Geneva is situated at the northern end of
Seneca Lake. South Main Street, a street of stately homes and centuries-old trees, was the center of the aristocracy of early Geneva. Pulteney Square and Trinity Episcopal
Church, the oldest Episcopal Church in western New York, give the street an old-world
look. Hobart College extends along the street. Many of the multiple-level homes back up to
Seneca Lake.
In addition to Hobart College,
the oldest college in western New York, Geneva is home to William Smith College and the
New York State Agricultural Experiment Station. Two State Parks are nearby: Seneca Lake State Park and
Sampson State Park. Some additional attractions include the Prouty-Chew Historical Museum, Rose Hill
Mansion, and the Smith Opera House for the Performing Arts. Garden tours are offered from
August to October at the Legg Dahlia Gardens.
Geneva is on the general site of the Seneca Indian Village
called "Kanadesaga." It was a village of fifty homes, with cultivated fields and orchards,
centered on the grounds of the present location of the New York State Agricultural
Experiment Station.
The first medical degree awarded to a woman in modern times
was awarded to Elizabeth Blackwell in 1849 by Geneva College, which became Hobart College
in 1851. The Medical School of Geneva College, founded in1834, subsequently moved to Syracuse University.
Excerpt from Persons, Places and Things In the Finger Lakes Region
by Emerson Klees
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