by Chrissy Buteas, President and Chief Executive Officer
HealthCare Institute of New Jersey (HINJ)
“The mid-1800’s Industrial Revolution” isn’t the typical opening line of an article about New Jersey’s high-tech advanced manufacturing in 2025, so I won’t start there—which is good, because New Jersey’s role as a leading manufacturing hub doesn’t begin there either; it actually predates both the Industrial Revolution AND the 1800’s. To trace New Jersey’s manufacturing history, we’d have to go back even further.
In 1791 (there, that’s better), Alexander Hamilton founded the Society for the Establishment of Useful Manufacturers (SUM) and wisely chose Paterson, New Jersey, as the site from which to launch this national effort designed to promote and accelerate our young country’s industrial and manufacturing development capabilities. At that time, Paterson’s Great Falls served as a power source, and its proximity to New York City’s business and capital centers established New Jersey as one of the first industrial and manufacturing hubs in America. Read the full op-ed here.