New Rochelle
New Rochelle is a city in the southeast portion of the U.S. state of New York in Westchester County, 16 miles (26 km) from Grand Central Terminal in New York City and 2 miles north of the NYC border (Pelham Bay Park in The Bronx). It lies on the Long Island Sound just east of Pelham / Pelham Manor and west of Larchmont/ The Town of Mamaroneck . Settled by refugee Huguenots (French Protestants) in 1688 who were fleeing tyrannical Catholic pogroms in France. Many of the settlers were artisans and craftsmen from the city of La Rochelle France who named their new colony "New Rochelle." It remained an artisan and craftsmen center for generations until the industrial revolution and 19th century immigration changed the economy and character of the region. Today it is mainly residential with some light industry. In 2000, the city had a population of 72,182.
Nicknamed 'The Queen City of the Sound', [1] it is one of the largest suburbs of New York City, the seventh-largest city in the state of New York, and the second-largest city in Westchester County.
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, the absolutist Catholic monarch of France Louis XIV unilaterally revoked the Edict of Nantes. This royal edict had protected the minority Protestant population from religious persecution within certain defined areas of France. One such Protestant ghetto was the city of La Rochelle. Despite the fact that the Protestants were France's most industrious class, Louis XIV was determined to drive them France. Face with the prospect of the resurgence of another war of Religion, Protestant countries of Europe opened up their territories to the Huguenots. John Pell under warrant from the King William III of England, Scotland, and Ireland, provided free land to Huguenot families. A particularly large group of Huguenot manufacturers, artisans, and craftsmen from La Rochelle settled the area and named their settlement Nouvelle-Rochelle, after their homeland La Rochelle, France. There is a monument in Hudson Park which contains the names of these Huguenot settlers.
Also in 1689, John Pell officially deeded the 6,100 acres (25 km˛) 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 (if demanded)."
18th century
The French Huguenots, as Protestant Europeans, quickly assimilated into the English colony. Although, most continued to marry within other Huguenot families over the first two generations, the colonists use of English and their similarity in customs and race to the larger English population quickly promoted the assimilation of the Huguenots into overall society. By 1738 the last recorded entries in French were made on town records.
In 1775 General George Washington stopped 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 occupied New Rochelle and Larchmont. General Sir William Howe established 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 25, 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 (1.2 km˛) 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
With the rapid growth of New York City by immigration principally from Ireland and Germany, more American families left New York City and moved into the area. Although the original Huguenot population was rapidly shrinking in relative size, through ownership of land, businesses, banks, and small manufactures, they retained a predominant hold on the political and social life of the town.
In 1879, John H. Starin, a descendant of the Huguenots, former United States Congressman and New York transportation king, purchased five islands and named them Glen Island Park. He then created perhaps the first theme park open to the public. He used 12 of his own steamboats to transport millions of New Yorkers and others to the theme park, which included a zoo, a natural history museum, a railway, a German beer garden (around the castle-like structure which still stands today), a bathing beach, and a Chinese pagoda. A chain ferry transported visitors from a mainland dock.
In 1892, the New Rochelle Public Library was established and located in the Trinity School, on Trinity Place. Rose Hill Gardens, located on what is now Rose Hill Avenue, was one of the largest botanical gardens in the country during the 1800s. The first orchid in the United States was cultivated here.
In 1896, David's Island was re-named Fort Slocum after General Henry Warner Slocum, another Huguenot descendant and a Civil War officer. Fort Slocum became the largest recruiting depot east of the Mississippi River, with greatest use during World War I and World War II.
In 1899, on April 18, Michael J. Dillon scion of a long time Huguenot family won the mayoral election by a slim margin of 22 votes over Hugh A. Harmer to become New Rochelle's first mayor. The new city charter designated four wards, a board of alderman (two from each ward), and 10 elected from the city at large.
20th and early 21st centuries
As the effects of continuing immigration continued throughout the North Eastern United States and New York in particular, the early French Huguenot character of the town and it's ruling class dissolved. 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. 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.
In May 1968, New Rochelle High School was destroyed by a fire set by a disturbed student. The fire was early in the morning and there were no fatalities. While the school was being rebuilt, students attended school in trailers. Sessions were divided into morning and evening shifts to accommodate all students. Fortunately, the facade of the school remained intact, allowing builders to construct a new building behind the beautiful, original exterior.
Part of downtown New Rochelle near the Metro North train station was revitalized in the summer of 1999 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 Mall in New Rochelle sites. The Mall, which had opened in 1968 was an early "downtown mall."
Additional revitalization has come by way of 2 new luxury residences. The construction of Avalon On The Sound East, a luxury apartment complex was unveiled by AvalonBay Communities in 2007. Trump Plaza, a 39-story luxury residence is the tallest building in Westchester County at and the tallest between New York City and Albany
This article is issued under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from entry Wikipedia: "English".
