[1] Rochester was chartered as a town in 1722, but substantive colonial settlement did not take place until conflicts with Native Americans subsided in the mid-18th century.

The town was a center for lumber trade, and became a transportation hub, with the intersection of two stagecoach routes at what is now Central Square.

[2] The city's downtown is largely a product of late 19th and early 20th-century development, although there are surviving elements representative of its earlier importance.

A few residences and commercial buildings dating to the 1820s are found on North Main Street, northwest of Central Square, interspersed with later 19th-century and modern infill.

Civic and religious buildings are also found along Main Street, including a courthouse, city hall, and churches.