Template:Wp-Passaic, New Jersey-History

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The city originated from a Dutch settlement on the Passaic River established in 1679 which was called Acquackanonk. Industrial growth began in the 19th century, as Passaic became a textile and metalworking center.

A commercial center formed around a wharf ("landing") at the foot of present-day Main Avenue. This came to be commonly known as Acquackanonk Landing, and the settlement that grew around it became known as the Village of Acquackanonk Landing or simply Acquackanonk Landing Settlement. In 1854 Alfred Speer (later owner of the city's first newspaper and public hall) and Judge Henry Simmons were principals in a political battle over the naming of village. Simmons wished to keep the old name, while Speer wished to simplify it to Passaic Village. Speer was losing the battle, but convinced the U.S. Postmaster General to adopt the name, and hung a Passaic sign at the local railroad depot. The de facto name change was effective.

Legally, Passaic was formed as an unincorporated village within Acquackanonk Township (now Clifton) on March 10, 1869. It was then incorporated as an independent village on March 21, 1871. Passaic was chartered as a city on April 2, 1873.The Okonite company owned an industrial site here from 1878 to 1993. It was the company's headquarters and primary manufacturing plant for most of the company's history. Early uses of the company's insulated wires include some of the earliest telegraph cables, and the wiring for Thomas Edison's first generating plant, Pearl Street Station in Lower Manhattan. The property was then turned into a furniture factory, whose owners have been attempting to redevelop the property into an upscale mall since 2015.

The 1926 Passaic Textile Strike led by union organizer Albert Weisbord saw 36,000 mill workers leave their jobs to oppose wage cuts demanded by the textile industry. The workers successfully fought to keep their wages unchanged but did not receive recognition of their union by the mill owners.

Passaic has been called "The Birthplace of Television". In 1931, experimental television station W2XCD began transmitting from DeForest Radio Corporation in Passaic. It has been called the first television station to transmit to the home, and was the first such station to broadcast a feature film. Allen B. DuMont, formerly DeForest's chief engineer, opened pioneering TV manufacturer DuMont Laboratories in Passaic in 1937, and started the DuMont Television Network, the world's first commercial television network, in 1946.

In 1992, the voters of Passaic Township in Morris County voted to change the name of their municipality to Long Hill Township, to avoid confusion between the City of Passaic and the largely rural community away, as well as association with the more urban city.

Passaic is served by two regional newspapers, The Record and Herald News, both owned by Gannett company and predecessor North Jersey media Group.

The city previously had many of its own newspaper companies, among them Speer's The Passaic Item (1870–1904), the Passaic City Herald (1872–1899), the Passaic Daily Times (1882–1887), the Passaic City Record (1890–1907), the Passaic Daily News (1891–1929), the Passaic Daily Herald (1899–1929), and the Passaic Herald News (1932–1987). The Passaic Herald News went through several mergers with other Passaic County newspapers to become the current Herald News.