Trenton, city in the western part of New Jersey, capital of the state and seat of Mercer County, at the head of navigation on the Delaware River. Besides being the seat of the state government, Trenton is a commercial, manufacturing, and transportation center. Products include rubber, plastic, and metal goods; processed food; printed materials; and pottery and ceramics. Among the points of interest here are the golden-domed State House (1792); the Old Masonic Lodge (1793); the Old Barracks (1758), quarters for British troops in 1758-1763 and again in 1776, during the American Revolution (1775-1783); Douglass House (1766), where George Washington planned his march to Princeton, New Jersey, in 1777; the tall Battle Monument (dedicated 1893), topped by a statue of Washington; the Friends Meeting House (1739); Trent House (1719), the home of William Trent, for whom the city is named; and the New Jersey State Museum. Educational institutions in the city include Thomas Edison State College (1972) and a community college; Trenton State College (1855) and Rider College (1865) are nearby.
Prior to permanent European settlement, the site of Trenton was frequented by the Dutch and Scandinavians, who traded with Native Americans of the Delaware group. About 1679 Mahlon Stacy, an English Quaker, received a grant of land on the Delaware River and built a grist mill that became known as The Falls. In 1714, Stacy's son sold land to William Trent, a Philadelphia merchant, and the community was laid out shortly thereafter. The city's present name was adopted in 1721.
