Monroe, NY

Monroe is an Orange County community in the lower Hudson Valley, with roots going back to Lenape inhabitants and later colonial settlement. One early local story involves a dam built by Smith, part of the water-powered development that shaped many Hudson Valley towns. Modern Monroe is tied to Route 17, commuter patterns, nearby Harriman, and the lakes and hills of southern Orange County. It feels like a growing suburban village and town area with older settlement history underneath the newer housing and shopping corridors.