city, seat (1809) of Schenectady county, east-central New York, U.S., on the Mohawk River and New York State Canal System. With Albany and Troy, it forms an urban-industrial complex. Founded as a Dutch settlement in 1662, it took its name from the nearby Mohawk village of Schaunactada, probably meaning “over,” or “across the pine plains.” In 1690 the village was virtually destroyed in the Schenectady Massacre by the French and Indians. With an influx of English settlers in the early 1700s the site (above a series of waterfalls) was fortified and developed as the terminus of the portage between Albany, on the Hudson (Hudson River), and the Mohawk (Mohawk River). The prosperous transshipment business declined after 1825 with the opening of the Erie Canal. Economic recovery for the city was stimulated by the arrival of the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad in 1831 and the establishment of a locomotive works in 1848.

In 1886 the Edison Machine Works were moved from New York City to Schenectady, and by a series of mergers in 1892 the General Electric Company (General Electric Co.) was created with its main administrative offices in the city. Later, plants manufacturing a wide range of electrical equipment and experimental laboratories, eventually including nuclear research centres, were established. Chemicals are also manufactured. Union College of Union University was founded (1795) in Schenectady and includes the 16-sided Nott Memorial building and Jackson's Garden on its 100-acre (40-hectare) campus. Schenectady County Community College of the State University of New York (New York, State University of (SUNY)) system was established in 1967. The city's colonial past survives in its downtown Historic Stockade area. Inc. borough, 1765; city, 1798. Pop. (1990) city, 65,566; Albany-Schenectady-Troy MSA, 861,424; (2000) city, 61,821; Albany-Schenectady-Troy MSA, 875,583.

county, east-central New York state, U.S., comprising a hilly region bordered to the southeast by the Mohawk River (which also bisects the county) and to the west by Schoharie Creek. The Mohawk incorporates the New York State Canal System (completed 1918) and its constituent the Erie Canal (1825). Forests contain a mix of northern hardwoods.

Local Mohawk Indians were involved in the Iroquois wars in the 17th century. The city of Schenectady, the county seat, was founded by the Dutch in 1661, razed by French and Indian soldiers in 1690, and rebuilt by English settlers soon thereafter. It is the home of Union College (founded 1795) and the General Electric Company (General Electric Co.) (1892). Other communities are Rotterdam, East Glenville, and Carman.

Schenectady county was created in 1809, its name derived from a Mohawk word probably meaning “the other side of the pinelands.” The principal economic activities are services (health and engineering) and retail trade. Area 206 square miles (534 square km). Pop. (2000) 146,555; (2007 est.) 150,818.