Rosebank, Staten Island

Rosebank is a neighborhood in the northeastern part of Staten Island, one of the five boroughs of New York City.

Originally called Peterstown, the name "Rosebank" appears to have been first used to denote the neighborhood around 1880. Soon after this Italian immigrants began settling there, and their descendants have continued as its predominant ethnic group, exemplified by the location of the Garibaldi Memorial in the community. In recent years the town has experienced an influx of other ethnic groups, including Eastern Europeans, various Latin nationalities as well as Asians, particularly from the Philippines.

After the elimination of the Bachmann's Brewery station, Rosebank was the first stop on the now-defunct South Beach Branch of the Staten Island Railway after its separation from the main line at the Clifton station immediately to the north. Service on this branch was halted in 1953. The station was located near Clifton Avenue and Tilson Place. Hylan Boulevard, Staten Island's and New York City's longest commercial roadway, begins in Rosebank on its way to Tottenville, about 14 miles (22.5 km) away.

The age, density and architectural style of Rosebank's housing stock resembles that found in most of the island's North Shore neighborhoods; however, demographically Rosebank has more in common with such East Shore communities as New Dorp. As a result, there is considerable disagreement as into which region of the island Rosebank should be classified.

The neighborhood once played host to a federal quarantine station for incoming immigrants (closed 1971), and was the home of noted photographer Alice Austen, one of Staten Island's most recognizable personalities of the past. The Garibaldi-Meucci Museum is named for a long time resident, Antonio Meucci, who has some claim to having been an inventor of a working telephone. However, impoverished, he was unable to obtain a patent or to market it. When Giuseppe Garibaldi visited the United States while in exile from Italy, he stayed for a time at the home of Meucci. This home is now a museum named for the two men.

Notable residents
Notable current and former residents of Rosebank include:
 * Alice Austen (1866–1952), Photographer, who was a lifelong resident of Staten Island.
 * Sir Roderick W. Cameron (1825-1900), shipping company owner