Editing Westchester County, New York (section)

==History==
{{Main|History of Westchester County}}At the time of European [[First contact (anthropology)|contact]] in the 16th and 17th centuries, this region was a part of [[Lenape|Lenape]] [[Country]], properly called [[Lenapehoking]]. The Lenape, also known as the 'Delaware' Nation, are an [[Algonquian peoples|Algonquian people]], related to large nations like the [[Wampanoag]], [[Anishinaabe]], [[Abenaki]], and the [[Powhatan]] of [[Tsenacommacah]] as well as neighboring communities like the Manhattans, Weckquaesgeek and [[Siwanoy]] bands of the [[Wappinger]] in the south, and Tankiteke, Sintsink and Kitchawank Wappinger in the north.

The first [[European colonization of the Americas|European explorers]] to visit the Westchester area were [[Giovanni da Verrazzano]] in 1524 and [[Henry Hudson]] in 1609. [[Dutch people|Dutch]] settlers began arriving in the 1620s, followed by settlers from England in the 1640s. Westchester County was one of the original twelve counties of the [[Province of New York]], created by an act of the New York General Assembly in 1683. At the time it included present-day [[Bronx County]], and abutted then-[[Dutchess County]] to the north. By 1775, Westchester was the richest and most populous county in the colony of New York. Although the [[American Revolutionary War|Revolutionary War]] devastated the county, recovery after the war was rapid. In 1788, five years after the end of the war, the county was divided into 20 towns. In 1790, the first federal census recorded a population of 24,000 for the county.

Two developments in the first half of the 19th century—the construction of the first [[Croton Dam]] and [[Croton Aqueduct|Aqueduct]], and the coming of the railroad—had enormous impacts on the growth of Westchester. The Croton Dam and Aqueduct was begun in 1837 and completed in 1842; now a [[National Historic Landmark]], the Croton Aqueduct is considered one of the great engineering achievements of the 19th century. In the 1840s, the first railroads were built in Westchester, and included the [[New York and Harlem Railroad]], the Hudson River Railroad,{{efn|The Hudson River Railroad later became part of the [[New York Central Railroad]] and is currently the [[Hudson Line (Metro-North)|Hudson Line]] of the [[Metro-North Railroad]].}} and the [[New York and New Haven Railroad]]. The railroads often determined the growth of a town, and the population shifted from [[Northern Westchester|Northern]] to [[Southern Westchester]]. By 1860, the total county population was 99,000, with the most populated city being Yonkers.

The period following the [[American Civil War]] enabled entrepreneurs in the New York area to create fortunes, and many built large [[estate (land)|estates]], such as [[Lyndhurst (mansion)|Lyndhurst]], in Westchester. During the latter half of the 19th century, Westchester's transportation system and labor force attracted a manufacturing base, particularly along the Hudson River and [[Nepperhan Creek]]. In 1874, the [[West Bronx|western portion]] of the present Bronx County was transferred to New York County, and in 1895 the remainder of the present Bronx County was also transferred to New York County. These would later split from Manhattan to form a county.

During the 20th century, the rural character of Westchester would transform into the suburban county known today. The [[Bronx River Parkway]], completed in 1925, was the first modern, multi-lane limited-access roadway in North America. The development of Westchester's parks and parkway systems supported existing communities and encouraged the establishment of new ones, transforming the development pattern for Westchester. With the need for homes expanding after [[World War II]], multistory apartment houses appeared in the urbanized areas of the county, while the market for single-family houses continued to expand. By 1950, the total county population was 625,816. Major interstate highways were constructed in Westchester during the 1950s and 1960s. The establishment of these roadways, along with the construction of the [[Tappan Zee Bridge (1955–2017)|Tappan Zee Bridge]], led to further growth in the county.