Rensselaer, New York

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{{flagicon image|Red ensign of Great Britain (1707–1800, square canton).svg}} Province of New York 1667
{{flagicon image|Flag of New York.svg}} New York State 1776

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The natives of the area called it Petuquapoern and Juscum catick, and the Dutch claimed the land in 1609 based on Henry Hudson's exploration of the Hudson River on board the Dutch ship, Halve Maen. Later the area was called "De Laet's Burg" in honor of one of the directors of the Dutch West India Co. Settlement occurred at least as early as 1628. By 1642, there was a brewery and many farms, also a ferry was established by Hendrick Albertsen running from the mouth of Beaver Creek in Beverwyck (Albany) to the future Rensselaer.{{cite web |title=History of Greenbush, New York |author=George Baker Anderson |publisher=D. Mason and Company |url=http://history.rays-place.com/ny/ren-greenbush-ny.htm |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130201020603/http://history.rays-place.com/ny/ren-greenbush-ny.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 1, 2013 |access-date=2010-01-02 |year=1897 }} Greenbush (originally t'Greyn Bos in Dutch) was the earliest settlement from Dutch times. The hamlet of East Albany was part of the village of Greenbush. The second hamlet that was incorporated was Bath (also Bath-on-Hudson), which was laid out in 1795 and incorporated as a village prior to 1874.{{Cite book |title=New York Supplement: Volume 58 |publisher=State of New York |page=271 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q4A7AAAAIAAJ&q=bath-on-hudson&pg=PA271 |access-date=2010-01-03 |year=1899}}

Image:FortCrailo HABS cropped.jpg

The Van Rensselaer family, who were the feudal landholders of the entire future Rensselaer County, built a residence in the future city of Rensselaer. This property was inherited by Hendrick van Rensselaer, Kiliaen van Rensselaer's grandson, who built Fort Crailo in approximately 1712. It was built on the site of where Dominie Megapolensis built his own house in 1642.{{cite web|title=The Fort Orange and Schuyler Flatts NHL |author=Paul Huey |access-date=2010-01-03 |url=http://crm.cr.nps.gov/archive/18-7/18-7-6.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109070704/http://crm.cr.nps.gov/archive/18-7/18-7-6.pdf |archive-date=January 9, 2009}} Crailo was expanded in 1762–1768. At various times, the grounds were used as a campground for British and colonial troops. It is reportedly the place where, in 1755, British Army surgeon Richard Shuckburgh, quartered in the home, wrote the ditty "Yankee Doodle" to mock the colonial troops who fought with the British in the French and Indian Wars.Feister, Lois M., and Huey, Paul R., The History and Archeology, 1974-1994, of Crailo State Historic Site, Rensselaer, New York (Division for Historic Preservation New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, Peebles Island, Waterford, N.Y. 2012), p. 64 Fort Crailo was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1961.{{cite web|url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=406&ResourceType=Building|title=Fort Crailo|date=2007-09-12|work=National Historic Landmark summary listing|publisher=National Park Service}}{{citation|title=National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Fort Crailo|url={{NHLS url|id=66000563}} |format=pdf|author=James Dillon|year=1983|publisher=National Park Service}} and {{NHLS url|id=66000563|title=Accompanying photos, exterior, from 1965.|photos=y}} {{small|(1.27 MB)}}

The hamlet of Greenbush was a tract of land about one square mile in size, and is that portion of the city between Partition and Mill Street. This was purchased in May 1810 by William Akin, Titus Goodman and John Dickinson from Stephen Van Rensselaer and Stephen N. Bayard, assignees of John J. Van Rensselaer. The village was later incorporated in 1815. A new charter was granted in 1828, which was amended in 1854, and again in 1863, and a new charter in 1871. In 1897, Greenbush was chartered as a city, and its name was changed to Rensselaer. Its limits were extended in 1902 by the annexation of the village of Bath and the western part of the town of East Greenbush.

In the 19th century, Rensselaer became the site of the Boston & Albany Railroad's (B&A) passenger depot, shops, freight houses, roundhouse, and coach yard. It was the site of transfers between trains of the New York Central Railroad and the B&A. A ferry transported people to and from the Van Rensselaer Island and downtown Albany at Maiden Lane. In 1871, the Maiden Lane Bridge was built replacing the ferry. In 1903, the channel that separated the island from the mainland was filled in with sand dredged from the bottom of the Hudson River.{{cite web | title = Cultural Impact Assessment | publisher = U.W. Marx, Inc. | author = Stephen Oberon | url = http://www.uwmarx.com/waterfront/newsite/DEIS/Appendix%20E%20-%20Cultural%20Impact%20Assessment.pdf | access-date = 2009-07-29 | year = 2008 | archive-date = 2020-08-06 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200806161904/http://www.uwmarx.com/waterfront/newsite/DEIS/Appendix%20E%20-%20Cultural%20Impact%20Assessment.pdf | url-status = dead }} When the NY Central and the B&A merged in 1900 the island's activities became less important, though a new roundhouse and coach yard was built even as many buildings were demolished.

File:Albany Aniline and Chemical.jpg

In 1881, the Hudson Riverfront Art Park in Rensselaer was the site of the first recorded major league Grand Slam in baseball history.{{cite web|url=https://sabr.org/gamesproj/game/september-10-1881-roger-connor-s-ultimate-grand-slam|title=September 10, 1881: Roger Connor's 'ultimate' grand slam|work=sabr.org|author=John R. Husman|access-date=March 9, 2020}}

In 1882, the Hudson River Aniline and Color Works built their first plant in Rensselaer (building 61), however it burned 13 years later. In 1895, Building 61 was rebuilt and at the same time Building 71 was built as well.{{cite web | title = History of Internal Growth of BASF Rensselaer Plant | url = http://www.colorantshistory.org/BASFPlantBldgHistory.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070517234916/http://www.colorantshistory.org/BASFPlantBldgHistory.html | url-status = usurped | archive-date = May 17, 2007 | publisher = ColorantsHistory.Org | access-date = 2010-01-04}} It was acquired by the Bayer Corporation in 1903, which then built one of the largest and most up-to-date factories of its time in the US and the Rensselaer plant became the American home for the production of brand-name Aspirin.{{cite book | title = Aspirin: The Remarkable Story of a Wonder Drug | page = 84 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=x-sL4iNQOgcC&q=rensselaer+aspirin+1903&pg=PA84 | publisher = Bloomsbury Publishing | author = Diarmuid Jeffreys | access-date = 2010-01-05 | year = 2005 | isbn = 1-58234-386-1}} The US government seized the property in 1917 during World War I as enemy property, Bayer being a German company. It would later be owned by the General Aniline and Film Company, and then BASF.{{cite web | title = Colorants Industry History | url = http://www.colorantshistory.org/home.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20041211195721/http://www.colorantshistory.org/home.html | url-status = usurped | archive-date = December 11, 2004 | publisher = ColorantsHistory.Org | access-date = 2010-01-04}} In 1927, it was the first plant to produce solid diazo salts in the United States. The plant went through 12 separate owners or subsidiaries in its lifetime, in the 1990s it was the oldest dye plant in continuous operation and also produced more dye than any other plant in the United States.{{cite web | title = Rensselaer Dye Industry | publisher = AATCC | url = http://www.colorantshistory.org/RensselaerDyeIndustry.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060211011013/http://www.colorantshistory.org/RensselaerDyeIndustry.html | url-status = usurped | archive-date = February 11, 2006 | author = Leander Richard | year = 1994 | access-date = 2010-01-05}} According to a promotional brochure issued around 1993 by the BASF Corporation the Rensselaer plant was the largest North American dyestuffs production facility.{{cite web | title = BASF Rensselaer Descriptive Brochure ca. 1993 | publisher = BASF | access-date = 2010-01-05 | url = http://www.colorantshistory.org/RensselaerBrochure.html| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070517235151/http://www.colorantshistory.org/RensselaerBrochure.html| url-status = usurped| archive-date = May 17, 2007}} The plant was shut down for good on December 28, 2000.

In 1932, next to the BASF plant, the Port of Albany-Rensselaer was built, mostly in neighboring Albany, but also with {{convert|35|acre|m2}} in the southern part of Rensselaer. The docks on the Rensselaer side were built in the 1970s.{{cite news|author=Eric Anderson |title=Energy fuels Port of Albany growth |date=September 21, 2008 |newspaper=Albany Times Union |access-date=2008-11-30 |url=http://timesunion.com/AspStories/story.asp?storyID=721469&category=MULTIMEDIA&BCode=&newsdate=11/26/08 }}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

Image:Dunn Memorial Bridge stub end.jpg extension to Interstate 90 ]]

The 1960s were a major time of change for the city of Rensselaer. In 1967 the current Dunn Memorial Bridge was built between Albany and Rensselaer. Though the bridge was to continue east through Rensselaer, with the South Mall Arterial connecting with Interstate 90 at Exit 8, this extension never materialized. In 1968, the Amtrak station in Albany (Union Station) was relocated to Rensselaer; the Maiden Lane Bridge and all the railroad associated buildings were demolished when in 1969 the Rensselaer City School high/middle school campus was built north of Quackenderry Creek.

In the 2000s, another wave of development has been occurring in Rensselaer. In 2007, U.W. Marx Construction built a brand new campus for the Rensselaer City School District in the Northern section of the city in exchange for waterfront property that the Rensselaer Middle High School had occupied. The new school replaced the Rensselaer Middle High School and Van Rensselaer Elementary, formerly Van Rensselaer High. Doane Stuart occupies the former elementary school. The redevelopment of the waterfront property is named DeLaet's Landing in honor of Johan de Laet. The first $20 million, 96 unit apartment building opened in 2019. Construction began on a second luxury apartment building on the site in September 2021. The former Van Rensselaer High School was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.{{cite web|url=http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/listings/20120824.htm|title=National Register of Historic Places Listings|date=2012-08-24|work=Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 8/13/12 through 8/17/12 |publisher=National Park Service}}

In January 2023, final approvals were issued to advance the Barnet Mills Apartments redevelopment at the former site of Hilton Center. The project is an undertaking by BBL Construction to revitalize the property along the Hudson River that sits adjacent to the city boat launch and park. It was once home to Barnet Mills, producing wool products for many years. The buildings were last occupied for various artists and specialty businesses.

The City is also currently planning for the construction of a riverfront trail system that spans from the City's Boat Launch to the Hudson Riverfront Art Park over more than a mile of riverfront properties. The grant-funded trail will have multi-modal connections to the Livingston Avenue Bridge, which is a reconstruction project valued at over $400 million that has received state and federal funds.

File:Rensselaer Public Library.jpg

The Rensselaer Public Library is a member of the Upper Hudson Library System, a resource-sharing consortium consisting of twenty-nine public libraries in the counties of Albany and Rensselaer. In 2009, the library moved from Broadway to its current location on East Street.{{cite web |url=https://www.rensselaerlibrary.org/?page_id=8 |title=About the Library: Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=Rensselaer Public Library |access-date=January 6, 2019 }}

{{maplink|frame=y|text=City of Rensselaer|frame-align=right|zoom=11|type=shape-inverse|id=Q1380769|stroke-color=#001|stroke-width=2}}

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of {{convert|3.3|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|3.0|sqmi|km2}} is land and {{convert|0.3|sqmi|km2}} (9.61%) is water. The city is flat along the western and southern areas but the center and northern areas slope steeply to the east.

The city lies next to the Hudson River with Albany County and the city of Albany on the opposite shore. The town of North Greenbush borders the city to the north, and the town of East Greenbush is on the southern border; both towns border the city on the east, with the dividing line between the two towns meeting Rensselaer in the middle section of the city's eastern boundary. Rensselaer's southern border is even with the city of Albany's southern border; however, the northern border of Rensselaer is slightly south of Albany's corresponding northern border.

Northern Rensselaer Hills

• Eastland Park
• The Mansions
• Sterling Ridge

Eastern Rensselaer Hills

• East Street Neighborhood

Western Rensselaer Hills

• 1st Street Neighborhood
• 2nd Street Neighborhood
• 3rd Street Neighborhood
• Washington Avenue Neighborhood
• Broadway Neighborhood

Southern Development Plain

• Downtown Development District

Hudson River Shoreline

Coyne Field

Huyck Memorial Park

Hudson Riverfront Art Park

Waterfront Esplanade at DeLeaet's Landing

Plum Street Park

Walter S. Pratt Memorial Playground (Sprinkler Park)

Hollow Park

First Street Park

Tracy Street Park

Hilton Park Boat Launch

8th Street Park

Eastland Park

Valley View Playground

{{US Census population

|1880= 3295

|1890= 7301

|1900= 7466

|1910= 10711

|1920= 10823

|1930= 11233

|1940= 10768

|1950= 10856

|1960= 10506

|1970= 10136

|1980= 9047

|1990= 8255

|2000= 7761

|2010= 9392

|2020= 9210

|footnote=U.S. Decennial CensusU.S. Census, 2020, 'Ulster town, Ulster County, New York'

}}

As of the census{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=2008-01-31 |title=U.S. Census website }} of 2010, there were 9,392 people, 4,124 households, and 2,457 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|2,579.2|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 3,713 housing units at an average density of {{convert|1,233.9|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the city was 82.11% White, 12.06% African American, 0.20% Native American, 2.17% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, and 3.02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.72% of the population.

There were 3,397 households, out of which 28.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.2% were married couples living together, 16.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.7% were non-families. 36.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 25.0% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 90.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $34,730, and the median income for a family was $40,688. Males had a median income of $29,685 versus $26,291 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,674. About 9.8% of families and 12.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

{{See also|List of colleges and universities in New York's Capital District|List of school districts in New York's Capital District}}

File:Rensselaer_City_School_District.jpg

The Rensselaer City School District operates the city's public school system which consists of a single campus comprising an elementary, middle and high school. Doane Stuart is the only private school in the city.{{cite web|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/albany/stories/2009/09/21/story4.html|title=Enrollment grows as Doane Stuart opens new Rensselaer campus| last=Cooper |first=Robin |date=September 21, 2009| work=Albany Business Review}} On September 16, 2009, Doane Stuart opened an interfaith campus at 199 Washington Ave. The campus which houses students in Kindergarten through 12th grade is the former location of Van Rensselaer Elementary school.

File:2024-07-14 12 48 42 View east along Interstate 90 (Northside Route) from the overpass for Washington Avenue in Rensselaer, Rensselaer County, New York.jpg

Interstate 90 (I-90), a trans-continental Interstate Highway running from Seattle to Boston, is the most prominent highway serving Rensselaer, passing across the northern fringe of the city. I-90 crosses the Hudson River on the Patroon Island Bridge, providing a local connection to Albany. Other prominent highways serving the city include U.S. Route 9 and U.S. Route 20.

{{Main|Albany – Rensselaer (Amtrak station)}}

File:Albany-Rensselaer Rail Station - View from the NW on the Herrick Street Bridge.jpg

The Albany-Rensselaer Amtrak station is the primary passenger rail station for the Rensselaer, Albany and Troy area. Six Empire Service trains run from Albany-Rensselaer to New York City on weekday mornings and several depart for New York in the evening, returning and terminating at Albany-Rensselaer in the afternoon and late evening. The Ethan Allen, a train supported by Vermont and New York, runs north from New York City through Rensselaer to Burlington, Vermont. The Adirondack runs from New York City through Rensselaer to Montreal. Two Empire Service trains run through Rensselaer to Buffalo and Niagara Falls. The Maple Leaf runs from New York City through Rensselaer to Buffalo and Toronto.

{{As of|2020}} it was Amtrak's ninth-busiest station, as well as the busiest to serve a metro area with a population smaller than 2 million–{{cite web |url=https://www.amtrak.com/content/dam/projects/dotcom/english/public/documents/corporate/nationalfactsheets/Amtrak-Company-Profile-FY2020-041921.pdf |title=2020 Corporate Profile|publisher=Amtrak |date=April 2021 |access-date=September 18, 2021}} a distinction it has held since at least 2010.{{cite news |title=High-Speed Rail Chugs Toward the Fast Lane|first=Eric|last=Anderson|url=http://www.timesunion.com/business/article/High-speed-rail-chugs-toward-the-fast-lane-724853.php|newspaper=Albany Times Union|date=October 27, 2010|access-date=September 18, 2021}} This is primarily due to the large number of passengers who commute to and from New York City. The station is the second busiest in New York State behind Pennsylvania Station (New York City).

One section of Amtrak's Lake Shore Limited long-distance train originates in New York City and one section originates in Boston. The two sections are joined at Albany-Rensselaer and travel on to Chicago as a single train. The eastbound Lake Shore Limited reverses the process and splits at Albany-Rensselaer into two sections, with one section continuing south to New York City and the other continuing east to Boston.

Although not technically located within the bounds of the city, the New York Independent System Operator's (NYISO) headquarters shares the same zip code. The NYISO, formerly the New York Power Pool, operates and balances energy flows on the state's electric transmission system, administers the electric wholesale market in New York, and develops wholesale market policy with the assistance of stakeholders.{{cite web|url=https://www.nyiso.com/public/webdocs/media_room/press_releases/ARCHIVE/files/ARCHIVE/FactSheet_NYISOControlCenterProject_080811.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116085519/https://www.nyiso.com/public/webdocs/media_room/press_releases/ARCHIVE/files/ARCHIVE/FactSheet_NYISOControlCenterProject_080811.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 16, 2018|title=NYISO Control Center Project Announcement|access-date=November 15, 2018}}{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1975/11/07/archives/another-big-blackout-not-if-they-can-help-it-another-big-blackout.html|title=Another Big Blackout? Not if They Can Help It|author=Victor K. McElheny|date=November 7, 1975|newspaper=New York Times|access-date=November 15, 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.timesunion.com/tuplus-business/article/50-years-ago-mdash-Albany-went-dark-in-the-6616751.php|title=50 years ago Albany went dark in the Great Northeast Blackout|author=Eric Anderson|date=November 12, 2015|publisher=Times Union|access-date=November 15, 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.timesunion.com/business/article/NYISO-marks-10-years-in-power-546434.php|title=NYISO marks 10 years in power|author=LARRY RULISON|date=December 2, 2009|publisher=Times Union|access-date=November 15, 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.tdworld.com/asset-management-service/nyiso-opens-new-power-control-center|title=NYISO Opens New Power Control Center|author=Stephen Whitley|date=August 27, 2014|access-date=November 15, 2018}}

File:Empire Generating Co. in Rensselaer, New York.jpg

Pursuant to Article X of the Public Service Law, BesiCorp-Empire Development Company LLC. (now operating as Empire Generating Co, LLC) was granted a Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need for a 505-megawatt (MW) combined cycle cogeneration plant in 2004. After additional filings, the project became a 670-MW (nameplate) combined cycle natural gas powered plant that went into service in September 2010. There are two combustion turbines whose exhaust creates steam to drive a steam turbine. All of the turbines are manufactured by General Electric. It uses an air-cooled condenser to reduce water draw. It is located on an 88-acre former industrial area that was owned by BASF Corporation between Riverside Avenue and the Hudson River on the west, and the Port Access Highway on the east and south. In 2017, it injected 2,357 GWh of electric energy into the electric transmission system. This is equivalent to operating at full capacity for approximately 40.9% of the year. For comparison, the capital region consumed 11,823 GWh of electric energy in 2017. Its power is sold into the electric wholesale market administered by the NYISO.{{cite web|url=http://documents.dps.ny.gov/public/Common/ViewDoc.aspx?DocRefId={4669A5E5-D359-474F-8F57-3AB02F9BCDD1}|title=Opinion and Order Granting Certificate of Environmental Compatibility and Public Need (case no. 00-F-2057)|page=2,44|date=September 24, 2004|access-date=November 14, 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.nyiso.com/documents/20142/2226333/2018-Load-Capacity-Data-Report-Gold-Book.pdf/7014d670-2896-e729-0992-be44eb935cc2|title=NYISO 2018 Gold Book (pdf)|work=www.nyiso.com|pages=13, 49|access-date=November 14, 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://www.naes.com/locations/empire-generating-llc/|title=NAES Empire Generating LLC Webpage|date=10 April 2018 |access-date=November 15, 2018}}

A greenway/bikeway path was included in the final plan and was built near the plant.{{cite web|url=http://documents.dps.ny.gov/public/Common/ViewDoc.aspx?DocRefId={1514C217-A68F-4A3C-8093-090955643662}|title=Letter from Empire to PSC on bikeway|date=November 21, 2011|access-date=November 14, 2018}} A decommission fund was established in the original order in the amount of $7 million at start of commercial operation. The company argued for a reduction in 2013 based upon overlooked metal salvage values, but the reduction was not granted, nor was an increase in the security amount a month later.{{cite web|url=http://documents.dps.ny.gov/public/Common/ViewDoc.aspx?DocRefId={FBB85FDF-FEC2-4BB5-84AE-346890EB9A6E}|title=Order Approving Compliance Filing as Effective Subject to Condition|date=June 13, 2018|page=2|access-date=November 14, 2018}} In 2017, a 26-ton fan from the air cooled condenser fell on a worker and killed him during routine maintenance.{{cite web|url=https://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Firefighters-converge-for-possible-rescue-in-Port-8294387.php#photo-10407091|title=Man killed by equipment in Port of Rensselaer plant|publisher=The Times Union|author=Lindsay Ellis|date=June 17, 2016|access-date=November 14, 2018}} In its 2018-2019 adopted budget, the City of Rensselaer notes a revenue of about $1.1 million from payments in lieu of taxes most of which can be assumed to come from Empire Genering LLC. For comparison, the City of Rensselaer notes a total budget of about $15 million for 2018–2019.{{cite web|url=http://www.rensselaerny.gov/MayorsOffice/AnnualBudget.aspx|title=City of Rensselaer Budget Webpage|page=11|access-date=November 14, 2018|archive-date=November 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181115112929/http://www.rensselaerny.gov/MayorsOffice/AnnualBudget.aspx|url-status=dead}}

{{See also|Government of New York (state)|List of mayors of Rensselaer, New York}}

Rensselaer has a mayor-council form of government. The mayor, who is elected every four years, heads the executive branch of city government.{{cite web |url=https://rensselaerny.gov/government/mayor |access-date=January 6, 2020 |title=Mayor's Office :: City of Rensselaer |archive-date=January 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200112003108/https://rensselaerny.gov/government/mayor |url-status=dead }}

Michael E. Stammel won the mayoral election in November 2019, defeating incumbent Richard Mooney.{{cite news |url=https://www.troyrecord.com/news/elections/stammel-wins-mayoral-race-in-rensselaer/article_ff7ec69a-00c0-11ea-874c-d7574514e96c.html |access-date=January 6, 2020 |newspaper=The Record |title=Stammel wins mayoral race in Rensselaer |first=Michael |last=Gwizdala |date=November 6, 2019 |archive-date=November 13, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113203940/https://www.troyrecord.com/news/elections/stammel-wins-mayoral-race-in-rensselaer/article_ff7ec69a-00c0-11ea-874c-d7574514e96c.html |url-status=dead }} He was re-elected to a four-year term as mayor on November 2, 2021, after a re-challenge by Richard Mooney.{{cite web |url=https://www.news10.com/news/your-local-election-hq/mike-stammel-wins-re-election-in-rensselaer-mayoral-race/ |access-date=December 6, 2021 | title=Mike Stammel wins re-election in Rensselaer mayoral race|date=4 December 2021 }}

Rensselaer is in the 20th Congressional district, represented by Paul Tonko (D) in the United States House of Representatives. The city is represented by Chuck Schumer (D){{cite web |title=Schumer, Charles Ellis (Chuck) |publisher=United States Congress |work=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress |url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=s000148 |accessdate=September 18, 2021}} and Kirsten Gillibrand (D){{cite web |title=Gillibrand, Kirsten |publisher=United States Congress |work=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress |url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=G000555 |accessdate=September 18, 2021}} in the United States Senate. On the state level, the city is in the 44th district in the New York Senate, represented by Neil Breslin (D). In the New York Assembly, Rensselaer is in the 108th district, represented by John T. McDonald III (D).

{{Reflist}}l

• {{cite book |last=Anderson |first=George Baker |title=Landmarks of Rensselaer County New York |publisher=D. Mason and Company |location=Syracuse, New York |year=1897 |url=https://archive.org/stream/landmarksofrenss00ande#page/n5/mode/2up |oclc= 1728151}}
• {{cite book |last=Hayner |first=Rutherford |title=Troy and Rensselaer County New York: A History |url=https://archive.org/details/troyrensselaerco01hayn |url-access=registration |location=New York |publisher=Lewis Historical Publishing Company, Inc |year=1925 |oclc=22524006}}
• {{cite book |last=Semowich |first=Charles |title=Rensselaer-Images of America |location=Charleston |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |year=2013}}
• {{cite book |last=Sylvester |first=Nathaniel Bartlett |title=History of Rensselaer Co., New York with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men and Pioneers |publisher=Everts & Peck |location=Philadelphia |year=1880 |oclc= 3496287}}
• {{cite book |last=Weise |first=Arthur James |title=History of the Seventeen Towns of Rensselaer County from the Colonization of the Manor of Rensselaerwyck to the Present Time |year=1880 |publisher=J. M. Francis & Tucker |location=Troy, New York |url=https://archive.org/stream/cu31924064123015#page/n5/mode/2up |oclc= 6637788}}

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• [http://www.rensselaerny.gov/ Official website]
• {{Cite Americana|wstitle=Rensselaer (New York)|display=Rensselaer, N. Y. |short=x}}

{{Rensselaer County, New York}}

{{Capital District}}

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Category:Rensselaer, New York

Category:Cities in New York (state)

Category:Cities in Rensselaer County, New York

Category:New York (state) populated places on the Hudson River