7 Things You Might Not Know About New Jersey

NEW JERSEY — It's the best day of the year again: National New Jersey Day! There's a lot that makes New Jersey great, some of which you probably already know. But New Jersey has a long history, and there's probably plenty about the state still left for you to discover. Here are seven New Jersey facts you might not know:

Both Alexander Hamilton and his son died in duels here.

Big fans of the Broadway show probably already know this, but both Alexander Hamilton and his son, Philip, were shot and killed in duels in Weehawken. They died just three years apart, with the younger Hamilton dying first. Why did they both pick New Jersey? The punishment for dueling was less severe in N.J. than it was across the river in New York.

Part of Ellis Island is in New Jersey.

A lawsuit filed against New York by New Jersey in the mid-90s gave New Jersey sovereignty over parts of Ellis Island and the museum. The Supreme Court ruled that New Jersey owned the parts of the island made out of landfill and rock, as well as everything underwater. It's a bit of a technicality, but you can read all about the lawsuit here.

Every county is part of a metropolitan area.

This might not feel true in some areas, like the Skylands or Pine Barrens, but the entire state is part of a metropolitan area, according to the U.S Census Bureau. Obvious ones include New York and Philadelphia, but some surprising ones include the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton area and the Ocean City area.

New Jersey used to be the film capital of the world.

Sorry Hollywood, but Jersey did it first. The film camera was invited by Thomas Edison in West Orange, and the area quickly became a major hub in the film industry. It wound up being a flash in the pan: the industry quickly left for California because the land was cheaper and the weather was milder.

Baseball was born here.

The first baseball game took place in Hoboken back in 1846, thanks to New Jersey resident Alexander Cartwright. New Jersey's own Knickerbockers were crushed by the rival New York Nine, 23-1. Nowadays, no professional baseball teams play in the state, but we still have several minor league teams: Somerset Patriots, Lakewood BlueClaws, Trenton Thunder, Sussex County Miners, and New Jersey Jackals.

New Jersey is home to the most diverse city in America.

Jersey City boasts the highest ethnic and linguist diversity in the nation, according to a recent WalletHub study. Some of that stems from the cities close location to Ellis Island, but the city continues to attract recent immigrants, too.

Solid body electric guitars were invented here.

Rock 'n' roll owes much of its modern sound to the Garden State. Guitar legend Les Paul invented the modern solid-body guitar in his Mahwah apartment. It wasn't an easy road for the musician; he almost electrocuted himself during the invention process.

Image: Katie Kausch for Patch