Encyclopedia
New Rochelle is a
city in
Westchester County in the
U.S. state of
New York, 16 miles from
Grand Central Terminal in
New York City. The city is named after the city of
La Rochelle in
France, which was a stronghold of the
Huguenots. New Rochelle is the seventh largest city in the State of New York.
History
17th century
New Rochelle's history began with the purchase by Thomas Pell of the Pelham Manor tract, of which the city became part, from the Siwanoy Indians in 1654.
In 1687 a purchase agreement was made between John Pell, nephew of Thomas Pell, and Jacob Leisler
In 1689, thousands of
Huguenots - French Protestants who left
France following the revocation by
Louis XIV of the Edict of Nantes, which had protected them from religious persecution - began settling the area. Their new home was named after
La Rochelle, the port from which they had departed France. There is a monument in Hudson Park which commemorates all the names of these Huguenot settlers.
Also in 1689, John Pell officially deeded the 6,100 acres of New Rochelle to Jacob Leisler. The Deed requires "as an Acknowledgment to the Lord of the said Manor one Fatt Calfe on every fouer and twentieth day of June yearly and every Year Forever ."
18th century
1738 : Last recorded entries in French on town records.
In 1775 General
George Washington stops in New Rochelle on his way to assume command of the Army of the United Colonies in
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
In October of 1776, the
British Army occupies New Rochelle and
Larchmont. General
Sir William Howe establishes headquarters on the heights above North Avenue opposite
Eastchester Road. The British support troops, 4,000 Hessians and Waldeckers under Lieutenant-General Baron von Knyphausen, landed at Davenport Neck. The British left New Rochelle on October 25th, clogging available roads and leaving destruction behind. Two days later, the
Battle of White Plains was fought, bringing victory to the British but allowing Washington to regroup his troops. New Rochelle became part of the "Neutral Ground."
Through the
18th century, New Rochelle, with a 1790 population of 692 residents, remained a modest village. It retained an abundance of agricultural land, 300 acres of which was awarded in 1784 to the patriot
Thomas Paine by
New York State for his service to the cause of independence. Paine, however spent little time at the estate. Now located on a small street in New Rochelle, the Thomas Paine Cottage is a small museum where many Revolutionary re-enactments are played out.
19th century
In 1879, Hohn H. Starin, former
United States Congressman and New York transportation king, buys five islands, names them Glen Island and creates perhaps the first
theme park open to the public. His 12
steamboats transported millions of New York residents and others to the attractions which included a zoo, a natural history museum, a railway, a German
beer garden , a bathing beach, and a Chinese pagoda. A chain ferry transported visitors from a mainland dock.
In 1892, the New Rochelle Public Library is established and located in the Trinity School, on Trinity Place. Rose Hill Gardens, located on what is now Rose Hill Avenue, is one of the largest botanical gardens in the country during the 1800's. The first
orchid in the United States is cultivated here.
In 1896, David's Island is re-named Fort Slocum after General
Henry Warner Slocum, a
Civil War officer. Fort Slocum becomes the largest recruiting depot east of the
Mississippi River, with greatest use during
World War I and
World War II.
20th century
In the early part of the 20th century, the County's famous Glen Island Casino on Long Island Sound continued to draw such celebrities as
Glenn Miller, the Dorsey Brothers and
Ozzie Nelson.
In 1930, New Rochelle's population hit 54,000, up from 36,213, in 1920. In the early 30's it was the wealthiest city per capita in New York State, the third wealthiest in the country.
New Rochelle had two of the first suburban branch
department stores in America, with Arnold Constable opening on Main Street in the 1940s and
Bloomingdale's purchasing the locally owned Ware's Store in the late 1940s.
New Rochelle was the scene of the first court-ordered school desegregation case in "the north", when the
United States Supreme Court decided in 1962 that its Lincoln School boundaries had been intentionally drawn to create segregated elementary school districts. Lincoln School was closed and demolished in 1965, with students of that district allowed to attend certain other city elementary schools. Today the school district is known for its diversity, and the high school honors civil rights leader
Whitney Young in the name of its auditorium and civil rights martyr
Michael Schwerner in the name of its library.
Part of downtown New Rochelle near the
Metro North train station was revitalized in the summer of 1995 with the opening of the $190 million New Roc City, an entertainment complex featuring a 19-screen
movie theater, Westchester's first
IMAX theater, mini-golf, go karts, an arcade, a health club, restaurants, a
hotel, and a
supermarket. New Roc City was built on the former
Macy's and New Rochelle Mall sites.
Geography
The
City of New Rochelle is on the
Long Island Sound. It is the second largest city in Westchester County, after
Yonkers.
New Rochelle is one of the largest suburbs of
New York City. It is located a mere two miles from the
New York City borough of
the Bronx, and about 15 miles northeast of Midtown
Manhattan.
New Rochelle is located at .
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 34.3 kmē . 26.8 kmē of it is land and 7.5 kmē of it is water. The city has a rough triangle shape, approximately 10 miles from north to south and 1.5 miles from east to west at its widest point.
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 72,182 people, 26,189 households, and 17,546 families residing in the city. The
population density was 2,692.7/kmē . There were 26,995 housing units at an average density of 1,007.0/kmē . The racial makeup of the city was 67.89%
White, 19.18%
African American, 0.20% Native American, 3.23% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 6.28% from
other races, and 3.17% from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino of any race were 20.08% of the population.
There were 26,189 households out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.0% were non-families. 28.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.29.
In the city the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 90.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $55,513, and the median income for a family was $72,723. Males had a median income of $50,187 versus $38,527 for females. The per capita income for the city was $31,956. About 7.9% of families and 10.5% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 12.1% of those under age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.
Additional facts about New Rochelle
New Rochelle as a birthplace
- Jerry Bilik, composer
- Irene Castle, dancer
- Bob Denver, actor
- Leslie H. Gelb, former President of the Council on Foreign Relations
- Jay Leno, comedian
- Don McLean, singer who became famous for 1971 ballad, "American Pie." Graduated from Iona Prep in 1963
- Bob Mintzer, saxophonist, composer, arranger and big band leader
- Jesse Arnelle, football and basketball star for New Rochelle High School and Penn State University
- Alex Raymond, cartoonist, invented the Flash Gordon comic strip. He played football for Iona Prep
- Eddie Foy, Jr., actor. Eddie Foy Park in New Rochelle is named for him.
- George Oppen
...
, poet
- Richard Roundtree, actor. Played on New Rochelle High School's undefeated and nationally ranked football team in 1960
- Lou Jones, One-time world record holder at 400 meters; Olympic gold medalist
- Bud Cort, actor, famous for starring in Harold and Maude.
- Rob Morrow, actor, famous for starring in TV shows Northern Exposure and Numb3rs
New Rochelle as a home
...
.
[i]
...
, actor, playwright,& social reformer;husband of Ruby Dee;lived near Fifth Avenue
...
, actress and wife of Ossie Davis.
...
- Willie Mays, baseball star, lived on Croft Terrace
- Mariano Rivera, Yankee relief pitcher
- Thomas Paine, philosopher, writer, politician. Thomas Paine cottage on North Avenue is a landmark
- Norman Rockwell, artist, lived at 24 Lord Kitchener Road in Bonnie Crest
- Carrie Chapman Catt, first international leader of the political phase of the feminist movement. Lived at 120 Paine Ave*
- Teresa Brewer, pop and jazz singer, lived on Pinebrook Boulevard
- Robert Merrill, baritone, Metropolitan Opera star, sang national anthem at Yankee Stadium. Lived on Oxford Road, near Wykagyl
- Matt Dillon, actor
- Dick Van Dyke, TV and motion picture personality
- Tommy Mottola, music executive and ex husband of Mariah Carey. He graduated from Iona Prep.
- Frankie Frisch, baseball player nicknamed the "Fordham Flash," lived at 184 Fenimore Road in Bonnie Crest
- Adam Welsh, actor
- Claude Harmon, head pro at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck. He was the last club professional to win a major golf tournament . Harmon lived on Stratton Road.
- Butch Harmon, son of Claude Harmon. He is a top ranked golf instructor in the United States and is the former coach of Tiger Woods
- Louis Rukeyser, business columnist, economic commentator, and host of TV series Wall Street Week With Louis Rukeyser. He graduated from New Rochelle High School in 1950.
- Johnny Counts, played football for New Rochelle High School in 1957 and then the New York Giants in the NFL
- Arnold Stang, voice of cartoon characters, famous for the quote, "Chunky, what a chunk of chocolate," lived on Lovell Road in Bonnie Crest
- Peter Lind Hayes, American motion picture and television actor, lived on Icard Lane off Pelham Road
- Snooky Lanson, vocalist on the 1950s TV show "Your Hit Parade." His son went to Iona Grammar School
- Melissa Spencer, Award winning master chef.
- Charles Revson, CEO of Revlon Cosmetics Empire, uncle of racecar driver Peter Revson. He lived on Premium Point off Boston Post Road
- Jan Peerce, American tenor. lived in Larchmont Woods section of New Rochelle
- Buffalo Bob Smith, starred on Howdy Doody
- Joseph Campbell, American mythologist, professor of comparative religion, author * E.L. Doctorow, author
- Joseph Christian Leyendecker, legendary Saturday Evening Post and Century Magazine illustrator
- Francis Xavier Leyendecker, illustrator
- Frederic Remington, painter and sculptor - his name lives on in the Remington Park Boys' Club by the site of his home and studio
- Johnny "Angel" McLaughlin, actress
- Carl Reiner and his son, Rob Reiner, directors and actors - lived at 48 Bonnie Meadow Road
- Glynnis O'Connor, actress
- Ken Blanchard, best selling business author - graduated from New Rochelle High School
- Andrea McArdle
...
, broadway's original "Annie"
- Rob Spenser, esteemed gangster and humanitarian.
- Frances Sternhagen, actress
- Devon Hughes, a.k.a. professional wrestler D-Von Dudley
- Noah Fleiss, actor in who's worked in Brick and other, mostly independent, movies.
- Jared Rice, attorney.
- Brand Nubian, rap group.
New Rochelle in Fiction, Film, Television and Theater
In the early 20th century New Rochelle was home to some of the first movie studios in the country.
- Edwin Thanhouser establishes Thanhouser Film Corporation on the corner of Warren and Grove Street. Thanhouser's "Million Dollar Mystery" was one of the first serial motion pictures. After a devastating fire in 1913, the studio moved to Main Street near Echo Avenue.
- Parts of the film Catch Me If You Can take place in New Rochelle .
- 1941- The cartoon charatcter Mighty Mouse was created at the Terrytoons Studio in New Rochelle. Terrytoons, which was created by Paul Terry in 1929, produced cartoons for 10,000 movie theatres across the country during the 1940's and 1950's.
- The early 1960's TV hit The Dick Van Dyke Show starring Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore was set in New Rochelle.
- 1976- Ragtime, a novel written by New Rochelle resident E. L. Doctorow was released and later became a major motion picture of the same name. Other celebrated works include Welcome to Hard Times, Loon Lake and Worlds Fair
- The Broadway show Ragtime is set in New Rochelle.
- The Broadway show "45 Minutes from Broadway" was about life in New Rochelle in the late 1890's.
- The music video for the song "Dance, Dance" by the band Fall Out Boy takes place in the gymnasium of Salesian High School in New Rochelle.
Transportation
By railroad: the city has a railroad station served by
Metro North, the
County Bee-Line service.
By Car: major highways include
Interstate 95 and the
Hutchinson River Parkway.
Education
- College of St. Angela was founded by the Reverend Mother Irene Gill of the Ursuline Order. The first Catholic woman's college in New York State, the school was named the College of New Rochelle
...
in 1911
- Iona College was founded in 1940 by the Irish Christian Brothers. It was originally an elementary and preparatory school founded by Brother Doorley in 1916.
- Monroe College has a campus, with full dormitories in the downtown section of New Rochelle.
- Iona Prepatory for boys in Grades 9-12 is located on Wilmot Road.
- The Ursuline School for girls in Grades 6-12 is located on North Avenue adjacent to Wykagyl.
*
New Rochelle High School is located on Clove Road, off Eastchester Road.
External links
