Richmondtown is a neighborhood in the Mid-Island section of

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. It is bounded by

Arthur Kill Road Arthur Kill Road is a major northeast-southwest artery along the South- West Shore of the New York City borough of Staten Island. It is long, and runs through the neighborhoods of Tottenville, Richmond Valley, Charleston, Rossville, Woodr ...

on the northwest, Richmond Road on the north, Amboy Road on the east and southeast, and the United Hebrew and Ocean View cemeteries on the southwest.

Name

Originally known as Coccles Town, sometimes Cuckolds Town, because of the abundance of

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but no ...

and clam shells found in the waters of the nearby

Fresh Kills Fresh Kills (from the Middle Dutch word '' kille'', meaning "riverbed" or "water channel") is a stream and freshwater estuary in the western portion of the borough of Staten Island in New York City, United States. It is the site of the Fresh K ...

, Richmondtown gained its present name in 1728 when the village now preserved as

Historic Richmond Town Historic Richmond Town is a town and farm museum complex in the neighborhood of Richmondtown, Staten Island, Richmondtown, Staten Island, in New York City. It is located near the geographical center of the island, at the junction of Richmond Ro ...

was founded. The village became the county seat of Richmond County (with which Staten Island is coterminous) and remained as such until the emergence of

St. George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

soon after the ferries to

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

and

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

began to proliferate at the latter site near the end of the 19th century.

Location

Located at the base of Lighthouse Hill with

New Dorp New Dorp ( ) is a neighborhood on the South Shore of Staten Island, New York City, United States. New Dorp is bounded by Mill Road on the southeast, Tysens Lane on the southwest, Amboy and Richmond Roads on the northwest, and Bancroft Avenue on ...

and Oakwood to the east, Richmondtown has seen much new home construction since the mid-1960s, and ranks as one of the most popular destinations for families seeking to relocate to Staten Island from New York City's other boroughs, especially Brooklyn. The town is also home to one of the ten remaining Volunteer Fire Departments in New York City Richmond Engine Company 1, which operates a 2005 American LaFrance Engine purchased through a federal home security grant. The Church of St. Andrew and

Voorlezer's House The Voorlezer's House is a historic Clapboard (architecture), clapboard frame house in Historic Richmond Town in Staten Island, New York. It is widely believed to be the oldest known schoolhouse in what is now the United States, although the sol ...

are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

St. Patrick's Church St. Patrick's Church, Saint Patrick's Church, St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church or Saint Patrick's Roman Catholic Church, and similar, may refer to: Australia * St Patrick's Church, Adelaide, a heritage-listed church in Adelaide, South Australia ...

was declared a New York City Landmark in 1968.

Education

Library

The

New York Public Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) is a public library system in New York City. With nearly 53 million items and 92 locations, the New York Public Library is the second-largest public library in the United States behind the Library of Congress a ...

(NYPL) operates the Richmondtown branch at 200 Clarke Avenue at Amber Street. It opened in 1996 and contains two floors: a first floor for adults and a second floor for children. In recent years, the Richmondtown Library has been updated to include a TechConnect lab offering"more than 100 technology classes, both online and in-person, at libraries throughout the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island" free of charge.

Schools

Richmondtown is zoned to one elementary school, PS 23 The Richmondtown School. It is also zoned to middle schools: IS 2 George L. Egbert and IS 24 Myra S. Barnes.

Transportation

Richmondtown is served by the local buses and the express bus.

Notable people

Richmondtown is the birthplace of American bare-knuckle boxer

Bill Richmond Bill Richmond (5 August 1763 – 28 December 1829) was a British boxer, born into slavery in Richmondtown, New York. Although born in Colonial America, he lived for the majority of his life in England, where all his boxing contests took pl ...

(August 5, 1763 – December 28, 1829) who was born a

slave Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

. Richmond went to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in 1777 where he achieved fame and fortune and spent the remainder of his life.

References

Former county seats in New York (state) Former villages in New York City Neighborhoods in Staten Island {{StatenIsland-geo-stub