Schenectady () is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New York, near the confluence of the

Mohawk Mohawk may refer to: Related to Native Americans * Mohawk people, an indigenous people of North America (Canada and New York) *Mohawk language, the language spoken by the Mohawk people * Mohawk hairstyle, from a hairstyle once thought to have been ...

and Hudson rivers. It is in the same metropolitan area as the state capital, Albany, which is about southeast. Schenectady was founded on the south side of the Mohawk River by Dutch colonists in the 17th century, many of whom came from the Albany area. The name "Schenectady" is derived from the

word ''skahnéhtati'', meaning "beyond the pines" and used for the area around

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

. Residents of the new village developed farms on strip plots along the river. Connected to the west by the Mohawk River and

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...

, Schenectady developed rapidly in the 19th century as part of the Mohawk Valley trade, manufacturing, and transportation corridor. By 1824, more people worked in manufacturing than agriculture or trade; like many New York cities, it had a cotton mill that processed cotton from the Deep South. In the 19th century, nationally influential companies and industries developed in Schenectady, including

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...

and American Locomotive Company (ALCO), which were powers into the mid-20th century. Schenectady was part of emerging technologies, with GE collaborating in the production of nuclear-powered submarines and, in the 21st century, working on other forms of renewable energy.

History

When first encountered by Europeans, the Mohawk Valley was the territory of the

Mohawk nation The Mohawk people ( moh, Kanienʼkehá꞉ka) are the most easterly section of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy. They are an Iroquoian-speaking Indigenous people of North America, with communities in southeastern Canada and norther ...

, one of the Five Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy, or ''Haudenosaunee.'' They had occupied territory in the region since at least 1100 AD. Starting in the early 1600s the Mohawk moved their settlements closer to the river and by 1629, they had also taken over territories on the Hudson River's west bank that were formerly held by the Algonquian-speaking

Mahican The Mohican ( or , alternate spelling: Mahican) are an Eastern Algonquian Native American tribe that historically spoke an Algonquian language. As part of the Eastern Algonquian family of tribes, they are related to the neighboring Lenape, w ...

people.

In the 1640s, the Mohawk had three major villages, all on the Mohawk River's south side. The easternmost one was Ossernenon, about 9 miles west of present-day

Auriesville, New York Auriesville is a hamlet in the northeastern part of the Town of Glen in Montgomery County, New York, United States, along the south bank of the Mohawk River and west of Fort Hunter. It lies about forty miles west of Albany, the state capital. ...

. When Dutch settlers developed

Fort Orange Fort Orange ( nl, Fort Oranje) was the first permanent Dutch settlement in New Netherland; the present-day city of Albany, New York developed at this site. It was built in 1624 as a replacement for Fort Nassau, which had been built on nearb ...

(present-day

) in the Hudson Valley beginning in 1614, the Mohawk called their settlement ''skahnéhtati,'' meaning "beyond the pines," referring to a large area of pine barrens between the Mohawk settlements and the Hudson River. About 3,200 acres of this unique ecosystem are now protected as the

Albany Pine Bush The Albany Pine Bush, referred to locally as the Pine Bush, is one of the largest of the 20 inland pine barrens in the world. It is centrally located in New York's Capital District within Albany and Schenectady counties, between the cities of A ...

. Eventually, this word entered the lexicon of the Dutch settlers. The settlers in Fort Orange used ''skahnéhtati'' to refer to the new village at the Mohawk flats (see below), which became known as Schenectady (with a variety of spellings). In 1661, Arendt van Corlaer, (later Van Curler), a Dutch immigrant, bought a large piece of land on the Mohawk River's south side. The Colonial government gave other colonists grants of land in this portion of the flat fertile river valley, as part of

New Netherland New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva P ...

. The settlers recognized the Mohawk had cultivated these bottomlands for maize by the Mohawk for centuries. Van Curler took the largest piece of land; the remainder was divided into 50-acre plots for the other first fourteen proprietors; Alexander Lindsey Glen, Philip Hendrickse Brouwer, Simon Volkertse Veeder, Pieter Adrianne Van Wogglelum, Teunize Cornelise Swart, Bastia De Winter atty for Catalyn De Vos, Gerrit Bancker, William Teller, Pieter Jacobse Borsboom, Pieter Danielle Van Olinda, Jan Barentse Wemp(le), Jacques Cornelize Van Slyck, Marten Cornelize Van Esselstyn, and Harmen Albertse Vedder. As most early colonists were from the Fort Orange area, they may have anticipated working as fur traders, but the

Beverwijck Beverwijck ( ; ), often written using the pre-reform orthography Beverwyck, was a fur-trading community north of Fort Orange on the Hudson River in New Netherland that was renamed and developed as Albany, New York, after the English took cont ...

(later Albany) traders kept a monopoly of legal control. The settlers here turned to farming. Their 50-acre lots were unique for the colony, "laid out in strips along the Mohawk River", with the narrow edges fronting the river, as in French colonial style. They relied on rearing livestock and wheat.Robert V. Wells, "Review: 'Mohawk Frontier: The Dutch Community of Schenectady, New York, 1661–1710' by Thomas E. Burke, Jr."
''The William and Mary Quarterly,'' Vol. 50, No. 1, Law and Society in Early America (Jan. 1993), pp. 214–216 The proprietors and their descendants controlled all the land of the town for generations,
''A History of the Schenectady Patent in the Dutch and English Times'' (1883), Schenectady Digital History Archive essentially acting as government until after the Revolutionary War, when representative government was established. Beginning from the first decades of

European colonization The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by the Phoenicians, the Greeks, the Turks, and the Arabs. Colonialism in the modern sense began ...

, Dutch colonists formed relationships with Mohawk women, though these did not usually result in marriage. Their children were raised within Mohawk communities, as the tribe had a matrilineal kinship system, and these multiracial offspring were considered to be born into the mother's clan. During the colonial era, the fur trade formed one of the important trading relationships between Indians and colonists. In response to labor shortages among Dutch colonists,

enslaved Africans The Atlantic slave trade, transatlantic slave trade, or Euro-American slave trade involved the transportation by slave traders of enslaved African people, mainly to the Americas. The slave trade regularly used the triangular trade route and i ...

were imported to work on farmsteads in Schenectady. Some Euro-Indian descendants, such as

Jacques Cornelissen Van Slyck Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are ove ...

and his sister Hilletie van Olinda, who were of Dutch, French and Mohawk ancestry, became interpreters and intermarried with Dutch colonists. They also gained land in the Schenectady settlement.Burke Jr, T. E., & Starna, W. A. (1991). ''Mohawk Frontier: The Dutch Community of Schenectady, New York, 1661–1710.'' SUNY Press, p. 93 They were among the few ''métis'' who seemed to move from Mohawk to Dutch society, as they were described as "former Indians", although they did not always have an easy time of it. In 1661 Jacques inherited what became known as Van Slyck's Island from his brother Marten, who had been given it by the Mohawk. Van Slyck family descendants retained ownership through the 19th century. In 1664, an English fleet conquered the colony of New Netherland and renamed it New York. They confirmed the monopoly on the fur trade by Albany, and issued orders to prohibit Schenectady from the trade through 1670 and later. Settlers purchased additional land from the Mohawk in 1670 and 1672. (Jacques and Hilletie Van Slyck each received portions of land in the Mohawk 1672 deed for Schenectady.) Twenty years later (1684) Governor

Thomas Dongan Thomas Dongan, (pronounced "Dungan") 2nd Earl of Limerick (1634 – 14 December 1715), was a member of the Irish Parliament, Royalist military officer during the English Civil War, and Governor of the Province of New York. He is noted for hav ...

granted letters patent for Schenectady to five additional trustees. On February 8, 1690, during

King William's War King William's War (also known as the Second Indian War, Father Baudoin's War, Castin's War, or the First Intercolonial War in French) was the North American theater of the Nine Years' War (1688–1697), also known as the War of the Grand All ...

, French forces and their

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

allies, mostly Ojibwe and Algonquin warriors, attacked Schenectady by surprise, leaving 62 dead, 11 of them enslaved Africans.Jonathan Pearson, Chap. 9, "Burning of Schenectady"
''History of the Schenectady Patent in the Dutch and English Times'', 1883, pp. 244–270 American history notes it as the

Schenectady massacre The Schenectady massacre was an attack against the colonial settlement of Schenectady in the English Province of New York on February 8, 1690. A raiding party of 114 French soldiers and militiamen, accompanied by 96 allied Mohawk and Algonquin wa ...

. A total of 27 persons were taken captive, including five enslaved Africans; the raiders took their captives overland about 200 miles to Montreal and its associated Mohawk mission village of

Kahnawake The Kahnawake Mohawk Territory (french: Territoire Mohawk de Kahnawake, in the Mohawk language, ''Kahnawáˀkye'' in Tuscarora) is a First Nations reserve of the Mohawks of Kahnawá:ke on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River in Queb ...

. Typically the younger captives were adopted by Mohawk families to replace people who had died.John Demos, '' The Unredeemed Captive: A Family Story from Early America'', Through the early 18th century in the raiding between Quebec and the northern British colonies, some captives were ransomed by their communities. Colonial governments got involved only for high-ranking officers or other officials. In 1748, during King George's War, the French and Indians attacked Schenectady again, killing 70 residents. In 1765, Schenectady was incorporated as a borough. During the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

the local militia unit, the

2nd Albany County Militia Regiment The 2nd Albany County Militia Regiment was the local militia unit for Schenectady, New York, during the American Revolutionary War under the command of Colonel Abraham Wemple. The regiment saw action with the Continental Army in 1777 at the ...

, fought in the Battle of Saratoga and against Loyalist troops. Most of the wars in the Mohawk Valley were fought further west on the frontier in the areas of the

German Palatine Palatines (german: Pfälzer), also known as the Palatine Dutch, are the people and princes of Palatinates ( Holy Roman principalities) of the Holy Roman Empire. The Palatine diaspora includes the Pennsylvania Dutch and New York Dutch. In 1 ...

settlement which was west of Little Falls. Because of their close business and other relationships with the British, some settlers from the city were Loyalists and moved to Canada in the late stages of the Revolution. The Crown granted them land in what became known as Upper Canada and later Ontario.

New Republic

It was not until after the Revolutionary War that the village residents reduced the power of the descendants of the early trustees and gained representative government. The settlement was chartered as a city in 1798. Long interested in supporting higher education and morals, the members of the city's three oldest churches—the Dutch First Reformed Church, St. Georges Episcopal Church, and First Presbyterian Church—formed a "union" and founded

Union College Union College is a private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the state of New York, after Columbia Co ...

in 1795 under a charter from the state. The school had started in 1785 as Schenectady Academy. This founding was part of the expansion of higher education in upstate New York in the postwar years. During this period, migrants poured into upstate and western New York from New England, but there were also new immigrants from England and Europe. Many traveled west along the Mohawk River, settling in the western part of the state, where they developed more agriculture on former Iroquois lands. A dairy industry developed in the central part of the state. New settlers were predominantly of English and Scotch-Irish descent. In 1819, Schenectady suffered a fire that destroyed more than 170 buildings and most of its historic, distinctive Dutch-style architecture.Prof. John Pearson, "Preface", p. xii, ''History of the Schenectady Patent in the Dutch and English Times'' (1883)
Library of Congress, full scanned text at Internet Archive New York had passed a law for gradual abolition of slavery in 1799,
''Slavery in the North'', 2003, accessed January 1, 2015 however in 1824 there were still a total of 102 slaves in Schenectady County with nearly half residing in the city. That year the city of Schenectady had a total population of 3939, which included 240 free blacks, 47 slaves, and 91 foreigners.
Embracing an Ample Survey and Description of Its Counties, Towns, Cities, Villages, Canals, Mountains, Lakes, Rivers, Creeks and Natural Topography. Arranged in One Series, Alphabetically: With an Appendix…'' (1824), at Schenectady Digital History Archives, selected extracts, accessed December 28, 2014 In the 19th century, after completion of the

in 1825, Schenectady became an important transportation, manufacturing and trade center. By 1824 more of its population worked in manufacturing than agriculture or trade. Among the industries was a cotton mill, which processed cotton from the Deep South. It was one of many such mills in upstate whose products were part of the exports shipped out of New York City. The city and state had many economic ties to the South at the same time that some residents became active in the

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

movement. Schenectady benefited by increased traffic connecting the Hudson River to the Mohawk Valley and the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lak ...

to the west and New York City to the south. The Albany and Schenectady Turnpike (now State Street) was constructed in 1797 to connect Albany to settlements in the Mohawk Valley. The Mohawk and Hudson Railroad started operations in 1831 as one of the first railway lines in the United States, connecting the city and Albany by a route through the

pine barrens Pine barrens, pine plains, sand plains, or pineland areas occur throughout the U.S. from Florida to Maine (see Atlantic coastal pine barrens) as well as the Midwest, West, and Canada and parts of Eurasia. Perhaps the most well known pine-barre ...

between them. Developers in Schenectady quickly founded the Utica & Schenectady Railroad, chartered in 1833; Schenectady & Susquehanna Railroad, chartered May 5, 1836; and Schenectady & Troy Railroad, chartered in 1836, making Schenectady "the rail hub of America at the time" and competing with the Erie Canal. Commodities from the Great Lakes areas and commercial products were shipped to the East and New York City through the Mohawk Valley and Schenectady. The last slaves in New York and Schenectady gained freedom in 1827, under the state's gradual abolition law. The law first gave freedom to children born to slave mothers, but they were indentured to the mother's master for a period into their early 20s.

established a school for black children in 1805, but discontinued it two years later. Methodists helped educate the children for a time but public schools did not accept them. In the 1830s, the

movement grew in Schenectady. In 1836, Rev.

Isaac Groot Duryee Isaac; grc, Ἰσαάκ, Isaák; ar, إسحٰق/إسحاق, Isḥāq; am, ይስሐቅ is one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He was th ...

(also recorded as Duryea) co-founded the interracial Anti-Slavery Society at Union College and the Anti-Slavery Society of Schenectady in 1837.

Freedom seekers In the United States, fugitive slaves or runaway slaves were terms used in the 18th and 19th century to describe people who fled slavery. The term also refers to the federal Fugitive Slave Acts of 1793 and 1850. Such people are also called freed ...

were supported via the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was a network of clandestine routes and safe houses established in the United States during the early- to mid-19th century. It was used by enslaved African Americans primarily to escape into free states and Canada. ...

route that ran through the area, passing to the west and north to Canada, which had abolished slavery. In 1837 Duryee, together with others who were free people of color, co-founded the

First Free Church of Schenectady First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

(now the Duryee Memorial AME Zion Church). He also started a school for students of color. The

Theodore S. Wright Theodore Sedgwick Wright (1797–1847), sometimes Theodore Sedgewick Wright, was an African-American abolitionist and minister who was active in New York City, where he led the First Colored Presbyterian Church as its second pastor. He was ...

, an African-American minister based in New York City, spoke at the church's dedication and praised the school.Theodore Sedgwick Wright, "Speech given during the dedication of the First Free Church of Schenectady, 28 December 1837"
''Emancipator'', at University of Detroit Mercy, accessed May 31, 2012 Through the late 19th century, new industries were established in the Mohawk Valley and powered by the river. Industrial jobs attracted many new immigrants, first from Ireland, and later in the century from Italy and Poland. In 1887,

Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventi ...

moved his

Edison Machine Works The Edison Machine Works was a manufacturing company set up to produce dynamos, large electric motors, and other components of the electrical illumination system being built in the 1880s by Thomas A. Edison in New York City. History The need fo ...

to Schenectady. In 1892, Schenectady became the headquarters of the General Electric Company. This business became a major industrial and economic force and helped establish the city and region as a national manufacturing center. GE became important nationally as a creative company, expanding into many different fields. American Locomotive Company also developed here, from a Schenectady company, and merging several smaller companies in 1901; it was second in the United States in the manufacture of steam locomotives before developing diesel technology.

20th century to present

Like other industrial cities in the Mohawk Valley, in the early 20th century, Schenectady attracted many new immigrants from eastern and southern Europe, as they could fill many of the new industrial jobs. It also attracted African Americans as part of the Great Migration out of the rural South to northern cities for work.Gregory, James N. (2009) "The Second Great Migration: An Historical Overview," ''African American Urban History: The Dynamics of Race, Class and Gender since World War II'', eds. Joe W. Trotter Jr. and Kenneth L. Kusmer. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, p. 22. General Electric and American Locomotive Company (ALCO) were industrial powerhouses, influencing innovation in a variety of fields across the country. Schenectady is home to WGY, the second commercial radio station in the United States, (after WBZ in Springfield, Massachusetts which was the first station and named for Westinghouse). WGY was named for its owner, General Electric (the G), and the city of Schenectady (the Y). In 1928, General Electric produced the first regular television broadcasts in the United States, when the experimental station W2XB began regular broadcasts on Thursday and Friday afternoons. This television station is now

WRGB WRGB (channel 6) is a television station licensed to Schenectady, New York, United States, serving the Capital District as an affiliate of CBS. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group alongside CW affiliate WCWN (channel 45, also licensed to Sc ...

; for many years it was the Capital District's

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

affiliate. It has been the area's

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

affiliate since 1981. The city reached its peak of population in 1930. The Great Depression caused a loss of jobs and population in its wake. In the postwar period after World War II, some residents moved to newer housing in suburban locations outside the city. In addition, General Electric established some high-tech facilities in the neighboring town of

Niskayuna Niskayuna is a town in Schenectady County, New York, United States. The population was 23,278 at the 2020 census. The town is located in the southeast part of the county, east of the city of Schenectady, and is the easternmost town in the county. ...

, which contributed to continuing population growth in the county. In the latter part of the 20th century, Schenectady suffered from the massive industrial and corporate restructuring that affected much of the US, including in the railroads. It lost many jobs and population to other locations, including offshore. Since the late 20th century, it has been shaping a new economy, based in part on renewable energy. Its population increased from 2000 to 2010.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the city has a total area of , of which of it is land and of it (1.27%) is water. It is part of the

Capital District A capital district, capital region or capital territory is normally a specially designated administrative division where a country's seat of government is located. As such, in a federal model of government, no state or territory has any poli ...

, the metropolitan area surrounding Albany, the state of New York's capital. Along with Albany and

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in present-day Turkey, south-west of Ç ...

, it is one of the three principal population and industrial centers in the region. Interstate 890 runs through Schenectady, and the New York State Thruway (Interstate 90) is nearby. Amtrak has a station in Schenectady. The nearest airport is

Schenectady County Airport Schenectady County Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) north of the central business district of Schenectady, a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States. It is included in the Na ...

; the nearest commercial airport is Albany International Airport. ZIP code 12345, which is used by the GE plant in Schenectady, has attracted media attention on account of its simplicity. Schenectady has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

that is hot-summer (''Dfa'') bordering upon warm-summer (''Dfb''.) Average monthly temperatures range from 22.9 °F in January to 71.8 °F in Jul

Economy

Schenectady was a manufacturing center known as "The City that Lights and Hauls the World"—a reference to two prominent businesses in the city, the Edison Electric Company (now known as

), and the American Locomotive Company (ALCO). GE retains its steam turbine manufacturing facilities in Schenectady and its Global Research facility in nearby

. Thousands of manufacturing jobs have been relocated from Schenectady to the Sun Belt and abroad. Corporate headquarters are now in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

. ALCO produced steam locomotives for railroads for years. Later it became renowned for its "Superpower" line of high-pressure locomotives, such as those for the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

in the 1930s and 1940s. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, it converted to support the war, making tanks for the US Army. As diesel locomotives began to be manufactured, ALCO joined with GE to develop diesel locomotives to compete with GM's EMD division. But corporate restructuring to cope with the changing locomotive procurement environment led to ALCO's slow downward spiral. Its operations fizzled as it went through acquisitions and restructuring in the late 1960s. Its Schenectady plant closed in 1969. In the late 20th century, due to industrial restructuring, the city lost many jobs and suffered difficult financial times, as did many former manufacturing cities in upstate New York. The loss of employment caused Schenectady's population to decline by nearly one-third from 1950 into the late 20th century. The early industries had left many sites contaminated with hazardous wastes. Such environmental

brownfields In urban planning, brownfield land is any previously developed land that is not currently in use. It may be potentially contaminated, but this is not required for the area to be considered brownfield. The term is also used to describe land pre ...

have needed technical approaches for redevelopment. In the 21st century, Schenectady began revitalization. GE established a renewable energy center that brought hundreds of employees to the area. The city is part of a metropolitan area with improving economic health, and a number of buildings have been renovated for new uses. Numerous small businesses, retail stores and restaurants have developed on State Street downtown.

Price Chopper Supermarkets Golub Corporation is an American supermarket operator. Headquartered in Schenectady, New York, it owns the chains Market 32 and Price Chopper Supermarkets. The company opened its first supermarkets in New York's Capital District in 1932, and c ...

and the

New York Lottery The New York Lottery is the state-operated lottery in the US state of New York that began in 1967. As part of the New York State Gaming Commission, it provides revenue for public education and is based in Schenectady. Overview Players must be ...

are based in Schenectady. In December 2014, the state announced that the city was one of three sites selected for development of off-reservation casino gambling, under terms of a 2013 state constitutional amendment. The project would redevelop an ALCO brownfield site in the city along the waterfront, with hotels, housing and a marina in addition to the casino.Rick Karlin, Kenneth C. Crowe II and Paul Nelson, "Fortune smiles on Schenectady casino proposal"
''Times Union,'' December 18, 2014, accessed December 18, 2014 In February 2017, the Rivers Casino & Resort opened with 66 table games and 1,150 slot machines on a 50,000-square-foot gambling floor with a steakhouse and a restaurant lounge.Nelson, Paul
Rivers Casino & Resort opens in Schenectady
''Times Union''. February 8, 2017. The $480 million residential-retail project on 60 acres includes a marina, two hotels, condos, apartments and retail and office space for tech firms.

Demographics

In the census of 2010, there were 66,135 people, 26,265 (2000 data) households, and 14,051 (2000 data) families residing in the city. The population density was 6,096.7 people per square mile (2,199.9/km²). There were 30,272 (2000 data) housing units at an average density of 2,790.6 per square mile (1,077.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 59.38% (52.31% Non-Hispanic) (7.07 White-Hispanic)

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 24.19%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 14.47%

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

of any race, 8.24% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, 5.74% from two or more races, 2.62% Asian American, 0.69% Native American, and 0.14%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

. There is a growing Guyanese population in the area. The top ancestries self-identified by people on the census are Italian (13.6%), Guyanese (12.3%), Irish (12.1%), Puerto Rican (10.1%), German (8.7%), English (6.0%), Polish (5.4%), French (4.4%). These reflect historic and early 20th-century immigration, as well as that since the late 20th century. The Schenectady City School District is very diverse; (71%- 2011)(80%–2013) of district students receive free or reduced lunch. The student population of the school district is

majority minority A majority-minority or minority-majority area is a term used to refer to a subdivision in which one or more racial, ethnic, and/or religious minorities (relative to the whole country's population) make up a majority of the local population. Ter ...

: 35% Black (48% Graduate), 32% White (71% Graduate), 18% Hispanic (51% Graduate), 15% Asian (68% Graduate). As of 2016, the graduation rate for the high school was 56%. Using 2010 data, there were 28,264 households, out of which 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 28.0% were married couples living together, 24.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 45.5% were non-families. 38.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.98. In the city, the year 2010 population was spread out, with 26.3% under the age of 18, 13.6% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 7.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32. For every 100 females, there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.4 males. The median income for a household in the city in 2000 was $29,378 (2010–$37,436), and the median income for a family was $41,158. Males had a median income of $32,929 versus $26,856 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,076. About 20.2% of families and 25.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 41.5% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.

Religion

The largest religious body is the Catholic church, with 44,000 adherents, followed by Islam, with 6,000 followers. The third largest religious body is the Reformed Church in America, with 3,600 members. The fourth is the United Methodist denomination, with 2,800 members. Notable congregations are the

First Presbyterian Church (Schenectady, New York) First Presbyterian Church in Schenectady, New York is a historic Presbyterian Church in America congregation. The roots of the congregation go back to the 1730s. Episcopalians and Presbyterians had used the St. George's Episcopal Church building, ...

, which is affiliated with the PCA. First Reformed Church RCA is formed in the 17th century, one of the oldest churches in the town. St George's Episcopal Church dates back to 1735; it shared facilities with the Presbyterians for more than 30 years.

Rail transportation

Schenectady Station -- New Station Oct 2018 01

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...

, the national passenger rail system, provides regular service to Schenectady, with

Schenectady station Schenectady station is an Amtrak intercity train station in Schenectady, New York. The station, constructed in 2018 is owned by the Capital District Transportation Authority which also owns Albany–Rensselaer station and Saratoga Springs station. ...

at 322 Erie Boulevard. Trains include the '' Ethan Allen,'' '' Adirondack,'' ''

Lake Shore Limited The ''Lake Shore Limited'' is an overnight Amtrak intercity passenger train that runs between Chicago and either New York City or Boston via two sections east of Albany. The train began service in 1975; its predecessor was Amtrak's Chicago– ...

,'' ''

Maple Leaf The maple leaf is the characteristic leaf of the maple tree. It is the most widely recognized national symbol of Canada. History of use in Canada By the early 1700s, the maple leaf had been adopted as an emblem by the French Canadians along th ...

,'' and ''

Empire Service The ''Empire Service'' is an Inter-city rail service operated by Amtrak within the state of New York in the United States. The brand name originated with the New York Central Railroad in 1967. Trains on the line provide frequent daily service ...

''. Schenectady also has freight rail service from Canadian Pacific Railway and Norfolk Southern Railway. In the early 20th century, Schenectady had an extensive

streetcar A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport a ...

system that provided both local and

interurban The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 ...

passenger service. The Schenectady Railway Co. had local lines and interurban lines serving Albany,

Ballston Spa Ballston Spa is a village and the county seat of Saratoga County, New York, United States, located southwest of Saratoga Springs. The population of the village, named after Rev. Eliphalet Ball, a Congregationalist clergyman and an early settler, w ...

Saratoga Springs Saratoga Springs is a city in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 28,491 at the 2020 census. The name reflects the presence of mineral springs in the area, which has made Saratoga a popular resort destination for over ...

and

. There was also a line from

Gloversville Gloversville is a city in the Mohawk Valley region of Upstate New York, and the most populous city in Fulton County. Gloversville was once the hub of the United States' glovemaking industry, with over two hundred manufacturers in Gloversville an ...

, Johnstown,

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

, and

Scotia Scotia is a Latin placename derived from ''Scoti'', a Latin name for the Gaels, first attested in the late 3rd century.Duffy, Seán. ''Medieval Ireland: An Encyclopedia''. Routledge, 2005. p.698 The Romans referred to Ireland as "Scotia" around ...

into Downtown Schenectady operated by the

Fonda, Johnstown, and Gloversville Railroad The Fonda, Johnstown and Gloversville Railroad (FJ&G) was formerly a 132-mile steam engine and electric interurban railroad that connected its namesake towns in east central New York State to Schenectady, New York. It had a successful and profita ...

. The nearly 200 leather and glove companies in the Gloversville region generated considerable traffic for the line. Sales representatives carrying product sample cases began their sales campaigns throughout the rest of the country by taking the interurban to reach Schenectady's New York Central Railroad station, where they connected to trains to New York City, Chicago and points between. The bright orange FJ&G interurbans were scheduled to meet every daylight New York Central train that stopped at Schenectady. Through the 1900s and into the early 1930s, the line was quite prosperous. In 1932 the FJ&G purchased five lightweight "bullet cars" (#125 through 129) from the

J. G. Brill Company The J.G. Brill Company manufactured streetcars,Young, Andrew D. (1997). ''Veteran & Vintage Transit'', p. 101. St. Louis: Archway Publishing. interurban coaches, motor buses, trolleybuses and railroad cars in the United States for almos ...

. These interurbans represented state-of-the-art design: the "bullet" description referred to the unusual front roof that was designed to slope down to the windshield in an aerodynamically sleek way. FJ&G bought the cars believing that there would be continuing strong passenger business from a prosperous glove and leather industry, as well as legacy tourism traffic to Lake Sacandaga north of Gloversville. Instead, roads were improved, automobiles became cheaper and were purchased more widely, tourists traveled greater distances by car, and the Great Depression decreased business overall. FJ&G ridership continued to decline and in 1938 the state of New York condemned the line's bridge over the Mohawk River at Schenectady. The bridge had once carried cars, pedestrians, and the interurban, but ice flow damage in 1928 prompted the state to restrict its use to the interurban. When the state condemned the bridge for interurban use, the line abandoned passenger service, and the bullet cars were sold. Freight business had also been important to the FJ&G, and it continued over the risky bridge into Schenectady a few more years.

Places of interest

Proctors Theatre Proctor's Theatre (officially stylized as Proctors since 2007; however, the marquee retains the apostrophe) is a theatre and former vaudeville house located in Schenectady, New York, Schenectady, New York (state), New York, United States. Many fam ...

is an arts center. Built in 1926 as a vaudeville/movie theater, it has been refurbished in the 21st century. It is home to "Goldie," a Wurlitzer theater pipe organ. Proctor's was also the site of one of the first public demonstrations of television, projecting an image from a studio at the GE plant a mile .6 kmaway. Its 2007 renovation added two theaters: Proctors is home to three theaters, including the historic Mainstage, the GE Theatre, and 440 Upstairs. * The

Stockade Historic District The Stockade Historic District is located in the northwest corner of Schenectady, New York, United States, on the banks of the Mohawk River. It is the oldest neighborhood in the city, continuously inhabited for over 300 years. Union College fi ...

features dozens of Dutch and English Colonial houses from the 18th and 19th centuries. It is the state of New York's first historic district, designated in 1965 by the Department of Interior and named after the historic stockade that originally surrounded the colonial settlement. * The

Schenectady County Historical Society The Schenectady County Historical Society, located in Schenectady, New York, was established on July 14, 1905, under the Membership Corporation Laws of the State of New York. The Society is an independent not-for-profit corporation, not a unit of g ...

has a History Museum and the Grems-Doolittle research library, both at 32 Washington Avenue in the Stockade District. It has adapted a house originally built in 1895 for the Jackson family. It was used by the GE Women's Club from 1915 until 1957, when it was donated to the Historical Society. The History Museum tells of the history of Schenectady, the Yates Doll House, the Erie Canal, the Glen-Sanders Collection, etc. The research library has many collections of papers, photographs, and books. It welcomes people doing local and genealogical research. * The

General Electric Realty Plot The General Electric Realty Plot, often referred to locally as the GE Realty Plot, GE Plots or just The Plot, is a residential neighborhood in Schenectady, New York, United States. It is an area of approximately just east of Union College. Origi ...

, near

, was one of the first planned residential neighborhoods in the U.S. and designed to attract GE executives in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It features an eclectic collection of grand homes in a variety of architectural styles, including Tudor, Dutch Colonial, Queen Anne, and Spanish Colonial. The Plot is home to the first all-electric home in the United States. It hosts an annual House and Garden Tour. *

, adjacent to the GE Realty Plot, is the oldest planned college campus in the United States. The campus features the unique 16-sided Nott Memorial building, built in 1875, and Jackson's Garden, eight acres (32,000 m²) of formal gardens and woodlands. * Central Park is the crown jewel of Schenectady's parks. It occupies the highest elevation point in the city. The Common Council voted in 1913 to purchase the land for the present site of the park. The park features an acclaimed rose garden and Iroquois Lake. Its stadium tennis court was the former home to the New York Buzz of the

World Team Tennis World TeamTennis (WTT) is a mixed-gender professional tennis league played with a team format in the United States, which was founded in 1973. The league's season normally takes place in the summer months. Players from the ATP and WTA take a ...

league (as of 2008). Central Park was named after New York City's Central Park. * The Schenectady Museum features exhibits on the development of science and technology. It contains the Suits-Bueche Planetarium. *

Schenectady City Hall Schenectady City Hall is the seat of government of the city of Schenectady, New York, United States. Designed by McKim, Mead, and White, the building was constructed between 1931 and 1933.

is the focal point of city government. Designed by

McKim, Mead and White McKim, Mead & White was an American architectural firm that came to define architectural practice, urbanism, and the ideals of the American Renaissance in fin de siècle New York. The firm's founding partners Charles Follen McKim (1847–1909), ...

, it was built in 1933 during the Great Depression. * Schenectady's Municipal Golf Course is an 18-hole championship facility sited among oaks and pines. Designed in 1935 by Jim Thompson under the

WPA WPA may refer to: Computing *Wi-Fi Protected Access, a wireless encryption standard *Windows Product Activation, in Microsoft software licensing * Wireless Public Alerting (Alert Ready), emergency alerts over LTE in Canada * Windows Performance An ...

, the course was ranked by '' Golf Digest'' among "Best Places to Play in 2004" and received a three-star rating. * Jay Street, between Proctor's and City Hall, is a short street partially closed to motor traffic. It features a number of small, independently operated businesses and eateries and is a popular destination. Just past the pedestrian section of Jay Street is Schenectady's Little Italy on North Jay Street. *

Schenectady Light Opera Company Schenectady Light Opera Company (SLOC Musical Theater) is a nonprofit community theater organization in Schenectady, New York, established in 1926. The current location of the theater is at the new performance art center at 427 Franklin Street, in ...

(SLOC) is a community theater group on Franklin Street in downtown Schenectady. * The Edison Tech Center exhibits and promotes the physical development of engineering and technology from Schenectady and elsewhere. It provides online and on-site displays that promote learning about electricity and its applications in technology. * Upper Union Street Business Improvement District, near the Niskayuna boundary, is home to almost 100 independently owned businesses, including a score of restaurants, upscale retail, specialty shops, salons and services. *

Vale Cemetery Vale Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery and the largest cemetery in Schenectady, New York. It opened on 21 October 1857 when the Rev. Julius Seely dedicated what was then termed "the Vale". It has tripled its size since opening and today it ...

, listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

, includes more than 30,000 burials of noted and ordinary residents of the city. It includes the historic African-American Burying Ground, where city residents annually celebrate anniversaries of

Juneteenth Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. Deriving its name from combining "June" and "nineteenth", it is celebrated on the anniversary of General Order No. 3, i ...

and

Emancipation Emancipation generally means to free a person from a previous restraint or legal disability. More broadly, it is also used for efforts to procure economic and social rights, political rights or equality, often for a specifically disenfranch ...

Education

The city is served by the

Schenectady City School District The Schenectady City School District is a public city school district in the city of Schenectady in Schenectady County, New York. The district has 17 operating school buildings and is a component district of the Capital Region Boards of Coop ...

, which operates 16 elementary schools, three middle schools and the main high school

Schenectady High School Schenectady High School is a high school located at 1445 The Plaza in Schenectady, New York, USA. It was founded in 1992 through the merger of Linton High School and Mont Pleasant High School. It is the only high school in the Schenectady City ...

Brown School Brown School is a private, nondenominational elementary, middle school and high school in Schenectady, New York in the United States. It provides instruction for about 300 students in grades one through eight. It also offers nursery and kinderg ...

is a private, nonsectarian kindergarten-through-8th grade school. Catholic schools are administered by the Diocese of Albany.

Wildwood School Wildwood School is an independent progressive K–12 school located in Los Angeles. Wildwood was founded as an elementary school in 1971, by a group of parents led by a young lawyer named Belle Mason. The secondary campus (middle and high schoo ...

is a

special education Special education (known as special-needs education, aided education, exceptional education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, special ed., SDC, or SPED) is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates th ...

, all-ages school. Schenectady's tertiary educational institutions are

, a private liberal arts college, and Schenectady County Community College, a public community college.

Representation in popular culture

Due to its early importance in national history and the economy, Schenectady figured in popular culture.

Fiction

* Author

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

gave his lead character Daisy Miller, in his 1878 novella of the same name, an origin in Schenectady. * Schenectady is referred to or the setting for several of

Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American writer known for his satirical and darkly humorous novels. In a career spanning over 50 years, he published fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and ...

's books, most notably ''Hocus Pocus'' and ''Player Piano''. *

Doctor Octopus Doctor Octopus (Dr. Otto Gunther Octavius), also known as Doc Ock for short, is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko and first appeared in ''Th ...

, a

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

supervillain, was born in Schenectady. *

Joseph S. Pulver Joseph S. Pulver Sr. (July 5, 1955 – April 24, 2020) was an author and poet, much of whose work falls within the horror fiction, noir fiction / hardboiled, and dark fantasy genres. He lived in Germany, and died from COPD and other issues in a ...

, Sr.'s

Lovecraftian Lovecraftian horror, sometimes used interchangeably with "cosmic horror", is a subgenre of horror fiction and weird fiction that emphasizes the horror of the unknowable and incomprehensible more than gore or other elements of shock. It is named a ...

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

novel, ''Nightmare's Disciple'' (

Chaosium Chaosium Inc. is a publisher of tabletop role-playing games established by Greg Stafford in 1975. Chaosium's major titles include '' Call of Cthulhu'', based on the horror fiction stories of H. P. Lovecraft'', RuneQuest Glorantha'', ''Pendragon ...

, 1999) is set in Schenectady. * Science fiction writer Isaac Asimov placed the corporate headquarters and factory of U.S. Robots and Mechanical Men, Inc. (fictional 21st century manufacturer of robots) in Schenectady. * Science fiction writer Harlan Ellison said that anytime a fan or interviewer asked him "Where do you get your ideas?", he would reply "Schenectady". Science fiction writer Barry Longyear subsequently titled a collection of his short stories ''It Came From Schenectady''.

Film and TV

* In ''

Objective, Burma! ''Objective, Burma!'' is a 1945 American war film that is loosely based on the six-month raid by Merrill's Marauders in the Burma Campaign during the Second World War. Directed by Raoul Walsh and starring Errol Flynn, the film was made by Warner ...

'' (1945), Sid Jacobs (William Prince) tells Mark Williams (Henry Hull) about his house on Crane Street in Schenectady. He had taught at Pleasant Valley school before the war. * In the 1950s television series, ''

The Honeymooners ''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom which originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It fo ...

'', Trixie's mother was from Schenectady. * ''

The Way We Were ''The Way We Were'' is a 1973 American romantic drama film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford. Arthur Laurents wrote both the novel and screenplay based on his college days at Cornell University and his ...

'' (1973) was filmed on location at Union College, and in nearby

. * The 1980s film ''

Heart Like a Wheel ''Heart Like a Wheel'' is the fifth solo studio album by Linda Ronstadt, released in November 1974. It was Ronstadt's last album to be released by Capitol Records. At the time of its recording, Ronstadt had already moved to Asylum Records and r ...

'' is mostly set in Schenectady. * The 1996 made-for-TV film '' Unabomber: The True Story'' starring Robert Hays as David Kaczynski, brother of unabomber

Ted Kaczynski Theodore John Kaczynski ( ; born May 22, 1942), also known as the Unabomber (), is an American domestic terrorist and former mathematics professor. Between 1978 and 1995, Kaczynski killed three people and injured 23 others in a nationwide ...

, refers to Schenectady, where David and his wife were living when they figured out his brother's involvement in the bombings. *''

Star Trek: Enterprise ''Star Trek: Enterprise'', titled simply ''Enterprise'' for its first two seasons, is an American science fiction television series created by Rick Berman and Brannon Braga. It originally aired from September 26, 2001, to May 13, 2005 on Uni ...

'' (2001),

Starfleet Starfleet is a fictional organization in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. Within this fictional universe, Starfleet is a uniformed space force maintained by the United Federation of Planets ("the Federation") as the principal means for conduc ...

Captain

Jonathan Archer Jonathan Archer is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' franchise. He is the protagonist of the television series ''Star Trek: Enterprise'', where he is portrayed by Scott Bakula. Archer is the commanding officer of the first starship ' ...

is born in Schenectady in 2112. * ''

The Time Machine ''The Time Machine'' is a science fiction novella by H. G. Wells, published in 1895. The work is generally credited with the popularization of the concept of time travel by using a vehicle or device to travel purposely and selectively for ...

'' (2002), the remake starring

Guy Pearce Guy Edward Pearce (born 5 October 1967) is an Australian actor. Born in Ely, Cambridgeshire in England, and raised in Geelong, Victoria in Australia, he started his career portraying Mike Young in the Australian television series ''Neighbours ...

, features Schenectady's Central Park in the ice skating scenes, standing in for New York City's Central Park. * '' Synecdoche, New York'' (2008) is a film partially set in Schenectady, where some scenes were shot. It plays on the aural similarity between the city's name and the figure of speech synecdoche. * In the ABC-TV series ''

Ugly Betty ''Ugly Betty'' is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which was originally broadcast on ABC. It premiered on September 28, 2006, and ended on April 14, 2010. The series is based on Fernando Gaitán's Colombi ...

'', Marc St. James (played by

Michael Urie Michael Lorenzo Urie (born August 8, 1980) is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Marc St. James on the ABC dramedy television series ''Ugly Betty''. He can be heard as Bobby Kerns in ''As the Curtain Rises'', an original podca ...

) is said to be from Schenectady. * ''

Winter of Frozen Dreams ''Winter of Frozen Dreams'' is a 2009 independent American crime drama film directed by Eric Mandelbaum, and starring Thora Birch, Keith Carradine, and Brendan Sexton III. The film follows the story of Barbara Hoffman, a Wisconsin biochemistry st ...

'' (2009) was entirely filmed in Schenectady County, but is set in Wisconsin, where the historic events took place. It features the Schenectady, the Town of Rotterdam, and the Village of Scotia, all in New York. The film stars

Thora Birch Thora Birch (born March 11, 1982) is an American actress and producer. She made her feature film debut in 1988 with a starring role in ''Purple People Eater'', for which she received a Young Artist Award for "Best Young Actress Under Nine Years ...

as Barbara Hoffman, the historic Wisconsin murderer, and

Keith Carradine Keith Ian Carradine ( ; born August 8, 1949) is an American actor who has had success on stage, film, and television. He is known for his roles as Tom Frank in Robert Altman's film ''Nashville'', Wild Bill Hickok in the HBO series '' Deadwood ...

as a detective determined to catch her. * ''

The Place Beyond the Pines ''The Place Beyond the Pines'' is a 2012 American epic crime drama film directed by Derek Cianfrance, and written by Cianfrance, Ben Coccio, and Darius Marder. The film tells three linear stories: Luke (Ryan Gosling), a motorcycle stunt rider ...

'' (2013), starring

Bradley Cooper Bradley Charles Cooper (born January 5, 1975) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award and two Grammy Awards, in addition to nominations for nine Academy Awards, si ...

and Ryan Gosling, was filmed locally in 2011 near the Schenectady Police Headquarters and other areas of Schenectady. * In the NBC sitcom ''

Will & Grace ''Will & Grace'' is an American television sitcom created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan. Set in New York City, the show focuses on the friendship between best friends Will Truman ( Eric McCormack), a gay lawyer, and Grace Adler ( Debra Messi ...

'', Schenectady is the hometown of character

Grace Adler Grace Elizabeth Adler (formerly Adler-Markus) is a fictional character and one of the two titular protagonists in the American sitcom ''Will & Grace'', portrayed by Debra Messing. A Jewish interior designer living in New York City, she lives wit ...

(played by

Debra Messing Debra Lynn Messing (born August 15, 1968) is an American actress. After graduating from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, Messing received short-lived roles on television series such as '' Ned and Stacey'' on Fox (1995–1997) and ...

Music

* The music video for the song "

Hero A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ''actor''), ''her ...

" by Mariah Carey was filmed at

in Schenectady. * The song " Someone to Love" by

Fountains of Wayne Fountains of Wayne was an American rock band that formed in New York City in 1995. The band included founding members Chris Collingwood, Adam Schlesinger, Jody Porter, and Brian Young. They released five albums from 1996 to 2011 before e ...

, refers to fictional character Seth Shapiro moving from Schenectady in 1993 to

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. * The song "Join the Circus", the last major number in Cy Coleman's musical

Barnum Phineas Taylor Barnum (; July 5, 1810 – April 7, 1891) was an American showman, businessman, and politician, remembered for promoting celebrated hoaxes and founding the Barnum & Bailey Circus (1871–2017) with James Anthony Bailey. He wa ...

, mentions the city in its lyric.

Notable people

* Stephen Alexander (1806–1883), astronomer, mathematician, and educator *

Horatio Allen Horatio Allen (May 10, 1802 – December 31, 1889) was an American civil engineer and inventor, and President of Erie Railroad in the year 1843–1844. Biography Born in Schenectady, New York, he graduated from Columbia University in 1823, a ...

(1802–1889), railroad engineer and inventor *

Ralph Alpher Ralph Asher Alpher (February 3, 1921 – August 12, 2007) was an American cosmologist, who carried out pioneering work in the early 1950s on the Big Bang model, including Big Bang nucleosynthesis and predictions of the cosmic microwave backgroun ...

(1921–2007), cosmologist, won

National Medal of Science The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social scienc ...

for seminal work on

Big Bang Theory The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...

Chester Arthur Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 21st president of the United States from 1881 to 1885. He previously served as the 20th vice president under President James A ...

(1829–1886), U.S. president, lived in Schenectady while attending Union College *

Kumar Barve Kumar Prabhakar Barve (; born September 8, 1958) is an American politician. He is a member of the Maryland House of Delegates, representing district 17 in Montgomery County, which includes the cities of Rockville and Gaithersburg. He was the fi ...

(born 1958), Majority Leader and first Indian-American legislator in the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the legislature of the State of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House on State Circle in Annapolis, ...

Suzanne Basso Suzanne Margaret "Sue" Basso ( Burns; May 15, 1954 – February 5, 2014) was an American woman who was one of six co-defendants convicted in the August 1998 torture and murder of Louis "Buddy" Musso, a mentally disabled man who was killed for his ...

, murderer * Andy Bloom (born 1973), Olympic shotputter *

Jim Barbieri James Patrick Barbieri (born September 15, 1941) is an American former outfielder in Major League Baseball (MLB) who played for the 1966 Los Angeles Dodgers and appeared in the World Series. He later played in Japan with the Chunichi Dragons in 1 ...

(born 1941), MLB outfielder who played for Schenectady's

1954 Little League World Series The 1954 Little League World Series was held from August 24 to August 27 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The Schenectady Little League of Schenectady, New York, defeated the Colton Little League of Colton, California, in the championship game of th ...

championship team *

Maria Brink Maria Brink (born December 18, 1977) is an American singer and songwriter, best known as the frontwoman of the metal band The band has gone on to release seven studio albums and receive four nominations, two from Alternative Press Music Awards, ...

(born 1977), lead singer of band

In This Moment In This Moment is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed by singer Maria Brink and guitarist Chris Howorth in 2005. They found drummer Jeff Fabb and started the band as Dying Star. Unhappy with their musical direction, they ...

, was born in Schenectady *

Pat Cadigan Patricia Oren Kearney Cadigan (born September 10, 1953) is a British-American science fiction author, whose work is most often identified with the cyberpunk movement. Her novels and short stories often explore the relationship between the hum ...

(born 1953), science fiction author, was born in Schenectady *

Greg Capullo Gregory Capullo (; born March 30, 1962) is an American comic book artist and penciller, best known for his work on ''Quasar'' (1991–1992), '' X-Force'' (1992–1993), ''Angela'' (1994), ''Spawn'' (1993–2000, 2003–2004) and ''Batman'' (2011� ...

(born 1962), comic book artist, was born in Schenectady * Bruce W. Carter (1950-1969), USMC, Medal of Honor Recipient, was born in Schenectady *

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 76th governor of Georgia from 1 ...

(born 1924), U.S. president, studied briefly at

Billy Connors William Joseph Connors (November 2, 1941 – June 18, 2018) was an American player, coach and front office official in professional baseball. A pitcher born in Schenectady, New York, he threw and batted right-handed, stood tall and weighed in ...

(1941–2018), MLB pitcher, coach and executive who played for Schenectady's

championship team *

Jackie Craven Jackie Craven is an American poet and author with a broad background in arts and the humanities. Career She's the author of ''Secret Formulas & Techniques of the Masters'' (Brick Road Poetry Press, 2018) and a chapbook of fabulist tales, ''Our ...

, architectural writer *

Dexter Curtis Dexter Curtis (September 12, 1828 – May 15, 1898) was an American inventor, businessman, and politician. Born in Schenectady, New York, Curtis grew up on a farm. He was in the lumber business and lived in Louisiana, Michigan, and Chicago, Ill ...

(1828–1898), Wisconsin State Assemblyman, was born in Schenectady *

Mary Daly Mary Daly (October 16, 1928–January 3, 2010) was an American radical feminist philosopher and theologian. Daly, who described herself as a "radical lesbian feminist", taught at the Jesuit-run Boston College for 33 years. Once a practicing ...

(1928–2010), feminist theologian *

Ann B. Davis Ann Bradford Davis (May 3, 1926 – June 1, 2014) was an American actress. She achieved prominence for her role in the NBC situation comedy '' The Bob Cummings Show'' (1955–1959), for which she twice won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outs ...

(1926–2014), actress (Schultzy on ''

The Bob Cummings Show ''The Bob Cummings Show'' (also known in reruns as ''Love That Bob'') is an American sitcom starring Bob Cummings, which was broadcast from January 2, 1955, to September 15, 1959. The program began with a half-season run on NBC, then ran for tw ...

'' and Alice Nelson on ''

The Brady Bunch ''The Brady Bunch'' is an American sitcom created by Sherwood Schwartz that aired from September 26, 1969, to March 8, 1974, on ABC. The series revolves around a large blended family with six children. The show aired for five seasons and, afte ...

''), was born in Schenectady *

Antonio Delgado Antonio Ramon Delgado (born January 28, 1977) is an American attorney and politician serving as the lieutenant governor of New York since 2022. He previously served as the U.S. representative from New York's 19th congressional district. He is ...

(born 1977), Lieutenant Governor of New York, and former U.S. representative *

Amir Derakh Amir Davidson, professionally known as Amir Derakh, is an American musician and record producer. He is currently the guitarist and the synthesizer player for the band Julien-K, and was the guitarist for the band Dead by Sunrise. He was once the g ...

(born 1963), guitarist for rock band

Orgy In modern usage, an orgy is a sex party consisting of at least five members where guests freely engage in open and unrestrained sexual activity or group sex. Swingers' parties do not always conform to this designation, because at many swin ...

, was born in Schenectady * Paul "Legs" DiCocco (1924–1989), gambler and racketeer * John Owen Dominis (1832–1891), prince consort of

Queen Liliuokalani Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mothe ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

* Jamie Dukes (born 1964), football player, born in Schenectady * Harry J. Flynn (1933–2019), Roman Catholic archbishop of Minneapolis and St. Paul, was born in Schenectady * Henry Glen (1739–1814), Continental army officer, U.S. representative *

Harold Gould Harold Vernon Goldstein (December 10, 1923 – September 11, 2010), better known as Harold Gould, was an American character actor. He appeared as Martin Morgenstern on the sitcom ''Rhoda'' (1974–78) and Miles Webber on the sitcom ''The Golden ...

(1923–2010), actor ('' The Golden Girls'', ''

The Sting ''The Sting'' is a 1973 American caper film set in September 1936, involving a complicated plot by two professional grifters (Paul Newman and Robert Redford) to con a mob boss ( Robert Shaw).'' Variety'' film review; December 12, 1973, pag ...

''), was born in Schenectady * Harold J. Greene (1959–2014), United States Army general * Kevin Greene (1962-2020), football linebacker, coach *

Joseph E. Grosberg Joseph E. Grosberg (December 27, 1883 – July 25, 1970) was an American businessman in the supermarket and wholesale foods industries. He was a founder and the president of Central Markets, a chain of grocery stores in upstate New York that es ...

(1883–1970), pioneer in supermarket and wholesale foods industries *

John E. Hart John Elliot Hart (April 4, 1824 – June 11, 1863) was an officer in the Union Navy during the American Civil War. He died in June 1863 on board his ship USS ''Albatross'' while taking part in the Union attempt to blockade the Mississippi River ...

(1824–1863), Union Navy officer *

Keith Hitchins Keith Arnold Hitchins (April 2, 1931 – November 1, 2020) was an American historian and a professor of Eastern European history at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, specializing in Romania and its history. He was born in Schenect ...

(1931–2020), American historian *

Gilbert Hyatt ''For the patent holder for the Microprocessor, see: Microprocessor#Gilbert Hyatt (1970)'' Gilbert Hyatt ( 1761 – 17 September 1823) was instrumental in founding a township in Lower Canada, settling it and starting a village that became Sherbro ...

(ca. 1761–1823), loyalist, founder of

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional cou ...

, Quebec *

Fred Isabella Fred Isabella (August 3, 1917 – November 28, 2007) was an American dentist and politician. Biography Born in Mechanicville, New York, Isabella served in the United States Army during World War II. He went to the Albany College of Pharmacy ...

(1917–2007), dentist, businessman, and politician *

Patricia Kalember Patricia Kathryn Kalember (born December 30, 1956) is an American actress, best known for her role as Georgiana "Georgie" Reed Whitsig in the NBC drama series, ''Sisters'' (1991–1996). Kalember also had the leading roles in the number of televi ...

(born 1957), actress, born in Schenectady * Steve Katz (born 1945), guitarist (

Blood, Sweat & Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is a jazz rock music group founded in New York City in 1967, noted for a combination of brass with rock instrumentation. In addition to original music, the group has performed popular songs by Laura N ...

) * Barry Kramer (born 1942), basketball player, jurist * Irving Langmuir (1881–1957), 1932 Nobel laureate in chemistry *

Wayne LaPierre Wayne Robert LaPierre Jr. (born November 8, 1949) is an American gun rights lobbyist who is CEO and executive vice president of the National Rifle Association (NRA), a position he has held since 1991. Personal background Wayne Robert LaPierr ...

(born 1949), CEO of the

National Rifle Association of America The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent gun rights lobbying organization while cont ...

* Arnold Lobel (1933–1987), author and illustrator of children's books, was born in Los Angeles and raised in Schenectady * George R. Lunn, (1873–1948), mayor, U.S. representative, lieutenant governor *

Ranald MacDougall Ranald MacDougall (March 10, 1915 – December 12, 1973) was an American screenwriter who scripted such films as '' Mildred Pierce'' (1945), '' The Unsuspected'' (1947), ''June Bride'' (1948), and '' The Naked Jungle'' (1954), and shared screenw ...

(1915–1973), screenwriter and director *

Sir Charles Mackerras Mackerras in 2005 Sir Alan Charles MacLaurin Mackerras (; 1925 2010) was an Australian conductor. He was an authority on the operas of Janáček and Mozart, and the comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan. He was long associated with the Engli ...

(1925–2010), Australian conductor, was born in Schenectady. * John Van Antwerp MacMurray (1881–1960), U.S. China expert *

Donald Martiny Donald Martiny (born 1953 in Schenectady, New York) is an American artist. His abstract paintings are related to both action painting and Abstract expressionism. Life Donald Martiny studied from 1977 to 1980 at the School of Visual Arts in Ne ...

(born 1953), artist *

Tom Moulton Thomas Jerome Moulton (, ; born November 29, 1940) is an American record producer. He experimented with remix in disco music and this led to its wide adoption as a standard practice in the industry. He also invented the breakdown section, and the ...

(born 1940), record producer *

Shirley Muldowney Shirley Muldowney (born June 19, 1940), also known professionally as "Cha Cha" and the "First Lady of Drag Racing", is an American auto racer. She was the first woman to receive a license from the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) to drive a ...

(born 1940), auto racer in

International Motorsports Hall of Fame The International Motorsports Hall of Fame (IMHOF) is a hall of fame located adjacent to the Talladega Superspeedway (formerly Alabama International Motor Speedway) located in Talladega County, east central Alabama. It enshrines those who have co ...

, born and raised in Schenectady *

Mordecai Myers Mordecai Myers (November 9, 1794 – February 21, 1865) was an American politician and landowner in Savannah, Georgia, in the 19th century. Life and career Named for his paternal grandfather, Myers was born in South Carolina to physician Dr. Le ...

(1776–1871), mayor of Schenectady * Ray Nelson (born 1931), science-fiction author and cartoonist, born in Schenectady * Sterling Newberry, inventor, worked at General Electric in Schenectady *

Eliphalet Nott Eliphalet Nott (June 25, 1773January 25, 1866), was a famed Presbyterian minister, inventor, educational pioneer, and long-term president of Union College, Schenectady, New York. Early life Nott was born at Ashford, Connecticut, on June 25, 1 ...

(1773–1866), president of Union College * David Opdyke (born 1969), visual artist *

John Palasik John Eugene Palasik (February 5, 1954 – November 15, 2022) was an American Vermont Republican Party, Republican politician who represented the Chittenden-10 district in the Vermont House of Representatives from 2019 until his death in 2022. He ...

(1954-2022), Vermont state legislator, born in Schenectady * Jean-Hervé Peron (born 1949), Germany rock musician, lived in Schenectady in 1967–1968 as exchange student *

Jacob Van Vechten Platto Jacob Van Vechten Platto (January 17, 1822January 2, 1898) was an American lawyer, politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing the west side of the city of Milwaukee during the 15th Wisconsin L ...

(1822–1898), Wisconsin state assemblyman *

(1955-2020), novelist, poet, editor, born in Schenectady *

Pat Riley Patrick James Riley (born March 20, 1945) is an American professional basketball executive, former coach, and former player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been the team president of the Miami Heat since 1995, and he also se ...

(born 1945), NBA player, executive and Hall of Fame coach, was born in Rome, NY, lived in Schenectady *

Don Rittner Don Rittner is an American historian, archeologist, anthropologist, environmental activist, educator, author and film maker living in the Capital District, Schenectady County, New York. He is the former Schenectady County Historian, responsi ...

, author and historian, lived in Schenectady *

Ron Rivest Ronald Linn Rivest (; born May 6, 1947) is a cryptographer and an Institute Professor at MIT. He is a member of MIT's Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) and a member of MIT's Computer Science and Artificial In ...

(born 1947), cryptographer, co-inventor of RSA cryptography *

Lewis K. Rockefeler Lewis may refer to: Names * Lewis (given name), including a list of people with the given name * Lewis (surname), including a list of people with the surname Music * Lewis (musician), Canadian singer * "Lewis (Mistreated)", a song by Radiohead ...

(1875–1948), U.S. representative, born in Schenectady * Al Romano (born 1954), football player *

Margaret Rotundo Margaret "Peggy" R. Rotundo (born July 16, 1949) is an American politician from Maine. Rotundo served as a Democratic member of the Maine House of Representatives, representing District 74, which included part of Lewiston, from 2008 until 2016. ...

(born 1949), Maine legislator *

Mickey Rourke Philip Andre "Mickey" Rourke Jr. (; born September 16, 1952) is an American actor and former boxer who has appeared primarily as a leading man in drama, action, and thriller films. During the star of the 1980s, Rourke played supporting roles i ...

(born 1952), Academy Award-nominated actor, born in Schenectady *

R. Tom Sawyer Robert Thomas Sawyer (June 20, 1901 – January 19, 1986) was the inventor of the first successful gas turbine locomotive.ASME News (Vol.5, No. 9, March 1986) He also assisted in development of the diesel locomotive while he worked for General El ...

(1901–1986), engineer, writer and inventor of the first successful gas turbine locomotive, born in SchenectadyASME News (Vol.5, No. 9, March 1986) *

John Sayles John Thomas Sayles (born September 28, 1950) is an American independent film director, screenwriter, editor, actor, and novelist. He has twice been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, for ''Passion Fish'' (1992) and '' ...

(born 1950), film director and Academy Award-nominated screenwriter, born and raised in Schenectady * Vincent J. Schaefer (1906–1993), chemist, meteorologist * Amalie Schoppe (1791–1858), German writer * Michael H. Schill (born 1958), president of the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

* Ben Schwartz (born 1981), actor, (

Jean-Ralphio Saperstein Jean-Ralphio Saperstein is a fictional character played by Ben Schwartz in the American comedy television series ''Parks and Recreation''. He is the cocky friend of Tom Haverford (Aziz Ansari) and, like Tom, sees himself as a pickup artist and " ...

on '' Parks and Recreation''), graduated from Union College in 2003 *

William H. Seward William Henry Seward (May 16, 1801 – October 10, 1872) was an American politician who served as United States Secretary of State from 1861 to 1869, and earlier served as governor of New York and as a United States Senator. A determined oppon ...

(1801–1872), Abolitionist Republican Governor of New York, U.S. Senator, U.S. Secretary of State during and after the Civil War *

Nehemiah Shumway Nehemiah Shumway (August 26, 1761 – July 1843) was an American composer of sacred music, teacher, and farmer. Life Shumway was born in Oxford, Massachusetts, the youngest of seven children of Amos Shumway and Ruth Parker. He graduated from ...

(1761–1843), teacher and musical composer, lived in Schenectady *

Kenneth Schermerhorn Kenneth Dewitt Schermerhorn ( ; November 20, 1929 – April 18, 2005) was an American composer and orchestra conductor. He was the music director of the Nashville Symphony from 1983 to 2005. Early life Schermerhorn was born on November 20, 1 ...

(1929–2005), conductor of Nashville Symphony, born in Schenectady *

Simon J. Schermerhorn Simon Jacob Schermerhorn (September 25, 1827 – July 21, 1901) was an American politician who served one term as a United States representative from New York from 1893 to 1895. Biography Born in Rotterdam, Schenectady County, New York, h ...

(1827–1901), U.S. Representative *

Lawrence W. Sherman Lawrence W. Sherman (born October 25, 1949) is an American experimental criminologist and police educator who is the founder of evidence-based policing. Sherman's use of randomized controlled experiments to study deterrence and crime prevention ...

(born 1949), experimental criminologist and police educator * Gerald Stano (1951–1998), serial killer *

Charles Proteus Steinmetz Charles Proteus Steinmetz (born Karl August Rudolph Steinmetz, April 9, 1865 – October 26, 1923) was a German-born American mathematician and electrical engineer and professor at Union College. He fostered the development of alternati ...

(1865–1923), mathematician, electrical engineer, developer of

alternating current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current which periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time in contrast to direct current (DC) which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in whic ...

* Brian U. Stratton (born 1957), mayor, director of the

New York State Canal Corporation New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

* Samuel S. Stratton (1916–1990), mayor, U.S. representative, father of Brian Stratton *

John Sykes John James Sykes (born 29 July 1959) is an English guitarist, best known as a member of Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy and Tygers of Pan Tang. He has also fronted the hard rock group Blue Murder and released several solo albums. Following a stint in ...

(born 1955), co-founder of MTV: Music Television, Chairman of The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, raised in Schenectady *

Frank Taberski Frank Taberski (1889–1941) was a professional pocket billiards player from Schenectady, New York. Nicknamed "The Gray Fox," he won 14 world titles. Biography Taberski was born in 1889, and first made a living by selling milk door to door. H ...

(1889–1941), billiards champion; born in Schenectady * Lynne Talley (born 1954), oceanographer, born in Schenectady * Marybeth Tinning (born 1942), serial killer * John Tudor (born 1954), MLB pitcher *

Deborah Van Valkenburgh Deborah Gaye Van Valkenburgh (born August 29, 1952) is an American actress best known for her screen debut as Mercy in the 1979 cult film '' The Warriors'', and her role as Jackie Rush for five seasons (1980–1985) on the television situation ...

(born 1952), actress ('' The Warriors''), was born in Schenectady *

(1922–2007), author, lived in Schenectady while working for GE in the early 1950s *

Lee Wallard Lee Wallard (September 7, 1910 Schenectady, New York – November 29, 1963 St. Petersburg, Florida ) was an American race car driver. In the 1951 Indianapolis 500 Wallard drove the Number 99 Belanger Special to victory, at age 40. Tony Bett ...

(1910–1963), race car driver *

George H. Wells George H. Wells (September 1, 1833 – February 1, 1905) was a New-York native who became a Confederate Army officer and later served as a Democratic member of the Louisiana State Senate representing Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles (Fr ...

(1833–1905),

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

officer, attorney and member of the Louisiana State Senate * Casper Wells (born 1984), MLB outfielder *

George Westinghouse George Westinghouse Jr. (October 6, 1846 – March 12, 1914) was an American entrepreneur and engineer based in Pennsylvania who created the railway air brake and was a pioneer of the electrical industry, receiving his first patent at the age ...

(1846–1914), engineer and inventor, grew up in Schenectady *

Andrew Yang Andrew Yang (born January 13, 1975) is an American businessman, attorney, lobbyist, and politician. Yang was a candidate in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries and the 2021 New York City Democratic mayoral primary. He is the co-c ...

(born 1975), entrepreneur, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, 2021 New York City mayor candidate * Charles Yates (1808–1870), Union Army

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

; nephew of

Joseph Christopher Yates Joseph Christopher Yates (November 9, 1768March 19, 1837) was an American lawyer, politician, statesman, and founding trustee of Union College. He served as 7th Governor of New York, from January 1, 1823 – December 31, 1824. History Born in 17 ...

(1768–1837), governor of New York *

Clifton Young Robert Howard Young (September 15, 1917 – September 10, 1951) professionally known as Clifton Young, was an American film actor. Early years Young was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Edward A. Young. His father started him in vaudeville when ...

(1917–1951), actor

References

External links

City of Schenectady (official website)

Schenectady County Chamber of Commerce
{{Authority control 1661 establishments in North America 1661 establishments in the Dutch Empire Cities in New York (state) Cities in Schenectady County, New York County seats in New York (state) Establishments in New Netherland New York State Heritage Areas Populated places established in 1661 Populated places on the Mohawk River Populated places on the Underground Railroad Capital District (New York)