Rochester, NY, Captured in 10 Numbers

When you have a general knowledge website, you reserve the right to occasionally go a little esoteric. And that’s what I’m doing here. The third-largest city in the state of New York—and the 112th-largest in the US—has to be considered a little obscure. It’s on the outskirts of the Rust Belt and in the heart of the Snow Belt, but it’s also home to ComposeMD, so it made the cut. Here’s a snapshot of Rochester, NY, in 10 numbers.

 

1797

The year the Treaty of Big Tree was signed between the Seneca Nation (part of the Iroquois Confederacy) and the United States. In the agreement, the Seneca tribe parted ways with almost 3.5 million acres of land in the state of New York, opening the door for what was to come.

 

1817

The year construction began on the Erie Canal, a 363-mile artificial waterway that joined the Great Lakes (specifically Lake Erie in Buffalo) to the Hudson River (in Albany), effectively connecting the middle of the country to New York City.

In the same year, the village of Rochesterville (named after landowner Nathaniel Rochester) was formed. By 1834, Rochesterville—thanks to its location on the cutting-edge transportation corridor—had become the city of Rochester.

 

1847

The year Frederick Douglass—escaped from slavery in Maryland—established the abolitionist newspaper The North Star in Rochester. His friend, Susan B. Anthony, was also a bit involved when it came to social activism. Anthony was arrested in her adopted hometown of Rochester in 1872 for voting and died years before her life work was crystallized in the form of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution—the one that gave women the right to vote.

 

1888

The year George Eastman registered the trademark Kodak and released the first Kodak camera. Eastman, his company, and his philanthropic endeavors would define Rochester for over a century.

(Other big-name companies born in Rochester include Bausch & Lomb, Champion, French’s, Gannett, Ragú, Western Union, and Xerox.)

 

1951

The year the Rochester Royals won the NBA championship, around the same time the city of Rochester peaked in population at 332,488.

It’s been kind of a rough go since then. In 1956, the subway system—just 29 years old—closed. The next year, the Royals skipped town, eventually landing in Sacramento. Subsequent decades brought race riots, population loss, a failed ferry to Toronto (see below), a failed downtown mall, and a Kodak bankruptcy. But, through it all, there was Wegmans.

 

1.06 million

The approximate population of the Rochester, NY, metropolitan area, making it perhaps the 53rd largest in the US. The city of Rochester currently has a population of about 211,328.

 

92

The approximate distance in miles (as the crow flies) between the Port of Rochester and downtown Toronto, Canada. Such a path would take you across Lake Ontario, the smallest of the Great Lakes by surface area, though large enough to cause lake-effect snow (see below). The lake is fed in part by the Genesee River, which bisects Rochester on its northward-flowing path.

 

100

A reasonable estimate (in inches) of the average annual snowfall in Rochester.

 

2.95

The effective property tax rate (expressed as a percent of property value) in the Rochester, NY, region as of 2017, good for highest in the US.

 

1700

The approximate number of calories in a typical version of Rochester’s contribution to the international culinary scene—the Garbage Plate. Preventing hangovers since 1918, a plate consists of protein (usually two cheeseburgers or two hot dogs), macaroni salad, home fries or french fries, and maybe baked beans, all topped with a meat-based hot sauce (and other stuff if desired).

 

So if you’re into high taxes, lots of snow, economic stagnation, and artery-clogging delicacies, make sure to put Rochester on your bucket list. Trust me when I tell you—it’s way better than it sounds.