Rosebank, Staten Island facts for kids
Rosebank is a neighborhood in the northeastern part of Staten Island, one of the five boroughs of New York City. It is bordered by Clifton to the north, Arrochar to the south, and the Upper New York Bay to the east.
Originally called Peterstown, then called Clifton, Village of Edgewater, the name "Rosebank" appears to have been first used to denote the neighborhood around 1880. Before 1880, the area was the "Newport RI" of the USA. The area was home to great estates, some of the richest families in the country had mansions along the shore and inland. The New York Yacht Club summer house was (still stands) next to the Alice Austen House. The Vanderbilts, Aspinwalls and Townsends built and attended St Johns Church. The first baptism was Cornelius Vanderbilt II, whose father donated Vanderbilt University. The big farms and estates were divided up into small parcels and soon after 1880 Italian immigrants began settling there, and their descendants have continued as its predominant ethnic group, exemplified by the location of the Garibaldi Memorial in the community. In recent years the town has experienced an influx of other ethnic groups, including Eastern Europeans, various Hispanic nationalities as well as Asians, particularly from the Philippines.
The age, density and architectural style of Rosebank's housing stock resembles that found in most of the island's North Shore neighborhoods; however, demographically Rosebank has more in common with such East Shore communities as New Dorp. As a result, there is considerable disagreement as into which region of the island Rosebank should be classified.
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History
The neighborhood once played host to a federal quarantine station for incoming immigrants (closed 1971), and was the home of noted photographer Alice Austen, one of Staten Island's most recognizable personalities of the past. The Garibaldi-Meucci Museum is named for a longtime resident, Antonio Meucci, who has some claim to having been an inventor of a working telephone. However, impoverished, he was unable to obtain a patent or to market it. When Giuseppe Garibaldi visited the United States while in exile from Italy, he stayed for a time at the home of Meucci. This home is now a museum named for the two men.
In addition to the Garibaldi-Meucci Museum, the Elizabeth Alice Austen House, McFarlane-Bredt House, and Our Lady of Mount Carmel Grotto are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Transportation
After elimination of the Bachmann station, the Rosebank station near Clifton Avenue and Tilson Place was the first stop on Staten Island Railway's now-defunct South Beach Branch, following its divergence from the main line at the Clifton station, immediately to the north. Service on this entire branch was halted in 1953. Hylan Boulevard, New York City's longest commercial roadway, begins in Rosebank, en route to Tottenville, about 14 miles (22.5 km) away
Local buses S52, S78 travel on Tompkins Avenue, S51, S81 buses serve Bay Street, and SIM1, SIM7, SIM10 express buses take Narrows Road North to and from Manhattan. SIM30 also provides express bus service to and from Manhattan.
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Clifton & Upper New York Bay | Upper New York Bay | The Narrows & Bay Ridge | |
| Park Hill & Clifton |  |
Shore Acres & Fort Wadsworth | ||
 Rosebank  |
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| Concord & Old Town | Grasmere & Arrochar | Arrochar & Fort Wadsworth |
Education
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York operates Staten Island's Catholic schools, which included St. Mary School in Rosebank. In 2011, its final year, St. Mary's had 224 students, 90 percent of capacity. The archdiocese's decision to close it, despite its relatively high enrollment, had to do with the fact, according to Amy Padnani of Silive.com, that it was one of Staten Island's oldest Catholic educational facilities and therefore, "some speculate, the school was chosen [for closure] because of infrastructure problems". St. Joseph's School in Rosebank, with an enrollment of 167 students, closed in 2013.
Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Rosebank include:
- Antonio Meucci (1808-1889), inventor, is credited by many to have invented the first telephone. The U.S. House of Representatives honored Meucci in a resolution in 2002 for having had important role in the development of the telephone communications.
- Alice Austen (1866–1952), Photographer, who was a lifelong resident of Staten Island.
- Sir Roderick W. Cameron (1825–1900), shipping company owner.
- Nicole Malliotakis (born 1980), Republican member of the New York Assembly, U.S. House of Representatives and first Hispanic-American elected to a Staten Island district.
