Reddit reviews New Jersey's Multiple Municipal Madness

Hamilton, as an artistic work, is really deep into using present references to illustrate how the past works, and this is no exception. Tl;dr: it's a joke made at the expense of people from New Jersey, nothing more, nothing less.

People from New York City, especially from Manhattan Island, have a long history of looking down their noses at the so-called "bridge and tunnel crowd," that is, people from outside Manhattan. This is because Manhattan has been the cultural, commercial, and transportation hub of the region for the last few hundred years. Witness the distinctions made in this New York Times article from 1904, in which the reporter notes who's riding the subway on its first day:

>The crowds varied from hour to hour. At first, the down-town trains were sparsely filled and the up-town trains crowded. The explanation was simple; the good folk of Brooklyn and Jersey had come over early to try the subway and get home to bed. Later on the down-town trains began to bear the preponderance; the up-town New Yorkers were trying the new experiment, and the Brooklynites and Jerseyites had gone home.

>And it was amusing to note the difference. The up-bound Brooklynites and Jerseyites and Richmondites had boarded the trains with the stolid air of an African chief suddenly admitted into civilization and unwilling to admit that anything surprised him. The Manhattanites boarded the trains with the sneaking air of men who were ashamed to admit that they were doing something new, and attempting to cover up the disgraceful fact. They tried to cover it up with gibes and jokes.

Or, if you want to look at something more recent, check out the famous New Yorker cover from 1976 that illustrates the stereotypical Manhattan attitude towards New Jersey.

This attitude is because, as Ben Franklin put it, New Jersey is a "keg tapped at both ends"-- Jersey is in the shadow of both Philadelphia and New York. In the modern era, this hasn't changed much, despite New Jersey's emergence as one of the wealthiest states in the Union. New Yorkers tend to treat Jerseyites as an indistinct mass, partially because New Jersey local government is extraordinarily Balkanized due to poor planning decisions in the late 19th century. The six densely-populated counties closest to Manhattan have 4.1 million people between them as of the last census -- nearly half the population of New York City itself-- but they're so splintered that the largest city, Newark, has less than 300,000 residents.

Now, to bring this into the context of Hamilton: dueling was illegal but tolerated in New Jersey at the time, which is why the actual duel happened in Weehawken. I suspect Miranda, like any good New Yorker, couldn't pass up the opportunity to throw shade.

The road system largely predates "Boroughitis", as New Jersey has been continuously settled for over 400 years. Had municipal density not exploded, however, property taxes would certainly be lower thanks to a lack of service duplication.

Had Newark and Elizabeth consolidated instead of competing in the post-Revolution days, they very possibly could have become the metropolitan center of the region instead of NYC. Perth Amboy could have been a major port city as well.

I recommend picking up New jersey's Multiple Municipal Madness by Alan Karcher, as it covers exactly what you're asking about.

The video touched on the fact that there are more school districts than municipalities in NJ.

The last time I checked, there were almost 700 school districts. My town alone is covered by three school districts.

And then there are the "non-operating" school districts: towns that have no schools, but have a school district (think of Teterboro or Victory Gardens).

An excellent introduction as to how we got here is "New Jersey's Multiple Municipal Madness" by Alan Karcher

https://www.amazon.com/New-Jerseys-Multiple-Municipal-Madness/dp/0813525667/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=nj+municipal+madness&qid=1570920966&sr=8-1

Or check it out from you local library.

http://www.amazon.com/New-Jerseys-Multiple-Municipal-Madness/dp/0813525667

If you’ve ever wondered why NJ has so many municipalities, Multiple Municipal Madness is a good read.

Pretty much every place in Monmouth and Ocean County can be traced back to Shrewsbury Township.

This is the book I read in college if you want to learn more about the history of our fair state. There is an entire chapter on Shrewsbury.
http://www.amazon.com/New-Jerseys-Multiple-Municipal-Madness/dp/0813525667