8. Maxwell House and Lipton Tea had large presences in Hoboken
Around Hoboken, street names and buildings hint at the city’s industrial past, which was once dominated by companies including Maxwell House and Lipton Tea. Maxwell Lane, a small street near Maxwell Place luxury condos, pays homage to the Maxwell House Coffee plant that opened in 1939 at the site. It was the largest employer in Hoboken from around the 1940s until the 1980s when it shut down due to rising costs and asbestos levels. The Toll Brothers converted the plant’s location into a luxury condo building, pointing back to a time when Hoboken thrived thanks to companies including Hostess and Bethlehem Steel.
Another major employer of the time was Lipton Tea, which had headquarters at Washington Street and 15th Street. Ships would deliver cargoes of tea to the huge building, which overlooked North Hoboken Harbor. Sir Thomas Lipton opened over 200 stores across the United Kingdom by the turn of the 20th century, and he looked to expand to Hoboken due to easy access to New York City and ample room for expansion. The Lipton plant prospered for a few decades, though it closed in 1963 after highways became more reliable for shipping, instead moving to Englewood Cliffs. The property was converted into rental apartments in the late 1990s and was renamed the Hudson Tea Building.