. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref>

In 2022, the city of Plainfield renamed a section of Plainfield Avenue, from its intersection with Front Street to its intersection with West Fifth Street, as "Parliament Funkadelic Way" in honor of its musical history.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

LBGTQ+ community

A sizable and diverse LGBTQ+ community contributes to the long-time perception of Plainfield as a stronghold of gay life and gay community in the suburbs of New Jersey.Template:Citation needed

Plainfield has one of the highest percentage of same-sex householders in the state of New Jersey.<ref name="nj">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="tapinto3">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The First Unitarian Society of Plainfield, the oldest such congregation in the United States, is certified as LGBTQ welcoming.

In 1986, The New York Times reported on what was termed at the time as the "growing homosexual population in Plainfield" drawn to the stock of aging Victorian, Tudor and colonial homes, and featured interviews with various gay men who lived in Plainfield and worked in Manhattan.<ref>Norman, Michael. "Suburbs Are A Magnet To Many Homosexuals", The New York Times, February 11, 1986. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref>

One of the Queen City's elected leaders, former Councilwoman Rebecca Williams (who now represents all of Union County a county commissioner), is openly lesbian. In 2017, as Council President, Williams organized and hosted the city's first-ever Pride flag-raising during Pride Month.<ref>Plainfield to hold LGBT flag day to reflect on Orlando massacre http://mycj.co/2spLMit via @MyCentralJersey</ref><ref>N.J. cardinal offers historic welcome to LGBT community | Faith Matters http://s.nj.com/8iYbALV Template:Webarchive</ref><ref>As Church Shifts, a Cardinal Welcomes Gays; They Embrace a 'Miracle' https://nyti.ms/2siTfiq</ref>

In 2015, an openly gay Plainfield Republican ran for state Assemblyman.<ref>Mooney, John. "Five Questions with... William H. Michelson", TAP into Plainfield, October 22, 2015. Accessed December 25, 2022. "I have been a prominent member of Plainfield's LGBT community for almost 30 years. It would be the first time one of this community got to represent it in Trenton. I would be only the third openly gay Assemblyman, and the first who is a Republican."</ref>

Plainfield has been home to openly gay former New Jersey governor James McGreevey and his longtime partner, an Australian-American business executive.<ref name=McGreevey/>

Plainfield is also at the center of gay life in Union County, which hosts LGBTQ family events and opened the state's first county-wide office of LGBTQ services in 2018.<ref>This LGBTQ office is first of its kind in N.J. http://s.nj.com/cKoLVhZ Template:Webarchive</ref>

File:724 Park Avenue, Plainfield, NJ.jpg

The Plainfield Performing Arts Center, which opened in 2019, is an arts center inside a former church built in 1892. Formerly All Souls Church, it was the home of the LGBT-welcoming First Unitarian Society of Plainfield, which donated the former church to become an arts center and moved its weekly services to a Fanwood church.

Tëmike Park is an LGBTQ+ welcoming space in Cedar Brook Park in Plainfield between Stelle Avenue and Randolph Road. It is named for a Lenape-language expression of welcome.<ref name="auto">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Arts and culture

• The Queen City Film Festival is held in the city every fall to honor independently produced film.<ref>About, Queen City Film Festival. Accessed July 30, 2023.</ref>
• Plainfield is the birthplace of Bill Evans, the famous jazz piano artist.

File:Lee Fields & The Expressions (Haldern Pop 2013) IMGP3917 smial wp.jpg

Plainfield's Lee Fields performing with The Expressions at Haldern Pop 2013

File:Swains Galleries; Crescent Area HD; Plainfield, NJ.jpg

The Swain Galleries in the Crescent Area Historic District

File:1030 Central Avenue, Plainfield, NJ.jpg

The duCret Art School is the oldest art school in New Jersey

• Plainfield is the birthplace of P-Funk. George Clinton founded The Parliaments while working in a barber shop in Plainfield. Parliament-Funkadelic was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997.
• Acclaimed soul singer Lee Fields resides with his family in Plainfield and moved to the city as a teen in the 1960s.<ref name="youtube">Archived at GhostarchiveTemplate:Cbignore and the Wayback MachineTemplate:Cbignore: {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}Template:Cbignore</ref><ref name="chicagotribune">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="newsweek">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• The Plainfield Symphony performs concerts at Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church. The orchestra was founded in 1919, making it one of the oldest continuously operating orchestras in the United States.<ref>Staff. "Plainfield Symphony to perform Nov. 5; teen pianist Justin Wong to be featured", Independent Press, September 25, 2011. Accessed April 10, 2012. "The Plainfield Symphony, established in 1919, is New Jersey's oldest community symphony and the third oldest in the country."</ref>
• 1990s R&B girl group Total, of Bad Boy Records fame, is from Plainfield.<ref>Pamela Long (From Total) Talks Solo Debut Album Undeniable, Group Origins (Exclusive Interview), YouKnowIGotSoul.com, January 27, 2011. Accessed October 1, 2022. "Pamela Long: We're actually are all Jersey Girls, Kima and Keisha are actually from Plainfield, New Jersey, and I'm from Edison, so what it is was that Kima and Keisha were a group already, and they were actually looking for a third member."</ref>

File:Total at Legends of Bad Boy 2014.jpg

Plainfield's Total performing at Legends of Bad Boy in 2014

• In October 2010, former Plainfield music teacher and American Idol alum Anwar Robinson and performer Yolanda Adams joined with community residents to try to be recognized by Guinness World Records for assembling the world's largest gospel chorus.<ref>Calefati, Jessica. "Plainfield residents attempt to break world record for largest gospel choir", The Star-Ledger, October 2, 2010. Accessed April 10, 2012. "Residents of the Queen City who gathered yesterday at City Hall to try and break the Guinness World Record for the largest gospel choir were unsuccessful, but the day was still touted as a positive step toward peace in this community, which has been rocked by more than 20 violent crimes since May raised. Yesterday's event drew 755 singers, about 250 people shy of the record."</ref>
• The duCret School of Art was founded in 1926, making it the oldest art school in New Jersey.<ref>Sagara, Eric. "Plainfield art school celebrates 85th anniversary", The Star-Ledger, March 26, 2012. Accessed December 22, 2016. "DuCret was founded in 1926 by Marjorie Van Emburgh, a local artist and teacher who wanted to create an art school comparable to what was found in major metropolitan areas such as New York City or Philadelphia."</ref> Founded by Marjorie Van Emburgh Chargois as the Van Emburgh School of Art, it was purchased in the 1960s by Dudley duCret. A 1933 exhibition of nudes by the school's artists once led to a controversy, according to The New York Times.<ref>Staff. "Nude Art Protest Ends Jersey Show; Library Board at Plainfield Acts on Complaints Over Girl Students' Sketches. Exhibit Ordered Moved 400 Paintings and Drawings in Annual Spring Display Had Been on View for Week.", The New York Times, April 29, 1933. Accessed June 10, 2018. "The annual exhibition of painting and sketches by present and former students of the Van Enburgh School of Art was closed abruptly at the Plainfield Public Library here today as the result of the objections to thirty sketches of nudes in the exhibition."</ref> Plainfield native Onyx Keesha, prior to her relocation to Atlanta, and members of the arts collective and production team M. PoWeR Arts have offered classes in filmmaking, acting, dance, writing and theater to Plainfield citizens at the duCret School of Art.<ref name="tapinto5">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• The Swain Galleries were founded in 1868. The entity is the oldest privately owned art gallery in the state. The galleries are located in a Victorian structure in the Crescent Historic District of Plainfield<ref>History, Swain Galleries. Accessed January 3, 2017.</ref>
• Music in the Park is an annual summertime community concert event featuring the Plainfield Idol competition.
• The Parish Hall Theater at the Plainfield Cultural Center is a proscenium theater that seats approximately 125 people. Available for theatrical productions and musical performances, it features theatrical lighting, a spot light, separate lighting booth, an upright piano and a sound system.<ref name="fusp.org">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• The historic Sanctuary at the Plainfield Cultural Center offers prime acoustics for recordings by bands and vocalists. The Sanctuary seats approximately 140 people. It is available for rehearsals, concerts, recording sessions, spoken word events, recitals and meetings.<ref name="fusp.org"/>
• The Plainfield Music Store was founded in 1951 and offers a vast archive of sheet music.<ref name="tapinto4">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• The French School of Music offers music lessons and was founded in 1927 by Yvonne Comme, a pupil of Gabriel Fauré who performed for Debussy.<ref name="youtube2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}Template:CbignoreTemplate:Dead link</ref><ref>"French School's Founders", New Jersey Music, 1950. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref>

• Begun in 1980, the annual Crescent Concerts series at Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church brings high-end vocal, instrumental, choral and orchestral music performances to the residents of the City of Plainfield and surrounding areas.<ref name="crescentonline">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="nj2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="queencitypride">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• The Queen City October Music Festival is an annual music festival that is spearheaded by the Plainfield Arts Council.<ref name="plainfieldartscouncil">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• The Shiloh Baptist Church, which has been worshiping together as a Plainfield community of faith since 1908, hosts Jazz In The Sanctuary as part of the Queen City October Music Festival as well as its Jazz for Jesus program.<ref name="shilohplainfield">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• DreamHouse Theater Company is a theater company operated in partnership with the First Unitarian Society of Plainfield (FUSP). DreamHouse performs one-act and original plays, readings, spoken word and musical offerings.<ref name="dreamhousetheater">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• In the teaser trailer for the film, A Good Day to Die Hard, John McClane remarks "the 007 of Plainfield, New Jersey" thus confirming this as his fictional birthplace.<ref>Maurer, Mark. "'A Good Day to Die Hard' trailer: John McClane, the '007 of Plainfield'"Template:Dead link, The Star-Ledger, October 4, 2012. Accessed May 21, 2013. "Although the film takes place in Russia, McClane announces his Garden State roots for what I believe is the first time: 'The 007 of Plainfield, New Jersey,' he calls himself."</ref>
• J.M. Benjamin is a Plainfield author and filmmaker whose short film, Moves We Make, was filmed in Plainfield and won the Paul Robeson Award at the Newark Black Film Festival.<ref>Makin, Bob. "Plainfield father, son separated by incarceration find redemption in movie collaborations", Courier News, November 24, 2017. Accessed June 10, 2018. "Author-screenwriter J.M. Benjamin of Plainfield makes his directorial debut with the 2018 film A Time for Finesse, the score for which was written by his son, Jameel, also known as the rapper Base."</ref>

Media

Media outlets

Plainfield media includes:

• TAPinto Plainfield is an online news site devoted to Plainfield.<ref name="tapinto6">Home Page, TAP into Plainfield. Accessed April 18, 2022.</ref><ref>"TAPinto Featured Franchisee: Plainfield's Jennifer Popper & Carolyn Wellington", TAP into Milltown / Spotswood, March 27, 2018. Accessed April 18, 2022. "This week's feature will focus on TAPinto Plainfield franchisees Jennifer Popper and Carolyn Wellington. TAPinto.net has more than 70 franchised online, local newspapers."</ref>
• Union News Daily. A news outlet covering Union County news, it has a dedicated Plainfield section.<ref>In the Towns: Plainfield, Union News Daily. Accessed April 18, 2022.</ref> It is part of LocalSource and published by Worrall Community Newspapers of Union.
• PCTV. Plainfield also has its own channel, Plainfield Community Television (PCTV), which is available to Comcast and Verizon FiOS television subscribers on Comcast Cable Channel 96/Verizon FIOS Channel 34.<ref name="plainfieldnj2">Media PCTV Comcast 96/Verizon34, City of Plainfield. Accessed April 18, 2020.</ref>

Remaining multi-community newspapers include the Courier News, a daily newspaper based in Bridgewater Township, and The Star-Ledger based in Newark.<ref>Union County, New Jersey On-Line</ref> The Courier News is a consolidation of The Evening News (founded in 1884), the Plainfield Daily Press (founded in 1887) and the Plainfield Courier (founded in 1891). The paper was based in the city and called the Plainfield Courier News until 1972, when it moved westward to Bridgewater.<ref name="blogspot3">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="mycentraljersey4">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Other Plainfield coverage

Local civic reporting includes:

• And My Point Is: A Progressive Vision for Union County is a countywide civic blog written by elected Union County Commissioner Rebecca Williams, Plainfield resident and English professor at Essex County College.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Cory Storch for Good Government is a local civic blog focused on good government, written by Ward 2 Councilman Cory Storch, CEO of Bridgeway Rehabilitation Services, a not-for-profit mental health service organization.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Plainfield View is another hyperlocal blog, published by David Marcus Rutherford.<ref name="wordpress2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Plainfield Vision is a blog dedicated to improving Plainfield, written by Plainfield Democratic City Committee member Sean McKenna.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Queen City Pride is a local news and events blog.<ref name="queencitypride2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Defunct media

As of 2017, local media in New Jersey has undergone dramatic shrinkage.<ref>Chen, David W. "In New Jersey, Only a Few Media Watchdogs Are Left", The New York Times, January 3, 2017. Accessed August 14, 2017.</ref>

C L I P S was a daily online news round-up dedicated to local Plainfield news by the late Dan Damon, former City of Plainfield information officer, who passed in 2020. "Begun in 2003 as an email newsletter to Plainfield city council members. it was later offered to the general public by email and had been available as a blog since 2007."<ref name="pclips">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Plainfield Today was a city opinion blog also published by Damon.<ref name="ptoday">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Plainfield Plaintalker (2005–2010) and Plaintalker II (2010–2017) were two local blogs published by longtime local reporter Bernice Paglia.<ref name="blogspot4">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

From 1961 to 1997, Plainfield was home to WERA at 1590 on the AM dial with studios at 120 West 7th Street.<ref>WKMB-AM 1070 kHz Radio Station Information, Radio-Locator.com. Accessed March 20, 2017.</ref>

Places of worship

File:Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church, Plainfield, NJ.jpg

Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church in the Crescent Area Historic District

Houses of worship include:

• Saint Mary's Catholic Church Built in the 1870s in what was then a heavily Irish neighborhood by Irish-born architect Jeremiah O'Rourke it is now a heavily Spanish-speaking parish.
• Grace Church Founded in 1852, and registered a national historic site, Grace Church is an example of late 19th-century Gothic Revival architecture. A very active parish, with a large community outreach program (After-School care, Community Garden, E.S.L., Soup Kitchen, 12-Step Programs, a Robust Music Program, Zumba, etc).
• First Park Baptist.
• Albaseerah Islamic Center is a mosque in the Sleepy Hollow district.
• First Unitarian Society of Plainfield was founded in the 1880s. It is the oldest Unitarian congregation in the country. All Souls Church, which hosts First Unitarian was completed in the early 1890s. Magician and architect Oscar Teale designed the church in 1892.<ref name="njht">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> With a history of involvement in the LGBTQ community and support for Black Lives Matter, it is certified as a Unitarian Universalist LGBTQ Welcoming Congregation.<ref>History of the First Unitarian Society of Plainfield Template:Webarchive, First Unitarian Society of Plainfield. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref>

• Bethel Presbyterian Church
• Crescent Avenue Presbyterian Church. A Gilbert F. Adams organ undergirds the church's musical programming.
• The Mt. Olive Baptist Church.
• Plainfield Friends Quaker Meeting House.
• Seventh Day Baptist Church
• St. Bernard of Clairvaux & St. Stanislaus Kostka.
• Shiloh Baptist Church, established 1908.
• The United Presbyterian Church 1825.
• New Covenant Church, Pentecostal.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Cross of Life Lutheran Church (ELCA)
• Ruth Fellowship Ministries - Rev. Tracey L Brown - Founder/Pastor

Parks and recreation

File:Shakespeare Garden, Cedar Brook Park, NJ.jpg

Shakespeare Garden in Cedar Brook Park.

File:Green Brook Park Playground; Plainfield, New Jersey.jpg

Green Brook Park Playground; Plainfield, New Jersey

• Tëmike Park opened in June 2022 as an inclusive LGBTQ+ space and playground located at the northern end of Cedar Brook Park in Plainfield.<ref name="auto"/>
• Cedar Brook Park lies on the west side of the city.
• Green Brook Park offers hiking, sports, and picnicking in the West End.
• The Plainfield Garden Club was founded in 1915. It has maintained the Shakespeare Garden in Cedar Brook Park since the garden's inception in 1927. Designed by the Olmsted Brothers firm, it is one of only 23 Shakespeare Gardens in the US. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and is a part of the state's Women's Heritage trail.<ref name="tapinto7">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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• The hiking trails of the Watchung Reservation are located close to the city boundaries.
• Plainfield Skatepark at Madison Park offers skateboarding and other wheeled activity.<ref>Plainfield Skatepark at Madison Park. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Plainfield+Skatepark+at+Madison+Park/@40.6136399,-74.417898,14z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0xd7e5dea9ba64dfce!8m2!3d40.6160506!4d-74.4242066</ref> In 2017, this state-of-the-art public skateboarding area opened inside Madison Park.<ref name="facebook3">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is the first public skatepark in the city. Its modern California-style design was deemed by some skateboarders as a first in New Jersey.<ref>Flipping and grinding at the Plainfield skate park grand opening http://mycj.co/2vqkquh via MyCentralJersey</ref>

• Milt Campbell Field in the East End, named for Plainfield legend and Olympic gold medalist Milt Campbell offers sports and nature walks.<ref name="tapinto8">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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• Hannah Atkins Center Pool, Rushmore Playground Pool, and Seidler Field Pool offer swimming, sports and other recreation.<ref name="tapinto9">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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Government

Local government

Plainfield is governed under a special charter granted by the New Jersey Legislature. The city is one of 11 (of the 564) municipalities statewide governed under a special charter.<ref>Inventory of Municipal Forms of Government in New Jersey Template:Webarchive, Rutgers University Center for Government Studies, July 1, 2011. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref><ref>"Forms of Municipal Government in New Jersey" Template:Webarchive, p. 15. Rutgers University Center for Government Studies. Accessed June 1, 2023.</ref> The governing body is comprised of a mayor and a seven-member city council, all of whom serve four-year terms in office. The city is divided into four wards, with one ward seat up for election each year. There are three at-large seats: one from the First and Fourth Wards; one from the Second and Third Wards; and one from the city as a whole. The three at-large seats and mayoral seat operate in a four-year cycle, with one seat up for election each year.<ref name=DataBook>2012 New Jersey Legislative District Data Book, Rutgers University Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, March 2013, p. 98.</ref>

Template:As of, the Mayor of the City of Plainfield is Democrat Adrian O. Mapp, whose term of office ends December 31, 2025.<ref name="Mayor">Mayor Adrian O. Mapp, City of Plainfield. Accessed April 18, 2022.</ref> Members of the Plainfield City Council are Council President Steve G. Hockaday (At Large All Wards; D, 2024), Council Vice President Robert K. Graham (Ward 1; D, 2026), Terri Briggs-Jones (Ward 4; D, 2025), Julienne Cherry (At Large Wards 1 and 4; D, 2027), Charles McRae (Ward 3; D, 2024), Darcella Sessomes (Ward 2; D, 2027) and Richard Wyatt (At Large Wards 2 and 3; D, 2026).<ref>City Council, City of Plainfield. Accessed April 19, 2024.</ref><ref name=UnionOfficials>Elected Officials, Union County, New Jersey. Accessed April 19, 2024.</ref><ref name=Union2023>General Election November 7, 2023 Official Results, Union County, New Jersey, updated November 22, 2023. Accessed January 3, 2024.</ref><ref name=Union2022>General Election November 8, 2022 Official Results, Union County, New Jersey, updated November 21, 2022. Accessed January 3, 2024.</ref><ref name=Union2021>General Election November 2, 2021 Official Results, Union County, New Jersey, updated November 15, 2021. Accessed January 1, 2022.</ref><ref name=Union2020>General Election November 3, 2020 Official Results, Union County, New Jersey, updated December 14, 2020. Accessed January 1, 2021.</ref>

In June 2018, the city council appointed Elton Armady to fill the at-large seat expiring in December 2020 that became vacant after Rebecca Williams resigned to take a seat on the Union County Board of chosen freeholders.<ref>Biryukov, Nikita. "New Plainfield councilman worked for Green, Lautenberg; Elton Armady replaces Rebecca Williams", New Jersey Globe, June 20, 2018. Accessed May 13, 2020. "Plainfield's new councilman is something of a political veteran, even though his appointment to fill a seat left vacant by former councilwoman Rebecca Williams' ascension to the Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders. Elton Armady, former legislative director to the late Assemblyman Jerry Green, whose death started off the chain of appointments that left the at-large Plainfield council seat vacant, also worked as a capitol hill intern for a number of Democrats, including late U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg and House Minority leader Nancy Pelosi."</ref> Armady served on an interim basis until the November 2018 general election, when he was elected to serve the balance of the term of office.<ref name=Union2018>General Election November 6, 2018 Official Results, Union County, New Jersey, updated November 8, 2021. Accessed April 1, 2022.</ref>

Federal, state, and county representation

Plainfield is located in the 12th Congressional District<ref name=PCR2012>Plan Components Report, New Jersey Redistricting Commission, December 23, 2011. Accessed February 1, 2020.</ref> and is part of New Jersey's 22nd state legislative district.<ref name=Districts2023>Municipalities Sorted by 2023-2031 Legislative District, New Jersey Department of State. Accessed September 1, 2023.</ref>

Politics

As of March 2011, there were a total of 20,722 registered voters in Plainfield, of which 12,078 (58.3% vs. 41.8% countywide) were registered as Democrats, 947 (4.6% vs. 15.3%) were registered as Republicans and 7,693 (37.1% vs. 42.9%) were registered as Unaffiliated. There were 4 voters registered to other parties.<ref name=VoterRegistration>Voter Registration Summary - Union, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, March 23, 2011. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref> Among the city's 2010 Census population, 41.6% (vs. 53.3% in Union County) were registered to vote, including 56.1% of those ages 18 and over (vs. 70.6% countywide).<ref name=VoterRegistration/><ref>GCT-P7: Selected Age Groups: 2010 - State – County Subdivision; 2010 Census Summary File 1 for New Jersey Template:Webarchive, United States Census Bureau. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref>

In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 14,640 votes (93.3% vs. 66.0% countywide), ahead of Republican Mitt Romney with 909 votes (5.8% vs. 32.3%) and other candidates with 46 votes (0.3% vs. 0.8%), among the 15,683 ballots cast by the city's 22,555 registered voters, for a turnout of 69.5% (vs. 68.8% in Union County).<ref>Presidential November 6, 2012 General Election Results - Union County Template:Webarchive, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, March 15, 2013. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref><ref>Number of Registered Voters and Ballots Cast November 6, 2012 General Election Results - Union County, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, March 15, 2013. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref> In the 2008 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 15,280 votes (92.3% vs. 63.1% countywide), ahead of Republican John McCain with 1,110 votes (6.7% vs. 35.2%) and other candidates with 56 votes (0.3% vs. 0.9%), among the 16,548 ballots cast by the city's 22,516 registered voters, for a turnout of 73.5% (vs. 74.7% in Union County).<ref>2008 Presidential General Election Results: Union County, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, December 23, 2008. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref> In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat John Kerry received 11,508 votes (85.4% vs. 58.3% countywide), ahead of Republican George W. Bush with 1,773 votes (13.2% vs. 40.3%) and other candidates with 88 votes (0.7% vs. 0.7%), among the 13,480 ballots cast by the city's 20,445 registered voters, for a turnout of 65.9% (vs. 72.3% in the whole county).<ref>2004 Presidential Election: Union County, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, December 13, 2004. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref>

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In the 2017 gubernatorial election, Democrat Phil Murphy received 6,992 votes (89.5% vs. 65.2% countywide), ahead of Republican Kim Guadagno with 631 votes (8.1% vs. 32.6%), and other candidates with 189 votes (2.4% vs. 2.1%), among the 8,183 ballots cast by the city's 22,852 registered voters, for a turnout of 35.8%.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Democrat Barbara Buono received 75.9% of the vote (5,757 cast), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 22.7% (1,723 votes), and other candidates with 1.4% (104 votes), among the 8,174 ballots cast by the city's 21,996 registered voters (590 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 37.2%.<ref name=2013Elections>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=2013VoterReg>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Democrat Jon Corzine received 7,140 ballots cast (81.3% vs. 50.6% countywide), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 1,057 votes (12.0% vs. 41.7%), Independent Chris Daggett with 355 votes (4.0% vs. 5.9%) and other candidates with 84 votes (1.0% vs. 0.8%), among the 8,786 ballots cast by the city's 21,738 registered voters, yielding a 40.4% turnout (vs. 46.5% in the county).<ref>2009 Governor: Union County Template:Webarchive, New Jersey Department of State Division of Elections, December 31, 2009. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref>

Education

Public schools

The Plainfield Public School District serves students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. The district is one of 31 former Abbott districts statewide that were established pursuant to the decision by the New Jersey Supreme Court in Abbott v. Burke<ref>What We Do: History, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022. "In 1998, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in the Abbott v. Burke case that the State must provide 100 percent funding for all school renovation and construction projects in special-needs school districts. According to the Court, aging, unsafe and overcrowded buildings prevented children from receiving the "thorough and efficient" education required under the New Jersey Constitution.... Full funding for approved projects was authorized for the 31 special-needs districts, known as 'Abbott Districts'."</ref> which are now referred to as "SDA Districts" based on the requirement for the state to cover all costs for school building and renovation projects in these districts under the supervision of the New Jersey Schools Development Authority.<ref>What We Do, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022.</ref><ref>SDA Districts, New Jersey Schools Development Authority. Accessed March 1, 2022.</ref>

As of the 2022–23 school year, the district, comprised of 14 schools, had an enrollment of 10,097 students and 628.7 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 16.1:1.<ref name=NCES>District information for Plainfield Public School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 1, 2024.</ref> Schools in the district (with 2022–23 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics<ref>School Data for the Plainfield Public School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed February 1, 2024.</ref>) are DeWitt D. Barlow Elementary School<ref>DeWitt D. Barlow Elementary School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (417 students; in grades K–5), Charles and Anna Booker Elementary School<ref>Charles and Anna Booker Elementary School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (NA; PreK–5), Cedarbrook K-8 Center<ref>Cedarbrook K-8 Center, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (623; K–8), Clinton Elementary School<ref>Clinton Elementary School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (413; K–5), Frederic W. Cook Elementary School<ref>Frederic W. Cook Elementary School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (389; K–5), Emerson Community School<ref>Emerson Community School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (509; K–5), Evergreen Elementary School<ref>Evergreen Elementary School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (602; K–5), Jefferson Elementary School<ref>Jefferson Elementary School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (441; K–5), Charles H. Stillman Elementary School<ref>Charles H. Stillman Elementary School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (354; K–5), Washington Community School<ref>Washington Community School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (649; K–5), Frank J. Hubbard Middle School<ref>Frank J. Hubbard Middle School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (775; 6–8), Maxson Middle School<ref>Maxson Middle School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (818; 6–8), Pinnacle Academy High School<ref>Pinnacle Academy High School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (90; 9–12), Plainfield Academy for the Arts and Advanced Studies<ref>Plainfield Academy for the Arts and Advanced Studies, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (356; 7–12) and Plainfield High School<ref>Plainfield High School, Plainfield Public School District. Accessed October 9, 2024.</ref> (1,925; 9–12).<ref>School Performance Reports for the Plainfield Public School DistrictTemplate:Dead link, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 3, 2024.</ref><ref>New Jersey School Directory for the Plainfield Public School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.</ref>

The district's main high school was the 318th-ranked public high school in New Jersey out of 339 schools statewide in New Jersey Monthly magazine's September 2014 cover story on the state's "Top Public High Schools", using a new ranking methodology.<ref>Staff. "Top Schools Alphabetical List 2014", New Jersey Monthly, September 2, 2014. Accessed September 5, 2014.</ref> The school had been ranked 280th in the state of 328 schools in 2012, after being ranked 307th in 2010 out of 322 schools listed.<ref>Staff. "The Top New Jersey High Schools: Alphabetical", New Jersey Monthly, August 16, 2012. Accessed December 3, 2012.</ref> The school was removed in 2009 from the list of persistently dangerous schools in New Jersey.<ref>Spivey, Mark. "Plainfield High School's 'persistently dangerous' label dropped by state department" Template:Webarchive, Home News Tribune, August 6, 2009. Accessed April 10, 2012. "Plainfield Public Schools officials were notified via a July 31 letter from department Assistant Commissioner Barbara Gantwerk that the school was free of the label, the issuance of which is mandated by the Unsafe School Choice Option of the 2001 federal No Child Left Behind Act."</ref>

Plainfield is also home to New Jersey's first high school focused on sustainability, the Barack Obama Green Charter High School.<ref>Educational Philosophy Template:Webarchive, Barack Obama Green Charter High School. Accessed April 22, 2011.</ref>

Private schools

Established in 1984, Koinonia Academy moved to Plainfield in 1997, where it serves students in Pre-K through twelfth grades and operates under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark.<ref>About Template:Webarchive, Koinonia Academy. Accessed August 4, 2016.</ref><ref>Union County Catholic Elementary Schools Template:Webarchive, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark. Accessed August 4, 2016.</ref>

Higher education

Union College, a community college headquartered in nearby Cranford, maintains a campus in downtown Plainfield.<ref>About Union, Union College. Accessed August 17, 2022.</ref>

Infrastructure

Transportation

Roads and highways

File:2018-06-20 17 05 28 View east along New Jersey State Route 28 (Fifth Street) at Watchung Avenue in Plainfield, Union County, New Jersey.jpg

Route 28 through Plainfield

Template:As of, the city had a total of Template:Convert of roadways, of which Template:Convert were maintained by the municipality, Template:Convert by Union County.<ref>Union County Mileage by Municipality and Jurisdiction, New Jersey Department of Transportation, May 2010. Accessed July 18, 2014.</ref>

Plainfield is one of the few large suburban cities in central New Jersey to have no federal highway within it. The only major thoroughfare through Plainfield is Route 28, connecting Somerville with Elizabeth and New Jersey Route 27. U.S. Route 22, a mecca for highway shopping and dining, is accessible from Plainfield through North Plainfield, Dunellen and Fanwood. In the early 1960s, Interstate highways were completed near, but not through Plainfield. Interstate 287 is accessible through South Plainfield and Piscataway, while Interstate 78 is accessible through Watchung / Warren Township and neighboring communities. The busiest connecting thoroughfares are Park Avenue (north-south), traversing from U.S. 22 to and into South Plainfield and Edison; Front Street (east-west), connecting Scotch Plains with Dunellen; South Avenue and 7th Street, both of which parallel Front Street, connecting Scotch Plains/Fanwood with Piscataway, South Plainfield and the Middlesex County border.

Public transportation

File:Plainfield, NJ ca. 1900.png

Plainfield Station, Template:Circa

Plainfield has two NJ Transit rail stations on the Raritan Valley Line, formerly the mainline of the Central Railroad of New Jersey. The main Plainfield station is in the downtown and a second, smaller Netherwood station is in the Netherwood section, east of downtown and within a mile of the Fanwood border. A third station, located in the west end of town, was closed long ago. The New Brunswick train station is approximately 15 minutes away. The Central Railroad of New Jersey first offered service to Plainfield in 1839. At the height of popularity, the Plainfield "Jersey Central" train station, with its main station building constructed in 1902, was a hub for commuting to Newark and New York. (The Central Railroad of New Jersey terminal was in Jersey City, where ferries would take the rail passengers to New York City.) The station was located near the main post office and downtown stores. The station was serviced by the now defunct Railway Express postal carrier company.<ref>Hatala, Greg. "Glimpse of History: The rails run through Plainfield", The Star-Ledger, November 26, 2012. Accessed November 16, 2015. "According to the Elizabeth Historical Society, the Elizabeth and Somerville Railroad, later the Central Railroad of New Jersey, established regular passenger service to Plainfield in 1839, making interior farmland accessible for development. The Drake House Museum in Plainfield notes that the main station building was designed and built in 1902 in the Richardsonian Romanesque style by noted railroad architect Bradford Gilbert."</ref>

NJ Transit provides bus service on the 113 and 114 to and from the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan; the 59, 65 and 66 (Limited) to Newark; and local service on the 819 and 822 routes.<ref>Union County Bus/Rail Connections, NJ Transit, backed up by the Internet Archive as of May 22, 2009. Accessed October 26, 2011.</ref>

In years past, Plainfield was serviced by the Somerset Bus Company with service from Union County to Essex and New York City, the Public Service Bus Company with similar service and Plainfield Transit, providing local service.

Newark Liberty International Airport is approximately 30 minutes away. A proposed PATH train extension to Plainfield in the 1970s, with stops at the airport and at Elizabeth, was canceled in 1976.<ref>Staff. "Byrne Drops Plan For Rail Extension", The New York Times, June 2, 1978. Accessed February 4, 2018. "Governor Byrne today dropped his proposal for an extension of the PATH rail system to Plainfield and instead endorsed a $600 million plan to improve other rail and bus service in New Jersey."</ref>

Health care

Solaris Health System, the nonprofit company that owns Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center, asked for permission to close the hospital. This request has been opposed by People's Organization for Progress, an advocacy group based in Newark, New Jersey.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The closing has been attributed to the large number of uninsured patients served by the hospital.<ref>Jukaku, Mariam. "Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center shutting its doors", The Star-Ledger, February 23, 2008. Accessed June 15, 2014. "Faced with mounting deficits caused mainly by insufficient state aid to cover all its uninsured patients, officials at Muhlenberg Regional Medical Center in Plainfield plan to close the 130-year-old facility later this year."</ref>

Neighborhood Health Services Corporation (NHSC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community health center serving the greater Plainfield and Elizabeth communities. NHSC has been designated a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Service's Bureau of Primary Health. NHSC's 340B Drug Pricing Program, in partnership with Drug Mart Pharmacy of South Plainfield, New Jersey, provides eligible patients access to outpatient drugs at significantly reduced prices.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

At the height of popularity in the 1950s through the 1970s, Plainfield was a hub for medical practices. Park Avenue was lined with doctors and medical offices and was nicknamed "Doctors Row".<ref>Staff. "Muhlenberg Hospital to close", Plainfield Today, February 22, 2008. Accessed June 3, 2015. "Without a hospital, what incentive will doctors have to have large offices in Plainfield, particularly along the Park Avenue 'Doctor's Row'?"</ref>

Plainfield Teacher's College hoax

Plainfield Teacher's College was a mythical institution created as a hoax by a duo of college football fans in 1941. The phony college's equally nonexistent football team had its scores carried by major newspapers including The New York Times before the hoax was discovered.<ref>Johnson, Bruce. "Plainfield State and Chung Were Too Good to Be True" Template:Webarchive, Westfield Leader, October 13, 2005. Accessed May 13, 2007. "Never heard of Plainfield State? Well, that's because neither Plainfield State Teachers College nor Johnny Chung actually existed... On the spur of the moment, he decided to call The New York Times and said, 'I want to report a score... Plainfield Teachers 21 (his secretary was from Plainfield) ... Regency 12.' The next morning, there was the score in The New York Times!"</ref><ref>Christine, Bill. "The Greatest Hoax in Sports Agate History (Yes, The Times Fell for It, Too)", The New York Times, January 15, 2016. Accessed January 15, 2016. "Harold Rosenthal, who worked on the rewrite desk at The Herald Tribune, answered the phone. Mr. Newburger told him that Plainfield Teachers College had beaten Winona, 27-3. 'Plainfield Teachers?' Mr. Rosenthal said. 'That a New Jersey school?' Mr. Newburger said yes. The name had settled in his mind because his secretary was from Plainfield, N.J."</ref>

Notable people

Template:Category see also People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Plainfield include:

• Ernest R. Ackerman (1863–1931), represented New Jersey's 5th congressional district from 1919 to 1931<ref>Ernest Robinson Ackerman, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed June 25, 2007.</ref>
• John Adams (1772–1863), educator who taught at the Plainfield Academy<ref name="Marquis 1607–1896">Template:Cite book</ref>
• Katherine Langhorne Adams (1885–1977), painter and printmaker<ref>"Mrs. K. Adams Exhibits In New York Galleries", Courier News, May 11, 1928. Accessed December 30, 2017. "An exhibition of recent paintings by Katherine Langhorne Adams, formerly of Plainfield, is being held at the Babcock Galleries, 5 East 57th, street. New York City."</ref>
• Erika Amato (born 1969), actress, singer and founder of Velvet Chain<ref>Erika Amato - Biography Template:Webarchive, Velvet Chain. Accessed September 12, 2013. "Erika was born in Plainfield, NJ, and grew up in the small, rather upscale town of Summit (she actually lived in Mountainside, one of the smaller, adjoining towns), about 25 minutes from Manhattan."</ref>
• Donald C. Backer (1943–2010), radio astronomer and professor at University of California, Berkeley who was discoverer of millisecond pulsars and pioneer in pulsar-based searches for gravitational waves<ref>Moran, James M. "Donald C. Backer", National Radio Astronomy Observatory. Accessed June 15, 2014. "Don was born in Plainfield, NJ, on November 9, 1943."</ref>
• Rich Bagger (born 1960), former mayor of Westfield, New Jersey<ref>Symons, Michael. "Transition team: Rich Bagger", Asbury Park Press, November 20, 2009. Accessed April 10, 2012. "Bagger, who was born in Plainfield and lives in Westfield, holds degrees from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and Rutgers Law School."</ref>
• John Drayton Baker (1915–1942), American Naval aviator who was awarded the Navy Cross for his actions during World War II<ref>John Drayton Baker Template:Webarchive, Military Times. Accessed September 21, 2015.</ref>
• Jeff Barry (born 1938), pop music songwriter, singer and record producer<ref>Cooper, Kim; Smay, David; and Austen, Jake. "Bubblegum Music is the Naked Truth", p. 126. Feral House, 2001. Template:ISBN. Accessed September 21, 2015. "Jeff Barry: I was born in Brooklyn. When I was about seven, my parents got divorced, and I moved in with my mom and sister in Plainfield, New Jersey."</ref>
• Ann Baumgartner (1918–2008), aviator who became the first American woman to fly a United States Army Air Forces jet aircraft when she flew the Bell YP-59A jet fighter as a test pilot during World War II<ref>Notable Women of Plainfield, Plainfield Public Library. Accessed December 25, 2022. "Ann (Baumgartner) Carl (1918-2008) Born in 1918, Ann Baumgartner spent her early childhood in Plainfield, attending the Evergreen School and Miss Hartridge's School for Girls."</ref>
• James Bell (born 1992), basketball player for Israeli team Hapoel Holon<ref>James Bell Template:Webarchive, Villanova Wildcats men's basketball. Accessed December 3, 2016. "Born Jan. 7, 1992 in Plainfield, N.J."</ref>
• G. P. Mellick Belshaw (1928–2020), ninth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New Jersey, serving from 1983 to 1994<ref>"Obituaries: The Rt. Rev. G. P. Mellick Belshaw", Town Topics, March 4, 2020. Accessed December 3, 2020. "He was 91 years of age, born July 14, 1928 in Plainfield, NJ, the only child of Edith Mellick of Plainfield and New York and the Rev. Harold Belshaw, who immigrated to America from Wigan, England when a teen."</ref>
• Charlie Bicknell (1928–2013), MLB pitcher who played for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1948 and 1949<ref>Staff. "Charles 'Buddy' Bicknell", The Star-Ledger, December 1, 2013. Accessed September 21, 2015. "Charles 'Buddy' Bicknell, 85, passed away on Nov. 24, 2013, in Livingston, Mont. A private service will be held. Buddy was born in Plainfield, N.J., to Charles Bicknell and Ann (Blazo) Bicknell in 1928."</ref>
• Joe Black (1924–2002), professional baseball player for the Brooklyn Dodgers and Cincinnati Reds<ref name=Black>Joe Black, baseball pioneer and retired Greyhound Corp. executive, dies - Census - Obituary Template:Webarchive, Jet, June 3, 2002, accessed April 26, 2007. "A native of Plainfield, NJ, Black graduated from Morgan State in Baltimore."</ref>
• Judy Blume (born 1938), author<ref>Goldblatt, Jennifer. "Blume's Day", The New York Times, November 14, 2004. Accessed February 5, 2008. "It wasn't until after Ms. Blume had gotten her bachelor's degree in education from New York University in 1961, was married and raising her son, Larry, and her daughter, Randy, and living in Plainfield and later Scotch Plains, that she started to commit her stories and characters to paper, cramming writing sessions in while the children were at preschool and at play."</ref>
• Jon Bramnick (born 1953), member of the New Jersey General Assembly since 2003 who served on the Plainfield City Council from 1984 to 1991<ref>Assemblyman Jon M. Bramnick Template:Webarchive, New Jersey Legislature. Accessed September 21, 2015.</ref>
• Anthony Branker (born 1958), jazz musician and educator<ref>Schermer, Victor L. "Anthony Branker: Jazz Dialogics", All About Jazz, June 13, 2011. Accessed September 21, 2015. "AAJ: Let's go now to your early background and influences. You grew up in Piscataway and Plainfield, NJ. I believe that pianist Bill Evans grew up in that area. AB: Yes, in Plainfield."</ref>
• Jack E. Bronston (1922–2017), lawyer and politician who served in the New York Senate from 1959 to 1978<ref>The New York Red Book, p. 63. Williams Press, 1977. Accessed November 9, 2017. "Jack E. Bronston 5th District (8th, 9th and 10th Assembly districts of Queens county) Jack E. Bronston, Democrat-Liberal, was born in Plainfield, NJ, on January 10, 1922. He attended Plainfield High School and was graduated magna cum laude with an A.B. degree from Harvard College in 1942."</ref>
• Van Wyck Brooks (1886–1963), author<ref>Prichard, William H. "Not To Write Was Not To Be Alive", The New York Times, November 1, 1981. Accessed December 25, 2012. "Van Wyck Brooks grew up in Plainfield, NJ, second son of a wellto-do Episcopalian and Republican family."</ref>
• Brock Brower (1931–2014), novelist, magazine journalist and TV writer<ref>Bernstein, Adam. "Brock Brower, magazine journalist, novelist and TV writer, dies at 82", The Washington Post, April 29, 2014. Accessed September 21, 2015. "Brock Hendrickson Brower was born November 27, 1931, in Plainfield, NJ, and raised in Westfield, NJ"</ref>
• Glenwood Brown (born 1967), former professional boxer in the welterweight (147lb) division<ref>Glenwood Brown, New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame. Accessed September 21, 2015. "I was born in Plainfield, NJ, and won national acclaim in the sport of boxing since the age of 10."</ref>
• Milt Campbell (1933–2012), 1956 Olympic decathlon gold medalist<ref name=Campbell>"Field Day in Plainfield", Time, July 13, 1953, accessed April 26, 2007. "In Helsinki last summer, a big (6 ft. 3 in., 210 lbs.) Negro high-school boy from Plainfield, NJ trudged wearily into a locker room in the Olympic stadium. Worn down by the two-day competition in the Olympics' most demanding test, Decathlon Man Milton Campbell gave World Champion Bob Mathias a congratulatory backslap, then flopped on a cot."</ref>
• Pete Carmichael (1941–2016), former football coach<ref>Staff. "Veteran NFL Coach Pete Carmichael Joins Panthers Football Staff" Template:Webarchive, Pittsburgh Panthers football, March 1, 2004. Accessed September 21, 2015. "A native of Plainfield, N.J., he attended North Plainfield High, where he lettered three years in both football and baseball."</ref>
• Leonte Carroo (born 1994), wide receiver who played in the NFL for the Miami Dolphins<ref>Dunleavy, Ryan. "Rutgers greats Mohamed Sanu, Leonte Carroo swap NFL jerseys after Falcons-Dolphins game", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, August 29, 2016. Accessed October 17, 2018. "Sanu, who played at South Brunswick High School, mentored Carroo, a Plainfield native who grew up in Edison, during his days at Rutgers."</ref>
• Linda S. Carter (born 1963), politician who has represented the 22nd Legislative District since 2018<ref>Assemblywoman Linda S. Carter (D), New Jersey Legislature. Accessed April 18, 2022. "Plainfield City Council 2004-10"</ref>
• Jeremiah E. Cary (1803–1888), member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 21st congressional district<ref>"Cary, Jeremiah Eaton, (1803-1888)", Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed September 21, 2015. "moved to Plainfield, N.J., in 1860, where he continued the practice of law"</ref>
• W. Sterling Cary (1927–2021), president of the National Council of Churches from 1972 to 1975<ref>Roberts, Sam. "Rev. W. Sterling Cary, Pioneering Black Churchman, Dies at 94", The New York Times, November 19, 2021. Accessed April 18, 2022. "William Sterling Cary was born on Aug. 10, 1927, in Plainfield, N.J., one of eight children of Andrew Jackson Cary, a real estate broker and Y.M.C.A. administrator, and Sadie (Walker) Cary, a homemaker."</ref>
• James Herbert Case Jr. (1906–1965), 8th president of Washington & Jefferson College<ref>James Herbert Case Jr. (1946-1949) Template:Webarchive, U. Grant Miller Library Digital Archives. Accessed September 21, 2015. "He was born October 26, 1906, at Plainfield, NJ."</ref>
• Diane Chamberlain, author of adult fiction<ref>About Template:Webarchive, Diane Chamberlain. Accessed September 21, 2015. "I grew up in Plainfield, NJ and spent my summers at the Jersey Shore, two settings that have found their way into my novels."</ref>
• DJ Cheese, first world champion of the DMC World DJ Championships, in 1986<ref>About DJ Cheese Template:Webarchive, King Kut DJ Cheese. Accessed September 21, 2015. "DJ Cheese has a long history in this thing We call the 'Hip Hop' He was born in W. Virginia then raised in Potters Crossing – Edison, NJ and Later Move To Plainfield, NJ when he was 8Yrs Old."</ref>
• John Chironna (1928–2010), head coach of the Rhode Island Rams football team in 1961 and 1962<ref>Staff. "John Chironna", The Star-Ledger, October 19, 2010. Accessed September 21, 2015. "Mr. Chironna was born on July 4, 1928, in Plainfield, NJ, and graduated from Westfield High School in 1946."</ref>
• Rohit Chopra (born 1982), member of the Federal Trade Commission<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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• Earl Clark (born 1988), basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers, formerly for the University of Louisville Cardinals<ref>Earl Clark Template:Webarchive, CSTV. Accessed January 2, 2008.</ref>
• George Clinton (born 1941), founder of Parliament-Funkadelic, childhood home<ref>Fried, Jonathan. "Jersey Footlights; A Funkmaster Comes Home", The New York Times, October 17, 1999. Accessed April 10, 2012. "The Mothership landed on October 6 when George Clinton, Plainfield native and funkmaster, brought his band to the Community Theater in Morristown for the second night of a monthlong national tour."</ref>
• Manny Collins (born 1984) American football cornerback<ref>"71st Annual Hot Stove Awards Dinner, Feb. 11, Honors Union County Athletes, Young and Old", Union County, New Jersey, press release dated February 2, 2007. Accessed November 14, 2007. "Manny Collins was a standout at both wide receiver and defensive back for the Plainfield High School Cardinals and earned All-County, All-Conference and All-Area honors."</ref>
• Richard Guy Condon (1952–1995), anthropologist who specialized in the study of Inuit<ref>"Richard Guy Condon (1952-1995)" Template:Webarchive, Arctic, Vol. 49, No. 3, September 1996. Accessed September 21, 2015. "Rick was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, and received his bachelor's degree with honors in anthropology from Rutgers College (1974) and his PhD at the University of Pittsburgh (1981)."</ref>
• William Consovoy (1974–2023), attorney for conservative causes<ref>Risen, Clay. "William Consovoy Dies at 48; Took Conservative Cases to Supreme Court", The New York Times, January 12, 2023. Accessed January 18, 2023. "William Spencer Consovoy was born on Aug. 31, 1974, in Plainfield, N.J. "</ref>
• Archibald Cox (1912–2004), Watergate special prosecutor<ref>Gormley, Ken. "In Memoriam: Archibald Cox" Template:Webarchive, Harvard Law Review, November 2004. Accessed May 13, 2007. "He grew up in Plainfield, NJ, the son of a distinguished New York patent attorney."</ref>
• Kathy Cox (born 1964), former superintendent of public schools for the U.S. state of Georgia<ref>Kathy Cox, Vote Smart. Accessed June 10, 2018.</ref>
• Dan Davis (born 1986), defensive lineman who played for the New York Sentinels of the United Football League<ref>Boyer, Zac. "After four years, Davis ready to move on", Rivals.com. November 17, 2007. Accessed November 9, 2017. "Davis' hard-hitting mentality was rooted deep within him as a child growing up in Plainfield, NJ, a city of approximately 50,000 located a half-hour southwest of Newark.... According to Davis, many of those who attended Plainfield High School with him failed to move on to college and instead ended up involved either in jail or, worse, dead."</ref>
• Pat DiNizio (1955–2017), lead singer, songwriter, and founding member of the band The Smithereens<ref>Slotnik, Daniel E. "Pat DiNizio, Singer and Songwriter for the Smithereens, Dies at 62", The New York Times, December 13, 2017. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Patrick Michael DiNizio was born in Plainfield, NJ, on Oct. 12, 1955, to Nicholas DiNizio, who ran a waste management business, and the former Antoinette Gallo. He grew up nearby in Scotch Plains and graduated from Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School before attending several colleges, including Union County College in Cranford, NJ; Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J.; and New York University."</ref>
• Charles C. Dodge (1841–1910), Union Army brigadier general in the American Civil War and one of the youngest in history, receiving his commission at the age of 21<ref>Welsh, Jack D. Medical Histories of Union Generals, p. 99. Kent State University Press, 2005. Template:ISBN. Accessed July 25, 2022. "Charles Cleveland Dodge: Born September 16, 1841, at Plainfield, New Jersey."</ref>
• Barbara L. Drinkwater (1926–2019), sports physiologist who was the first woman to be president of the American College of Sports Medicine<ref>"Barbara Lee Drinkwater", Island Beachcomber. Accessed July 21, 2023. "Born on November 18, 1926, in Plainfield, New Jersey, Barbara was a remarkable influence on so many people in so many different ways."</ref>
• William Archibald Dunning (1857–1922), historian best known for his work on the Reconstruction Era<ref>Jarvis, Gail. "The Dunning School", LewRockwell.com, February 2, 2004. Accessed September 21, 2015. "William Archibald Dunning was born in Plainfield, NJ, in 1857, the son of a wealthy manufacturer with an intellectual bent and a strong interest in American history."</ref>
• Bill Evans (1929–1980), jazz pianist<ref>Lyons, Leonard S. "The Great Jazz Pianists: Speaking of Their Lives and Music", accessed May 13, 2007. "Bill Evans Grew up in Plainfield, NJ."</ref>
• Alfred A. Farland (1864–1954), classic banjoist<ref>"Legends of Banjoist's Fabulous Career Recalled", Courier News, May 6, 1954. Accessed April 19, 2023, via Newspapers.com. "The saga of a fabulous career, told in legend and fact, is remembered today, after the death of Alfred A. Farland, 90, of 358 E. Second St, banjoist, banjo-maker and concert artist.... Mr. Farland came to Plainfield from Jersey City in 1903 and lived at his late address since 1910."</ref>
• Dionne Farris (born 1969), singer, songwriter, producer and actress<ref>Scott, Rose. "Breaking Away, Dionne Farris Talks Time Off From Music", WABE-FM, June 21, 2013. Accessed July 23, 2019. "The Plainfield, NJ native came to Atlanta in 1990 and was the strong vocal nucleus of the 'socially-conscious' hip hop group Arrested Development."</ref>
• Negley Farson (1890–1960), adventurer, journalist and author<ref>Negley Farson (1890–1960), Royal Academy of Arts. Accessed April 12, 2020. "Born in Plainfield, NJ, Farson was raised by his eccentric grandfather, the Civil War General James Negley (1826-1901)."</ref>
• J. Michael Fay (born 1956), conservationist<ref>J. Michael Fay, United States Department of State. Accessed December 10, 2007.</ref>
• Rashan Gary (born 1997), defensive tackle for the Michigan Wolverines football team<ref>Stanmyre, Matthew. "Rashan Gary, nation's top recruit, was recruited to Paramus Catholic, old school indicates" Template:Webarchive, The Star-Ledger, August 25, 2014. Accessed November 6, 2017. "Gary's mother, Jennifer Coney, said today her son 'absolutely was not recruited.' She said Gary had been living with his father and grandparents in Scotch Plains, but the house is now for sale, so she moved her son into her home in Plainfield."</ref>
• Glenn Goins (1954–1978), singer and guitarist for Parliament-Funkadelic<ref>Makin, Bob. "Parliament-Funkadelic: From doo-wop to hip-hop", Courier News, March 27, 2016. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Plainfield guitarist-vocalist Glenn Goins, who earlier joined the collective, now known as Parliament-Funkadelic or P-Funk, helped end each show by calling on the Mothership, a prop from the classic 1951 sci-fi movie The Day the Earth Stood Still."</ref>
• Gertrude Joy Grimm (1904–1988), WAVES officer in World War II<ref>"Gertrude Joy Grimm; Waves Officer, 83", The New York Times, June 4, 1988. Accessed November 19, 2022. "A native of Plainfield, N.J., and a graduate of Wellesley College, Mrs. Grimm was a retailing manager in New York City and Detroit before the war."</ref>
• Jan Groover (1943–2012), photographer noted for her use of emerging color photography technologies<ref>Artist Biographies Template:Webarchive, The Cleveland Museum of Art. Accessed December 13, 2007.</ref>
• Mark Haines (1946–2011), former host of the CNBC shows Squawk Box and Squawk on the Street<ref>Strauss, Robert. "New Jersey & Co.; All Eyes Are on Fort Lee", The New York Times, April 23, 2000. Accessed April 10, 2012. "Alerted by a viewer, Mr. Haines – a Plainfield native who now lives in Monmouth County – researched tapes and noted that when Mr. Greenspan, the head of the Federal Reserve, carried a fat briefcase to the meetings, interest rates rose; a thin briefcase indicated lower rates."</ref>
• David Hand (1900–1986), American and British-American animator at Out of the Inkwell studios, Walt Disney Animation Studios, and Gaumont Film Company's British Animation Studio<ref>Murphy, Robert. Directors in British and Irish Cinema: A Reference Companion, p. 700. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2019. Template:ISBN. Accessed December 27, 2020. "Hand, David (1900–1986) David Hand was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, on 23 January 1900, and educated at the Academy of Fine Arts in Chicago."</ref>
• Bret Harte (1836–1902), author and poet<ref>Nissen, Axel. Bret Harte: Prince and Pauper, p. 244. University Press of Mississippi, 2000. Template:ISBN. Accessed August 6, 2012. "By April 1884, both the Knauffts and the Hartes had removed to Plainfield, NJ..."</ref>
• Eddie Hazel (1950–1992), lead guitarist and founding member of Parliament-Funkadelic<ref>Sullivan, James. "Twisted Tales: P-Funk's Eddie Hazel Is the New Hendrix, for Better or Worse" Template:Webarchive, Spinner, July 11, 2008. Accessed October 26, 2011. "Born in Brooklyn but raised in Plainfield, NJ – where his mother, sadly, thought she could keep her son from the ravages of big-city temptation – the young Hazel taught himself to play guitar alongside a school-age buddy, Billy 'Bass' Nelson."</ref>
• William Hazell (1908–1995), president of the New Jersey Institute of Technology<ref>Staff. "Union County Tech Gives 29 Diplomas", Courier News, June 14, 1963. Accessed July 23, 2019. "'Challenge of Change' was the subject of an address last night by William Hazell of Plainfield before the 29-student graduating class of the Union County Technical Institute."</ref>
• Elise B. Heinz (1935–2014), lawyer and politician who was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates from 1978 to 1981<ref>McDonough, Megan. "Elise B. Heinz, lawyer and former Virginia delegate", The Washington Post, January 27, 2014. Accessed May 4, 2021. "Elise Brookfield Heinz was born in Plainfield, N.J., and raised in Alexandria, where she was a 1951 graduate of George Washington High School."</ref>
• Richard X. Heyman, singer-songwriter and musician, who was a founding member of The Doughboys<ref>Skelly, Richard. "Richard X. Heyman and the Owls playing the Record Collector", Asbury Park Press, December 11, 2015. Accessed July 23, 2019. "In 2002, Heyman self-published a book documenting his life and musical times growing up in and around Plainfield, and his time with the Doughboys, who became one of the Garden State's most popular rock 'n' roll bands when the musical genre was still emerging."</ref>
• Jon Hilliman (born 1995; class of 2014), professional football player for the New York Giants<ref>Stapleton, Art. "Jon Hilliman: How the New Jersey native went from being an NFL long shot to the NY Giants", The Record, September 27, 2019. Accessed April 2, 2021. "Raised in Plainfield, Hilliman was essentially born into Big Apple football."</ref>
• Byron Hurt (born 1969), documentary filmmaker<ref>Staff. "Kenya Crumel and Byron Hurt", The New York Times, October 1, 2006. Accessed May 21, 2013. "Kenya Felice Crumel and Byron Patrick Hurt were married last evening at their home in Plainfield, NJ"</ref>
• Dontae Johnson (born 1991), cornerback who has played in the National Football League for the San Francisco 49ers<ref>Ashmore, Mike. "Two years full of adversity have led Pennington School grad Dontae Johnson to Super Bowl with 49ers"Template:Dead link, The Trentonian, February 1, 2020. Accessed November 8, 2020. "Former Pennington School star Dontae Johnson is expected to suit up for the San Francisco 49ers, and is the school's first alum to play in the big game. The 28-year-old was born in Plainfield and actually went to South Plainfield High for a year, but transferred to Pennington for the final three years of his high school career."</ref>
• Marion Lee Johnson, African-American mathematician who was crucial to the landing of the Apollo 11 mission<ref>Segedy, Andria. "Savannah's own 'Hidden Figure': Marion Lee Johnson worked on Apollo 11 program", Bluffton Today, February 13, 2018. Accessed October 9, 2019 "Her Savannah classmates are not surprised. While Johnson now lives in Plainfield, NJ, she maintains strong ties to Savannah with friends and family, including a daughter who works at Savannah State University."</ref>
• Tyrone Johnson (born 1992), professional basketball player<ref>Tyrone Johnson, South Carolina Gamecocks men's basketball. Accessed August 5, 2019. "Hometown: Plainfield, NJ"</ref>
• Betty Jones (1930–2019), operatic spinto soprano, who did not begin her career until the age of 41<ref>Sanders, Sally. "Memories of a musical life" Template:Webarchive, Shelton Herald, April 2, 2015. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Betty was born into a nurturing middle class African American family in Plainfield, NJ"</ref>
• Donald Jones (born 1987), former professional wide receiver who played in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots<ref>Staff. "Former NFL wide receiver Donald Jones works out with Somerset Patriots", The Messenger-Gazette, April 18, 2014. Accessed October 18, 2015. "Former NFL wide receiver and Plainfield native Donald Jones will be working out with the Somerset Patriots during Spring Training.... Now Jones is looking to make a return to the baseball diamond, where he last played for Plainfield High School."</ref>
• David Kapralik (1925/26–2017), music industry executive, who was an A&R executive, producer and talent manager<ref>Barnes, Mike. "David Kapralik, Influential Barbra Streisand, Sly Stone Music Exec, Dies at 91", The Hollywood Reporter, July 12, 2017. Accessed March 26, 2023. "Kapralik was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, the youngest of three children of milliners."</ref>
• Robyn Kenney (born 1979), field hockey player<ref>Robyn Kenney Template:Webarchive, USA Field Hockey. Accessed December 20, 2007.</ref>
• Phyllis Kirk (1927–2006), actress<ref>via Associated Press. "Phyllis Kirk, 79, Who Starred in House of Wax and Thin Man, Dies", The New York Times, October 23, 2006. Accessed April 10, 2012. "Phyllis Kirkegaard was born in Plainfield, NJ, but moved to New York City in her late teens to study acting and shortened her last name to Kirk."</ref>
• Florence LaRue (born 1944), singer and actress best known as an original member of the 5th Dimension<ref>Scott, Don. "A Place In History: Florence LaRue, The Fifth Dimension created music of joy" Template:Webarchive, Montgomery News, September 10, 2015. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Born Feb. 4, 1942, in Plainfield, NJ, as World War II raged, LaRue and her family "moved to Glenside, Pa., where she began studying dance and violin," according to www.thehistorymakers.com, as well as attended Abington Senior High School, where she was inducted in 1988 to the school's Hall of Fame, likely indicative of her keen intelligence, social sensibilities and immense spirituality passed down by her African-American elders."</ref>
• Geoffrey Lewis (1935–2015), character actor who appeared in more than 100 films and television shows, and was principally known for his film roles alongside Clint Eastwood and Robert Redford<ref>Slotnik, Daniel E. "Geoffrey Lewis, Actor in Clint Eastwood Films, Dies at 79", The New York Times, April 9, 2015. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Geoffrey Bond Lewis was born in Plainfield, NJ, on July 31, 1935."</ref>
• Peter Liske (born 1942), former professional football player<ref>Laurie, Artiss. "Liske Recalls Vivid Hoax", The Leader-Post, September 22, 1967. Accessed April 10, 2012. "They should be indebted then, as I am, to The Globe and Mail's Dick Beddoes for revealing the hoax surrounding Peter Liske. That is, if you consider his hometown - Plainfield, NJ - as sufficient evidence for guilt by association."</ref>
• Edith Elizabeth Lowry (1897–1970), interdenominational leader in home mission work<ref>Portrait of Edith Lowry, Rutgers University. Accessed August 27, 2024. "Edith Elizabeth Lowry was born on March 23rd, 1897 in Plainfield NJ."</ref>
• Robert Lowry (1826–1899), Christian preacher and prolific hymn-writer/musician, whose works include "Shall We Gather at the River?"<ref>From Special Collections/University Archives: Robert Lowry Template:Webarchive, Bucknell University. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Lowry retired to Plainfield, NJ to continue to read and write, giving sermons and returning to do work with his alma mater when he had the time."</ref>
• Randolph Manning (1804–1864), Michigan Supreme Court justice<ref>Randolph Manning, Michigan Supreme Court Historical Society. Accessed May 21, 2013. "Randolph Manning was born in Plainfield, NJ, on May 19, 1804."</ref>
• Queena Mario (1896–1951), soprano opera singer, newspaper columnist, voice teacher and fiction writer<ref>Staff. "Queena Mario Sings to Students", The New York Times, May 26, 1927. Accessed August 26, 2018. "Queena Mario of the Metropolitan Opera Company, formerly of this city, was a guest of the Plainfield High School today where she sang a group of four numbers to the student body.... The opera star whose family name was Tillotson is a graduate of the local high school and has been a guest of Mr. and Mrs. Albert L. Coddington of Sheridan Avenue."</ref>
• Donald Martino (1931–2005), Pulitzer Prize-winning composer<ref>Tommasini, Anthony. "Donald Martino, 74, Creator of Atonal Musical Works, Dies", The New York Times, December 12, 2005. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Born on May 16, 1931, in Plainfield, NJ, he began studying music at 9, first learning the clarinet, saxophone and oboe."</ref>
• Burke Marshall (1922–2003), head of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice during the Civil Rights Era<ref>Barnes, Bart. "Burke Marshall, 80, Dies; JFK's Civil Rights Enforcer" Template:Webarchive, The Washington Post, June 3, 2003. Accessed November 21, 2008. "Mr. Marshall, a native of Plainfield, NJ, graduated from Yale University."</ref>
• John Marshall (born 1963), former middle-distance track athlete who specialized in the 800 meters and competed at the 1984 Summer Olympics<ref>"Plainfield honors seven outstanding black citizens", Courier News, February 21, 1985. Accessed November 9, 2017. "A 1981 Plainfield High School graduate, Marshall broke the 800-meter collegiate record in 1982 and was named to the U.S. Junior National Team."</ref>
• Jack Martin (1887–1980), slick-fielding, weak-hitting infielder in Major League Baseball, playing mainly at shortstop for three different teams between the Template:Baseball year and Template:Baseball year seasons<ref>Faber, Charles F. "Jack Martin", Society for American Baseball Research. Accessed November 9, 2017. "John Christopher Martin was born in Plainfield, NJ, in the central part of the state, on April 19, 1887. The son of Adeline and James B. Martin, a trolley conductor, Jack played baseball at Plainfield High School and for the town's amateur clubs."</ref>
• James Edgar Martine (1850–1925), United States Senator from New Jersey<ref>James Edgar Martine, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed April 16, 2008.</ref>
• Robert Mason (born 1942), author of Chickenhawk<ref>Prendergast, Mark. "His Long Flight Home For Robert Mason, War Was Hell And Peace Hard To Find. Now He Thinks He Knows Where To Look. And Where Not To Look." Template:Webarchive, Orlando Sentinel, September 1, 1985. Accessed April 10, 2012. "Robert Mason was born 43 years ago in Plainfield, NJ. When he was 8, his family moved to a chicken farm west of Delray Beach."</ref>
• Bridget Mary McCormack (born 1966), lawyer, professor, and judge, serving on the Michigan Supreme Court since 2013, and as Chief Justice since 2019<ref>Kuras, Amy. "Mom Bridget Mary McCormack Lays Down the Law", Metro Parent for Southeast Michigan, August 27, 2012. Accessed March 17, 2021. "She grew up in Plainfield, N.J., with a mom who went back to school to be a social worker when her kids were nearly grown – and a dad who was a Marine and a small business owner who worked seven days a week his entire life."</ref>
• Mary McCormack (born 1969), actress<ref>Mary McCormack cast member profile, The West Wing. Accessed September 30, 2007. "Born in Plainfield, NJ, McCormack is a graduate of Trinity College and resides in Los Angeles."</ref>
• Will McCormack (born 1974), actor, executive producer, screenwriter and film director, best known for his 2020 short film If Anything Happens I Love You, which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film<ref>Catlin, Roger. "Behind The Scenes Success Story; Trinity College Alum McCormack Makes His Own Work As Writer And Producer", Hartford Courant, October 19, 2014. Accessed March 17, 2021, via Newspapers.com. "When Will McCormack was attending Trinity College in the mid-1990s as a performing arts minor, "I was in every play I could be in there." A role model for the Plainfield, N. J., native was his older sister, Mary McCormack, a Trinity grad, who was by then starting her movie career that would bring her to starring roles in The West Wing and In Plain Sight."</ref>
• Peter McDonough (1925–1998), politician who served in both the New Jersey General Assembly and New Jersey Senate<ref>via Associated Press. "Peter McDonough, 73, Retired Legislator", The New York Times, September 1, 1998. Accessed November 9, 2017. "Mr. McDonough was a lifelong resident of Plainfield and was a champion high school swimmer."</ref>
• Jim McGreevey (born 1957), former Governor of New Jersey<ref name=McGreevey>Kocieniewski, David. "Ex-Governor Is Back in Public, This Time as an Author", The New York Times, September 20, 2006. Accessed April 26, 2019. "While his resignation forced Mr. McGreevey to move out of Drumthwacket, the governor's mansion in Princeton, his new home in Plainfield has gardens designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, a circular driveway and a housecleaner who arrived on Tuesday driving a white Mercedes-Benz."</ref>
• Warren McLaughlin (1876–1923), Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Philadelphia Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates<ref>Lamb, Bill. Warren McLaughlin, Society for American Baseball Research. Accessed May 13, 2024. "Now returned home permanently, bachelor McLaughlin alternated between living in a Plainfield apartment with his widowed mother and four other unmarried siblings, and residing at the nearby home of older brother John and his family."</ref>
• Eugene Monroe (born 1987), former professional football player<ref>van Esselstyn, Drew. "Plainfield's Eugene Monroe selected No. 8 overall by Jacksonville Jaguars", The Star-Ledger, April 25, 2009. Accessed October 26, 2011.</ref>
• Dudley Moore (1935–2002), actor who resided there at the time of his death<ref>Brush, Pete. "Actor Dudley Moore Dies", CBS News, February 11, 2009. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref>
• Nonnie Moore (1922–2009), fashion editor at Mademoiselle, Harper's Bazaar and GQ"<ref>Hevesi, Dennis. "Nonnie Moore, Fashion Editor at Magazines, Dies at 87", The New York Times, February 24, 2009. Accessed June 15, 2014. "Born Marjorie Eilers on Jan. 21, 1922, in Plainfield, NJ, Ms. Moore was one of two daughters of Henry and Lovinia Burton Eilers."</ref>
• Cordell Mosson (1952–2013), vocalist and bassist for Parliament-Funkadelic<ref>McCall, Tris. "Cordell 'Boogie' Mosson, P-Funk bassist, dies at 60", The Star-Ledger, April 21, 2013. Accessed May 21, 2013. "Cordell 'Boogie' Mosson (born Cardell Mosson), a Plainfield musician whose rubbery bass guitar gave the classic albums by Parliament and Funkadelic much of their buoyant, elastic, bouncing-off-of-the-walls character, died on Thursday at 60."</ref>
• James S. Negley (1826–1901), Civil War General, farmer, railroader, and U.S. Representative from the state of Pennsylvania<ref>Staff. "$50,000 In Bonds In A Bag; Stolen From Gen. James S. Negley In Plainfield. Found in a House in Madison Avenue – With Them an Insurance Policy for $1,000 and Gen. Negley's Commission, Signed by President Lincoln – Coachman Was the Thief – He Was Dismissed from Gen. Negley's Service Last Month.", The New York Times, April 20, 1894. Accessed August 26, 2018. "Gen. Negley was the manager of the Home for Decrepit Veteran Soldiers at Pittsburgh, PA. He has an office at 136 Liberty Street, this city, and lives in Plainfield, NJ"</ref>
• Billy Bass Nelson (born 1951), bassist, founding member of Parliament-Funkadelic<ref>Britannica Educational Publishing. The 100 Most Influential Musicians of All Time, p. 273. The Rosen Publishing Group, 2009. Template:ISBN. "Billy Bass Nelson (b. Jan. 28, 1951, Plainfield, N.J., U.S.)"</ref>
• Gail R. O'Day (1954–2018), biblical scholar<ref>Remembering Gail O'Day, Wake Forest University. Accessed September 1, 2019. "Gail Radcliffe O'Day was born on December 2, 1954, in Muhlenberg, New Jersey, where her mother, Sally Wilcox O'Day, was living while her father, Arthur F. O'Day, was serving in the Korean War."</ref>
• Andrew P. O'Rourke (1933–2013), former Westchester County Executive<ref>Berger, Joseph. 'Andrew P. O'Rourke, Longtime Westchester County Leader, Dies at 79", The New York Times, January 4, 2013. Accessed May 24, 2016. "Andrew Patrick O'Rourke was born in Plainfield, NJ, on October 26, 1933, the youngest of five children."</ref>
• Montell Owens (born 1984), professional football player for the Jacksonville Jaguars<ref>Montell Owens, NFL.com. Accessed May 21, 2013.</ref>
• Irving Penn (1917–2009), photographer<ref>Via Associated Press. "Fashion, celebrity photographer Irving Penn dies", USA Today, October 7, 2009. Accessed October 26, 2011. "Born in Plainfield, NJ, in 1917, Penn studied at the Philadelphia Museum School of Industrial Art from 1934 to 1938, and worked as an assistant at Harper's Bazaar in 1939."</ref>
• Elizabeth Price (born 1996), gymnast<ref>"The Official Website of Elizabeth 'Ebee' Price" - About Elizabeth Template:Webarchive. Accessed August 5, 2012. "Elizabeth Nicole Price was born on May 28, 1996 in Planfield, NJ to Diane and David Price."</ref>
• Kasim Reed (born 1969), birthplace, former Mayor of Atlanta<ref>Stevens, Andrew. "Kasim Reed; Mayor of Atlanta", City Mayors Foundation, March 29, 2010. Accessed October 26, 2011. "Though born in the New Jersey suburb of Plainfield, Reed was raised in Fulton County, Georgia and schooled at the Westlake High School locally."</ref>
• Edward Regan (1930–2014), politician who served for 15 years as New York State Comptroller<ref>McFadden, Robert D. "Edward V. Regan, Longtime New York State Comptroller, Dies at 84", The New York Times, October 18, 2014. Accessed October 19, 2014. "Edward Van Buren Regan was born in Plainfield, NJ, on May 14, 1930, the oldest of five children of William and Caroline Van Buren Regan."</ref>
• Emma Winner Rogers (1855–1922), writer and speaker on economic and social questions, and on the Arts and Crafts movement<ref>Guide to the Henry Wade Rogers (1853-1926) Papers 1890/1971, Northwestern University. Accessed April 25, 2021. "Emma Ferdon Winner Rogers was born on January 20, 1855 in Plainfield, New Jersey."</ref>
• Erik Rosenmeier (born 1965), former NFL center who played for the Buffalo Bills in 1987<ref>Erik Rosenmeier, Pro-Football-Reference.com. Accessed September 6, 2017.</ref>
• Jane Rule (1931–2007), author of lesbian-themed novels and non-fiction<ref>Fox, Margalit. "Jane Rule, Canadian Novelist, Dies at 76", The New York Times, December 29, 2007. Accessed October 26, 2011. "Jane Vance Rule was born on March 28, 1931, in Plainfield, NJ, and raised in the Midwest and California."</ref>
• William Nelson Runyon (1871–1931), Acting Governor of New Jersey from 1919 to 1920<ref>New Jersey Governor William Nelson Runyon Template:Webarchive, National Governors Association. Accessed August 3, 2007.</ref>
• Justin Sears (born 1994), basketball player for the Gießen 46ers in Germany<ref>Justin Sears Template:Webarchive, Yale Bulldogs men's basketball. Accessed March 20, 2017. "Hometown: Plainfield, NJ"</ref>
• Robert Shapiro (born 1942), lawyer<ref>Staff. "Stars shine to 'ultimate deal maker'"Template:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore, Boston Herald, June 30, 1994. Accessed January 12, 2011. "Born into a working-class family in Plainfield, NJ. Shapiro came to Los Angeles as a boy and later attended UCLA as a finance major."</ref>
• Garry Shider (1953–2010), musical director of P-Funk<ref>McCall, Tris. "Garry Shider of P-Funk fame dies at 56", The Star-Ledger, June 16, 2010. Accessed January 12, 2011. "The Plainfield native and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, best known as the musical director of George Clinton's Parliament and Funkadelic bands, died today at the age of 56, from complications arising from brain and lung cancer."</ref>
• Henry Soles Jr. (1935–2018), minister who served as the senior chaplain for the Chicago Bulls for more than 30 years<ref>"Rev. Henry Soles Jr., Longtime Chicago Bulls Chaplain, Dies at 82" Template:Webarchive, Earned Media, January 29, 2018. Accessed February 4, 2018. "Reverend Henry Soles, Jr. (photo) was born on August 17, 1935 in Anniston, AL. He grew up in Plainfield, NJ and attended Plainfield High School, Manhattan Bible Institute, and Rutgers University."</ref>
• Percy Hamilton Stewart (1867–1951), mayor of Plainfield in 1912 and 1913, represented New Jersey's 5th congressional district from 1931 to 1933<ref>Percy Hamilton Stewart, Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed July 10, 2007.</ref>
• Bertram D. Tallamy (1901–1989), transportation official who served as Federal Highway Administrator and as superintendent of the New York State Department of Public Works<ref>Narvaez, Alfonso A. "Bertram D. Tallamy, 87, Official For U.S. and New York Highways", The New York Times, September 19, 1989. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Mr. Tallamy was born in Plainfield, NJ on Dec. 1, 1901."</ref>
• Robert W. Tebbs (1875–1945), architectural photographer
• Edward Herbert Thompson (1856–1935), archaeologist and diplomat<ref>Staff. "Maya Ruins Described.; Explorer in Yucatan Speaks Before New Jersey Archaeologists.", The New York Times, March 11, 1932. Accessed January 12, 2011. "The seventy-five persons present heard talks by Dr. Edward Herbert Thompson of Plainfield, lecturer on archaeology and former United States Consul at Merida."</ref>
• Jeff Torborg (born 1941), former professional baseball player and manager<ref>Spivey, Mark. "Hillsborough man pens sports book on notable New Jersey athletes" Template:Webarchive, Home News Tribune, November 28, 2008. Accessed January 12, 2011. "Milt Campbell and MLB catcher and manager Jeff Torborg, who caught a perfect game from Sandy Koufax, both called Plainfield home."</ref>
• Janeen Uzzell, Global Technology Executive and former chief operating officer of the Wikimedia Foundation<ref>"Steve Adubato goes One-on-One with Janeen Uzzell, Former Head of Women in Technology at GE, from the Amazon Alexa VOICE Summit at NJIT, to talk about the importance of diversity within the tech community." Template:Webarchive, One on One with Steve Adubato, September 28, 2018. Accessed February 2, 2020. "Janeen Uzzell, she is a former head of Women in Technology at GE, and currently emerging market and tech consultant.... Born and raised at the Beth? Beth Israel?... So, I grew up in Plainfield... It's a good town."</ref>
• Daniel Tompkins Van Buren (1826–1890), Union Army officer who attained the rank of brigadier general by brevet in the American Civil War<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
• Nancy Van de Vate (1930–2023), composer<ref>"Hamlet Prince of Denmark premieres in Prague", The Prague Post. Accessed July 23, 2019. "Nancy Van de Vate was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, studied piano at Eastman School of Music as well as composition at both the University of Mississippi and Florida State University."</ref>
• Fred Van Eps (1878–1960), banjoist and early recording artist<ref>Gracyk, Tim. Fred Van Eps – Banjoist Template:Webarchive, Tims Phonographs & Old Records. Accessed 'July 23, 2019. "Van Eps moved with his family to nearby Plainfield in 1892 and in 1893, as he reported later in life, heard his first Vess L. Ossman cylinder, 'The White Star Line March."</ref>
• George Van Eps (1913–1998), swing and mainstream jazz guitarist<ref>Voce, Steve. "Obituary: George Van Eps", The Independent, December 8, 1998. Accessed July 23, 2019. "George Abel Van Eps, guitarist: born Plainfield, NJ, 7 August 1913; married (one daughter); died Newport Beach, CA, 29 November 1998."</ref>
• Rich Vos (born 1957), comedian<ref>Staff. "Comics wait to see who'll be standing ", Atlanta Journal-Constitution, August 5, 2003. Accessed November 21, 2008. "Two grizzled veteran comics with minimal name recognition until a few weeks ago – Dave Mordal of Elk River, MN, and Rich Vos of Plainfield, NJ – have found a higher level of fame thanks to NBC's moderately successful reality show Last Comic Standing."</ref>
• Helen Walulik (1929–2012), All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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• David S. Ware (1949–2012), jazz saxophonist<ref>Freeman, Phil. "Free at LastAvant-jazz titans the David S. Ware Quartet triumphantly disband—sort of" Template:Webarchive, The Village Voice, May 29, 2007. Accessed October 26, 2011. "'I didn't disband the group,' says saxophonist David S. Ware by phone from his home in Plainfield, N.J."</ref>
• Vic Washington (1946–2008), former professional football player<ref>Six Individuals, One Team Inducted into the 13th Hall of Fame Class Template:Webarchive, University of Wyoming, February 19, 2005. Accessed July 10, 2007. "Vic Washington. Hometown: Plainfield, NJ"</ref>
• James West (born 1931), co-inventor of the foil electret microphone and member of the National Inventors Hall of Fame<ref>The National Medal of Technology and Innovation Recipients: 2006 Laureates, United States Patent and Trademark Office. Accessed January 12, 2011.</ref>
• Kevin White (born 1992), former NFL wide receiver, Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints, and San Francisco 49ers<ref>Housenick, Tom. "Emmaus grad Kevin White making better life for himself at West Virginia", The Morning Call, October 23, 2014. Accessed November 5, 2018. "It was about a decade ago when parents Tammy and Kevin White moved Kevin and his siblings out of their Plainfield, NJ's violent, drug-infested neighborhood."</ref>
• Harrison A. Williams (1919–2001), U.S. Senator who resigned following the Abscam scandal<ref>Harrison Arlington Williams Jr., Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Accessed July 10, 2008.</ref>
• Jay Williams (born 1981), former professional basketball player with the Chicago Bulls<ref>D'Allesandro, Dave. "Plainfield's Jay Williams thinks he's almost ready to let go of NBA dreams", The Star-Ledger, September 20, 2008. Accessed January 12, 2011.</ref>
• Malinda Williams (born 1975), actress who played hair stylist Tracy "Bird" Van Adams on the Showtime television drama Soul Food<ref>Daniels, Karu F. "A windfall indeed for Malinda Williams; BET celeb gift bags up for grabs; Hip Hop Wives on TV; Danyel Smith's new Vibe", AOL Black Voices, July 6, 2006. Accessed January 12, 2011.</ref>
• Bernie Worrell (1944–2016), keyboardist, founding member of Parliament-Funkadelic, childhood home<ref>Deggan, Eric. "The best keyboardist you've never heard of", St. Petersburg Times, June 28, 2002. Accessed January 12, 2011.</ref>
• Albert Capwell Wyckoff (1903–1953), ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church (USA) and author of juvenile fiction, most notably the Mercer Boys series and Mystery Hunter series<ref>"Rev. Albert C. Wyckoff", The New York Times, January 13, 1953. Accessed October 29, 2019. "Elizabeth, NJ, Jan. 12--The Rev. Albert Capwell Wyckoff, formerly of this city who served the Presbyterian Church in the South for more than two decades as missionary and pastor died Saturday at Columbia, KY, after a brief illness... Born in near-by Plainfield, he was ordained in 1928."</ref>
• James A. Yorke (born 1941), chair of the Mathematics Department at the University of Maryland, College Park<ref>Curriculum Vitae: James A. Yorke, University of Maryland, College Park. Accessed July 11, 2013. "Born 1941 in Plainfield, NJ, U.S.A., U.S. Citizen"</ref>
• Olamide Zaccheaus (born 1997), American football wide receiver for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League<ref>Santoliquito, Joseph."The journey of the Wizard of Oz (also known as South Jersey's Olamide Zaccheaus) to Atlanta", Philly Voice, September 12, 2019. August 10, 2022. "The small family originally wound up in Plainfield, New Jersey, where Yimbra worked a part-time job during the day doing data entry at a local college, and at night as a computer operator."</ref>

See also

• Plainfield Riding and Driving Club
• Plainfield Armory

External links

• Plainfield, New Jersey's Homepage
• The Alternative Press in Plainfield