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LIVING IN ROCHESTER

Rochester has been named one of only ten communities in the United States to receive the All-American City Award, recognizing Rochester as a great place to live.

The third-largest urban area in the state of New York, Rochester is a port city on Lake Ontario, situated in Western New York. The greater metropolitan area has about 1.1 million residents. Rochester is located within a 400-mile radius of 14 northeastern states, Washington, D.C., New York City, and Toronto. It is the western gateway to the Finger Lakes region, and part of the country’s longest scenic byway, the Seaway Trail.

Rochester is known for high-tech manufacturing of Eastman Kodak, Xerox, Bausch and Lomb, and many other companies, but the city has preserved much of its historical character, and claims more sites on the National Register of Historic Places than any city of comparable size. Among them are sites relating to Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass, Rochester residents who played an important role in both the women’s suffrage and abolition movements. Two of Rochester’s major public parks, Genesee Valley Park and Seneca Park, were designed by the famous 19th-century American naturalist Frederick Law Olmstead, who also designed Manhattan’s Central Park.

Rochester’s cultural richness contributes to the city’s high marks for quality of life. The Eastman School’s location in the East End of downtown Rochester puts it within easy reach of most of the venues listed below. Churches, parks, libraries, popular restaurants, and downtown shopping are also close by.


LINKS TO LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS

Music

Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra
Rochester Chamber Orchestra
Rochester Oratorio Society
Rochester Bach Festival
Rochester Gay Men’s Chorus
Rochester International Jazz Festival
Madrigalia [chamber choir]
Water Street Music Hall (rock, pop)
The Bug Jar (rock, pop)


Dance

Garth Fagan Dance
Rochester City Ballet


Literature

Writers & Books [literary center]


Film

Dryden Theatre (George Eastman House)
High Falls Film Festival [women in film]
ImageOut Film Festival [GLBT films]
Little Theatres [independent and foreign films]


Theater

Geva Theatre
Downstairs Cabaret
Blackfriars Theatre
Off-Monroe Players (Gilbert & Sullivan)
Everyone’s Theatre Company, Inc.
Pittsford Musicals
Rochester Broadway Theatre League (national touring shows)
JCC CenterStage
Shipping Dock Theatre


Art Galleries/Photography/Museums

Memorial Art Gallery
International Museum of Photography (George Eastman House)
Rochester Contemporary (ROCO)
Oxford Gallery
Genesee Center for the Arts and Education
Rochester Museum and Science Center/Strasenburgh Planetarium
Strong Museum [family-oriented museum]
Ganondagan (Native American village and museum]
Genesee Country Village & Museum


Sports

Amerks (Americans) Hockey
Red Wings Baseball
Rhinos Soccer
Rattlers Lacrosse


Other Attractions

Center at High Falls
Seneca Park Zoo
Finger Lakes – wine country


More Information

Greater Rochester Visitors Association
RochesterDowntown.org
Rochester NY Sites
Rochester Arts & Cultural Council


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