Sam Patch, the Famous Jumper

Sam Patch left Pawtucket in his mid-20s for unknown reasons, reappearing in the historical record as a boss spinner in Paterson, New Jersey. Paterson was built on Passaic Falls, the second largest falls on the East Coast, behind Niagara. For early visitors to Passaic Falls, the view was both beautiful and terrifying, a reminder of the sheer force of nature. In the early 19th century, factories and mills were built in Paterson to harness the power of the falls to support manufacturing. Sam Patch was one of thousands of industrial workers who moved to Paterson to fill the mills. Johnson suggests that Patch’s jumps in Paterson, which took place from 1827 to 1828, are connected to local controversies surrounding the falls and the mills.

In the late fall of 1827, a sawmill owner named Timothy Crane bought the north bank of Passaic Falls and turned it into a commercial park known as the Forest Garden. Crane transformed the dense, dramatic forest into manicured lawns, gardens, restaurants, and entertainment spaces. His crowning achievement was the Clinton Bridge, named after the man who presided over the construction of the Erie Canal.