Rome is a city in

Oneida County, New York Oneida County is a county in the state of New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 232,125. The county seat is Utica. The name is in honor of the Oneida, one of the Five Nations of the Iroquois League or ''Haudenos ...

, United States, located in the central part of the state. The population was 32,127 at the 2020 census. Rome is one of two principal cities in the Utica–Rome Metropolitan Statistical Area, which lies in the " Leatherstocking Country" made famous by

James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was an American writer of the first half of the 19th century, whose historical romances depicting colonist and Indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries brought h ...

's '' Leatherstocking Tales,'' set in frontier days before 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 ...

. Rome is in

New York's 22nd congressional district The 22nd congressional district of New York is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives. Significant cities in the district include Utica, Rome, Cortland, and Binghamton. It is home to several colleges and unive ...

. The city developed at an ancient portage site of Native Americans, including the historic Iroquois nations. This portage continued to be strategically important to Europeans, who also used the main 18th and 19th-century waterways, based on the Mohawk and Hudson rivers, that connected New York City and the Atlantic seaboard to 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 lakes ...

. The original European settlements developed around fortifications erected in the 1750s to defend the waterway, in particular the British

Fort Stanwix Fort Stanwix was a colonial fort whose construction commenced on August 26, 1758, under the direction of British General John Stanwix, at the location of present-day Rome, New York, but was not completed until about 1762. The bastion fort was built ...

(1763) built in New York. Following the American Revolution, the settlement began to grow with the construction of the Rome Canal in 1796, to connect Wood Creek (leading from Lake Ontario) and the headwaters of the Mohawk River. In the same year the state created the

Town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

of Rome as a section of Oneida County. For a time, the small community next to the canal was informally known as Lynchville, after the original owner of the property, the prominent wine merchant Dominick Lynch. The New York State Legislature converted the Town of Rome into 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 ...

on February 23, 1870. The residents have called Rome the ''City of American History''.

History

Oneida Carrying Place

Rome was founded along an ancient Native American portage path known as the '' Oneida Carrying Place'', ''Deo-Wain-Sta'', or ''The Great Carrying Place'' to the Six Nations (Iroquois), or the ''

Haudenosaunee The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian Peoples, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Indigenous confederations in North America, confederacy of First Nations in Canada, First Natio ...

'' in their language. These names refer to a

portage Portage or portaging (Canada: ; ) is the practice of carrying water craft or cargo over land, either around an obstacle in a river, or between two bodies of water. A path where items are regularly carried between bodies of water is also called a ...

road or path between the

Mohawk River The Mohawk River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 river in the U.S. state of New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson River. The Mohawk f ...

to the east, which flows east to the Hudson River; and Wood Creek to the west, which flows into the Mohawk River. Now located within the modern Rome city limits, this short portage path was the only overland section of a water trade route stretching more than 1,000 miles between Lake Ontario and the lower Hudson. Travelers and traders coming up the Mohawk River from the Hudson had to transfer their cargo and boats and transport them overland between 1.7 and six miles (depending on the season) to continue west on Wood Creek to Oneida Lake which was drained by the Oswego River that ultimately flowed into Lake Ontario. This ancient trade route joined the

and Canada via the

to the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

and the Atlantic Ocean. During the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War (1754–1763) was a theater of the Seven Years' War, which pitted the North American colonies of the British Empire against those of the French, each side being supported by various Native American tribes. At the ...

, the North American front of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

, this region was the scene of much fighting. The

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

colonists had erected several small forts to guard the Oneida Carrying Place and the lucrative fur trade against French incursions from Canada; however, a combined French regular army, Canadian, and allied Native American force overwhelmed and massacred a British force here in the

Battle of Fort Bull The Battle of Fort Bull was a French attack on the British-held Fort Bull on 27 March 1756, early in the French and Indian War. The fort was built to defend a portion of the waterway connecting Albany, New York to Lake Ontario via the Mohawk River ...

. Later in 1758, after several abortive attempts to fortify the area, the British sent a very large force to secure the Oneida Carry and build a stronger rampart complex, which they named

. Following defeat by the English during the war, the French ceded their territory in North America east of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

to England. The English signed the

Treaty of Fort Stanwix The Treaty of Fort Stanwix was a treaty signed between representatives from the Iroquois and Great Britain (accompanied by negotiators from New Jersey, Virginia and Pennsylvania) in 1768 at Fort Stanwix. It was negotiated between Sir William J ...

(1768) with the Iroquois, under the terms of which they promised to preserve areas west of the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

as an Indian reserve and to prohibit colonial settlement. It has been described as "one of the worst treaties in the History of Anglo-Indian relationships". The treaty has also been described as "the last desperate effort of the British to create order west of the Appalachians. The British were unable to enforce their promise, as Anglo colonists continued to move west of the Appalachians, causing conflicts with native tribes. The British abandoned Ft. Stanwix after that war; it deteriorated and was eventually torn down, its parts and materials used by settlers for other structures.

Revolutionary War and Fort Stanwix

At the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, American Continental forces took control of the

site, rebuilding and improving the fort. The installation survived a siege by the British in the

Saratoga Campaign The Saratoga campaign in 1777 was an attempt by the British high command for North America to gain military control of the strategically important Hudson River valley during the American Revolutionary War. It ended in the surrender of the British ...

of 1777, and it became renowned as "the fort that never surrendered". Patriot militia, regulars, and their

Oneida Nation The Oneida Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people in Wisconsin. The tribe's reservation spans parts of two counties west of the Green Bay metropolitan area. The reservation was established by treaty in 1838, and was allotted to ...

allies under the command of Col.

Peter Gansevoort Peter Gansevoort (July 17, 1749 – July 2, 1812) was a Colonel in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He is best known for leading the resistance to Barry St. Leger's Siege of Fort Stanwix in 1777. Gansevoort was also ...

, successfully repelled a prolonged siege in August 1777 by British, German, Loyalist, and Canadian troops and warriors from several Native American nations, all commanded by British Gen. Barry St. Leger. The failed siege, combined with the battle at nearby Oriskany as well as the battles of Bennington, and Saratoga, thwarted a coordinated British effort to take the northern colonies. Following this success, the Americans were able to gain alliances with France and the Netherlands, as both countries were becoming more confident that the rebels had a chance to win. After the repulsion of the British at Fort Stanwix, bloody fighting erupted along the American northern frontier and throughout the Mohawk Valley. There were heavy losses for both American settlers and the people of the Six Nations, as each side made retaliatory raids against the other in a round of violence. Because many of the Oneida were fighting with the rebels and against the four nations allied with the British, especially the Mohawk and Seneca, the Iroquois had members attacking each other, which they had avoided doing earlier in this century. The Americans used Fort Stanwix as the primary staging point for attacks against British loyalist units and their

allies. The

Sullivan Expedition The 1779 Sullivan Expedition (also known as the Sullivan-Clinton Expedition, the Sullivan Campaign, and the Sullivan-Clinton Genocide) was a United States military campaign during the American Revolutionary War, lasting from June to October 1779 ...

of 1779 was launched from here as a scorched earth campaign against villages of

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...

nations that were allied with the British. Commander

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

ordered the campaign in retaliation for the fierce frontier attacks in New York, such as the

Cherry Valley Massacre The Cherry Valley massacre was an attack by British and Iroquois forces on a fort and the town of Cherry Valley in central New York on November 11, 1778, during the American Revolutionary War. It has been described as one of the most horrific ...

by Loyalist irregulars led by

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 ...

Chief

Joseph Brant Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant (March 1743 – November 24, 1807) was a Mohawk people, Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York (state), New York, who was closely associated with Kingdom of Great Britain, Great B ...

and

John Butler John Butler may refer to: Arts and entertainment *John "Picayune" Butler (died 1864), American performer *John Butler (artist) (1890–1976), American artist * John Butler (author) (born 1937), British author and YouTuber *John Butler (born 1954), ...

. The Sullivan campaign destroyed nearly 50 Iroquois villages and their food stores, leading to starvation of many people of these nations during the following winter. Many Iroquois went to Upper Canada for refuge but struggled with starvation there, too. The American forces abandoned the fort in 1781. After the war, as the area became settled, pioneers took materials to use in constructing their own homes and barns. They built the Rome Canal along Wood Creek, to connect it to the Mohawk River and enable continuous passage by water from Lake Ontario via the Mohawk and Hudson rivers to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. After completion of the

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 ...

in 1825, development of Rome increased. The city became an industrial and trade center in the western Mohawk Valley. The fort site was reduced to a mound of dirt, with bushes and grasses growing over it. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

in the early 20th century, Congress passed the Fort Stanwix Act of 1935 to establish the fort as a

National Monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a spec ...

because of the site's historic importance. The site was administered by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

(NPS). In 1973, the NPS began reconstruction of Fort Stanwix, based on historical evidence related to 18th-century construction and occupation. It was completed in 1976. The fort is operated by the National Park Service as a museum. On July 2, 2005, the Marinus Willet Center opened on the grounds of the monument. It provides audio-visual programs to orient visitors, as well as secure storage space for the museum's collection of artifacts and related historic materials.

Commercial growth: Erie Canal

The critical east/west American trade route through the frontier was improved by construction of the

. On July 4, 1817, construction on the canal began in Rome. The Erie Canal reaches a summit in Rome, attaining an elevation of 420 feet. The first phase was completed in 1825, connecting the

by waterway to the

. It resulted in an increase in trade and traffic between communities around the Great Lakes and New York City, stimulating development all along the route.

Copper City

In 1851, Jesse Williams founded the first cheese factory in the United States at Rome. Williams also developed the process used today for large-scale cheese manufacturing. During the later 19th century, there were numerous dairy farms in the area and throughout the Mohawk Valley. Many shipped their milk and cheese to customers in New York City. The City of Rome was incorporated in 1870. Revere Copper Products, Inc., founded in Rome during 1928 and 1929, is one of the oldest manufacturing companies in the United States. It developed from a series of mergers between several companies, including

Revere Copper Company The Revere Copper Company is a copper rolling mill in the United States. It operated North America's first copper rolling mill. It was started by Paul Revere in 1801 in Canton, Massachusetts, and developed a commercially viable process for manufa ...

located in

Canton, Massachusetts Canton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 24,370 at the 2020 census. Canton is part of Greater Boston, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) southwest of downtown Boston. Hist ...

. The first president of Revere Copper Products, Inc, George H. Allen, was formerly the president of Michigan Copper and Brass Company, which was one of the companies included in the merger. The early history of Revere Copper Products, Inc is detailed in the book ''Copper Heritage: The Story of Revere Copper and Brass, Inc.'' by Isaac F. Marcosson. At one time, 10 percent of all copper products used in the United States were manufactured in Rome.

Cold War and technology role

From 1951 to 1991, the military

Rome Air Development Center Rome Laboratory (Rome Air Development Center until 1991) is the US "Air Force 'superlab' for command, control, and communications" research and development and is responsible for planning and executing the USAF science and technology program. ...

(RADC) was located at

Griffiss AFB Griffiss Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force installation in the northeastern United States, located in Central New York state at Rome, about northwest of Utica. Missions included fighter interceptors, electronic research, i ...

. In 1991, the RADC was redesignated as

Rome Laboratory Rome Laboratory (Rome Air Development Center until 1991) is the US "Air Force 'superlab' for command, control, and communications" research and development and is responsible for planning and executing the USAF science and technology program. ...

. It has remained active as the Griffiss AFB was closed as part of the

Base Realignment and Closure Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) is a process by a United States federal government commission to increase United States Department of Defense efficiency by coordinating the realignment and closure of military installations following the end o ...

process in 1993. In 1997, Rome Laboratory was made part of the

Air Force Research Laboratory The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) is a scientific research organization operated by the United States Air Force Materiel Command dedicated to leading the discovery, development, and integration of aerospace warfighting technologies, pl ...

and renamed the Rome Research Site. The RADC has been responsible for some of the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

's major technological accomplishments, especially in the area of radio communications. Griffiss Air Force Base consists of 3,552 acres. The

Eastern Air Defense Sector The Eastern Air Defense Sector (EADS) is a United States Air Force unit of Air Combat Command (ACC), permanently assigned to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). A joint, bi-national military organization, EADS is composed of U ...

(EADS) is also located in Rome, on the site of the former Griffiss Air Force Base.

Woodstock 1999 Woodstock '99 (also called Woodstock 1999) was a music festival held from July 22 to July 25, 1999, in Rome, New York. After Woodstock '94, it was the second large-scale music festival that attempted to emulate the original 1969 Woodstock fes ...

was held in Rome, at the former Griffiss Air Force Base site. The three-day rock festival was held over the weekend of July 23–25, and drew a crowd of about 200,000 people. Cable network

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

covered the concert extensively, and live coverage of the entire weekend was available on pay-per-view. The festival featured acts including

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

Kid Rock Robert James Ritchie (born January 17, 1971), known professionally as Kid Rock (also known as Bobby Shazam), is an American singer, songwriter and rapper. His style alternates between rock, hip hop, country, and metal. A self-taught musician, ...

, DMX,

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea (musician), Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates element ...

Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerfor ...

Korn Korn (stylized as KoЯn, or occasionally KoRn) is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The band is notable for pioneering the nu metal genre and bringing it into the mainstream. Originally formed in 1993 ...

Limp Bizkit Limp Bizkit is an American rap rock band from Jacksonville, Florida. Its lineup consists of lead vocalist Fred Durst, drummer John Otto, guitarist Wes Borland, turntablist DJ Lethal and bassist Sam Rivers. The band's music is marked by D ...

Alanis Morissette Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, Morissette began her career in Canada in the early 1990s with tw ...

and

Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...

; early reviews for many of the acts were positive. Critics particularly praised performances by George Clinton,

Jamiroquai Jamiroquai () are an English funk and acid jazz band from London. Formed in 1992, they are fronted by vocalist Jay Kay, and were prominent in the London-based funk and acid jazz movement of the 1990s. They built on their acid jazz sound in the ...

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three li ...

, and

. However, the festival ended in a violent riot, with bonfires being lit in the crowd, brawls with police, and looting. In July 2005, New York City developers, Park Drive Estates, purchased the Woodhaven Housing, formerly the base housing for Griffiss Air Force officers and enlisted military members, with the goal of re-developing the property as a resort-style active adult community. Redevelopment stalled. The property was ceded to the City of Rome in 2015. Demolition of the area finished in 2018.

Geography

Rome is the second-largest city by area in

New York State New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. stat ...

, and the 140th largest city in the United States. 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 the ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (0.99%) is water. Rome averages over of snowfall each winter, mostly due to its proximity to

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

and the

lake-effect snow Lake-effect snow is produced during cooler atmospheric conditions when a cold air mass moves across long expanses of warmer lake water. The lower layer of air, heated up by the lake water, picks up water vapor from the lake and rises up through ...

that it produces.

New York State Route 26 New York State Route 26 (NY 26) is a north–south state highway that runs for through Central New York in the United States. Its southern terminus is located at the Pennsylvania state line south of the town of Vestal in Broom ...

New York State Route 46 New York State Route 46 (NY 46) is a state highway in Central New York in the United States. It extends from NY 12B in the Madison County town of Eaton to NY 12D in the Oneida County village of Boonville. NY 46 passe ...

New York State Route 49 New York State Route 49 (NY 49) is an east–west state highway in central New York in the United States. It runs for just over from an intersection with NY 3 in the town of Volney (east of Fulton) in Oswego County, New York to an ...

and

New York State Route 69 New York State Route 69 (NY 69) is a state highway extending for across the central portion of the U.S. state of New York. The western terminus of the route is at NY 104 in the Oswego County village of Mexico. The eastern termin ...

converge in downtown Rome and are part of two separate triplexes.

New York State Route 233 New York State Route 233 (NY 233) is a state highway in Oneida County, New York, United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 12B southwest of the Clinton. Its northern terminus is at an interchan ...

becomes part of a duplex with NY 69 south of the inner district before meeting its northern terminus at the Utica-Rome Expressway (NY 49).

New York State Route 365 New York State Route 365 (NY 365) is an east–west state highway in the central portion of New York, United States. It extends for from an intersection with NY 5, east of the Madison County city of Oneida to a junction with NY ...

passes through the eastern portion of the outer district before becoming part of the Utica-Rome Expressway at an interchange.

Demographics

The city had its peak of population in 1960, with declines caused by restructuring of industry and loss of jobs. Later in the 20th century, the closure of the Air Force base also drew away jobs and residents. The city has worked to develop a new economy. Elements of the base have been redeveloped for new uses, while high-quality research continues. As of the census of 2000, there were 34,950 people, 13,653 households, and 8,328 families residing in the city. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 466.4 people per square mile (180.1/km²). There were 16,272 housing units at an average density of 217.2 per square mile (83.8/km²). The quoted racial makeup of the city was 87.85%

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 on ...

, 7.58%

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 ...

, 0.27% Native American, 0.88%

Asian American Asian Americans are Americans of Asian ancestry (including naturalized Americans who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants). Although this term had historically been used for all the indigenous people ...

, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 1.35% 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 ...

, and 2.05% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, 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 Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

people of any race were 4.72% of the population. Like other cities in the region, Rome has numerous

Italian-American Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, w ...

s, who maintain a concentration in the

Little Italy Little Italy is a general name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Italians or people of Italian ancestry, usually in an urban neighborhood. The concept of "Little Italy" holds many different aspects of the Italian culture. There are s ...

in the vicinity of East Dominick Street. There were 13,653 households, out of which 28.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.6% were married couples living together, 13.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.0% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.93. In the city, the population was spread out, with 22.1% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 22.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.0 males. The median income for a household in the city was $33,643, and the median income for a family was $42,928. Males had a median income of $31,635 versus $23,899 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the city was $18,604. About 12.0% of families and 15.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 23.4% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Rome is headquarters to

AmeriCU Credit Union AmeriCU Credit Union (AmeriCU) is a New York State Chartered credit union headquartered in Rome, New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New ...

, which serves members in Central and Northern New York.

Rome Memorial Hospital Rome Memorial Hospital is a medical facility in Rome, New York. They also operate an 80-bed Skilled Nursing Facility and several outpatient centers. History ''Rome Hospital'' opened in 1884 as a small cottage hospital. Dr. Thomas M. Flandrau an ...

is another major local employer. ''Rome Hospital'' opened in 1884. In 1940 it combined with the 1920-founded ''Murphy Memorial Hospital''. The resultant ''Rome Memorial Hospital'' is licensed for 129 beds.

Sports

One of Rome's most popular venues is the John F. Kennedy Civic Arena. The facility hosts multiple ice hockey and figure skating events, as well as

roller derby Roller derby is a roller skating contact sport played by two teams of fifteen members. Roller derby is played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mostly in the United States. Game play consists of a series of short scrimmages (jam ...

bouts. The arena was constructed in 1963–1964. It was fully renovated in 2008. Between 1964 and 1988, the Rome Knights and later the Copper City Chiefs played their home games on Saturday evenings at the Kennedy Arena. The Chiefs were a semi-professional ice hockey club that competed against Senior and Intermediate level teams from the province of Ontario, Canada; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Newark, New Jersey; New England, and cities from the State of New York. The Chiefs were known for a physical and aggressive style of ice hockey, the team roster being built around team toughness. In its 25 years, the Chiefs never had a losing season. The professional sports franchise, the Rome Frenzy of the Federal Hockey League, made Rome its base and began play in November 2010 at the Kennedy Civic Arena. In February 2011, citing poor attendance, the Frenzy suspended operations and cancelled the last three weeks of the season in Rome. Rome is also the headquarters of

Hamilton College Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York. It was founded as Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and was chartered as Hamilton College in 1812 in honor of inaugural trustee Alexander Hamilton, following ...

Men's and Women's Rowing. Their boathouse, completed in 2022, is located in Bellamy Harbor Park off the Erie Canal.

Government

The city government consists of a mayor and a common council. The mayor is elected at large. The common council consists of seven members elected from

single member districts A single-member district is an electoral district represented by a single officeholder. It contrasts with a multi-member district, which is represented by multiple officeholders. Single-member districts are also sometimes called single-winner vo ...

Education

New York State School for the Deaf The New York State School for the Deaf (NYSSD) was founded in Rome, New York in 1874 by Alphonso Johnson, a graduate and former teacher of the NY Institution for the Deaf. The school now operates under the New York State Board of Regents. Histor ...

is in Rome.

Notable people

Ben Baldanza Basil Ben Baldanza (born December 3, 1961) is an economist and was the chief executive officer and president of Spirit Airlines from 2005 to 2016, a period in which he led the transformation of the company into an ultra-low-cost carrier. Biogr ...

, CEO of

Spirit Airlines Spirit Airlines Inc. (stylized as spirit) is a major ultra-low-cost U.S. carrier headquartered in Miramar, Florida, in the Miami metropolitan area. Spirit operates scheduled flights throughout the United States, the Caribbean and Latin Ameri ...

2006–2016 *

Francis Bellamy Francis Julius Bellamy (May 18, 1855 – August 28, 1931) was an American Christian socialist Baptist minister and author. He is best known for writing the original version of the Pledge of Allegiance in 1892. Early life Francis Julius Bellamy ...

, author of the

Pledge of Allegiance The Pledge of Allegiance of the United States is a patriotic recited verse that promises allegiance to the flag of the United States and the republic of the United States of America. The first version, with a text different from the one used ...

Wilson S. Bissell Wilson Shannon Bissell (December 31, 1847 – October 6, 1903) was an American politician from New York (state), New York and considered one of the foremost Democratic leaders of Western New York. Early life Bissell was born on December 31, 1847, ...

(1847–1903), U.S.

Postmaster General A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. The practice of having a government official respons ...

(1893-1895) * Joseph H. Boardman (1948–2019), CEO of

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

2008–2016 *

Walter R. Brooks Walter Rollin Brooks (January 9, 1886 – August 17, 1958) was an American writer known for his children's books about Freddy the Pig and the other anthropomorphic animal inhabitants of the Bean Farm in upstate New York, and also for his short s ...

, author of the ''

Freddy the Pig Freddy the Pig is the central figure in a series of 26 children's books written between 1927 and 1958 by American author Walter R. Brooks and illustrated by Kurt Wiese, consisting of 25 novels and one poetry collection. The books focus on the adven ...

'' children's book series *

Archi Cianfrocco Angelo Dominic "Archi" Cianfrocco (born October 6, 1966) is an American former professional baseball player. He played all or parts of seven seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), mostly at first and third base, from 1992 to 1998. Career Cianfr ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player *

Jerry Cook Jerry Cook (born June 20, 1943) is a NASCAR modified championship race car driver. He began racing at the age of 13 and won the track championship at Utica-Rome Speedway in 1969. Racing career He eventually went to become a six-time champion in ...

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

driver, six-time NASCAR Modified Champion and one of

NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers is an alphabetical list of NASCAR drivers. In 1998, as part of its 50th anniversary celebration, NASCAR gathered a panel to select the "50 Greatest NASCAR Drivers of All Time." It was inspired in part by the NBA's dec ...

The DeMarco Sisters The DeMarco Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the big-band era who recorded popular music and performed in concerts and on the radio, television, and on film from the 1930s through the 1960s. They first achieved fame as weekly ...

, singers *

Chuck Detwiler Charles Michael Detwiler (born March 6, 1947) is a former American football defensive back who played four seasons in the National Football League with the San Diego Chargers and St. Louis Cardinals. He played college football at Utah State Univer ...

, football player *

Richie Evans Richard Ernest Evans (July 23, 1941Bourcier, Bones, "61 at 61", ''Speedway Illustrated'' (ISSN 1528-4182), Volume 3, Number 8, August 2002. – October 24, 1985), was an American racing driver who won nine NASCAR National Modified Championships, ...

driver, nine-time NASCAR Modified Champion, one of

, 2012

NASCAR Hall Of Fame The NASCAR Hall of Fame, located in Charlotte, North Carolina, honors drivers who have shown expert skill at NASCAR driving, all-time great crew chiefs and owners, broadcasters and other major contributors to competition within the sanctioning ...

inductee * Henry A. Foster, U.S. Representative and Senator from New York, Justice of the New York Supreme Court *

Alex Haley Alexander Murray Palmer Haley (August 11, 1921 – February 10, 1992) was an American writer and the author of the 1976 book '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family.'' ABC adapted the book as a television miniseries of the same name and a ...

(1921–1992), author of '' Roots: The Saga of an American Family'', 1963–1968 *

Mark Hapka Mark Hapka (born May 29, 1982) is an American film and television actor who first gained attention for portraying the lead role of the spirit 'Zach' on the '' Ghost Whisperer'' spin-off '' Ghost Whisperer: The Other Side''. Hapka is most notabl ...

, actor, ''

Days Of Our Lives ''Days of Our Lives'' (also stylized as ''Days of our Lives''; simply referred to as ''Days'' or ''DOOL'') is an American television soap opera that streams on the streaming service Peacock. The soap, which aired on the American television net ...

'' *

John B. Jervis John Bloomfield Jervis (December 14, 1795 – January 12, 1885) was an American civil engineer. America's leading consulting engineer of the antebellum era (1820–60), Jervis designed and supervised the construction of five of America's earliest ...

, leading U.S. civil engineer of early 19th century, designer of

Croton Aqueduct The Croton Aqueduct or Old Croton Aqueduct was a large and complex water distribution system constructed for New York City between 1837 and 1842. The great aqueducts, which were among the first in the United States, carried water by gravity from ...

, High Bridge of

, and

4-2-0 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, two powered driving wheels on one axle and no trailing wheels. This type of locomotive is often called a ...

railroad locomotive *

Norman B. Judd Norman Buel Judd (January 10, 1815 – November 11, 1878) was a U.S. Representative from Illinois, and the grandfather of U.S. Representative Norman Judd Gould of New York. Born January 10, 1815 in Rome, New York, son of Norman Judd and Cath ...

(1815–1878), U.S. Congressman * Charles H. Larrabee (1820–1883), U.S. Representative from

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

Robert Manfred Robert Dean Manfred Jr. (born September 28, 1958) is an American lawyer and business executive who is serving as the tenth Commissioner of Baseball, commissioner of Major League Baseball. He previously served as MLB's chief operating officer. Man ...

, Commissioner of Major League Baseball *

Tom Myslinski Thomas Joseph Myslinski, Jr. (born December 7, 1968) is a professional American football strength and conditioning coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was strength and conditioning coach for the Cleveland Browns until the end of the 2009 sea ...

, NFL player * James Joseph Plunkett (1900–1946), architect, known for his work in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

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 ...

, former

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

player and head coach; currently the President of the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Southe ...

Tim Russ Timothy Darrell Russ (born June 22, 1956) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, and musician. He is best known for his roles as Lieutenant Commander Tuvok on '' Star Trek: Voyager'', Robert Johnson in ''Crossroads'' (1986), Casey in '' E ...

, actor, '' Star Trek: Voyager'' *

Tim Sestito Tim Sestito (born August 28, 1984 in Rome, New York) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played with the Edmonton Oilers and New Jersey Devils organizations of the National Hockey League (NHL). His younger brother Tom Sesti ...

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

player *

Tom Sestito Tom Sestito (born September 28, 1987) is an Americans, American former professional ice hockey Forward (ice hockey), forward. He most recently played with the Toronto Marlies in the American Hockey League (AHL). He has previously played for the ...

player * Richard D. Simons, Associate Justice,

New York State Court of Appeals The New York Court of Appeals is the highest court in the Unified Court System of the State of New York. The Court of Appeals consists of seven judges: the Chief Judge and six Associate Judges who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by ...

, 1983–1997 *

Orlando Spado Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures relea ...

, Public Crime Figure and Writer,

Colombo Crime Family The Colombo crime family (, ) is an Italian American Mafia crime family and is the youngest of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City within the criminal organization known as the American Mafia. It was du ...

associate *

Bonnie Thunders Nicole Williams (born 1983), known as Bonnie Thunders, is a roller derby skater. Widely considered to be one of the greatest players of modern roller derby, Bonnie Thunders has been referred to by multiple writers as "the LeBron James of roller de ...

skaterStar player for NYC roller derby team has connections to Rome
", ''

Rome Sentinel Rome Sentinel is a family-owned upstate New York newspaper that, for generations, has been sourcing national and international news via cooperation with competitors. In the late 1940s they founded a local radio station, ''WRUN'' History The ...

'' * Mary Edward Walker (1832–1919),

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

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 ...

prohibitionist Prohibitionism is a legal philosophy and political theory often used in lobbying which holds that citizens will abstain from actions if the actions are typed as unlawful (i.e. prohibited) and the prohibitions are enforced by law enforcement.C Canty ...

, alleged

spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

, and, as of 2016, only woman to receive the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

* Anthony Washington, discus world champion (1999), four-time national champion, three-time Olympian: 1992, 1996, 2000 *

Benjamin Wright Benjamin Wright (October 10, 1770 – August 24, 1842) was an American civil engineer who was chief engineer of the Erie Canal and the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. In 1969, the American Society of Civil Engineers declared him the "Father of America ...

(1770–1842), Chief Engineer of the

Harold Bell Wright Harold Bell Wright (May 4, 1872 – May 24, 1944) was a best-selling American writer of fiction, essays, and nonfiction. Although mostly forgotten or ignored after the middle of the 20th century, he had a very successful career; he is said to hav ...

(1872–1944), best-selling American author

Transportation

Rome's primary road connection is the Utica-Rome Expressway, a freeway section of

. The expressway runs 14 miles from Rome to Utica where it meets

I-90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...

I-790 Interstate 790 (I-790) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the city of Utica, New York, in the United States. It runs for from an interchange with New York State Route 5A (NY 5A) and NY 5S in downtown Utica to a pair of ...

NY 5 New York State Route 5 (NY 5) is a state highway that extends for across the state of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in the Chautauqua County town of Ripley and passes through Buffalo, Sy ...

NY 12 New York State Route 12 (NY 12) is a state highway extending for through central and northern New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 11 (US 11) in the town of Chenango (just nor ...

, and

NY 8 New York State Route 8 (NY 8) is a north-south state highway in the central part of New York in the United States. It runs in a southwest-to-northeast direction from the Southern Tier to the northern part of Lake George. The souther ...

in a massive cloverleaf interchange. Rome's Amtrak station is served by

's ''

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 ...

'', with two daily trains in each direction between Niagara Falls and New York City. The daily ''

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 the ...

'' serves locations between Toronto and New York.

Griffiss Air Force Base Griffiss Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force installation in the northeastern United States, located in Central New York state at Rome, about northwest of Utica. Missions included fighter interceptors, electronic research, i ...

closed in 1995 and was converted into

Griffiss International Airport Griffiss International Airport is a public airport located east of the central business district of Rome, a city in Oneida County, New York, United States. This airport is publicly owned by County of Oneida. It is located on the former site o ...

. It has general aviation as well as military use. No scheduled commercial service uses the airport.

CENTRO Centro may refer to: Places Brazil *Centro, Santa Maria, a neighborhood in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil * Centro, Porto Alegre, a neighborhood of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil *Centro (Duque de Caxias), a neighborhood of Duq ...

buses run six routes in Rome, two of which serve the Amtrak station.

Climate

References

External links

* Official City Website. * Local history links. * {{authority control Cities in New York (state) Erie Canal Utica–Rome metropolitan area Cities in Oneida County, New York Populated places on the Mohawk River

History

Oneida Carrying Place

Revolutionary War and Fort Stanwix

Commercial growth: Erie Canal

Copper City

Cold War and technology role

Geography

Demographics

Economy

Sports

Government

Education

Notable people

Transportation

Climate

See also

References

Further reading

External links