Boulevard East facts for kids
Boulevard East is a famous road in New Jersey. It is officially called John F. Kennedy Boulevard East, or JFK Boulevard East for short. This road is mostly two lanes and runs through several towns in North Hudson, New Jersey. These towns include Weehawken, West New York, Guttenberg, and North Bergen.
Most of Boulevard East runs along the top of the Hudson Palisades. This means it offers amazing views of the Hudson River and the New York City skyline. The road was built around the early 1900s. It has many different types of buildings, like homes and tall apartment buildings. Along its eastern side, there are parks and a walking path. The famous artist Edward Hopper painted a picture of this area in 1934, called East Wind Over Weehawken. It is considered one of his best paintings.
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History of Boulevard East
Boulevard East gets its name from another main road in Hudson County, called Kennedy Boulevard. The two roads are connected. Before the 1960s, Boulevard East was known as Hudson Boulevard. It was renamed to honor John F. Kennedy, a former U.S. President.
People started talking about building a long road across the county in the 1870s. Parts of Hudson County Boulevard officially opened in 1896. By 1913, the entire road was finished. It was considered a great road for driving cars. The whole boulevard, including its west and east parts, stretches from the very south of Hudson County to its northern border. Locally, people use the name "Boulevard East" for addresses and transportation.
Exploring Boulevard East
Much of Boulevard East runs along the edge of a steep cliff. This gives you wide-open views of the famous Manhattan skyline. Since 2009, Macy's has launched its yearly Fourth of July fireworks from the Hudson River. During this time, parts of the Boulevard are closed so people can watch the show. There was even a plan for the Boulevard to be part of a car race track called the Port Imperial Street Circuit.
Southern End in Weehawken
The southern part of the road is important for getting to the Lincoln Tunnel. It passes by the tunnel's Art Deco toll plaza. The road also goes under the "helix," which is a spiral ramp leading to the tunnel. As you enter a neighborhood in Weehawken, the Boulevard goes steeply uphill. It then curves east and north, starting its journey along the edge of the Hudson Palisades.
Just south of this curve is the Hamilton Memorial. This memorial was moved from the spot where the famous Burr-Hamilton duel happened. That spot is at the bottom of the cliffs below Kings Bluff. Kings Bluff is named after James Gore King, who had a large estate there in the 1800s.
Parks and Landmarks
The road then passes Hamilton Plaza. In the 1890s, an amusement park called El Dorado was here. It had shows, casinos, and beautiful gardens. At Liberty Place, the road crosses over an old path where streetcars used to run. These streetcars connected to a huge elevator and ferries at Weehawken Terminal.
Pershing Road is one of the few roads that connects the waterfront to the Boulevard and the top of the cliffs. It was once part of the historic Lincoln Highway. At the corner of 49th Street, you can see the house featured in Edward Hopper's painting, East Wind Over Weehawken.
Old Glory Park is near the border with West New York. Many parts of the Boulevard here are next to parks and scenic viewpoints. In the park named for him, you'll find a statue of Thomas M. Donnelly. He was important in helping to protect the Palisades. The stone walls along the overlook are made from "trap rock." This rock came from quarries that Donnelly and women's clubs helped to stop from operating in the early 1900s.
60th Street is a main street in West New York. It connects the Boulevard to River Road. One of the few neighborhoods on the cliff side of the Boulevard is north of this main crossroad. Here, the road reaches nearly 260 feet high, which is close to the highest point in Hudson County. The park on 60th Street has a fountain honoring the victims of the September 11 attacks.
Northern Sections
The three blocks of the Boulevard in Guttenberg are dominated by the Galaxy Towers. These are three tall, octagonal buildings that rise above the Palisades. Ferry Road passes underneath them. The Woodcliff section of North Bergen used to be called Hudson Heights. It has a mix of family homes and modern high-rise buildings, like the round Stonehenge building.
Near where the road turns west and enters North Hudson Park, the original Bulls Ferry Road goes steeply down to the east. In this park, also named for famous boxer James J. Braddock, Boulevard East meets Palisades Avenue. Palisades Avenue continues north along the cliffs and soon ends at Bergenline Avenue in Nungessers.
There are many bridges along Boulevard East that cross over gaps in the cliffs. Many of these bridges are almost 100 years old. A part of the road in North Bergen was closed for six months in 2013 to replace one of these bridges.
Transportation on Boulevard East
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|
|---|---|
| Other name(s) | Boulevard East |
| Former name(s) | Hudson County Boulevard Hudson Boulevard |
| Part of |    CR 677 / CR 505 / CR 693 |
| Namesake | Henry Hudson John F. Kennedy |
| Length | 4.7 mi (7.6 km) |
| Location | North Hudson, Hudson County, New Jersey |
| Nearest metro station | Lincoln Harbor, Port Imperial (Hudson–Bergen Light Rail) |
| Coordinates | 40°47′07″N 74°00′31″W / 40.785139°N 74.008627°W |
| South end | CR 677 in Weehawken |
| Major junctions |
 Route 495 in Weehawken |
| North end |   Route 63 / CR 501 in North Bergen |
| Construction | |
| Construction start | 1896 |
| Completion | 1913 |
Boulevard East is part of three different county routes. County Route 677 starts as Park Avenue in Hoboken. It becomes Boulevard East after crossing a bridge over the Hudson Bergen Light Rail tracks. In Weehawken, it becomes part of County Route 505. From 60th Street in West New York, it is called County Route 693. It then joins its western part, which is County Route 501. The whole route is a little over three miles long.
The addresses on Boulevard East start at number 300. In Weehawken, they go up to 1055. At the border with West New York at 51st Street, the addresses jump to 5101. This system means the building number comes from the lower cross street. The towns in North Hudson adopted this system after the Lincoln Tunnel opened in 1937.
New Jersey Transit buses (like routes 128, 165, 166, 168) travel along the Boulevard. They connect to the Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City and places in Bergen County. Bus route 23 provides local service. "Dollar vans" also travel along the street to 42nd Street in Manhattan. Pershing Road and public stairs connect the road to Weehawken Port Imperial. From there, you can take ferries or the light rail.
Major Intersections
The entire route is in Hudson County.
| Location | Mile | Roads intersected | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weehawken | 0.00 | 0.00 | CR 677 south (Park Avenue) / 19th Street – Lincoln Tunnel |
CR 677 continues south |
| 0.20 | 0.32 | Lincoln Tunnel (Route 495 east) – New York City |
Southbound exit only | |
| 0.60 | 0.97 |   Route 495 west to Route 3 / N.J. Turnpike |
||
| 0.90 | 1.45 | Highwood Terrace | Route transitions from CR 677 to CR 505 | |
| 1.60 | 2.57 | Pershing Road (CR 682 east) | Western terminus of CR 682 | |
| West New York | 2.20 | 3.54 | CR 505 north (Defino Way) |
Route transition from CR 505 to CR 693 |
| North Bergen | 4.60 | 7.40 | Bergenline Avenue | Nungessers |
| 4.70 | 7.56 | CR 501 south (John F. Kennedy Boulevard) / Route 63 north (Bergen Boulevard / CR 501 north) |
Southern terminus of Route 63 | |
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | ||||
Gallery
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The thoroughfare is lined with many parks and scenic outlooks.
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Bust of Thomas M. Donnelly, whose contributions helped save the Palisades
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In West New York at 60th Street, one of the few streets which connects it to the Hudson River waterfront
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Apartment buildings and promenade in North Bergen
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East Wind Over Weehawken by Edward Hopper
See also
In Spanish: Bulevar Este para niños
