And before NJ the US tech hub was Baltimore. Information technology has been built into the economic history of the United States for quite some time.
The first electronic telegraph ran from DC to Bmore. Prior to the telegraph and it's forerunner, the optical telegraph, the fastest way to transmit goods and information were the Clipper ships coming out of the port of Baltimore (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore_Clipper).
The first electronic telegraph ran from DC to Bmore. Prior to the telegraph and it's forerunner, the optical telegraph, the fastest way to transmit goods and information were the Clipper ships coming out of the port of Baltimore (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore_Clipper).
If you're interested in reading more economic history I highly recommend both The Weather Experiment (https://www.amazon.com/Weather-Experiment-Pioneers-Sought-Fu...) and Empire of Cotton (https://www.amazon.com/Empire-Cotton-History-Sven-Beckert/dp...)