Overview
Yonkers is the fourth-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind New York City, Buffalo, and Rochester) and the largest city in Westchester County. Yonkers borders the New York City borough of The Bronx and is 2 miles north of Manhattan.

The city is spread out over hills rising from near sea level at the eastern bank of the Hudson River to 416 feet at Sacred Heart Church, whose spire can be seen from Long Island, New York City, and New Jersey. The landscape of the city has been compared to that of San Francisco and Rome.

Population: 196,425
Area: 18.3 Square Miles – 4 1/2 miles Waterfront
Relative Size: Fourth Largest City in New York State
Form of Government: Elected Strong Mayor
Retail Sales Tax: 8.25%
Average Residential Tax Bill: $4,853

Neighborhoods
Though Yonkers contains dozens of small residential enclaves and communities, it could probably be best described as consisting of the following four major regions.

Northeast Yonkers
This is a heavily Irish-American, Italian-American, Latin-American, and largely middle working class area. House sizes vary widely, from small houses set close together, to some larger houses in areas like Lawrence Park. The main thoroughfare is Central (Park) Avenue, lined with a vast array of stores as well as several high-rise apartment buildings, a sight not typically seen in this concentration in most of generally affluent Westchester County. Tuckahoe Road, which intersects Central Avenue, contains many stores as well. Notable former residents include Steven Tyler of the rock band Aerosmith (born Steven Tallarico), whose childhood home was just off Central Avenue. Northeastern Yonkers contains the Crestwood section of Yonkers, as well as several other enclaves. Landmarks include St Vladimir’s Seminary, the Tanglewood Shopping Center (one-time home of the Tanglewood Boys gang), as well as Sarah Lawrence College. The Lawrence Park and Cedar Knolls sections are unique in many ways from the rest of Northeast Yonkers. These two neighborhoods include more upscale housing and residents are generally commuters to Manhattan. This is mostly due to the proximity of various nearby Metro-North commuter railroad stations. Both sections are heavily white but unlike most other Yonkers neighborhoods are not dominated by any particular ethnicity. Because they share the zip code of the neighboring upscale village of Bronxville, many residents feel they are more a part of Bronxville than Yonkers even though they still pay taxes to and get services from the latter.

Northwest Yonkers
A difficult area to categorize, northwest Yonkers is a collection of widely varying neighborhoods, spanning from the Hudson River to around the New York State Thruway/I-87 and north of Ashburton Avenue, roughly speaking. While Warburton Avenue and other areas on the Hudson River contain some beautiful older Victorian homes, a walk a few blocks east to Glenwood Avenue reveals a drastic change as the riverside estates give way to not only a more inner-city feel but also one of sheer desolateness reminiscent of back-end neighborhoods of New York City’s nearby outer boroughs. In sharp contrast, parts of northwestern Yonkers look nearly identical to the upscale neighboring village of Hastings-on-Hudson as one approaches the northern boundary of Yonkers. The population of northwestern Yonkers is more mixed in ethnicity and less heavily Italian-American or Irish-American than in northeastern Yonkers; the remainder of the Jewish community in Yonkers mostly lives in this part of the city, though it is not large enough or concentrated enough to really be called a Jewish neighborhood. The Runyon Heights neighborhood in the southeastern part of this area is a historically African-American enclave that is more upscale and suburban than a similar population cluster in the southwestern part of the city. Landmarks include Stew Leonard’s (the only New York location of a well-known Connecticut-oriented “super”- supermarket chain that focuses on dairy products and produce) and the Hudson River Museum.

Southeast Yonkers
Southeast Yonkers is mostly Italian-American and a large population of Irish-Americans though somewhat more visibly working class, urban and mostly Catholic. Much of the architecture and types of stores in the area cause southeastern Yonkers to bear a greater resemblance to certain parts of the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, or Staten Island than to points north. This is not surprising as southeastern Yonkers is largely within walking distance of the Riverdale, Woodlawn, and Wakefield sections of the Bronx. Many residents regard eastern McLean Avenue, home to a vibrant Irish community shared with the Woodlawn section of the Bronx, to be the true hub of Yonkers. Similarly, a portion of Midland Avenue in the Dunwoodie section has been called the “Little Italy” of Yonkers. Landmarks of southeastern Yonkers include the Cross County Shopping Center, Yonkers Raceway, and St. Joseph’s Seminary in the Dunwoodie neighborhood, which was visited by Pope John Paul II in October of 1995.

Southwest Yonkers
This changing part of Yonkers has historically been regarded as a less desirable, poor, and crime-ridden area. A past riddled with economic, political, and social challenge have, in part, contributed to this perception, in turn leading to stereotypes which some argue are responsible for Yonkers’ negative reputation. The current reality of Southwest Yonkers’ existence calls for much more to be explored. A closer look at the area reveals a recent decrease in crime rate and a juxtaposition of poverty and revitalization that many will argue mirrors newly gentrified areas of Harlem and Downtown Brooklyn in New York City. There exist sections off of South Broadway (a major thoroughfare) where one can find residential neighborhoods, such as Park Hill, and Hudson Park (off the Hudson River) with residential streets of million-dollar-plus, turn-of-the-century mansions, and upscale luxury rentals and condominiums. Other upscale neighborhoods are Ludlow Park & Van Cortlandt Crest, off Riverdale Ave, right over the Riverdale border – the former alongside the Hudson River. These neighborhoods are becoming homes to Orthodox Jews who walk just over the City line to a Riverdale Congregation. There are also various impoverished neighborhoods, especially around Getty Square, the focal of point of downtown Yonkers.

The area enjoys a rich mixture of residents of African, Caribbean, Italian, and Hispanic decent. There has been an influx of other cultural backgrounds as well that has continued to shape a culturally diverse community. The revitalization of the downtown Yonkers area has helped to nurture growth for Southwest Yonkers. In the early 2000s many new luxury apartment buildings were being built along the Hudson, as well as a new monument park, renovation of a Victorian-era pier, a new public library housed in the remodeled Otis elevator factory, and many new projects are intended to revitalize downtown Yonkers. Among other attractions, the Sculpture Meadow along the pier boasts exposure to the arts and a fantastic view of the Hudson River year round. Music concerts, celebrations and restaurants along the pier have made the area quite an attraction during the summer months. Various new eateries have begun to fill an entertainment void in the area. New boutiques and small businesses have begun to take root in what has been deemed part of an Empowerment Zone.

Southwest Yonkers has and continues to improve from the once blighted landscape of downtown to that of a more cultured and diverse haven of sorts. Various residential and commercial projects are under way or planned for the near future and there has been visible progress. While many who have referred to the nearby Getty Square section of town as “Ghetto Square” perpetuate negative stereotypes of the city’s blighted past, others celebrate Southwest Yonkers’ impressive progress and resilience in the face of many a challenging economical and political climate. Opportunities for change remain. However, Southwest Yonkers is slowly becoming a destination as it evolves from the stalled existence and negative mold of its near past.

Yonkers City History
In the late 1640’s (about 20 years after Peter Minuit bought Manhattan Island) Adrian Van der Donck received his grant of the Colony of Nepperhaem (or Colon-Donck) from the Dutch West India Company, and built one of the first saw mills in the New World at the junction of the Hudson and Nepperhan Rivers. Van der Donck was referred to as Donk Herr (“young Gentleman” or “young Nobleman”) by reason of his status in Holland, and these words evolved through several changes to The Djonk Herr’s land and The Younckers, The Yonkers and finally to the present Yonkers. The area acquired by Van der Donck passed into the hands of the Philipsburg family in the latter part of the 17th century, and the present Philips Manor Hall was erected at this juncture of the two rivers. Yonkers’ strategic location fostered its development into a major trading center, and its early settlers (including Native Americans, English and Dutch) created a diverse community. Yonkers was a small farm town in the 1700’s but many businesses soon began to emerge: the saw mills and grist mills multiplied, land development increased, and blacksmith shops, taverns, and general stores came into being. The waterfront still remained the key, providing pause for sloops and stagecoaches. Innovations in travel – via both land and water – accelerated the development of the industrial era in Yonkers, and the first railroad station (built in 1848 on the site of present day Yonkers Station) contributed to more occupations and trade.

A stone mill (possibly the city’s first industrial site) was built during 1805 -14 in the Tuckahoe area of Yonkers. It was used as a cotton factory until 1852 when the Hodgman Rubber Company bought it, and thus began yet another industry. Yonkers innovators also improved elevator, carpet and hat production, in addition to establishing the first sugar industry in 1862. And in 1867, the first elevated mass transit system in the world was created in Yonkers.

The Village of Yonkers (then extending approximately two miles along the Hudson River) was incorporated on April 12, 1872 with a population of approximately 7,500. On June 1, 1872, Governor Hoffman signed the charter establishing Yonkers as the first in Westchester County to be incorporated and designated as a city. The population had grown to about 20,000 by that time, and today there are nearly 200,000 people residing in Yonkers.

Yonkers’ Place in History
Adrien Van der Donck, founder of Yonkers, was the first lawyer in New Netherlands.

Yonkers was the first and only Patroonship erected by New Netherlands in what is now Westchester County (1646).

The first elevator safety devices (which eventually made modern skyscrapers possible) were invented in 1854 by Elisha Graves Otis.

Rudolph Eickmeyer’s mechanical inventions in 1854 so modernized the hat industry in that Yonkers became its leading center.

The first street lighting in the county was introduced in Yonkers in 1861.

The first elevated-mass-transit-system in the world was invented in 1867 by Yonkers resident Charles T. Harvey and financially backed by a group of Yonkers Investors.

Yonkers was the first city to be incorporated in Westchester County in 1872.

Samuel Tilden, former Governor of New York State and resident of Yonkers was the first Presidential Candidate to win the popular vote but lose the electoral vote (1876).

Carpet manufacturing was revolutionized with the invention of the Axminster “1858” and Moquette “1877” looms.

The first game of golf in the United States was played in 1888 near Lake Avenue on North Broadway.

The synthetic plastic “Bakelite” was invented by Leo H. Baekeland in 1906.

FM radio broadcasting was invented by Edwin H. Armstrong in 1912.

The first practical dynamo was invented and produced in Yonkers, as was the first practical electric engine.