Leonia was formed as the result of a referendum passed on December 5, 1894, from portions of Ridgefield Township.[23] The borough formed during the "boroughitis" phenomenon then sweeping Bergen County, in which 26 boroughs were formed in the county in 1894 alone.[24] Portions of Leonia were taken on February 19, 1895, to form the Township of Teaneck.[23][25]
New Jersey Monthly magazine ranked Leonia the 31st-best place to live in its 2008 rankings of the "Best Places To Live" in New Jersey.[26]
Leonia's original inhabitants were the Hackensack tribe (Ashkineshacky) of Native Americans. The population was about 1,000 before the Europeans settled in the area. At the time of the American Revolutionary War, Leonia was known as part of the English Neighborhood, a name that survives in neighboring Englewood. It was settled in 1668 mainly by Dutch and English farmers, making it one of the oldest communities in the state.[27] A third of the population was African slaves. It was on the western slope of the Palisades, and started as a quiet farming community. Leonia's proximity to New York City and its major universities, theaters, and performing venues contributed to its place in the world of art and academics, with many artists and leading thinkers living there in the 20th century.
The local economy that had focused on agriculture underwent economic and cultural growth during the late 19th century, marked by the introduction of train service. Leonia was originally called West Fort Lee. In 1865, J. Vreeland Moore and other town leaders chose the name "Leonia" in honor of American Revolutionary War General Charles Lee, for whom Fort Lee is named.[28][29]
In 1899, after traveling through Leonia upon arriving in New Jersey by ferry at Edgewater, advertising executive Artemus Ward purchased a large piece of land and established the Leonia Heights Land Company to develop and market housing in the community. His advertising attracted many academics and artists who were drawn to Leonia's small size, culture, and location, leading to the town's nickname, the "Athens of New Jersey".[30]
In 1915, Harvey Dunn established the Leonia School of Illustration, fostering the artists' colony that emerged over the next decade.[31] By the 1930s, it had the highest number of residents per capita in Who's Who in America, and 80% of its residents were college graduates. Transportation through the borough was enhanced by access to ferries and trolley systems, and Leonia became a refuge for many of America's most creative thinkers, including five Nobel Prize winners.[32]
For 200 years, one of Leonia's two major north-south avenues, Grand Avenue (the other is Broad Avenue), was called the English Neighborhood Road. In colonial times, it served as the main inland route between Paulus Hook, Bergen, and the English Neighborhood. Leonia was a crossroads of the American Revolution and a training ground for American Civil War soldiers.
Historic places in Leonia include the Civil War Drill Hall and Armory and the Cole-Allaire House, constructed around 1765, making it the borough's oldest dwelling, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.[33] The Vreeland House, constructed in 1786 by Dirck Vreeland and expanded in 1815, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.[34]
Leonia celebrates "Leonia Day" annually on the third Sunday in May.[35]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has an area of 1.63 square miles (4.22km2), including 1.52 square miles (3.94km2) of land and 0.11 square miles (0.27km2) of water (6.50%).[1][2]
The borough center's elevation is 115 feet (35m), but the borough's western part can reach 5 feet (1.5m) and the eastern part 318 feet (97m).[36]
Of the 3,284 households, 34.8% had children under the age of 18; 61.2% were married couples living together; 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present and 23.3% were non-families. Of all households, 20.0% were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.13.[20]
22.3% of the population were under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 23.9% from 25 to 44, 31.8% from 45 to 64, and 15.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43.0 years. For every 100 females, the population had 92.9 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 88.9 males.[20]
Same-sex couples headed 35 households in 2010, more than double the 17 counted in 2000.[48]
The Census Bureau's 2006–2010 American Community Survey showed that (in 2010 inflation-adjusted dollars) median household income was $66,271 (with a margin of error of +/− $9,365) and the median family income was $91,129 (+/− $16,890). Males had a median income of $54,754 (+/− $8,175) versus $60,057 (+/− $8,680) for females. The per capita income for the borough was $40,030 (+/− $4,132). About 5.8% of families and 9.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.2% of those under age 18 and 8.9% of those age 65 or over.[49]
2000 census
As of the 2000 United States census[17] there were 8,914 people, 3,271 households, and 2,436 families residing in the borough. The population density was 5,921.3 inhabitants per square mile (2,286.2/km2). There were 3,343 housing units at an average density of 2,220.6 per square mile (857.4/km2). The racial makeup of the borough was 65.74% White, 2.27% African American, 0.09% Native American, 26.06% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 3.20% from other races, and 2.64% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.73% of the population.[46][47]
There were 3,271 households, out of which 36.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.5% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.5% were non-families. 22.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.20.[46][47]
In the borough, the population was spread out, with 24.6% under the age of 18, 5.9% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 26.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.7 males.[46][47]
The median income for a household in the borough was $72,440, and the median income for a family was $84,591. Males had a median income of $55,156 versus $38,125 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $35,352. About 5.0% of families and 6.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.0% of those under age 18 and 1.8% of those age 65 or over.[46][47]
As of the 2000 Census, 17.24% of Leonia's residents identified themselves as being of Korean ancestry, which was the fourth-highest in the United States and second-highest of any municipality in New Jersey—behind neighboring Palisades Park (36.38%)—for all places with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry.[50] Additionally, 3.07% of Leonia's residents identified themselves as being of Japanese ancestry, which was the fourth-highest of any municipality in New Jersey — behind Fort Lee (6.09%), Demarest (3.72%) and Edgewater (3.22%)—for all places with 1,000 or more residents identifying their ancestry.[51]
Leonia is home to the Players Guild of Leonia, New Jersey's oldest continuing theatre troupe and one of the oldest community theatre groups in the state, with continuous performances since 1919.[32] Performances have included comedies, tragedies, classics, and musicals. The Guild's 1940 production of One Mad Night was the first three-act play performed on television, when it was broadcast on WPTZ, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Children's Show was instituted in 1963 and continues each spring. Between 1968 and 1998, the Guild produced Theatre in the Park. Since 2002, the Guild has produced a Playwright's Showcase featuring original scripts. The Guild operates out of the historic Civil War Drill Hall Theatre on Grand Avenue, which is leased from the borough. Recent productions include Lovers and Other Strangers, The Glass Menagerie, Love, Loss, and What I Wore and Hair. Upcoming productions include a fall production of Guys and Dolls.[52]
Since 2000, Leonia has also been home to Summerstage at Leonia, which produces a Broadway-style family musical each summer in the last two weeks of July. Summerstage performances were originally held in the Leonia High School Little Theater but now take place at the Civil War Drill Hall Theater. Auditions are held in May and open to all in the NYC metro area. Past shows have included The Wizard of Oz, Carousel, The Sound of Music, Annie, Oliver, Les Miserables, My Fair Lady, and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying.[53]
The Leonia Chamber Musicians Society, founded in 1973, is made up of professional musicians who reside in Leonia, and gives classical music concerts four times a year at various venues in the borough.[54]
Leonia aims to build its art and cultural environment by displaying outdoor sculpture throughout the community and in the Erika and David Boyd Sculpture Garden, on the grounds of the Leonia Borough Annex.[55] This group sponsors an annual Taste of Leonia fundraiser. Leonia Arts provides a calendar of all arts events in Leonia.[56]
Leonia has five public recreational areas, of which only the Leonia Swim Club requires a membership fee. The recreation areas include Wood Park, on the corner of Broad Avenue and Fort Lee Road; Sylvan Park and the Leonia Swim Club, both on Grand Avenue near Sylvan Avenue; and the Recreational Center on Broad Avenue, which has an indoor basketball court.[32]
Field Station: Dinosaurs is a dinosaur-themed park in Overpeck County Park, just south of Interstate 95, with 32 animatronic dinosaurs.[58]
Local government
The Borough Hall of Leonia
Leonia is governed under the borough form of New Jersey municipal government, one of 218 municipalities (of the 564) statewide that use this form, New Jersey's most common form of government.[59] The governing body comprises a mayor and a borough council, with all positions elected at-large on a partisan basis in the November general election. Voters directly elect a mayor to a four-year term. The borough council includes six members elected to serve three-year terms on a staggered basis, with two seats up for election each year in a three-year cycle.[3] Leonia's borough form of government is "weak mayor / strong council", in which council members act as the legislative body, with the mayor presiding at meetings and voting only in the event of a tie. The mayor can veto ordinances subject to an override by a two-thirds majority vote of the council. The mayor makes committee and liaison assignments for council members, and makes most appointments with the council's advice and consent.[60][61]
As of 2024[update], Leonia's mayor is Democrat William Ziegler, whose term ends on December 31, 2027.[4] Members of the Leonia Borough Council are Council President Christoph Hesterbrink (D, 2025), Scott Fisher (D, 2025), Louis Grandelis (D, 2024), Diane M. Scarangella (D, 2026), Joanne Choi Terrell (D, 2024), and Jordan D. Zeigler (D, 2026).[62][63][64][65][66][67]
Bergen County is governed by a directly elected County Executive, with legislative functions performed by a Board of County Commissioners composed of seven members who are elected at-large to three-year terms in partisan elections on a staggered basis, with either two or three seats coming up for election each November; a Chairman and Vice Chairman are selected from among its seven members at a reorganization meeting held every January. As of 2024[update], the county executive is James J. Tedesco III (D, Paramus), whose four-year term of office ends December 31, 2026.[80]
As of March 2011, there were 4,713 registered voters in Leonia, of whom 2,493 (52.9% vs. 31.7% countywide) were registered as Democrats, 598 (12.7% vs. 21.1%) were registered as Republicans, and 1,619 (34.4% vs. 47.1%) were registered as Unaffiliated. Three voters were registered as Libertarians or Greens.[102] Of the borough's 2010 census population, 52.7% (vs. 57.1% in Bergen County) were registered to vote, including 67.9% of those over 18 (vs. 73.7% countywide).[102][103]
In the 2012 presidential election, Democrat Barack Obama received 2,451 votes (66.8% vs. 54.8% countywide) to Republican Mitt Romney's 1,135 (30.9% vs. 43.5%) and other candidates' 47 (1.3% vs. 0.9%). The borough's 5,065 registered voters cast 3,668 ballots, for a turnout of 72.4% (vs. 70.4% in Bergen County).[104][105] In the 2008 presidential election, Obama received 2,604 votes (65.9% vs. 53.9% countywide) to Republican John McCain's 1,273 (32.2% vs. 44.5%) and other candidates' 30 (0.8% vs. 0.8%). The borough's 5,050 registered voters cast 3,953 ballots, for a turnout of 78.3% (vs. 76.8% in Bergen County).[106][107] In the 2004 presidential election, Democrat John Kerry received 2,468 votes (64.4% vs. 51.7% countywide) to Republican George W. Bush's 1,327 (34.6% vs. 47.2%) and other candidates' 25 (0.7% vs. 0.7%). The borough's 4,878 registered voters cast 3,835 ballots, for a turnout of 78.6% (vs. 76.9% in the whole county).[108]
In the 2013 gubernatorial election, Democrat Barbara Buono received 50.8% of the vote (1,078 cast), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 47.9% (1,015 votes), and other candidates with 1.3% (27 votes), among the 2,205 ballots cast by the borough's 4,826 registered voters (85 ballots were spoiled), for a turnout of 45.7%.[109][110] In the 2009 gubernatorial election, Democrat Jon Corzine received 1,682 ballots cast (60.7% vs. 48.0% countywide), ahead of Republican Chris Christie with 901 votes (32.5% vs. 45.8%), Independent Chris Daggett with 120 votes (4.3% vs. 4.7%) and other candidates with 7 votes (0.3% vs. 0.5%), among the 2,773 ballots cast by the borough's 4,880 registered voters, yielding a 56.8% turnout (vs. 50.0% in the county).[111]
Once Leonia High School, now Leonia Middle School
Leonia is served by its public system and by a number of private schools.[112]
Public school students from the borough, and all of Bergen County, are eligible to attend the secondary education programs offered by the Bergen County Technical Schools, which include the Bergen County Academies in Hackensack, and the Bergen Tech campus in Teterboro or Paramus. The district offers programs on a shared-time or full-time basis, with admission based on a selective application process and tuition covered by the student's home school district.[123][124]
St. John the Evangelist School was a Catholic school for students in grades Pre-K–8, operating under the supervision of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark.[125] After 72 years and generations of graduates, it was closed in June 2013.[126]
Effective January 22, 2018, Leonia officials banned nonresidents from using residential streets (defined as all streets except Fort Lee Road, Grand Avenue, and Broad Avenue) during rush hours.[132] But due to complaints from business owners citing decreased revenues, Leonia officials are reconsidering.[133]
Rockland Coaches provides service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal on several routes.[136]
The Northern Branch Corridor Project is a proposal to extend the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail to restore passenger train service on the CSX tracks, which offered passenger service decades before and is now used for occasional freight service. NJ Transit's plan would include a station in Leonia.[137]
Robert J. Alexander (1918–2010), political activist who studied the trade union movement in Latin America and dissident communist political parties[141]
Howard Post (1926–2010), animator, cartoonist, and comic strip and comic book writer-artist, known for his syndicated newspaper comic strip The Dropouts.[209]
Giorgio Santelli (1897–1985), fencer and fencing master who was part of the Italian team that won the gold medal in Men's team sabre at the 1920 Summer Olympics and was the largest mid-20th century influence in raising the quality and popularity of fencing in the United States[213]
Warner R. Schilling (1925–2013), political scientist and international relations scholar at Columbia University[214][215]
Leonia briefly served as the home of Scarlet Witch and Vision in several Marvel Comics storylines from the 1980s, mainly in The Vision and the Scarlet Witch series, the second of which was drawn by Leonia resident Richard Howell. This domestic storyline was later loosely adapted in the 2021 TV series WandaVision, although the location was changed to the fictional town of Westview, New Jersey.[226]
Harvey, Cornelius Burnham. Genealogical History of Hudson and Bergen Counties, New Jersey, p. 11, New Jersey Genealogical Publishing Company, 1900. Accessed September 15, 2013. "For a period of sixteen years following the passage of this act few boroughs were organized in the State, only three of them being in Bergen County.... As it was twenty-six boroughs were created in the county from January 23, 1894, to December 18, of the same year."
Friendly, Jonathan. "Leonia Offers Films of Old", The New York Times, September 21, 1975. Accessed July 10, 2012. "The borough dates its original settlement to 1668, and seven years ago it celebrated its Tricentennial."
Karels, Carol. Leonia, p. 127. Arcadia Publishing, 2002. ISBN9780738509730. Accessed October 21, 2015. "By the 1970s, Leonia was home to may professional musicians, writers, and entertainers. Many - such as Alan Alda, an actor and director; Carmel Quinn a singer; Freddie Bartholomew, a child star; And Robert Ludlum, an actor, producer and author - contributed to the cultural life of the community. Others - such as singer Pat Boone, comic Buddy Hackett, and singer Sammy Davis Jr. - lived here because of its proximity to New York City."
Llorente, Elizabeth. If You're Thinking of Living in: Leonia", The New York Times, February 10, 1985. Accessed July 13, 2011. "In 1899, his Leonia Heights Land Company set out to create a community that was to be unique - an idea sparked by a trip to Leonia on the Edgewater Ferry that year. Ward, the head of a New York advertising concern, envisioned a white-collar community whose residents would enjoy open space and an upper- class residential environment with an emphasis on education and culture."
Falkenstein, Michelle. "Jersey Footlights", The New York Times, July 31, 2005. Accessed November 7, 2018. "Dunn settled in Leonia in 1914 to be near the New York market for illustration and enjoyed a successful career."
Cheslow, Jerry. "Well-Read, Well-Shaded and Well-Placed", The New York Times, June 15, 1997. Accessed July 13, 2011. "Among the other widely used facilities is the Civil War Drill Hall, a cavernous building constructed by the New Jersey Blues Infantry regiment as a training center in 1859. The hall is now home to the Players Guild of Leonia, established in 1919 and the oldest community theater group in New Jersey."
Revolutionary War Sites in Leonia, New Jersey, Revolutionary War New Jersey. Accessed December 11, 2014. "Cole-Allaire-Boyd House; oldest dwelling in Leonia - circa 1765. Home of noted loyalist, Sam Cole prior to and during part of the Revolution."
Frequently Asked Questions, Field Station: Dinosaurs. Accessed March 14, 2023. "The Field Station is an outdoor exhibition with 32 life-size animatronic dinosaurs.... What is Field Station: Dinosaurs’ park address? Overpeck County Park: Henry Hoebel Area, 3 Overpeck Park Driveway, Leonia, NJ 07605."
Mayor and Council, Borough of Leonia. Accessed February 21, 2024. "Leonia is incorporated under the Borough form of government; the Governing Body consists of the Mayor and six Council members, all of whom are elected at-large. The Mayor is the Chief Executive and Presiding Officer. The Council consists of the Council President (who presides in the Mayor's absence), and five additional Council members, who together serve as the legislative body of the Borough. Council members serve for terms of three years; the Mayor's term is four years."
Salant, Jonathan D. "Big change, N.J.! 1.4M shifting to another congressional district. Use our tracker before voting.", NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, October 31, 2022. Accessed December 8, 2022. "But now more than 1.4 million residents are moving due to new district lines drawn by New Jersey’s independent redistricting commission to reflect population shifts under the 2020 census.... Redistricting will shift 106 municipalities — nearly one in five — into new congressional districts.... Moving from the 9th Congressional District, currently represented by Democratic Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., to the 5th Congressional District, represented by Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer."
Biography, Congressman Josh Gottheimer. Accessed January 3, 2019. "Josh now lives in Wyckoff, New Jersey with Marla, his wife who was a federal prosecutor, and their two young children, Ellie and Ben."
Cattafi, Kristie. "Democrats pick Bergenfield councilman to fill vacancy on Bergen County commissioners board", The Record, March 13, 2023. Accessed March 16, 2023. "A Democratic councilman from Bergenfield will be sworn in as a Bergen County commissioner Wednesday night, filling a vacancy on the governing body for almost 1 million residents. Rafael Marte will serve until Dec. 31, taking on the unexpired term left by former Commissioner Ramon Hache, a Democrat who resigned last week to lead the Ridgewood YMCA as its chief executive officer."
Leonia Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Leonia Public Schools. Accessed May 6, 2020. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades Pre-Kindergarten through twelve in the Leonia School District. Composition: The Leonia School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of Leonia."
Staff. "Attend town hall meetings with the mayor",Leonia Life, November 27, 2009. Accessed July 13, 2011. "The focus of this first forum will be the New Jersey Transit Northern Branch Corridor Project. This initiative would return passenger rail service to Leonia and as proposed, the line would originate in Tenafly and end at the North Bergen Junction."
[밥묵자] 보여줄게 훨씬 더 꼰대 같은 나 (feat. 에일리)[[Bobmukja] I’ll show you that I’m even more like an old guy (feat. Ailee)] (in Korean). October 13, 2013. Event occurs at 4:40. Retrieved March 17, 2024– via youtube.com.
Cheslow, Jerry."Well-Read, Well-Shaded and Well-Placed", The New York Times, June 15, 1997. Accessed October 18, 2013. "Much later, its residents included five Nobel Prize winners, among them Enrico Fermi, one of the developers of the atomic bomb, and Willard Libby, who discovered radiocarbon dating; Sammy Davis Jr., Pat Boone and Alan Alda, the entertainers, and Robert Ludlum, the author."
Perrone, Fernanda. Inventory to the Papers of Robert Jackson Alexander, Rutgers University Libraries, April 2000. Accessed November 9, 2013. "Robert Jackson Alexander was born on November 26, 1918 in Canton, Ohio. He was the son of Ralph S. Alexander, an instructor and graduate student in economics, and Ruth Jackson Alexander. In 1922, the family moved to Leonia, New Jersey, five miles from New York City where R.S. Alexander had attained a teaching position at Columbia."
Friedmann, Matt. "Jeff Bell, Republican U.S. Senate candidate from 1978, wants to challenge Booker", The Star-Ledger, February 4, 2014. Accessed August 13, 2014. "Bell, a 70-year-old conservative policy wonk who has lived in northern Virginia for the last 31 years, rented a home in Leonia today and said he plans to seek the state's Republican nomination to challenge U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) in November."
Staff. "Kings for A Day", The Boston Globe, June 16, 1958. Accessed March 30, 2011. "Singer Pat Boone and family leave Leonia, NJ home for church. Front, Cherry, 3 1/2; Debbie, 1 1/2, and Linda, 2 1/2."
Mack, Patricia. "The Cook, The Thief...", The Record, October 25, 2000. Accessed March 30, 2011. "Anthony Bourdain, the Leonia native with the French-sounding name, took a leave from his job as executive chef at Brasserie Les Halles in New York City."
Almenas, Maxim. "Saying goodbye to David Boyd", The Record, March 4, 2010. Accessed January 3, 2012. "The tours usually ended at 112 Prospect St. — not just because it was Boyd's home, but because it's the oldest standing house in the entire Borough, built in 1760. Many Leonians have ventured to see the home, which is on the National Register of Historic Sites. 'His dad, Rutherford [Boyd], a prominent artist, was attracted to the area because of the network of artists that congregated here,' said son-in-law Bill Ziegler, referring to a time when Leonia was a thriving artist colony. 'He saw the property as he was walking through town one day and decided right then and there to buy it [in 1916].'"
Rutherford (John Rutherford) Boyd (1884 - 1951), AskArt.com. Accessed January 3, 2012. "Rutherford was born in Philadelphia and lived during his career in New York City, New Orleans where he was a sketch artist, and Leonia, New Jersey."
Kovinick, Phil; and Yoshiki-Kovinick, Marian. An encyclopedia of women artists of the American West, p. 35. University of Texas Press, 1998. Accessed May 11, 2017. "Later, during the depression of the 1930s and after, while living in Leonia, NJ (c. 1930 - c. 1936), Tenafly, NJ (c. 1936 - c. 1938), and New York (c. 1938 - 1949), she made great strides as an artist."
Beckerman, Jim. "Playing Strong-Willed Women", The Record, March 31, 2002. Accessed May 27, 2008. "After starring in such New York shows as Kiss Me Kate,1776,Parade, and City of Angels, Leonia resident Carolee Carmello wanted to do something closer to home."
Staff. "Charles S. Chapman, 83, Prize-Winning Artist, Dies", The New York Times, December 17, 1962. Accessed October 21, 2015. "Leonia, N.Y.,[sic] Dec. 16 - Charles Shepard Chapman, an artist, teacher and academician of the American Academy of Design, died yesterday at his home on 156 Sylvan Avenue where he had lived and worked for 50 years."
Aranda, Melinda Dean; and Karels, Carol. "Leonia Lives: Kathleen Clark's world is on the stage"Archived 2017-03-23 at the Wayback Machine, Leonia Life, July 17, 2015. Accessed March 22, 2017. "Kathleen 'Kate' Clark is a playwright whose plays have been produced in New York, off-Broadway and all over the U.S. She and her theater producer husband Richard Frankel have lived in Leonia for 21 years.... We moved here in 1994, during Leonia's Centennial."
Staff. "A New Species of Small Dinosaur Reported Found by Yale Curator", The New York Times, December 4, 1964. Accessed November 10, 2012. "Dr. Edwin H. Colbert, chairman of the Department of Vertebrate Paleontology at the American of Natural History, said tonight at his home in Leonia, N.J., that Dr. Ostrom's report was 'a very good one.'"
Coyote, Ginger. "Paul Collins: He's Got The Beat", Punk Globe. Accessed March 25, 2021. "Punk Globe: Tell us a bit about your musical background? Paul Collins: I had a band in Leonia the town I lived in before I moved into NY, it was my first band and we played original songs, the band was called Home Grown and the only song I remember was 'I Lost My Body'."
Fabrikant, Geraldine. "Talking Money With: Dr. Robin Cook; Prescription: Real Estate, And Lots of It", The New York Times, January 21, 1996. Accessed November 10, 2012. "Dr. Cook's fascination with real estate goes back to his childhood. He grew up in Queens, the son of an art director at an advertising agency who bought a photostat business. Money was usually tight, he said, though by the time he was 8 years old, the family had 'nudged its way into the middle class' and moved to Leonia, N.J."
Levin, Jay. "Sam Coppola, actor in films, TV, theater", The Record, February 7, 2012. Accessed November 9, 2013. "Character actor Sam Coppola of Leonia, who gave John Travolta sage but salty advice in the 1977 film classic Saturday Night Fever, died Sunday."
Martin, Douglas. "Wm. Theodore de Bary, Renowned Columbia Sinologist, Dies at 97", The New York Times, July 17, 2017. Accessed July 17, 2017. "He grew up in Leonia, N.J., a town — directly across the Hudson River from the university campus — that was a favorite place of residence for many Columbia faculty members and employees."
Staff. "Priscilla Dean; Screen Actress of Silent Films", Los Angeles Times, February 6, 1988. Accessed May 16, 2016. "Priscilla Dean, considered one of the best of the silent screen actresses, has died at her home in Leonia, a small New Jersey town she retired to more than 50 years ago."
Staff. "Dorothy Dinnerstein; Feminist Writer Was 69", The New York Times, December 19, 1992. Accessed November 7, 2018. "Dr. Dorothy Dinnerstein, a feminist author and professor emeritus of psychology at Rutgers University-Newark, died on Thursday in Englewood, N.J. She was 69 and lived in Leonia."
Feldberg, Robert. "My oh my oh, he's come a ways", The Record, November 23, 2003. Accessed March 31, 2011. "When it was announced Gregg Edelman would be in the cast of the Broadway production of Wonderful Town - which opens tonight at the Al Hirschfeld Theater - it hardly registered as a surprise. That's because Edelman, who lives with his family in Leonia, is a hardy perennial on Broadway."
"High School Girls Get The Big Picture On Modeling", The Record, September 12, 1997. "Emme, the world's leading full-figured model and a resident of Leonia, was the star..."
Staff. "Emme", People, May 9, 1994. Accessed February 7, 2018. "Emme sometimes lectures at high schools near her Leonia, N.J., home. Her message: 'Don’t kill yourself trying to change your body. Change the way you think about your body.'"
Strauss, Robert. "Somebody Big Slept Here", The New York Times, March 28, 2004. Accessed March 30, 2011. "From 1940 to 1946, the nuclear physics pioneer Enrico Fermi (and winner of a Nobel Prize) lived at 382 Summit Avenue in Leonia. For the past 24 years, George and Jean Flynn, who both teach at Columbia University, as did Fermi, have lived in the house. Though they have lived there four times longer than the Fermis, they are still comfortable with it being called the Fermi House in the neighborhood. "
Staff. "Dr. Morton Fried, 63, Anthropology Teacher", The New York Times, December 20, 1986. Accessed May 16, 2016. "Dr. Morton H. Fried, a professor of anthropology at Columbia University, died of cardiac arrest Thursday night at his home in Leonia, N.J."
McGrayne, Sharon Bertsch (1998). Nobel Prize Women in Science: Their Lives, Struggles, and Momentous Discoveries (Seconded.). Washington, DC: Joseph Henry Press. pp.190–193. Excerpt can also be seen as this attachment to a Report to the Historical Resources Board of the City of San Diego, August 18, 2016. "Soon after the invasion of Poland in the winter of 1939–1940, the Mayers moved to a modest clapboard house in Leonia, New Jersey, twenty minutes from Columbia. There they formed a little colony of past and future Nobel Prize winners, including the Fermis, the Ureys and a few years later the Willard Libbys."
Marvin HarrisArchived 2006-12-07 at the Wayback Machine, Cultural Materialism. Accessed May 27, 2008. "Throughout the 1960s and 1970s Harris and his family lived in Leonia, New Jersey, which borders Fort Lee, right across the Hudson River from upper Manhattan."
Jackson, Herb. "From Estonia to Leonia"Archived 2011-05-14 at the Wayback Machine, The Record, April 23, 2008. Accessed March 30, 2011. Copy of article at the official website of the President of Estonia. "Leonia High School helped make the Baltic Sea nation of Estonia one of the most Internet-reliant in the world, Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves says. How? By including Ilves, who grew up in Leonia, in an experimental four-year math program that featured computer programming."
Adamek, Steve; and Iannazzone, Al. "Lakers Notebook", The Record, June 5, 2002. Accessed March 30, 2011. "Phil Jackson's memories of New Jersey are fond and forgetful. He finished his playing career with the Nets when they played their home games at Rutgers, about an hour trip from where he lived in Leonia."
Saxon, Wolfgang. "Dr. Leland Jacobs, 85, Educator And Columbia Professor Emeritus", The New York Times, April 7, 1992. Accessed May 16, 2016. "Dr. Leland B. Jacobs, a professor of education emeritus at Teachers College, Columbia University, who was known nationally for his concepts of teaching literature to the very young, died on Saturday at Englewood (N.J.) Hospital. He was 85 years old and lived in Leonia, N.J."
"SIDNEY JACOBSON OBITUARY". legacy.com. July 25, 2022. Retrieved August 1, 2022. Playing catch in front of the house in Leonia. Dad taught me how to throw a curve.
"Famous Football Captains of 1914", Baseball Magazine, December 1914, archived by LA84 Foundation. Accessed May 16, 2016. "Mr. Journeay was born at Piermont, N. Y., and resides at Leonia, N.J. He is 22 years old, six feet tall, and weighs 182 pounds. When he graduates, he expects to enter the manufacturing business."
Distinguished Alumni Awards: Dr. G. Marshall Kay, 24BS, 25MS, University of Iowa Alumni Association. Accessed May 16, 2016. "G. Marshall Kay, of Leonia, New Jersey, Newberry Professor of Geology at Columbia University, was educated in Iowa City, receiving his BS degree in 1924 and the MS degree in 1925."
Bob Klapisch profile, The Record. Accessed July 14, 2007. "Robert Salvador Klapisch was born in New York City and grew up in Leonia. He is a graduate of Leonia H.S., where he played baseball, and Columbia University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in political science."
Gallo, Donald R. Ultimate Sports, p. 298. Random House Children's Books, 2009. ISBN9780307568434. Accessed May 16, 2016. "As a teenager David Klass played baseball and soccer at Leonia Public High School and went on to do the same at Yale University, from which he graduated."
Levin, Jay. "Their lives made ours a little richer", The Record, January 1, 2008, backed up by the Internet Archive as of May 19, 2008. Accessed March 30, 2011. "Dick Kryhoski, 82, on April 10. The only Leonia native to make it to the big leagues, Kryhoski played first base for the world champion '49 Yankees."
Philip ManevalArchived 2008-06-17 at the Wayback Machine, Theodore Presser Company. Accessed March 30, 2011. "Born in Leonia, in northern New Jersey, Mr. Maneval received a Master of Arts degree from the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied composition with Richard Wernick, George Crumb and George Rochberg."
Gray, Michael. The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia, p. 449. Continuum, 2006. ISBN0-8264-6933-7. Accessed February 16, 2012. "Mansfield, David [c. 1956 –] David Mansfield is very coy about his birth date but he was born around 1956 in Leonia, New Jersey, where he grew up to be a multi-instrumentalist, playing mostly violin, mandolin and guitar."
Morley, Hugh R. "Robert `Bob' Mcfadden; Voice Of Tv Commercials", The Record, January 10, 2000. Accessed March 31, 2011. "Robert 'Bob' McFadden, a former Leonia resident and show business stalwart who made his name doing radio and television voice-overs and impressions of famous people, died Friday, his family said. He was 76."
Saxon, Wolfgang. "Boris G. Moishezon, Columbia Professor Of Math, Dies at 55", The New York Times, August 27, 1993. Accessed September 13, 2011. "Boris G. Moishezon, a mathematics professor at Columbia University who defected from the Soviet Union in 1972 and came to the United States five years later, died Wednesday. He was 55 and lived in Leonia, N.J. Dr. Moishezon had a heart attack while jogging and was pronounced dead in Holy Name Hospital in Teaneck, N.J., said his wife, Natalia."
Pearce, Jeremy. "Norman Newell, 96, Scientist Who Studied Dying Species, Has Died", The New York Times, April 23, 2005. Accessed May 10, 2012. "Dr. Norman D. Newell, an influential paleontologist who challenged opponents of evolutionary theory and helped shape theories explaining the mass extinctions of species, died on Monday at his home in Leonia, N.J., his family said. He was 96."
Staff. "James Noble: A Relaxed and Clever Actor", The Daily Union Democrat, February 27, 1980. Accessed May 12, 2016. "But the family still is in the process of becoming accustomed to living in California after moving from their permanent home in Leonia, N.J., which they've rented out."
Filichia, Peter. "N.J. Stage; Actress singing for joy at the Paper Mill.", The Star-Ledger, April 14, 2000. p. 23. "For Christiane Noll, performing in the Paper Mill Playhouse production of 'The Student Prince' is a homecoming beyond the usual definition. Growing up in Bergen County, she played Mrs. Barnum in a Leonia Middle School production of Barnum and was a Jet girl in a Leonia High School staging of West Side Story."
Kaufman, Joanne. "An Actress at Home on the Upper West Side", The New York Times, December 2, 2016. Accessed August 4, 2022. "The minute she was divorced, the actress Mary Beth Peil high-tailed it out of Leonia, N.J., where she had raised her two children, and hit the reset button, first renting a one-bedroom apartment on the ground floor of a carriage house in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, then, a year later, in 1994, buying a similar unit on the fourth floor."
Roura, Phil. "Carmel Quinn Hits The Eire Notes", New York Daily News, March 15, 1998. Accessed March 30, 2011. "Separated from her husband for the last 23 years, Quinn lives quietly in her suburban Leonia home 'The first and only house I've lived in since coming to America.'"
Staff. "Giorgio Santelli, 87, Ex-Fencing Coach Of U.S. Olympians", The New York Times, October 11, 1985. Accessed February 7, 2018. "Giorgio Santelli, a former United States Olympic fencing team coach and one of the most respected fencing masters in the world, died Tuesday in Teaneck, N.J. He was 87 years old.... Mr. Santelli, who lived in Leonia, N.J., is survived by his wife, Betty; two daughters, Donatella Czekus of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Andrea of Massachusetts; a son, John, of Englewood, and one grandchild."
"Leonia man wins chair at Columbia", The Record, November 9, 1973, p. C2. "Warner R. Schilling of ... Park Ave. has been named James T. Shotwell Professor of International Relations at Columbia University."
"Obituary: Werner R. Schilling", The New York Times, October 25, 2013. Accessed February 7, 2018. "Schilling--Warner R., died October 20, 2013, at age 88 at Englewood Hospital, Englewood, NJ. A long-time resident of Leonia, NJ, he grew up in the greater St. Louis area"
The Publishers Weekly, Volume 184, p. 117. Accessed December 28, 2017. "Gene Shalit, who reviews books for children in the December issue of McCall's, will write a similar roundup for a spring issue, covering books issued Dec. 1, 1963- June 15, 1964. Review copies, galleys, illustrations, jackets should be sent to him at 139 Longview Ave., Leonia, N.J., not later than Jan. 17."
"Shiragian, 73, Dies; An Armenian Hero", The New York Times, April 16, 1973. Accessed October 17, 2020. "Leonia, N. J., April 15—Arshavir Shiragian, a retired dealer in Oriental rugs, who, as a young man, killed three prominent Turks in reprisal for the massacre of Armenians in World War I, died Thursday ill Englewood Hospital. He was 73 years old and lived at 530 Grandview Terrace."
Staff. "Pro football", The Record, September 14, 2003. Accessed May 16, 2016. "DB Ivory Sully: Defensive back from Leonia and Delaware played for the Rams from 1979-84 after making the team as a free agent."
Staff. "UD Announces Star-Studded Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Class", WBOC-TV, October 1, 2009. Accessed January 3, 2012. "An elusive running back for head coach Tubby Raymond's powerhouse Blue Hen football teams in 1976-78, Ivory Sully followed a spectacular college career at UD with a solid nine-year tenure in the National Football League that included playing in Super Bowl XIX. A native of Leonia, N.J., Ivory was a three-year standout in the UD backfield..."
Holden, Stephen. "The Pop Life", The New York Times, October 31, 1990. Accessed January 3, 2012. "The singer, who lives in northern New Jersey, was born in Boston, lived in Leonia, N.J., for several years, then moved to Goshen, N.Y., and went to high school in Mount Vernon, N.Y."
Kozinn, Allan. "Lyndon Woodside, 70, Leader Of Oratorio Society, Is Dead", The New York Times, August 26, 2005. Accessed November 7, 2018. "Lyndon Woodside, a choral conductor who for more than three decades led one of New York City's oldest and largest choruses, the Oratorio Society of New York, died on Tuesday in Englewood, N.J. He was 70 and lived in Leonia, N.J."
Municipal Incorporations of the State of New Jersey (according to Counties) prepared by the Division of Local Government, Department of the Treasury (New Jersey); December 1, 1958.
United States
New Jersey
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