The Colgate Clock and a Paulus Hook Waterfront Walk
An octagonal clock facing Manhattan, a quiet historic neighborhood and the riverwalk make Paulus Hook an ideal late-autumn stroll.
The Colgate Clock is one of those landmarks that belongs to two cities at once. The large octagonal clock stands on the Jersey City waterfront near Exchange Place, facing across the Hudson toward Manhattan, where for generations it was read by people in lower Manhattan and on the river. It was built to advertise the Colgate-Palmolive company, whose Jersey City operations once stood nearby, and it has remained as the industry around it changed.
Below and around the clock lies Paulus Hook, one of Jersey City's oldest neighborhoods. Its name reaches back to the Dutch colonial era, and during the Revolutionary War the point was the site of a notable raid in 1779, when American forces attacked the British post here. Today its streets of brownstones and low-rise buildings give it a noticeably quieter character than the tower districts to its north.
The waterfront walkway is the thread that ties the area together. From Exchange Place, the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway runs past the clock, marinas and small parks, with unobstructed views of the lower Manhattan skyline, One World Trade Center and the boats moving on the river. Benches and lawns along the way invite a slower pace than the commuting rush that passes through the PATH station a few blocks inland.
Paulus Hook rewards walkers who leave the water for a few minutes as well. Its interior streets hold neighborhood restaurants, cafes and small shops, and the Morris Canal once ended its cross-state journey near here, a reminder that this quiet point was once the freight gateway between New Jersey's interior and New York Harbor. Markers and the canal's remnant basin near Liberty State Park tell pieces of that story.
For a simple late-autumn outing, start at Exchange Place in the late afternoon, walk south past the clock as the skyline lights come on, loop through a few Paulus Hook streets and finish with dinner in the neighborhood. It is Jersey City at its most walkable: history underfoot, the harbor in front of you and the biggest skyline in America as your backdrop.
