This Colbert bit was as much fascinating to me as funny. I had no idea the entire time I lived in NJ (1959-1979) that there was anything really significant to North and South Jersey "cultures," though I was aware that southern Jerseyans were more often in the Philly orbit, and northern and central Jerseyans were in the NYC orbit.
As with Bruce Springsteen (born in Long Branch, grew up in Freehold), Meryl Streep (grew up in ritzy Summit), Bon Jovi (middle and working class Sayerville), Jon Stewart (born in NYC (!) and grew up in more rural Lawrenceville), I grew up in Central Jersey. I have always said I live, and later am from, "Central Jersey," and never thought anything of it, nor was I ever corrected by anyone in North or South Jersey, both areas where we had relatives and family friends. It sure looked like many of those interviewed were speaking tongue in cheek, and I think it is funny that I, as a Central Jersey guy, did refer to the foot long sandwich as either a sub or hoagie, too, meaning I used the terms interchangeably. I did say Taylor Ham, but I knew what people meant when they spoke of a pork roll. I don't think Gov. Murphy (who did not move to Jersey at all until adulthood as an employee of Goldman Sachs) is playing politics there as much as showing he really is speaking as if he was a true born "Central Jersey" guy.
Historically, there is what we would, in presentist terms, call a Red-Blue divide between much of southern Jersey and northern Jersey, outside of Camden and Trenton, of course. In the Civil War years, southern Jersey, including Camden and Trenton then, was understood to be an area where there was little support for the Union and much sympathy with the Confederacy. Much of southern Jersey continues to consist, though less and less so I suspect, of more rural and estate areas.* To me, the strangest part of seeing this Colbert bit is I have long said the way to divide Jersey is East and West, less so North, Central or South. The western part of the State is mostly farmland, and it is why it is not a misnomer to call NJ the "Garden State." For many decades into the late 20th Century, though again I am not so sure about the present, NJ was either the first or second largest producer of tomatoes, to take one example. And it is true that many vegetables continue to be produced or grown in NJ farmlands.
But it is always wonderful to see NJ spoken of in a major market based show, as too often NJ gets poor and disrespectful treatment from NYers and sometimes Philly folks. The very idea that the football "New York" Giants are still called "New York" when they have played in New Jersey for over four decades is one example. Another is this: Not one of my friends or family in NJ would ever say "what exit" do you live off of. That was a total invention from the always-overrated Saturday Night Live. The problem I used to find with New York City dwellers, and we in Central Jersey were mostly closer to the NYC orbit, is they would say, "Are your from Joisey? Hey, do you know so-and-so?" As if NJ was some village instead of having seven to eight million people residing there. So kudos to the NJ writers at the Colbert show to give a shout out to the Garden State! Now if they can only get John Pizzarelli on to unite all New Jerseyans with his rousing song about New Jersey (Yes, that is his father, the legendary jazz guitarist, Bucky, with John in the clip)...
*The leading 20th Century historian regarding the history of New Jersey remains the late Richard McCormick, who wrote at least two books on the history and politics of New Jersey, and books on Rutgers University. He taught for decades at Rutgers, which included one or two courses on the history of New Jersey from pre-colonial days to the then present. I was privileged to have him as a professor in the late 1970s for at least one of the NJ history courses, back when I was attending Rutgers-New Brunswick, the so-called "main" campus of the Rutgers University system. His books and his lectures had a mischievous wit that I think captured the ultimate kindness and heart of the man. He was a total New Deal liberal and had the scholar's eye for recognizing his own bias and trying to be fair to those with whom he disagreed. I regret I did not keep my copies of his books, as I took very little when I left NJ for The Greatest State in the Union (TM) in June 1979, and did not begin collecting books until some time in the mid-1980s. And now for some relatively short words about Professor McCormick's arrogant, dingbat son, who, as Rutgers President in the first decade of this still young century, stupidly and arrogantly thought he should spend tens of millions of dollars to turn Rutgers football into Notre Dame football, and, all he produced from the effort was Ray Rice. When I met him at an alumni gathering on the west coast when he first became president of the university, I was struck by his arrogance, and the fact he looked disgusted when I mentioned how much I loved his father's history of New Jersey course. It was as if he did not wish to be reminded of his father. It was a strange experience, but one that made more and more sense to me when I saw how much money was being funneled into the football program, something that would have made the father, if then a younger historian not an old man, blanch with derision. Me? I've always been partial to the type of university leadership of a Clark Kerr or Robert Maynard Hutchins. Both men are often caricatured, and misunderstood about their faults, particularly Kerr. However, both men understood the primary purpose of a university is eduction and research development, and that, in a modern society, knowledge drives an economy.
