Troy

Where the Hudson and Mohawk rivers meet in upstate New York, the city of Troy has been reinventing itself since its founding in 1787, when it was named after the ancient city of legend by residents with classical ambitions for their new settlement. For most of the nineteenth century, those ambitions were spectacularly fulfilled: Troy became one of the wealthiest cities in America, its iron foundries casting the plates for the USS Monitor, its shirt factories clothing the nation, and its citizens building mansions of such architectural extravagance that the city earned the nickname "The Collar City" for its domination of the detachable collar industry.

The character of modern Troy is one of renewal emerging from decades of post-industrial decline. The city's extraordinary inventory of nineteenth-century architecture — Italianate brownstones, Second Empire mansions with mansard roofs, ornate cast-iron commercial buildings — survived the twentieth century largely because Troy was too poor to demolish them. Today, this preserved architectural heritage is the foundation of a renaissance driven by artists, entrepreneurs, and the proximity of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, one of America's oldest technological universities.

The Troy Waterfront Farmers' Market, held every Saturday year-round in the magnificent atrium of the former Troy Savings Bank, has become one of the most celebrated markets in the northeastern United States. The market building itself — with its soaring glass ceiling, cast-iron columns, and the adjacent Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, an acoustically perfect concert venue whose sound has been compared to Vienna's Musikverein — provides a setting that elevates the simple act of buying vegetables into a cultural experience.

The culinary scene in Troy has blossomed alongside the city's broader revival. Farm-to-table restaurants draw on the agricultural riches of the Hudson Valley — one of America's premier food-producing regions. The nearby Capital Region of New York offers craft breweries, cideries, and a growing wine industry. The city's diverse immigrant communities have contributed Mexican, Vietnamese, and West African flavours to a food landscape that grows more interesting with each passing year.

Troy is located at the eastern edge of New York's Capital District, ten minutes from Albany and approximately two and a half hours by car from New York City. Amtrak services connect nearby Rensselaer to New York Penn Station and Montreal. River cruises on the Hudson and Erie Canal pass through regularly. The best time to visit is May through October, when the farmers' market is at its most abundant and the Hudson Valley's natural beauty is on full display. The Victorian Stroll in December transforms downtown into a holiday celebration of period costumes, music, and festive warmth.