Rochester, New York

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This article is about the city of Rochester in Monroe County. For the town in Ulster County, see Rochester, Ulster County, New York.
Rochester, New York
A portion of Rochester's skyline, looking north-northeast along the Genesee River from the Ford Street Bridge.
A portion of Rochester's skyline, looking north-northeast along the Genesee River from the Ford Street Bridge.
Flag of Rochester, New York
Flag		 Official seal of Rochester, New York
Seal
Nickname: "The Flour City," "The Flower City," "The World's Image Centre"
Motto: Rochester: Made for Living
Location of Rochester in New York State
Location of Rochester in New York State
Coordinates: 43°9′56″N 77°36′41″W / 43.16556, -77.61139
Country United States
State New York
County Monroe
Government [1]
 - Mayor Robert Duffy (D)
Area
 - City 37.1 sq mi (96.1 km²)
 - Land 35.8 sq mi (92.8 km²)
 - Water 1.3 sq mi (3.3 km²)
Elevation 505 ft (154 m)
Population (2006)
 - City 208,123 [1]
 - Density 6,132.9/sq mi (2,368.3/km²)
 - Metro 1,098,201 [2]
Time zone EST (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 146xx (14604=downtown)
Area code(s) 585
FIPS code 36-63000
GNIS feature ID 0962684
Website: www.ci.rochester.ny.us

Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York State, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. The Rochester metropolitan area is the second largest economy in New York State, behind New York City.[2] Known as The World's Image Centre,[3] it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City. It is the county seat for Monroe County.

Rochester's population is approximately 208,000 making it New York's third largest city. It is at the center of a larger Metropolitan Area which encompasses and extends past Monroe County and includes Genesee County, Livingston County, Ontario County, Orleans County and Wayne County. This area, which is part of the Western New York region, had a population of 1,037,831 people in the 2000 Census. As of July 1, 2005, this population rose slightly to 1,039,028.

Rochester was ranked #6 among 379 U.S. Metro areas in the 25th edition of the Places Rated Almanac for Most Livable Cities.[4] In 2007, Rochester was ranked as the top city in the country by Expansion Management Magazine for quality of life. Expansion Management rated the region's public schools sixth best nationwide among metropolitan areas of a million people or more.[5]

The current Mayor of Rochester is Robert Duffy, who was the city's Police Chief before being elected mayor.

Contents

[edit] Founding and early history

Main article: History of Rochester, New York
An aerial view of downtown Rochester from 1938
An aerial view of downtown Rochester from 1938

On November 8, 1803, a 100 acre (ca. 40 ha) tract in Western New York along the Genesee River was purchased by Colonel Nathaniel Rochester, Major Charles Carroll, and Colonel William Fitzhugh, all of Hagerstown, Maryland. The site was chosen because of three cataracts on the Genesee, offering great potential for water power. Beginning in 1811, and with a population of 15, the three founders surveyed the land and laid out streets and tracts. In 1817, the Brown brothers and other landowners joined their lands with the Hundred Acre Tract to form the village of Rochesterville.

Aqueduct of the Erie Canal as it was built in 1842, replacing the original construction from 1823. In the 1920s, the Broad Street Bridge was erected on top of it.
Aqueduct of the Erie Canal as it was built in 1842, replacing the original construction from 1823. In the 1920s, the Broad Street Bridge was erected on top of it.

By 1821, Rochesterville was the seat of Monroe County. In 1823, Rochesterville consisted of 1,012 acres (4 km²) and 2,500 residents, and the Village of Rochesterville became known as Rochester. Also in 1823, the Erie Canal aqueduct over the Genesee River was completed, and the Erie Canal east to the Hudson River was opened. Later, after the advent of railroads, the presence of the canal in the center city became bothersome, and it was re-routed south of Rochester. By 1830, Rochester's population was 9,200 and in 1834, it was re-chartered as a city.

Rochester was first known as "The Young Lion of the West", and then as the "Flour City". By 1838, Rochester was the largest flour-producing city in the United States. Having doubled its population in only ten years, Rochester became America's first "boomtown."

In 1847, Frederick Douglass founded the abolitonist newspaper The North Star in Rochester. Douglass, a former slave and an antislavery speaker and writer, gained a circulation of over 4,000 readers in the United States, Europe and the Caribbean. The North Star served as a forum for abolitionist views.

In the early 20th century, Rochester became a center of the garment industry, particularly men's fashions. It was home of enterprises such as Fashion Park and Hickey-Freeman. It was home to the pioneer automobile company Cunningham, produced by carriage maker James Cunningham and Sons.[6]

The population reached 62,386 in 1870, 162,608 in 1900, and 295,750 in 1920. By 1950, population had reached a high of 332,488. It declined to 219,773 by 2000.

[edit] Geography and climate

High Falls during the summer
High Falls during the summer

Rochester is at 43°9′56″N, 77°36′41″W (43.165496, -77.611504).[7] The city is east of Buffalo, west of Syracuse and sits on the southern shore of Lake Ontario. The Genesee River bisects the city.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 37.1 square miles (96.1 km²), of which, 35.8 square miles (92.7 km²) of it is land and 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²) of it (3.42%) is water.

Rochester's geography comes from the ice sheets during the Pleistocene epoch. The retreating ice sheets reached a standstill at what is now the southern border of the city, melting at the same rate as they were advancing, depositing sediment along the southern edge of the ice mass. This created a line of hills, including (from west to east) Mt. Hope, the hills of Highland Park, Pinnacle Hill, and Cobb's Hill. Because the sediment of these hills was deposited into a proglacial lake they are stratified and classified as a "kame delta." A brief retreat and readvance of the ice sheet onto the delta piled unstratified (moraine) material there, creating a rare hybrid structure called a "kame moraine."

The ice sheets also left behind Lake Ontario (one of the five fresh-water Great Lakes), the Genesee River with its waterfalls and gorges, Irondequoit Bay, Sodus Bay, Braddock's Bay, Mendon Ponds, numerous local streams and ponds, the Ridge, and the nearby Finger Lakes.

According to the City of Rochester, the city has 537 miles (864 km) of public streets, 585 miles (941 km) of water mains, 44 vehicular and eight pedestrian bridges, 11 public libraries, two police stations (one for the east side, one for the west), and 16 fire stations. The principal source of water is Hemlock Lake, which, with its watershed, is owned by the city. Other water sources are Canadice Lake and Lake Ontario. The 30-year annual average snowfall is 95.0 inches (241 cm). The mean July temperature is 71.3°F (21.8°C), and the mean February temperature is 23.6°F (−4.7°C).

Rochester lies in the Humid continental climate zone, and has four distinct seasons, with often cold and snowy winters. Autumn features brilliant foliage colors, and summer sees comfortable temperatures that usually stay in the low to mid 80s (upper 20s Celsius). Precipitation is plentiful year round.

Monthly Normal and Record High and Low Temperatures
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Record high 74°F (23°C) 73° (23°) 84° (29°) 93° (34°) 94° (34°) 100° (38°) 98° (37°) 99° (37°) 99° (37°) 91° (33°) 81° (27°) 72° (22°)
Normal high 31° (-0°) 33° (1°) 43° (6°) 55° (13°) 68° (20°) 77° (25°) 81° (27°) 79° (26°) 71° (22°) 60° (15°) 47° (8°) 36° (2°)
Normal low 17° (-9°) 17° (-8°) 25° (-4°) 35° (2°) 46° (8°) 55° (13°) 60° (16°) 59° (15°) 51° (11°) 41° (5°) 33° (0°) 23° (-5°)
Record low -17° (-27°) -19° (-28°) -7° (-22°) 13° (-11°) 26° (-3°) 35° (2°) 42° (6°) 36° (2°) 28° (-2°) 20° (-7°) 5° (-15°) -16° (-27°)
Precipitation 2.3 in. (5.9 cm.) 2 (5.2) 2.6 (6.6) 2.8 (7) 2.8 (7.2) 3.4 (8.5) 2.9 (7.4) 3.5 (9) 3.5 (8.8) 2.6 (6.6) 2.8 (7.2) 2.7 (6.9)
Source: USTravelWeather.com [3]

[edit] Demographics

In the census[8] of 2000, there were 219,773 people, 88,999 households, and 47,169 families residing in the city. The population density was 6,132.9 people per square mile (2,368.3/km²). There were 99,789 housing units at an average density of 2,784.7/sq mi (1,075.3/km²). The racial makeup was 48.30% White, 38.55% African American, 0.47% Native American, 2.25% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 6.58% from other races, and 3.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 12.75% of the population. Ancestries include: German (10.9%), Italian (10.0%), Irish (9.6%), English (5.8%), and Polish (2.7%). [4]

Rochester has the largest per capita deaf population in the United States.[9] Rochester is home to internationally recognized programs for the deaf at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (part of the Rochester Institute of Technology) and at the University of Rochester.

There were 88,999 households of which 30.0% had children under 18 living with them, 25.1% were married couples living together, 23.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.0% were non-families. 37.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone 65 or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 3.19.

The city population was 28.1% under 18, 11.6% from 18 to 24, 32.2% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 10.0% who were 65 or older. The median age was 31. For every 100 females there were 91.6 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 87.3 males.

The median income for a city household was $27,123, and the median family income was $31,257. Males had a median income of $30,521, versus $25,139 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,588. About 23.4% of families and 25.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 37.5% of those under age 18 and 15.4% of those age 65 or over.

Rochester Population[10]
1840 1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2004
20,191 36,403 48,204 62,386 89,366 133,896 162,608 218,149 295,750 328,132 324,975 332,488 318,611 296,233 241,741 231,636 219,773 212,481

[edit] Economy

The Rochester area is home to a number of international businesses, including Fortune 1000 companies Eastman Kodak, Constellation Brands, and Paychex, as well as several national and regional companies. Xerox Corporation was founded in Rochester in 1906 as The Haloid Company[11], and retains a significant presence in Rochester, although its headquarters are now located in Norwalk, Connecticut. The Gannett newspaper company and Western Union were both founded in the Rochester area by Frank Gannett and Hiram Sibley respectively.

Because of the high prevalence of imaging and optical science among the industry and the universities, Rochester is known as the world capital of imaging. The Institute of Optics of the University of Rochester is ranked number one in the country[citation needed], and the Rochester Institute of Technology has one of the best imaging science departments in the country[citation needed]. In 2006, the University of Rochester became the largest employer in the Rochester area, surpassing Kodak.[12]

[edit] Food and beverage

A white hot garbage plate.
A white hot garbage plate.

One food product that Rochester calls its own is the "white hot," a variant of the hot dog made by the local Zweigle's company. Another local specialty is the "garbage plate," first served at Nick Tahou Hots. Rochester was home to French's Mustard, whose address was 1 Mustard Street.

Rochester is also home to Wet Planet Beverages, producer of Jolt Cola and other beverages. High Falls Brewing Company, maker of the Genesee beers and JW Dundee's brand (Honey Brown) also calls Rochester home. Arbor Mist wines are produced in nearby Canandaigua, NY by owner Constellation Brands.

National frozen food manufacturer Birds Eye is headquartered in suburban Rochester. Heluva Good Cheeses and Seneca Foods are in nearby Wayne County. The Ragú brand of pasta sauce was originally produced in Rochester, and the Francesco Rinaldi pasta sauce is manufactured in Rochester. Barilla has food manufacturer plant in nearby Livingston County in Village of Avon

Other local franchises include: Bill Gray's (a hamburger/hotdog joint that lays claim to having "The World's Greatest Cheeseburger"), Country Sweet (known for their chicken wings and BBQ sauce), Boss Sauce, described as a "tantalizing sweet, spicy-hot gourmet after-sauce", was born from the restaurant Eddie's Chicken Coop, Tom Wahl's, Dibella's, Great Northern Pizza Kitchen, Zebb's, Don's Original, and Abbott's Frozen Custard. Dinosaur Bar-b-que, which originated in Syracuse, also operates their second franchise downtown in the former Lehigh Valley Railroad station on the Genesee River.

The Rochester area is the birthplace of the Wegmans Grocery store chain, which has locations throughout the Northeast and Northern Virginia. In 2005, Wegmans was ranked the best company in America to work for by Fortune Magazine; it has been ranked the best grocery store in America by Consumer Reports and Food Network.

[edit] Major shopping centers

[edit] Tallest Structures

Main article: List of tallest buildings in Rochester

As of February, 2008 the top ten tallest buildings in the city are: [13]

  • Xerox Tower – 443 feet (135 m)
  • Bausch & Lomb Place – 401 feet (122 m)
  • Chase Tower – 392 feet (119 m)
  • Kodak Tower – 360 feet (110 m)
  • First Federal Plaza – 309 feet (94 m)
  • One HSBC Plaza – 284 feet (87 m)
  • Hyatt Regency Hotel – 271 feet (83 m)
  • Times Square Building – 260 feet (79 m)
  • Midtown Tower (to be demolished) – 251 feet (77 m)
  • St. Michael's Church – 246 feet (75 m)
  • Paetec Tower (proposed) – from 200–500 feet (60–150 m)

According to the April 4, 2008, issue of The Democrat and Chronicle, Paetec Holding Corporation's CEO Arunas Chesonis stated that the new tower to be built as the company's headquarters will rise slightly taller than the Xerox Tower. There has not been a confirmed height. The tower, according to Chesonis, should feature a public observation at the top and other public areas and condominiums.[14]

[edit] Top private employers

As of 2006, the top private employers in Greater Rochester are:[15]

[edit] Companies

The Xerox Tower in downtown Rochester
The Xerox Tower in downtown Rochester
Wegmans Food Markets are headquartered in Rochester
Wegmans Food Markets are headquartered in Rochester

Several companies have corporate headquarters in the Greater Rochester area.

Locally founded corporations that have since moved their headquarters to other locations include French's, Gannett, Western Union, Champion and Xerox.

Many other large companies have a significant presence in Rochester.

[edit] Government

Rochester is governed by a mayor and city council consisting of 4 district members and 5 at-large members.

[edit] Cityscape

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Map of the city and surrounding geography
Map of the city and surrounding geography

[edit] Principal suburbs

Principal suburbs of the city include Brighton, Chili, East Rochester, Fairport, Gates, Greece, Henrietta, Irondequoit, Penfield, Pittsford, Spencerport, Brockport, Victor, and Webster.

[edit] Neighborhoods

Rochester has a number of neighborhoods, as well as popular communities in the inner ring suburbs, Brighton, Irondequoit and Greece. Dewey, Barnard, Browncroft, Mt. Read, Maplewood, Edgerton, Lyell, Otis, Dutchtown, 19th Ward, Southwest, Corn Hill, Cascade District, High Falls District, Grove Place, East End, South Wedge, Marketview Heights, Swillburg, Upper Monroe, Park Avenue, Beechwood, 14621 Community, German Village, University-Atlantic, Charlotte and Cobbs Hill are all primary neighborhoods.

[edit] Park Avenue

The area around Park Avenue in southeast Rochester is considered the Greenwich Village of Rochester.[citation needed] It is a popular area, especially for students and young people. Lining the streets are cafes, shops, pubs and restaurants. In a broader view, the total area surrounding University Avenue is one of the most culture and art-rich sections of the city. Located here are the Village Gate, Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester Museum and Science Center, Rochester Public Market, ArtWalk, George Eastman House and high-end residential streets such as Granger Drive and Oxford Street.

[edit] East End

The East End is a residential neighborhood in Downtown Rochester but also the main nightlife district. The Eastman Theater and the Eastman School of Music are in the East End, along with the Little Theatre, an independent film theatre and many clubs, bars and high-end restaurants.

[edit] South Wedge

The South Wedge neighborhood dates back to 1827, prior to the incorporation of Rochester Village.[16]. The area is bordered by Marshall and Main streets in the north, Goodman St. and the town of Brighton on its east and south sides, and St. Paul St. on the west. This economically distressed neighborhood is one of the few in Rochester undergoing the process of gentrification, partially due to a recent increase in homeownership in the area. The South Wedge has a large concentration of Rochester's gay population and is home to the only specifically gay-friendly coffee shop in the city.[17]

[edit] Swillburg

This pie-shaped piece of the city is bordered by S. Clinton, Field St, and 490. [18] The neighborhood received its moniker when a 19th century Rochester pig farmer utilized the area to collect swill for his swine. The neighborhood association humorously honors its roots by using street signs featuring the Swillburg Pig.[19] The area has one of the highest rates of homeownership in the city.

[edit] Corn Hill

The Corn Hill neighborhood near downtown is one of the nation's best preserved Victorian neighborhoods and a center for art. It is undergoing renovation and construction for residential buildings along the Genesee River, and the Corn Hill Art Festival is one of the city's most popular gatherings for art display.

[edit] Charlotte

Charlotte (shar-LOT) is a lake front community in Rochester bordering Lake Ontario. It is home to Ontario Beach Park, commonly known as Charlotte Beach, which is a popular summer destination for Rochesterians.

[edit] Colleges and Universities

Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School
Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School

Education is one of Rochester's primary economic areas. The city and its suburbs are home to a number of colleges and universities:

Together with Alfred University, SUNY Alfred, Empire State College, Finger Lakes Community College, SUNY Geneseo, and Hobart and William Smith Colleges, each within an hour of Rochester, these institutions comprise the Rochester Area Colleges consortium.

[edit] University of Rochester

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River Campus of the University of Rochester
River Campus of the University of Rochester

The University of Rochester (U of R), consistently ranked among the top 35 universities in the nation[citation needed] and deemed "one of the new Ivies,"[20] has some of the best undergraduate programs in the country when it comes to the arts, sciences, and engineering,[citation needed] and the medical school has top ranked research programs and one of the best primary care curricula in the nation.[citation needed] The business school is also at the top of its class in many categories.[citation needed]

The University of Rochester's Laboratory For Laser Energetics (LLE) is home to the highest energy laser in the world, the OMEGA laser.[21] OMEGA is capable of emitting light at a power 100 times the electrical power output of the country in less than one billionth of a second. The LLE is currently constructing the OMEGA EP laser, which will be 50 times more powerful than OMEGA and will be the most powerful laser in the world, able to manifest power densities high enough to examine hawking radiation-like phenomena in the laboratory. The U of R's Laboratory for Laser Energetics is important now, because it serves at the US's main laser fusion program while the Department of Energy is building the National Ignition Facility. "The Laboratory for Laser Energetics has played a leading, national role in efforts to develop nuclear fusion as a reliable energy source and in the nation's nuclear weapons stockpile stewardship program," says University President Joel Seligman.[citation needed]

The University of Rochester is home to the Eastman School of Music, which in 2004 was ranked the number one music school in America.[22]

[edit] Rochester Institute of Technology

The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) was founded in 1829 and is the tenth largest private university in the country in terms of full-time students. It is internationally known for its science, computer, engineering, and art programs, as well as for the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, a leading deaf-education institution. RIT has leased 60 acres of the campus to Wilmorite Properties, a real estate company based in Rochester, to build an enterprise called Park Point at RIT. It will be open to not just RIT but the Rochester community as well. The project is scheduled to be complete by August 2008.[23]

[edit] Monroe Community College

Monroe Community College (MCC) has highly ranked soccer and basketball teams. MCC is home to the Mercer Gallery where students and artists from all over the country exhibit work, located on MCC's Brighton Campus.

[edit] Roberts Wesleyan College

Roberts Wesleyan was ranked the third-best value private college in the U.S. by the Princeton Review in 2007—the only school in New York State ranked in the top 10.[citation needed] It is also Rochester's only college affiliated with the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities.[citation needed]

[edit] Culture and recreation

Rochester is home to a large number of cultural institutions considering its population. These include the world-renowned Garth Fagan Dance, the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film, Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester Contemporary Art Center, Rochester Museum & Science Center, Strong - National Museum of Play, the A|V Room, the Strasenburgh Planetarium, and numerous arts organizations. Rochester's Geva Theatre Center is the city's largest professional theatre.

The Little Theatre on East Avenue
The Little Theatre on East Avenue

[edit] Nightlife

Rochester has several districts containing bars and nightspots but the primary area is the East End District in the southeast part of downtown. Restaurants, bistros, and nightclubs can also be found in the St. Paul Quarter, Monroe Avenue (and Upper Monroe), as well as Park Avenue. The South Wedge neighborhood boasts a wine bar, a British-style pub, an Irish pub, a honky-tonk cajun bar-b-que joint and numerous other restaurants and bars.

[edit] Park lands

The city's Victorian era Mt. Hope Cemetery includes the final resting place of Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass, and George Baldwin Selden. Other scenic cemeteries are Holy Sepulchre and its neighbor the Riverside Cemetery. Rochester is also known for its parks, including the Highland Park, Cobb's Hill Park, Durand-Eastman Park, Genesee Valley Park, Maplewood Park, Edgerton Park, Seneca Park and Ontario Beach Park.

Lamberton Conservatory from 1911 in the Highland Park
Lamberton Conservatory from 1911 in the Highland Park

The city has 13 full-time recreation centers, 19 swimming programs, 3 artificial ice rinks, 66 softball/baseball fields, 47 tennis courts, 5 football fields, 7 soccer fields, and 43 outdoor basketball courts. As a legacy of its time as "The Flower City", Rochester hosts a Lilac Festival for ten days every May, when nearly 400 varieties of lilacs bloom, and 100,000 visitors arrive.

Highland Park
Highland Park

Mumford, a hamlet in the town of Wheatland southwest of Rochester, is home to the Genesee Country Village and Museum, a combination of a model village, where examples of local architecture are preserved; sporting art and carriage museums; a nature center; and model gardens.

To Rochester's south is the scenic Letchworth State Park, the so-called "Grand Canyon of the East", with its river gorge and waterfalls. Also to the south and southeast is the glacially-formed Finger Lakes Region, with its numerous lakes and waterfalls.

[edit] Festivals

The Lilac Festival
The Lilac Festival

Rochester has a number of festivals, many of which occur in late spring and throughout the summer. These include the Rochester International Jazz Festival, established in 2002; the Corn Hill Festival (arts, crafts, and food in this Third Ward neighborhood); the Rochester-High Falls International Film Festival (held at the George Eastman House's Dryden Theatre and the Little Theatre downtown); ImageOut, The Rochester Lesbian & Gay Film & Video Festival (also held at the Little Theatre); Clothesline Art Festival (artists from the region display their works on the grounds of the Memorial Art Gallery); Park Avenue Merchants Festival; Lilac Festival at Highland Park; St. Patrick's Day parade (March); Rose Festival at Maplewood Park; Irish festival (September); two Greek festivals - one on East Avenue (in June) and one on South Avenue (in September); Gay Pride Festival (July); Puerto Rican Festival(August); Rochester Music Festival; and the Cold Rush Winter Celebration (celebrating winter sports in the Rochester area).

During the summer, and especially on the Fourth of July, downtown after dark is lit with fireworks and a laser show at the High Falls venue.

[edit] Vernacular

In the Greater Rochester Area, hotdogs can be called "red hots" or "white hots" to distinguish the common (red) hotdog from its local white hotdog variant which includes veal and powdered milk in its ingredients. A banquet facility is known as a "party-house".

The nearby town of Chili is pronounced with long "i"s: "CHY-lye". The neighborhood of Charlotte is pronounced with the accent on the second syllable: "shar-LOT". The suburbs of Riga and Lima, are pronounced "RYE-ga" and "LIE-ma. The suburb of Bergen is pronounced "BER-jin".

[edit] Accent

A "Rochester accent" can be described as a form of Inland Northern American English, like a Chicago or Detroit accent. It has been described as nasal, recognized by the vocalization of the short "a" (æ) sound: "and" is closer to "i-uhnd" ([ˈɪənd]).

It is often described as including the pronunciation of the city itself as "Rach'str" ([ˈɹatʃ.stɚ]).

[edit] Media

Rochester has one daily newspaper, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle; there are also free weekly publications such as "City" newspaper and the "Freetime" entertainment magazine.

Rochester has seven broadcast television stations:

Rochester also has several radio stations, both AM and FM including: WXXI (Public Radio) WCMF (Rock and Roll) WDKX (Urban Contemporary Radio) WHAM (News and Talk Radio)

Rochester's cable television provider is Time Warner Cable, which provides R News, a 24-hour local news channel.

[edit] Points of interest

The George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film, the World's oldest photography museum
The George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film, the World's oldest photography museum
The Eastman Theatre
The Eastman Theatre
Strasenburgh Planetarium, Rochester Museum & Science Center
Strasenburgh Planetarium, Rochester Museum & Science Center

[edit] Sports

Rochester was named the top minor league sports market in the country by Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal in July 2005; and the number 10 "best golf city" in America by Golf Magazine in 2007.[24]

[edit] Professional sports

Rochester has seven professional sports teams:[25]

Club Sport Founded League Venue
Rochester Red Wings Baseball 1899 International League Frontier Field
Rochester Americans Ice hockey 1956 AHL Blue Cross Arena
Rochester Knighthawks Indoor lacrosse 1995 NLL Blue Cross Arena
Rochester Rhinos Soccer 1996 USL First Division PAETEC Park
Rochester Rattlers Field lacrosse 2001 MLL PAETEC Park
Rochester Razorsharks Basketball 2005 PBL Blue Cross Arena
Rochester Raiders Indoor football 2006 CIFL Blue Cross Arena

Among cities in North America with at least seven current professional teams, Rochester is the only one whose teams all have cumulative winning regular season records.[26]

The Rochester Red Wings baseball club, the AAA affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, play in the International League. The Rochester Americans ice hockey team, the AHL affiliate for the NHL Buffalo Sabres and Florida Panthers, are known as the "Amerks". The Rochester Rhinos soccer club play in the USL First Division, which is the second-highest level American soccer league.

Frontier Field, including the Rochester skyline to the southeast.
Frontier Field, including the Rochester skyline to the southeast.

There are two professional lacrosse teams. Rochester Knighthawks play box lacrosse in the National Lacrosse League during winter and spring. In summer, the Rochester Rattlers play field lacrosse in the Major League Lacrosse organization.

PAETEC Park
PAETEC Park

The newest local professional sports teams are Rochester Razorsharks (of the Premier Basketball League) and Rochester Raiders (Continental Indoor Football League).

The Rochester Americans
The Rochester Americans

Rochester is home to the Empire State Roar, a semi-pro team in the league known as the Women's Professional Football League, and the Rochester Rhinos women's team of the W-League, an advanced amateur tier of the United Soccer Leagues.

Professional golf regularly comes to Rochester. The PGA Championship and the US Open have been held at Oak Hill Country Club, as was the 1995 Ryder Cup. The Xerox Classic Tournament on the Nationwide Tour comes every August. The Wegmans LPGA tournament is yearly in June at Locust Hill Country Club.

While Rochester currently has no teams at the top level of the major American sports, the city does host training camp for the NFL's Buffalo Bills each summer since 2000 at St. John Fisher College in the suburban of Pittsford. The absence of a major pro sports team has not always been the case. From 1920–1925, Rochester was home to the Rochester Jeffersons, a charter member of the National Football League. From 1948–1957, the Rochester Royals played in the National Basketball Association, winning the NBA championship in 1951. In soccer, the Rochester Lancers played from 1970–1980 in the top-level North American Soccer League.

Since 1877, 29 teams in eight professional sports have represented Rochester, according to The Rochester Sports Project by local sports historian Douglas Brei. In spring 2006, Brei showed that Rochester's professional sports teams were collectively approaching 25,000 games played. That game was played on June 16, 2006, when Red Wings hosted the Indianapolis Indians at Frontier Field. He also reports that only six active franchises in the history of North American professional sports have played in the same city and same league continuously and uninterrupted since the 1800s: Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals, and Rochester Red Wings.

The city has two independent pro-wrestling leagues: Next Era Wrestling and NWA Upstate which operate in and around the city.

Rochester is home territory of the Buffalo Bills and the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres are further tied to Rochester through their owner, Rochester billionaire Tom Golisano.

[edit] College sports

Almost all area college sports are played at the NCAA Division III level. An exception is the RIT men's ice hockey team, which moved up to the Division I level in 2005. Hobart College, an hour away from Rochester in Geneva, has a Division I men's lacrosse team.

Among junior colleges, MCC is dominant in NJCAA Division II sports.

[edit] Club Sports

Rochester is home to two men's rugby teams, the Rochester Aardvarks and the Rochester Colonials:[5]. Both have long histories, with the Aardvarks celebrating their 40th anniversary in 2006, and the Colonials celebrating 25 years in 2005. The Aardvarks are one of the few rugby teams in the country to own its own pitch: Aardvark Park in Henrietta, New York. The Aardvarks and the Colonials both have hosted local and state-wide tournaments and the Colonials hosted the 2007 USA Rugby National Collegiate All-Star Championships. Both teams thrive on local college and university players. The Rochester Bicycling Club [6] is a social and fitness bicycling club.

[edit] Transportation

Barges on the Genesee River
Barges on the Genesee River

[edit] Maritime transport

There is marine freight service at the Port of Rochester on Lake Ontario, which is connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the St. Lawrence Seaway.

A short-lived, high-speed passenger/vehicle ferry Spirit of Ontario I, nicknamed The Breeze, linked Rochester to Toronto, Ontario across Lake Ontario. It operated between June 17, 2004, and December 12, 2005, and cost the city $42.5 million. It was sold to Forde Reederei Seetouristik, a German company, for $30 million.

[edit] Air transport

Rochester is served by the Greater Rochester International Airport. Daily scheduled air service is provided by Air Canada / Air Georgian, AirTran Airways, American, Continental, Delta, JetBlue, Northwest, United, and US Airways.

[edit] Mass transit

See also: Rochester (Amtrak station)

Amtrak (passenger) and freight lines provide rail service to Rochester. Rochester has intercity and transcontinental bus service via Greyhound and Trailways.

Local bus service in Rochester and its county suburbs is provided by the Rochester-Genesee Regional Transportation Authority (RGRTA) via its Regional Transit Service (RTS) subsidiary. RTS also provides suburban service outside the immediate Rochester area and runs smaller transportation systems in outlying counties, such as WATS (Wayne Area Transportation System).

From 1927 to 1957, Rochester had a light rail underground transit system called the Rochester Subway. It was the smallest city in the world to have one. There are proposals to put in a new system, possibly using some of the old tunnels. One includes converting the Broad Street bridge tunnel—the former canal aqueduct—into an underground pedestrian walkway, which would also include a Rochester Transportation Museum, and a tram system.

The Broad Street Aqueduct was used as a subway tunnel
The Broad Street Aqueduct was used as a subway tunnel

The former canal and subway tunnels have become a source of controversy. Many city homeless use the tunnels for shelter, and a few areas near tunnel entrances have gained the reputation as being dangerous. The city has considered multiple solutions for the space including recreating a canal way, putting the subway system back in or filling the tunnels entirely. The plan to fill the tunnels in has generated criticism as the cost of filling would be comparable to restoring the subway[citation needed].

The Broad Street bridge over the Genesee that the subway used still retains the lower track level.

Main Street looking east
Main Street looking east

[edit] Major Highways and Roads that serve the Greater Rochester Area

There are three exits off the New York State Thruway (Interstate 90) that serve Rochester. Rochester has an extensive freeway (expressway) system which connects all parts of the city and the city with the Thruway. During the Thruway's construction, a disagreement between the governor of New York and mayor of Rochester resulted in a bypass of downtown Rochester, leaving the city struggling for growth.[citation needed]

Rochester's expressway system, conceived in the 1950s, was designed as two concentric circles with feeder expressways from the west, south and east. The system allows for quick travel within the metropolitan area and a lack of the traffic gridlock typically found in cities of comparable size; in part this is because the system was designed to accommodate an anticipated year-2000 metro population of 5 million, whereas the present-day population is just over one million.

The Outer Loop circles just outside the city limits while the Inner Loop circles around the immediate downtown area within the city proper. From the west are Lake Ontario State Parkway, NY-531 and I-490; Interstate 390 feeds from the south; and NY-104, NY-441, and I-490 approach from the east.

Four Interstate Highways run through the Greater Rochester area:

Interstate 90 (New York State Thruway)

  • I-90 runs from Seattle to Boston. I-90 connects to I-390 and I-490 to serve the Greater Rochester Area.

Interstate 390 (Genesee Expressway)

Interstate 490 (Western/Eastern Expressway)

Interstate 590

  • I-590 runs south-north through Rochester's eastern suburbs. Its southern end is at I-390, while the northern end is at I-490; the highway continues north to the shore of Lake Ontario as NY-590.
  • In decreasing usage is the term "Can of Worms", referring to the previously dangerous at-grade intersection of Interstate 490 and expressway NY-590 on the eastern edge of the Rochester city limits, bordering the suburb of Brighton. In the 1980s, a multimillion dollar project created a system of overpasses and ramps that reduced the danger but resulted in the loss of certain exits.

New York State Route Expressways:

New York State Route 104 (Irondequoit-Wayne County Expressway, West Ridge Road)

  • NY 104 - Just east of the NY 590 interchange, NY 104 becomes the Irondequoit-Wayne County Expressway and crosses the Irondequoit Bay Bridge. On the other side of the Bay Bridge, in the town of Webster, NY 104 has exits before returning to an at-grade highway at Basket Road.

New York State Route 390

  • NY 390 is an extension of Interstate 390 from the I-390/I-490 interchange in Gates. The northern terminus is at the Lake Ontario State Parkway in Greece, less than a mile from the Lake Ontario shoreline.

New York State Route 531 (Spencerport Expressway)

  • NY 531 serves as a connector between the northwestern suburbs of Rochester and Interstate 490.

New York State Route 590

  • NY 590 is a limited-access extension of Interstate 590 at runs from an interchange between Interstate 490 and I-590 on the Brighton/Rochester border. The northern terminus is at Culver Road in Irondequoit, near Sea Breeze (the western shore of Irondequoit Bay at Lake Ontario).

New York State Parkways:

Lake Ontario State Parkway

  • Lake Ontario State Parkway travels from Lakeside Beach State Park in Carlton, Orleans County. The eastern end is at Lake Avenue in the city of Rochester in Monroe County.

[edit] Notable citizens

See List of people from Rochester, New York

[edit] Sister cities

Rochester has ten sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International. They are all dedicated by a branched concrete walkway over the Genesee River, dubbed the Sister Cities Bridge (known as the Frank and Janet Lamb Bridge since October 2006)[27]:

[edit] References

  1. ^ Mayor Robert Duffy. City of Rochester, N.Y.. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  2. ^ Our manufacturing roots sprout jobs | democratandchronicle.com | Democrat and Chronicle
  3. ^ Greater Rochester Visitors Association
  4. ^ David Savageau (2007). Places Rated Almanac, 25th Anniversary Edition, Places Rated Books LLC, Page unknown[citation needed]. ISBN 0979319900. 
  5. ^ Best Metrowide Public Schools, Expansion Management
  6. ^ Like many early companies, its production was small, about 400 a year including hearses, designed by Volney Lacey. Georgano, G. N. Cars: Early and Vintage, 1886-1930. (London: Grange-Universal, 1985)
  7. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  8. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  9. ^ "Making History: A Black Man's Hands Speak Eloquently", The New York Times, 2003-05-24. Retrieved on 2008-01-03. 
  10. ^ Campbell Gibson (June 1998). Population of the 100 largest cities and other urban places in the United States 1790 to 1990. Population Division, U.S. Bureau of the Census. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
  11. ^ Xerox Corporation Fact Book: Company facts, history, information
  12. ^ Economic Development, University of Rochester "Connections" website
  13. ^ Emporis. Buildings of Rochester, 2008.
  14. ^ PAETEC headquarters to tower over city, Democrat and Chronicle - 4 April 2008
  15. ^ Greater Rochester Enterprise. Top 50 Private Sector Employers, excluding Government, in Greater Rochester, 2006.
  16. ^ South Wedge History and Maps. Retrieved on 2008-05-24.
  17. ^ South Wedge Gay Neighbors
  18. ^ http://www.swillburg.com/pdfs/swillburg%20neighborhood%20map.pdf
  19. ^ Swillburg Newsletters
  20. ^ "America's 25 New Elite 'Ivies', August 21, 2008", Newsweek, 2007-08-30. Retrieved on 2007-08-30. 
  21. ^ OMEGA EP Laser System Complete and Ready for Operation University of Rochester's Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE)
  22. ^ University of Rochester Rises in U.S. News Rankings University of Rochester Press Releases
  23. ^ News / PR
  24. ^ Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. Rochester makes 10-best golf cities list (November 27, 2007). Retrieved on 2007-11-27.
  25. ^ "Rochester Sports". Retrieved on 2008-01-13.
  26. ^ "Bob Matthews Sports Column, July 21, 2007", Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, 2007-07-21. Retrieved on 2007-07-21. 
  27. ^ City of Rochester, New York (2006-10-11). "SISTER CITIES BRIDGE RENAMED "FRANK AND JANET LAMB SISTER CITIES BRIDGE"" (HTML). Press release. Retrieved on 2007-06-10. “Mayor Robert J. Duffy conducted a ceremony today on the Sister Cities Bridge, officially renaming it the Frank and Janet Lamb Sister Cities Bridge.”

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Rochester at the Open Directory Project

Coordinates: 43°9′56″N, 77°36′41″W

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