The city is the seat of the Univ. of Rochester, Nazareth College of Rochester, the Rochester Institute of Technology (est. 1829), St. John Fisher College, and a theological seminary. The city's cultural features include the Rochester Philharmonic and Eastman School of Music orchestras, the Rochester Museum of Art and Sciences (with a planetarium), the Memorial Art Gallery, the historical society, a zoo, and the Rundell Memorial Building, which houses the public library and an art gallery. Numerous parks and nurseries have earned Rochester the name Flower City.

Permanent settlement by Col. Nathaniel Rochester and others began in 1812. The Erie Canal gave impetus to Rochester's growth; flour milling became the first important industry. Rochester was a stop on the Underground Railroad. Prominent residents have been Susan B. Anthony, who is buried in the Mount Hope Cemetery; Frederick Douglass; and George Eastman.

City in western New York.Center of the photographic equipment industry. Weather:Rochester, NYTopHome > Library > Travel > Weather function showCelcius(which){ if(which=="cc"){ jQuery(".km, #AccuWeatherMain .tempC").show(); jQuery(".miles, #AccuWeatherMain .tempF").hide(); } else{ jQuery(".celcius").show(); jQuery(".farenheit").hide(); } } function showFarenheit(which){ if(which=="cc"){ jQuery(".miles, #AccuWeatherMain .tempF").show(); jQuery(".km, #AccuWeatherMain .tempC").hide(); } else{ jQuery(".farenheit").show(); jQuery(".celcius").hide(); } } From | Best Weather on the Web F | C Current Conditions 69°F 20°C as of 2:30 pm RealFeel® 67°F 19°C CLOUDY Humidity: Winds: Pressure: Visibility: 62% SSW at 8 mph SSW at 13 kmh 30.07 10 mi 16 F | C 5-day forecast Monday 81°F 27°C 59°F 15°C Tuesday 86°F 30°C 59°F 15°C Wednesday 72°F 22°C 56°F 13°C Thursday 69°F 20°C 53°F 11°C Friday 70°F 21°C 56°F 13°C

Rochester's city population is approximately 219,773, making it New York's third most populous city after New York City and Buffalo. It is at the center of a larger Metropolitan Area which encompasses and extends beyond Monroe County and includes Genesee County, Livingston County, Ontario County, Orleans County and Wayne County. This area, which is part of the Western New York region, had a population of 1,037,831 people at the time of the 2000 Census. As of 1 July 2005, this population rose slightly, to 1,039,028.

Rochester was ranked as the sixth 'most livable city' among 379 U.S. metropolitan areas in the 25th edition (2007) of the Places Rated Almanac. The Rochester area also received the top ranking for overall quality of life among U.S. metros with populations of more than 1 million in a 2007 study by Expansion Management magazine. In the same study, Expansion Management rated the area's public schools as sixth best nationwide. In 2010 Forbes rated Rochester as the 3rd best place to raise a family.

The current mayor of Rochester is Robert Duffy, who was previously the city's police chief. On May 26, 2010, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo selected Duffy to be his running mate in his bid for the governor's office.

On November 8, 1803, a 100 acre (ca. 40 ha) tract in Western New York along the Genesee River was purchased by Col. Nathaniel Rochester, Maj. Charles Carroll, and Col. William Fitzhugh, Jr. (1761–1839), all of Hagerstown, Maryland. The site was chosen because of three cataracts on the Genesee, offering great potential for water power. Beginning in 1811, and with a population of 15, the three founders surveyed the land and laid out streets and tracts. In 1817, the Brown brothers and other landowners joined their lands with the Hundred Acre Tract to form the village of Rochesterville.

By 1821, Rochesterville was the seat of Monroe County. In 1823, Rochesterville consisted of 1,012 acres (4 km2) and 2,500 residents, and the Village of Rochesterville became known as Rochester. Also in 1823, the Erie Canal aqueduct over the Genesee River was completed, and the Erie Canal east to the Hudson River was opened. In the early 20th century, after the advent of railroads, the presence of the canal in the center city became bothersome, and it was re-routed south of Rochester. By 1830, Rochester's population was 9,200 and in 1834, it was re-chartered as a city.

Rochester was first known as "The Young Lion of the West", and then as the "Flour City". By 1838, Rochester was the largest flour-producing city in the United States. Having doubled its population in only ten years, Rochester became America's first "boomtown". By the mid-nineteenth century, as the center of the wheat-processing industry moved west, the city became home to a booming nursery business, giving rise to the city's second nickname, the "Flower City." Large and small nurseries ringed the city, the most famous of which was the one started by German immigrant George Ellwanger and Irish immigrant Patrick Barry in 1840.

In 1847, Frederick Douglass founded the abolitionist newspaper The North Star in Rochester. Douglass, a former slave and an antislavery speaker and writer, gained a circulation of over 4,000 readers in the United States, Europe and the Caribbean. The North Star served as a forum for abolitionist views. The Douglass home burnt down in 1872, but a marker for it can be found in Highland Park off South Avenue. The city was also home to abolitionist and women's rights leader Susan B. Anthony. Anarchist Emma Goldman also lived and worked in Rochester for several years, championing the cause of labor in Rochester sweatshops.