by Stephen Atkinson

Created on: April 28, 2008

And what a home town it was!

My home town, Paulsboro, New Jersey, was small, a little over seven thousand people as I recall. Two miles square, and divided into four separate, yet distinctively unique sections. The first was the "out in town" section, where all the important people lived. Broad Street, US Route 44, ran right smack through town from east to west. All New York to Washington vehicular traffic had to go through our tiny town, each and every day. The Pennsylvania railroad also ran parallel through town, seven blocks north of Broad street. This was known as Paulsboro proper. From the railroad north to Lena Avenue, was considered Billingsport. It was bounded by the Mantua Creek on the East side, and by The Socony Vacuum Oil Company on the western border. I'll bet no other town has had a section of town quite like that part of Paulsboro between Lena Avenue, and the Delaware river. To reside there meant that you were officially a "River Rat". If you lived but a block away, in full view of your friends homes, you did not qualify to be known as a River Rat. That's the way it was, and still is to this day. If on the other hand, you lived south of Broad Street, some three blocks further, you lived in a place known as Killdeer hill, or simply, "The Hill". There you have it. Four distinct sections of a thriving small town version of America.

Growing up, it seemed every other family had someone in it working for "Socony", or for Dupont's Repauno plant in nearby Gibbstown. Back then, Gibbstown was considered by true Paulsboroites as just another village where the richer people lived. They all lived in brick homes it seemed, and some of us even took to counting the homes made out of brick whenever we were there. Gibbstown kids all went to Paulsboro High School. There wasn't any other school so they were stuck with us lowly kids from Paulsboro. In truth, we had more in common than you might think. Extended families lived in both towns, and still do today.

Paulsboro has always been referred to as a "Blue Collar" town, because so many of us were employed in blue collar jobs at either of the two plants I mentioned earlier. That was a matter of pride that evolved over the years. Many sports legends called Paulsboro home, and the Pantheon of Paulsboro Pride carries with it, many, many names of locals who transcended local stature, and became nationally known names. Paulsboro has always loved it's sporting heroes, and those heroes returned that love in kind, by returning

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