Westchester Square was the centre of the old village and town of Westchester.
English settlers from New Haven Colony founded the village about 1654 on land Thomas Pell had bought from Native Americans; the Dutch called it Oostdorp, ‘East Town’. It was the seat of the Town of Westchester until 1895, when the town became part of New York City. ‘Tremont’ was coined by a 19th-century postmaster, by tradition from three hills: Mount Eden, Mount Hope and Fairmount.