That's because technology based industries are here with their manufacturing and research facilities and their many highly trained technicians, engineers and scientists. Other major sources of employment include local and state government and tourism. A number of colleges and universities offer extension courses in Poughkeepsie. The State University College at New Paltz is located across the river in Ulster County for professional growth and continued advancement. An active program of Continuing Education throughout the Valley offers still more potential for study and opportunities for teaching.
Historical sites abound.
They form a veritable roll call of Revolutionary battles and encampments. Research facilities are available at many of these sites, including the military museum at nearby West Point and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library and Museum in neighboring Hyde Park. Art museums and antique shops, arboretums and public gardens, and many restoration projects will appeal to varied interests. A community of interest exists culturally as well as historically, for we support our own distinguished Hudson Valley Philharmonic Orchestra, experimental theaters at the colleges, and summer theaters throughout the countryside. All of this creates a cultural milieu that is most unusual in what is still a beautifully and uniquely pastoral region.