Elizabeth, New Jersey is the county seat of Union County, New Jersey, and the fourth largest city in the state. The town was founded in 1664, and it was named for proprietor George Carteret's wife/cousin, Elizabeth Carteret. In 1855, Elizabeth became a city, and it was divided into the residential western half of town and the industrial eastern half. By the early 2000s, Elizabeth was home to several lower-income families, and gangs such as the Pegorino crime family and the Angels of Death controlled the city. In 2015, the city was home to 129,007 people, with over half (55%) of the inhabitants being white, while 21% were African-American and 17% from other races.
Advertisement