Originally called the Flour City because of its mills, Rochester also became known as the Flower City due to its nurseries, parks, fruit and garden areas. It is located on Lake Ontario and accessible by Interstate 390, 490 and 590 and is in the
Western Region of the state.
In 1779, the Seneca people sold the future site of Rochester to speculators. In 1789 Ebenezer Allen erected an ill-fated flour mill at falls on the Genesee River. Nathaniel Rochester and two associates purchased the land in 1803. Rochester platted the community in 1811; permanent settlement began in 1812.
Today Rochester, population 219,773, manufactures optical, surgical, dental, check protecting and gear-cutting goods. Lake Ontario and its tributaries offer ice fishing in winter and warm water angling in summer. Species include giant chinook salmon, smelt, bass, pike and steelhead, rainbow and brown trout.
Rochester is part of the Rochester, New York metro area.
