Westchester County is a primarily suburban county located in the U.S. state of New York. Westchester covers an area of 450 square miles and has a diverse population of approximately 950,000, residing in 45 municipalities. It was named after Chester, in England, and the county seat is White Plains.

Its geographical setting is favorable, with the Long Island Sound and Connecticut on the east, and the Hudson River on the west. It has retained much of its rural character while adopting the urban and suburban lifestyles as a result of its proximity to New York City.

According to 2006 HUD data, the median income for a household of one person in the county was $75,427 and the median income for a family of four was $96,500. Westchester County ranks number two (number one being Manhattan) for wealthiest counties in New York State and seventh wealthiest county nationally. Westchester County has long been associated with Old Money and some of the country's wealthiest families for generations, along with other places such as Greenwich, Connecticut and the Long Island's Gold Coast.

History

Original inhabitants

The native inhabitants of Westchester County belonged to the larger family of Native Americans who spoke languages classified as Algonquian. Their connection to the Mound Builders of the Mississippi Valley, the Aztecs of Mexico or the native groups of Central America, if any ever existed, must have been extremely remote. Fortunately title deeds given to the European settlers supply considerable information about the location of sub-tribes in the region. The Manhattans occupied the island upon which New York City was built, as well as land in Southern Westchester now covered by the city of Yonkers. The Weckquaesgeeks occupied land along the Hudson River and the central portions of the county where Dobbs Ferry, Tarrytown and White Plains now stand. The Siwanoy tribe lived along the coast of Long Island Sound where Pelham, New Rochelle, Larchmont, Mamaroneck and Rye now stand. The northern portions of the county were occupied by smaller tribes such as the Tankitekes, Kitchawanks and Saint Siks.

Colonial Westchester

The first Europeans to explore Westchester were Giovanni da Verrazzano in 1524 and Henry Hudson in 1609. The first European settlers were sponsored by the Dutch West India Company in the 1620s and 1630s. English settlers arrived from New England in the 1640s.By 1664, the Dutch lost control of the County to the English and large tracts of Westchester land were established as manors or patents. Manors were held by a single proprietor, while patents were held by groups of associates. The lords of the manors and patents leased land to tenant farmers and provided many essential services to the tenants.Westchester County was an original county of the Province of New York, one of twelve created by an act of the New York General Assembly in 1683. At the time, it also included the present Bronx County, which constituted the original Town of Westchester (whose center was around the area today known as Westchester Square, in the Bronx) and portions of three other towns: Yonkers, Eastchester, and Pelham.

During the colonial period, life in Westchester was quite primitive. Roads were few and in poor condition. Transportation was heavily dependent on water routes. Nearly everything settlers consumed was raised or made on their farms. They bartered wood, cattle and food for items that they could not produce themselves. Colonial churches not only served as religious centers but also played an important social and political role.

Although the economy was still primarily agricultural, farmers began to supplement income through cottage industries - shoe making and furniture crafting. These industries led to heavier use of local roads; heavier use necessitated road improvements which encouraged increased travel. Taverns providing accommodations for travelers were established and ferries were launched. By 1775, Westchester was the richest and most populous County in the colony of New York.

Revolutionary transition

During the Revolutionary War, Westchester County saw more fighting and suffering than any other area in the country. The Revolution was in some ways a civil war, as families were often divided between patriot and loyalist sympathies. After the battles of Pelham and White Plains in 1776, the main American headquarters was at Continental Village, north of Peekskill in Putnam County. The British were headquartered in New York City. Westchester was the "Neutral Ground" between the two camps and the countryside was pillaged by both sides.

Although the Revolution devastated the County, recovery after the war was rapid. The large landowners in Westchester were mostly Loyalists, and after the war their lands were confiscated by the state and sold. Many local farmers were able to buy the lands they had previously farmed as tenants. In 1788, five years after the end of the Revolutionary War, the County wasofficially divided into 20 towns. In 1798, the first federal census recorded a population of 24,000 centered in northern Westchester.

Early infrastructure improvements

In 1800, the first commercial toll road, the Westchester Turnpike, which ran through Pelham and New Rochelle, was chartered. Other toll roads including the Croton (Somerstown) Turnpike were later established. During this same period, steamboats began to appear on the Hudson River. Expansion of transportation options encouraged economic expansion. Larger industries were gradually established such as iron foundries in Peekskill and Port Chester, brickyards in Verplank and Croton, marble quarries in Ossining and tuckahoe.

Two developments in the first half of the 1800s - the construction of the first Croton Dam and Aqueduct and the coming of the railroad - had enormous impact on the growth of both Westchester and New York City. Construction of the Croton Dam and Aqueduct began in 1837 and was completed in 1842. The aquedut carried water 41 miles from Croton to two reservoirs in Manhattan to be distributed to the city. The reservoirs were located on the present sites of the Great Lawn in Central Park and the New York Public Library on Fifth Avenue. Now a National Historic Landmark, the Aqueduct is considered one of the great engineering achievements of the 19th century.

In the 1840s, the railroads came to Westchester. In 1844, the New York and Harlem Railroad reached White Plains. The New York and Hudson River line was completed to Peekskill in 1849. That same year, the New York and New Haven Railroad opened its route through eastern Westchester. The railroads often determined whether a town grew or declined. The railroads contributed to a population shift from northern to southern Westchester. By 1860, the total County population was 99,000 and the largest city was Yonkers. Many small downtowns, centered around a railroad station, flourished.

Post Civil War

The period following the Civil War brought vast fortunes to a new class of entrepreneurs in the New York area, and many built large estates in Westchester. Several magnificent mansions of this era are preserved and open to the public. Among them are Lyndhurst in Tarrytown, Kykuit in Pocantico Hills, the Jay Heritage Center in Rye, Caramoor in Katonah and Glenview in Yonkers.

Expansion of the New York City water system also impacted local development. Between the systems created new dams, bridges and roads. The flooding of thousands of acres for reservoirs created considerable dislocations in many towns north of White Plains. The building of the New Croton Dam and its reservoir, for instance, resulted in the relocation of the hamlet of Katonah to higher ground. In North Salem the hamlet of Purdys was moved when five percent of the town was inundated, including hundreds of prime acres of dairy land.

During the last half of the 1800s, Westchester's transportation system and labor force attracted a manufacturing base, particularly along the Hudson River. Pills and patent medicines were manufactured in Ossining; greenhouses in Irvington; beer in Dobbs Ferry; sugar, paving material and conduit in Hastings; and in Yonkers, elevators and carpets.

In 1874, the western portion of the present Bronx County, consisting of the then towns of Kingsbridge, West Farms, and Morrisania, was transferred to New York County, and in 1895 the remainder of the present Bronx County, consisting of the Town of Westchester and portions of the towns of Eastchester and Pelham, was transferred to New York County. By that time, the portion of the town of Eastchester immediately north of the transferred portion had seceded from the town of Eastchester (1892) to become the City of Mount Vernon so that the Town of Eastchester had no border with New York City. In 1914, those parts of the then New York County which had been annexed from Westchester County were constituted the new Bronx county.

Twentieth century

During the 1900s, the primarily rural character of Westchester would yield to the suburban county known today. Between the County's railroad network and the proliferation of the automobile in the early 20th century, working in New York City and living in the country became possible for the middle class. In 1907 the Bronx River Commission was established to acquire the necessary lands to eliminate nuisance conditions along the river's banks and improve its water quality through a joint undertaking between New York City and Westchester County. The Commission's efforts lead to the creation of the Bronx River Parkway Reservation, completed in 1925, and the first modern, multi-lane limited-access roadway in North America. The success of the Bronx River Parkway Reservation encouraged the County government to develop its outstanding parks system, preserving great tracts of open space. Playland in Rye, a National Historic Landmark, opened to the public in 1928, was the first totally planned amusement park in the country. It continues to be operated by Westchester County. The development of Westchester's parks and parkway systems supported existing residential communities and encouraged the establishment of new ones. New homes were constructed on former estates and farms. The parkways were a boon for commuters and transformed the development pattern of Westchester. New businesses appeared in response to expanded markets; White Plains, with branches of many New York City stores, became the County's central shopping center. With the need for new homes for new families following World War II, multistory apartment houses appeared in the urbanized areas of the County, while the market for single family houses continued to expand. By 1950 the total County population was 625,816.

Major interstate highways were constructed in Westchester during the 1950s and 60s. The establishment of these roadways, along with the construction of the Tappan Zee Bridge, encouraged many major corporations, such as PepsiCo, General Foods, Ciba-Geigy and IBM to establish headquarters in Westchester. They accomplished this by assembling large tracts of property to construct office facilities, which were often designed by world-famous architects and enhanced by extensive landscape.

The County's intense development during the 20th century, while generating prosperity for the region, raised the consciousness of its residents regarding the loss or compromise of Westchester's open space, air and water quality and historic resources.

Today it is one of the most affluent counties in the country, home to many of New York City's most desirable suburban communities. It is a haven for commuters, whether traveling by car or by the Metro-North Commuter Railroad.

National Historic Sites

St. Paul's Church in Mt. Vernon was designated a National Historic Site in 1942. The original church, a wooden structure known as Church of Eastchester, was built in 1695. The present-day stone church was completed in 1764, and its name was changed to St. Paul's in 1795.

The church property, which is operated by the National Park Service, includes a cemetery with burial stones dating to 1704 and the remnants of a village green that was the site of what came to be known as the "Great Election" of 1733. The publisher of the New York Journal, John Peter Zenger, wrote an account of the election and was arrested and tried for seditious libel. His acquittal established the legal precedent for "freedom of the press," which was later incorporated as a basic freedom in the U.S. Bill of Rights.

Horace Greeley's house stands in Chappaqua. Horace Greeley was most famous for his newspaper, The New York Tribune , which ran late into the 19th century. Greeley got a mere sixty votes in the electoral college when he ran for president against Ulysses S. Grant and died shortly thereafter from severe illnesses and broken spirits. His home and the grounds which have not been subdivided are run by the Town of New Castle Historical Society and is open for guided and self-guided tours.

The only Founding Father native to New York State, John Jay, grew up in Rye, New York and returned there to rest among his many descendants. America's first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court served in every branch of US government and his boyhood home is now a National Historic Landmark, open to the public. It is managed by the Jay Heritage Center. The buildings on this historic site, including the 1838 Peter Augustus Jay House built by Jay's eldest son, are being restored for educational programs in American History, Architecture and Environmental Stewardship.

Geography

Westchester County is located at the southeastern tip of New York State. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 500 square miles (1,295 km²), of which 433 square miles (1,121 km²) is land and 67 square miles (174 km²) (13.45%), water. The County shares its northern boundary with Putnam County and its southern boundary with New York City. It is bordered on the west side by the Hudson River and on the east side by Long Island Sound and Fairfield County, Connecticut.

The closest point on the southern border of Westchester is just under from Columbus Circle in Manhattan (the customary point for measuring distances from New York City), where Pelham Manor meets Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx. At over , Pelham Bay Park is the largest of New York City's parks, forming a substantial 'buffer' between suburban Westchester and urban Bronx County. The closest point on the county's northern border is a little over by air and 51 miles by road.

The Long Island Sound shore is generally rocky. Tidal mud flats and marshes as well as several natural and artificially-maintained sand beaches are interspersed on the coast. A number of islands can be found offshore from New Rochelle. The uses of these islands vary: Glen Island is a County park for passive and active recreation, Huckleberry Island is largely undeveloped and has one of the largest rookeries for some shore bird species in western Long Island Sound, Columbia Island was the former site of CBS television broadcast antennas, Echo Island contains a private yacht club, Pine Island is a private residence, and Pea Island is undeveloped. Davids' Island, the former location of the U.S. Army’s Fort Slocum, is undergoing an environmental cleanup and is slated to be used as passive parkland. Public waterfront access is limited by residential and other development, although municipal and County owned parks provide access to public beaches, nature preserves and passive and active waterfront recreational facilities.

The widest section across the Hudson River, at 3.6 miles, is found between the Westchester and Rockland County shorelines immediately north of Croton Point in Croton-on-Hudson. In Colonial times, this area was called the Tappan Zee or Sea. The Hudson River is tidal and brackish through Westchester and contains a small number of estuarine marshes. Two bridges span the Hudson in Westchester; the Bear Mountain Bridge crosses at Cortlandt and the Tappan Zee Bridge at Tarrytown. Municipal, County and state-owned parks provide access to waterfront landmarks and sites, including Croton Point in Croton, Kingsland Point in Sleepy Hollow and JFK Memorial Marina in Yonkers.

The Hudson River waterfront in Westchester is in the midst of a renaissance, converting from primarily industrial uses to mixed residential, commercial, retail, and recreational uses. This transformation is most notable in Yonkers, Hastings-on-Hudson, Dobbs Ferry, Irvington, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow, Ossining, and Peekskill, where redevelopment projects are in variousstages of design and construction. In 2004, Westchester County embarked on a project to create a 50-mile long Hudson RiverWalk which will provide public access between New York City and Putnam County along or close to the river. RiverWalk will weave through the Hudson River communities and provide access and linkages to recreational, cultural, and historic resources as well as community business centers.

The County's interior generally is more hilly north of Interstate 287, which bisects the County. The highest elevation in the county is a U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey benchmark known as "Bailey" at 980 feet (300 m) above sea level in Mountain Lakes Park near the Connecticut state line. The lowest elevation is sea level, along both the Hudson and Long Island Sound.

The County is divided into six primary drainage basins or watersheds, which are the Lower Long Island Sound, Upper Long Island Sound, Bronx River, Upper Hudson River, Lower Hudson River and Croton River basins. Within these primary drainage basins are approximately 60 smaller basins, or subwatersheds. The principal streams draining the southern part of the County include Beaver Swamp Brook, Blind Brook, Bronx River, Hutchinson River, Mamaroneck River, Saw Mill River, Sheldrake River, Stephenson Brook and Tibbetts Brook. The primary streams draining the central part of the County include Byram River, Kisco River, Mianus River, Mill River, Pocantico River and Silvermine River. The principal streams draining the northern part of the County include Dickey Brook, Furnace Brook, Hallocks Mill Brook, Hunter Brook, Muscoot River, Peekskill Hollow Brook, and Titicus River. The County contains several major reservoirs for public drinking water supply: The Croton system and the Kensico Reservoir are important components of the New York City water supply system. The system is a series of interconnected reservoirs and lakes in northern Westchester and Putnam Counties that provides 10% of New York City’s water under normal conditions and up to 30% of the in-City consumption in times of drought. The components of the system include the New Croton Reservoir in Cortlandt, Yorktown, Somers and Bedford; the Cross River Reservoir contained largely in Bedford; Titicus Reservoir in North Salem; Amawalk Reservoir in Somers; and the Muscoot Reservoir in Somers, Lewisboro and Bedford. The Kensico Reservoir is located in Mount Pleasant, Harrison and North Castle; and Byram Lake Reservoir in North Castle and Bedford. A number of other smaller reservoirs exist throughout the County.

Officially, the Westchester County Department of Planning divides the county into North, Central and South sub-regions.

Cities, towns and villages

Westchester County has six cities, 19 towns and 20 villages. Any land area in the county that is not contained in one of the cities is in a town. A town may have zero, one or multiple villages. A village can be located in more than one town, as two of Westchester's villages are.

Adjacent counties

Westchester is considered to be a prime suburb of New York City

• Putnam County, New York—north
• Fairfield County, Connecticut—northeast
• Bergen County, New Jersey—southwest, water boundary only, across the Hudson River
• Rockland County, New York—west, water boundary only, across the Hudson River, with bridge access at the Tappan Zee Bridge and Bear Mountain Bridge
• Nassau County, New York—southeast, water boundary only, across the Long Island Sound
• Bronx County, New York —south
• Orange County, New York—northwest, water boundary only, across the Hudson River

Government

Westchester County Government is headed by a county executive, currently Rob Astorino (R) is the County Executive Elect, who will be taking the place of the long serving Andrew J. Spano (D). The district attorney is Janet DiFiore (D, switched from GOP in Aug. 2007). The county clerk is Timothy C. Idoni (D).

Board of Legislators

The Westchester County Board of Legislators is the legislative, policy-making branch of Westchester County.The County Board has seventeen members. The current board chair is William J. Ryan (D).

Politics

Presidential elections results

Year	Republican	Democrat
2008	35.8% 147,824	63.4% 261,810
2004	40.3% 159,628	58.1% 229,849
2000	37.5% 139,278	58.6% 218,010
1996	35.9% 123,719	56.9% 196,310
1992	40.1% 151,990	48.6% 184,300
1988	53.4% 197,956	45.8% 169,860
1984	58.7% 160,225	41.1% 229,005
1980	54.4% 198,552	35.6% 130,136
1976	54.3% 208,527	45.1% 173,153
1972	62.8% 262,901	36.9% 154,412
1968	50.3% 201,652	43.4% 173,954
1964	37.9% 149,052	62.0% 243,723

Although the county historically leaned Republican, it swung Democratic in the early 1990s – much like other New York City suburbs. In the most recent national elections, Westchester voters tended to be far more Democratic than national average. In fact, Westchester, after New York City and Albany County, has produced the biggest margins for statewide Democrats in recent years. Democratic voters are mainly concentrated in the southern and central parts of the county. More than 63% of Westchester County voters voted for Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential race, the seventh-highest percentage of any New York county, behind four New York City boroughs and Albany and Tompkins counties. Currently, all U.S. congressional representatives from Westchester County are Democrats.

However, Westchester County is less Democratic in state and local elections. For instance, it voted for George Pataki by a margin of 23.07% against Carl McCall in the gubernatorial race of 2002, and by 26.22% in 1998. Pataki hails from Westchester, where he previously served as mayor of Peekskill prior to being elected governor. Nita Lowey and Eliot Engel, both of whom are Democrats, represent most of the rest of the county (Engel's district also includes parts of the Bronx and Rockland County, and Lowey's also reaches into Rockland County) in Congress. Westchester's third representative is Democrat John Hall, who was elected in 2006, defeating Republican incumbent Sue Kelly. Hall's district includes most of northern Westchester County. County Executive Andrew Spano is just the second Democrat to hold the post in at least a half-century. In 2006, county legislator Andrea Stewart-Cousins defeated 20 year incumbent Nicholas Spano (unrelated to Andrew) for a seat in the New York State Senate in a rematch of the 2004 race, which she lost by only 18 votes. Assembly Member Mike Spano (brother of Nicholas) switched parties in July 2007 to become a Democrat. Current district attorney Janet DiFiore also switched parties from Republican to Democratic in August 2007.

Westchester County was the home of former vice-president Nelson Rockefeller, who occupied the Kykuit mansion of the Rockefeller family estate after the death of John D. Rockefeller, Jr.; it is situated near the town of Pocantico Hills.

The county is also home to the former President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who live in Chappaqua. Former First Lady Barbara Bush grew up in Rye.

Emergency services

Westchester County has a wide array of Emergency services and serves as the home to 58 fire departments, 42 ambulance services, a Haz-Mat team, a technical rescue team, a fire academy and a fire investigations unit. Each department has career, volunteer or a combination of career and volunteer personnel who serve and protect the county.

Law enforcement

There are currently 46 local police agencies located in Westchester County. As well as other County, State, Private, and Federal Law Enforcement agencies responsible for protecting Westchester County, these agencies frequently work with one another and other agencies located in the surrounding counties and states as well as the NYPD.

Demographics

As of 2000, there were 349,445 housing units at an average density of 807 per square mile (312/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 71.35% White, 14.20% African American, 0.25% Native American, 4.48% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 6.63% from other races, and 3.05% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.61% of the population. 64.1% were Whites of non-Hispanic origin. 71.7% spoke English, 14.4% Spanish, 3.5% Italian, 1.1% Portuguese and 1.1% French as their first language.

By 2006 the population was 68.12% White, 13.91% African-Americans, 5.58% Asian, 0.16% Native American and 12.23% of other or mixed race. 18.54% of the population was Latino or Hispanic of any race.

There were 337,142 households out of which 34.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.90% were married couples living together, 12.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.20% were non-families. 25.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.21.

In the county the population was spread out with 25.00% under the age of 18, 7.20% from 18 to 24, 30.40% from 25 to 44, 23.50% from 45 to 64, and 14.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 91.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.30 males.

According to 2006 HUD data, the median income for a household of one person in the county was $67,555 and the median income for a family of four was $96,500.

According to Census data, the per capita income for the county in 1999 was $36,726. The Bureau of Economic Analysis lists Westchester in 2004 with the per capita income of $58,952, the eighth highest in the country. The Census Bureau reports that 6.40% of families and 8.7% (2003) of the population were below the poverty line, including 26.53% of those under age 18 and 7.60% of those age 65 or over.

The largest census reviewed area in Westchester County is the City of Yonkers, New York's fourth-largest city, with a population of almost 200,000. The smallest is the community of Scotts Corners in the town of Pound Ridge with a population of 624.

Westchester County Department of Planning-Tomorrow's Communistructure

The Westchester County Department of Planning serves as the repository for all Westchester related census data. Under County Executive Andrew J. Spano's directive, the department recently launched Westchester 2025, [7840] a web-based update of its county-wide comprehensive planning policies. This interactive planning resource seamlessly integrates the Plan’s elements with new sections on three-dimensional visualization, community overviews, regional partnerships, as well as planning tools and interactive forums for public comment.

Part of Westchester 2025 focuses on the need to improve regional connectivity, including both physical infrastructure (roads, trains, sewers, etc.) and communication capabilities (wider bandwidths, GIS technology, etc.) to keep pace with the global economy and reduce environmental impacts. This new infrastructure model for the 21st century, Tomorrow's Communistructure, will require a complete paradigm shift in the way the community views and defines its critical infrastructure in the future.

Transportation

Westchester County is served by Interstate 87 (the New York State Thruway), Interstate 95, Interstate 287 and Interstate 684. Parkways in the county include the Bronx River Parkway, the Cross County Parkway, the Hutchinson River Parkway, the Saw Mill River Parkway, the Sprain Brook Parkway and the Taconic State Parkway. The Tappan Zee Bridge connects Tarrytown to Rockland County across the Hudson River. The Bear Mountain Bridge crosses the Hudson from Cortlandt to Orange County. The combination of these numerous highways, proximity to New York City, and the county's large population all lead to substantial traffic enforcement and very busy local courts.

The development corridors in the county have defined sections and follow transportation corridors. The main north-south corridors are, from west to east, the U.S. Route 9/Albany Post Rd/Broadway Corridor along the Hudson River from Yonkers in the South to Peekskill/Cortlandt in the North. The Saw Mill River Parkway Corridor traverses the county in a north-eastern path, beginning in Yonkers, and terminating at I-684 in Bedford, mostly following the path of the Putnam Branch of the New York Central Railroad, which was abandoned in March 1970 (and which has largely been replaced by a paved path known as the South County and North County Trailways). The Sprain Brook Parkway traverses the county's midsection from a point in Yonkers where it breaks off from the Bronx River Parkway until Hawthorne about north where it merges with the Taconic State Parkway and continues until I-90 near Albany. The Hutchinson River Parkway lines the eastern county, from the Bronx (terminating at the Long Island crossing—the Whitestone Bridge) until the Connecticut state line in Greenwich, where it becomes the Merritt Parkway. I-684 begins at a junction with the Hutchinson River Parkway and I-287 in Harrison, and continues north into Putnam County (with a brief stretch in Greenwich, Connecticut) through Bedford and North Salem. The eastern most corridor is the I-95/New England Thruway which traverses the county on the Long Island Sound, from the Pelhams through the Town of Rye and into Connecticut. The East-West corridors are the Cross County Parkway, which traverses the southern county from Yonkers in the west through New Rochelle in the east, terminating at the Hutchinson River Parkway. The Cross Westchester Expressway/I-287 is the mid-county corridor spanning from the Tappan-Zee Bridge in Tarrytown to the west to I-95/New England Thruway in the east. The northern-most corridor is that approximating the US-202 route from Cortlandt, and the Bear Mountain Bridge, to Lewisboro and the Connecticut border. But unlike the more southerly corridors, US-202 is for the most part not a limited-access highway and has frequent traffic lights.

Robert Moses and others once proposed a bridge connecting Westchester with Nassau County, most likely using I-287 to do so. Public opposition was fierce, and the New York state government abandoned the plan.

Commuter train service in Westchester is provided by Metro-North Railroad (operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority). Metro-North operates three lines in the county; west to east, they are the Hudson, the Harlem and the New Haven lines, each of which stops in the Bronx between Westchester and Manhattan. Amtrak serves Croton-Harmon, New Rochelle and Yonkers. There are proposals for a cross-county rail line to connect all three lines and provide easier access to Stamford, Connecticut.

The MTA also operates a ferry service between Haverstraw in Rockland County and Ossining. New York Water Taxi operates a ferry from Yonkers to Battery Park City and the Financial District in Manhattan.

Bus service is provided by the Bee-Line Bus System (operated by the Westchester County Department of Transportation) both within Westchester and to Manhattan (BxM4C). The MTA Bus Company also runs the BxM3 to and from Getty Square in Yonkers to Midtown Manhattan.

Westchester County Airport is adjacent to White Plains.

Media In Westchester

There are quite a few county-wide media outlets, including:

• Westchester Magazine, an upscale lifestyle magazine focusing on Westchester County and its environs.
• The Journal News, a daily newspaper, owned by Gannett Company, Inc.. WCBS-TV operates a news-bureau in conjunction with The Journal News.
• The White Plains Times Local news coverage of White Plains and surrounding Westchester County.
• The Hudson Independent, a monthly news paper serving Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow & Irvington.
• InTown Westchester, a monthly lifestyle magazine published by The Journal News and Gannett.
• The Westchester County Business Journal, a weekly newspaper published by Westfair Communications Inc..
• The Westchester WAG a magazine of local people, events, and lifestyles.
• News 12 Westchester, a cable news station owned by Cablevision.
• WFAS-FM[7841] (103.9 FM), a radio station focusing on Westchester.
• White Plains CitizeNet Reporter a news site local people, events, and info.
• White Plains Week Weekly 30-minute news broadcast on what's happening in White Plains, NY.
• WXPK (107.1 FM), or The Peak, owned by Pamal Broadcasting.
• WRTN[7842] (93.5 FM), a radio station broadcasting from New Rochelle. Varied programming includes news, education, and music.
• RNN, a news station
• Pluma Libre News, a Hispanic newspaper serving Westchester County and part of Rockland County.
• WHUD[7843] (100.7 FM), located in Peekskill, focuses on the Hudson Valley and bills itself as "The Hudson Valley's news and information station".
• Westchester.com, a community newspaper covering Westchester County news and events.
• Elsolnews.com, a community Spanish newspaper covering Westchester County news and events.
• Westchester Guardian

Education

Westchester County contains 48 public school districts, 118 private college-preparatory and parochial schools, and 14 colleges and universities.

Libraries

Westchester County is served by the Westchester Library System which was established in 1958. The system comprises 38 public libraries.

Historic and cultural attractions

• Bronx River Parkway -The corridor along its namesake river in Westchester and the Bronx constitutes one of the world's first limited access highways. Planning for the non-commercial traffic artery began in 1907. It opened a decade and a half later and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Westchester segment constitutes the county's first park, the restoration of which is overseen by The Bronx River Parkway Reservation Conservancy. Across the New York City line, these tasks are carried out by Bronx River Alliance.
• Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts
• Croton Gorge Park
• Elephant Hotel in Somers, New York
• Emelin Theatre, Mamaroneck, New York
• Ever Rest, historic home of painter Jasper Francis Cropsey, Hastings-on-Hudson, New York
• Ferncliff Cemetery, Hartsdale, New York
• Hudson River Museum, Yonkers, New York
• Irvington Town Hall Theater, Irvington, New York
• Jacob Burns Film Center, Pleasantville, New York
• Jacob Purdy House, White Plains, New York
• 1838 Peter Augustus Jay House, Rye, New York, childhood home of New York Founding Father John Jay, managed by the Jay Heritage Center

• Katonah Museum of Art, Katonah, New York
• Leland Castle, located on the campus of The College of New Rochelle
• Donald M. Kendall Sculpture Gardens, PepsiCo, Inc. World Headquarters, Purchase, New York
• Kykuit, historic home that is part of the Rockefeller family estate founded by John D. Rockefeller, Pocantico Hills, New York
• Lyndhurst, historic Gothic Revival home, Tarrytown, New York
• Neuberger Museum of Art, Purchase College, Purchase, New York
• Old Croton Aqueduct and the Old Croton Trail

• Paramount Center for the Arts, Peekskill, New York
• Philipsburg Manor, historic site, Sleepy Hollow, New York
• Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site, Yonkers, New York
• Picture House Regional Film Center [7844], Pelham, New York
• Playland, America's only government owned and operated amusement park, Rye, New York
• The Performing Arts Center at Purchase College, Purchase, New York
• Sing Sing Prison, Ossining
• The Square House Museum, Rye
• Sunnyside, historic home of author Washington Irving, Tarrytown, New York
• Tarrytown Music Hall, Tarrytown
• Teatown Lake Reservation, Ossining
• Thomas Paine National Historical Association, New Rochelle
• The Timothy Knapp House, Rye
• Union Church, Pocantico Hills
• Westchester Jazz Orchestra, Chappaqua
• Westchester Philharmonic Orchestra, White Plains
• Yonkers Raceway, Yonkers

Geology

The rocks, which compose the Island of Manhattan in New York City and underlie the county of Westchester, are chiefly gneiss and mica-schist, with layers of dolmitic marble and serpentine.

See also

• USS Westchester County

Notes

1. Westchester County, New York - Income in the Past 12 Months (In 2006 Inflation-Adjusted Dollars)
2. Westchester County Sub-Regions

External links

• Westchester County official website
• The Westchester County Department of Public Safety
• Hudson Valley Directory