Newark, New Jersey: A street in Newark will soon be named in honor of one of its most successful residents.
State Street, located in the Central Ward near Newark Broad Street Station, connects University Avenue and Broad Street with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard. At the corner of University Avenue and State Street sits the Plume House, which was built close to 300 years ago, making it one of Newark's oldest buildings. However, the house is historic for another reason.
Inside, in 1887, Hannibal Goodwin, the retired Reverend of the House of Prayer Episcopal Church and Rectory next door, invented celluloid film, a year before a similar product was created by George Eastman of Kodak. According to Wired, the company which purchased Rev. Goodwin's company following his death sued Eastman Kodak, which then paid out the equivalent of $111 million in current money.
A. commemorative street naming ceremony will be held on State Street this Friday, June 3rd at 2:00pm in honor of Rev. Goodwin. The event will be sponsored by the Newark International Film Festival and Councilwoman Gayle Chaneyfield Jenkins.
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