The city houses the former residence and burial place of John Jay, a Founding Father and the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Original milestones, fixed in 1763 by Benjamin Franklin along the Boston Post Road during his term as Postmaster General still mark the 24th, 25th, and 26th miles from New York City.
There were 5,377 households out of which 40.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.6% were married couples living together, 6.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.1% were non-families. 21.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78 and the average family size was 3.26.
In the city the population was spread out with 29.8% under the age of 18, 3.8% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 23.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 92.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $110,894, and the median income for a family was $133,231. Males had a median income of $96,585 versus $52,052 for females. The per capita income for the city was $76,566. About 1.6% of families and 2.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.8% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.
In 2005 Forbes magazine named Rye's ZIP code, 10580, as having the most expensive median home prices in Westchester County and the 61st most expensive in the United States.
The Historical Society also owns a former inn/tavern built in 1730, the Square House, which it operates as a museum. George Washington stayed at the Square House on two separate occasions, remarking favorably on his stay in his diaries.
The site at 210 Boston Post Road where founding father John Jay grew up and where he is buried is now the home of the not-for-profit organization, The Jay Heritage Center. The Center's mission is to restore and preserve the 1838 Peter Augustus Jay House which occupies the original site of the Jay family farm, The Locusts. Restoration of the Jay mansion overlooking Long Island Sound is an official project of the Save America's Treasures Program.
Rye is an affluent suburb of New York City, with a Metro-North rail station in its downtown with service taking 33 minutes on an express train to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan. The City of Rye is home to Rye Country Day School, a college preparatory private school.
Rye is also known for its famous theme park, Rye Playland. Rye Playland was a very popular destination in the early 20th century, where people were able to take their boats right up to the park. Its famous roller coaster, The Dragon Coaster, was at one point in time a top ten wooden roller coaster in the world. Glenn Close and Ellen Latzen ride the roller coaster in the 80's thriller, "Fatal Attraction." Playland is also the setting for several key scenes in the movie "Big," starring Tom Hanks.
Rye is also famous for the annual Rye-Harrison football game, which has been played for more than seventy years and is the number one schoolboy football rivalry in Westchester County. The Rye High School football team has won two recent NYS championships and has defeated Harrison in six consecutive meetings. Harrison leads the all-time series with a record of 42-33-3.
Rye is served by three public elementary schools. Osborn, Milton, and Midland. Rye Middle and Rye High School follow; they are on the same campus, and the two buildings are connected.