New Rochelle

New Rochelle, or Nouvelle-Rochelle in French, is a city in the Westchester county of the NY State. The French origin of its name may be attributed to the Huguenots, or French Protestants, who fled from the Catholics in their home country and came to the town as refugees. A majority of the new inhabitants were craftsmen from the French city of La Rochelle. It seemed only appropriate for them to give the town the name New Rochelle.

Like most cities, New Rochelle, New York was transformed into a city in the advent of railroads in the late 1800s. Soon after that, New Rochelle, NY became known as a summer resort. With this development, the city was among the first “bedroom communities” in the United States. This simply implies that the residents of New Rochelle, New York actually lived their lives or worked outside the city, and they only come home to New Rochelle to sleep. Hence, the New Rochelle lifestyle is an epitome of American ideal.

With a population of 72,967 in 2005, New Rochelle, New York was acclaimed as one of the 100 Best Walking Cities in America in 2008. As well, in a 2008 study conducted by Business Week, New Rochelle was found to be the best city in NY State and among the best cities in the United States to raise children in.

Brief history of New Rochelle, New York

When the Catholic monarch Louis XIV recalled the Edict of Nantes in 1689, the French Protestant population faced the threat of religious persecution. The edict formerly protected the religious minority. Although a number of artisans and craftsmen belonged to the minority population, the monarch was driven to get the Protestants out of France. Known as Huguenots, they eventually found themselves in a town, which they later named New Rochelle in memory of La Rochelle, the city where they came from.

New Rochelle, New York as a real estate haven

Aside from the suburban lifestyle that has made New Rochelle, New York an American ideal, the city is also known as “The Home Town.” It was called as such, because of the abundance of real estate development within its area. The downtown area, which was previously an industrial area, is where the population is heaviest. Other than the condominiums, high rises, offices, shopping centers, affordable housing complexes, a medical center, nursing homes, two college campuses and an inter modal transportation hub, the rest of New Rochelle is real estate haven especially for residential, single-family units.

Some of the country's most expensive real estate can be found in New Rochelle, putting the northern tip of the city in the list of “500 most expensive zip codes.” Townhouse-style housing units, however, are also present in New Rochelle, New York.

Schools in New Rochelle, New York

The education system at New Rochelle includes both private and public schools. The city is served by the City School District of New Rochelle. Public schools that the city operates include a prominent public high school, two junior high schools and ten elementary schools. New Rochelle takes pride in its public schools, as the city has been recipient of the coveted Blue Ribbon Award from the U.S. Department of Education in seven separate occasions.

New Rochelle, New York travel and tourism

The famous tourism landmarks in New Rochelle include Columbia Island, Execution Rocks Lighthouse, Huckleberry Island, Leland Castle, St. John's Wilmot Church, the Thomas Paine Historical Site, and Trinity-St. Paul's Episcopal Church. If you ever get to travel to the East Coast in the United States, make sure to drop by New Rochelle, New York. A touch of history should make your travel worthwhile. After all, there is more to NY than Broadway, Times Square, and the Central Park.

Rachael Anderson is a full-time < a href="http://newrochelle.com/">New Yorker. She was 25 when she discovered that there is a whole world outside of < a href="http://newrochelle.com/">Times Square and Central Park.