New Rochelle history

In 1902, Beechmont Lake was developed as the focal point of an attractive residential area; four years later, New Rochelle's advantages as a commuter haven were advertised to thousands through "Forty-five Minutes from Broadway," a George M. Cohan show in which it was featured.

The downtown mall, anchored by a Macy's branch, opened in 1968 as the "centerpiece of the Cedar Street Urban Renewal plan," with nearly 600,000 square feet of retail, a supermarket, and duplex cinemas.

In the 1980s, in the midst of healthy suburban growth county- and nation-wide, New Rochelle's population fell to 67,265, from 70,794 in 1980.

In 1988, these photographs were reproduced on acid-free paper with funds provided by a Discretionary Grant from the New York State Program for the Conservation and Preservation of Library Research Material.

By 1991, Kessler would report, "there has been little improvement to the city since the New Rochelle Mall opened." He added that "the city's tax base is barely treading water," despite the $824,340 the mall generated for New Rochelle annually.

Named in 1998 for the noted author who used the collection extensively while residing in New Rochelle, the E. L. Doctorow Local History Room is accessible to the public during the library’s regular operating hours.

Voices of Reflections of Change Project was begun in summer 2010, as part of a year-long observance of the 50th anniversary of New Rochelle’s landmark desegregation Case: Taylor vs. the New Rochelle Board of Education.