"Kuifje's Take on Vineland" Vineland by kuifje75

Although I lived about 15 miles south of Vineland, I attended schools in Vineland, because they were the regional district that offered deaf program for deaf day students. I attended school from kindergarten through high school in Vineland, and have worked in Vineland as well. Vineland's mascot is The Fighting Clans, which pays hommage to Vineland's heyday as a poultry capital of Jersey.
Since Vineland is technically the largest city in New Jersey, there are many school buildings spread out in the city. The first school, Landis Jr. High School, has been placed on the National Historical Registry. Behind the Landis School, there is the Gittone Stadium where football games take place.
Every year on Thanksgiving Day, Vineland plays their traditional Turkey Day football rivalry game with the neighbouring city of Millville. This is a tradition that has lasted for over a hundred years. The night before, students of the high schools in both cities would hold their own bonfires and dances to raise the school spirit for the football game the following day.

Named after the city founder, Charles Landis, Landis Avenue is the main throughfare through downtown Vineland, extending from Route 55 to Atlantic County. There are many things to see on Landis Avenue. Churches line up the eastern part of Landis Avenue, as well as upscale houses with groomed yards. To the west, stores and office buildings line the street, as well as the Landis School. The intersection of Delsea Drive and Landis Avenue used to be a giant traffic circle, until in mid-1990s when it was converted into a simple intersection, apparently to reduce automobile accidents.
Downtown Vineland has several stores catering to the local Hispanic community, which has been a strong presence in Vineland since the 1950's. Every year in summer, the Puetro Rican Pride Week takes place with festivals and parade through the Landis Avenue.
After Thanksgiving, the Christmas parade takes place in the evening along Landis Avenue. The tradition is that at the end of the parade, Santa Claus would climb the firetruck and use his "magic" to turn on the Christmas lights along the Landis Avenue. About 2 or 3 miles of Landis Avenue is decked with Christmas light, and it's quite a sight to be seen.

In the eastern parts of Vineland, the streets are named after Dante, Venezia, Pacenzia, Trento, Italia, etc... Since the late 1800's, the Italians have resided in Vineland and established a strong farming community there. Some of the large farms in eastern Vineland still exist. A large part of today's Vineland population is Italian, and the Italian cuisine is quite popular in Vineland.