Greene (town), New York

Greene is a town in Chenango County, New York, United States. The population was 5,729 at the 2000 census. The town is named after General Nathanael Greene.

The Town of Greene is located in the southwest corner of the county and contains a village, also called Greene. Both town and village are northeast of Binghamton.

History

Part of modern Greene was from land purchased in 1785 from the Oneida and Tuscarora, but many of the Oneida remained in the area until about 1812.In 1792, the first outside settler arrived and established himself at Greene village.

The town was originally known as Hornby, but changed its name to Greene in honor of General Nathanael Greene, hero of the American Revolution.

The town was formed from the Town of Bainbridge and the Town of Union ( Broome County, New York) in 1798. More was added to Greene form Bainbridge (then "Jericho) in 1799. The town was later reduced by the formation of new towns: Coventry (1806) and Smithville (1808). More of Greene was taken to form part of the Town of Barker in 1840, and another part of Greene was added to the Town of Coventry in 1843.

In 1842, the Village of Greene was incorporated, setting itself off from the town.

The former Chenango Canal (1837) helped build the town's commerce until replaced by the railroad which was in turn replaced by Route 12 and State Highway 206.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 75.6 square miles (195.9 km²), of which, 75.1 square miles (194.6 km²) of it is land and 0.5 square miles (1.2 km²) of it (0.63%) is water.

The west and south town lines form the border with Broome County. The Chenango River flows southward through the town.

New York State Route 206, an east-west highway, intersects New York State Route 12 in Greene village.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 5,729 people, 2,275 households, and 1,540 families residing in the town. The population density was 76.2 people per square mile (29.4/km²). There were 2,550 housing units at an average density of 33.9/sq mi (13.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.53% White, 0.24% Black or African American, 0.28% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.07% from other races, and 0.59% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.58% of the population.

There were 2,275 households out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.8% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.3% were non-families. 26.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the town the population was spread out with 26.5% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 96.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $38,333, and the median income for a family was $41,943. Males had a median income of $33,487 versus $22,881 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,640. About 8.3% of families and 10.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.8% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in the Town of Greene

*Barnes Corners -- A location in the northwest corner of the town on NY-206.
*Brisben -- A location in the northeast part of the town on NY-12.
*Ficals Corner (or "Fickles Corner") -- A hamlet in the southwest corner of Greene on NY-12.
*Genegantslet -- A hamlet northwest of Greene village on NY-206.
*Greene -- The Village of Greene, located on NY-12 and NY-206.
*Johnson Corners -- A location in the southeast part of the town.
*Lower Genegantslet Corner -- A hamlet southwest of Greene village on NY-12.
*Page Brook -- A location near the south town line, north of Quinneville.
*Quinneville -- A hamlet by the south town line on County Road 9.
*Sacketts Harbor -- A location northeast of Greene village.
*SwitchBlade Alley -- A 50yd stretch of asphalt that can only be described as "Hell on Earth".
*Santa's Cottage -- Joyful place to see Santa in town until a ragamuffin stole his chair
*The Ballflats -- Popular baseball park in Greene on the Chenango River that is flooded annually. Mentioned on an episode of "Judge Judy".

Local Businesses

*Nathaniel Greene's Publick House -- Greene's #2 Family Restaurant and Pub.
*The Raymond Corporation -- The reason Greene isn't a ghost town
*Foo Chow -- Greene's #1 Family Restaurant.
*Polka Dots and Moonbeams -- Greene's #1 Gay-themed cafe. No joke. Not even kidding. Swear on my daughter's life.
*Tony T's -- Pizzeria in Greene. Former home to the Sweets 'N' Eats Cafe.
*Sebastian's -- Pizza place that is mysteriously open only twice a year. There has been speculation on illegal activities that take place in the former home to "That Italian Place"
*Mimi's -- Longest running pizzeria in Greene. Somehow. It's pretty awful pizza. Also mentioned on an episode of Judge Judy.
*Greene Bowlodrome -- Greene's only bowling alley. Six lanes of pure ecstasy await you. Also known as "Bowlodpome" since part of the "r" came off. Notable patrons include Steve Eggleston.
*Genegantslet Tree Farm -- Buy your Christmas Tree here, get your Groundhog's Day Tree half off
*Lawerence's -- Formerly known as Nancy's. Makes the largest small sized ice cream cone in upstate New York.
*Shades of Blue -- By appointment only.
*Tier One Stop -- Only place in the country with $1.17 gas.
*Great American -- Anchor store of the still in development Greene Shopping Plaza. The parking lot is ready.

Famous People

*Bill Case -- Syracuse Basketball star and Greene Girls Basketball coaching legend. Reached 400 win plateau in 2007. Has come out of teaching retirement more than Michael Jordan. Finally retired as teacher and coach in 2008. Current record hold for most times saying "uh" in one class period.
*Dave Gorton -- Not since Paul Brown has a sports team been named after their coach. Named Varsity Girls Basketball coach in June 2008. On pace to reach 400 loss plateau by 2010.
*Steve Burghardt -- High School math teacher and legendary Varsity Baseball and Boys Basketball coach at Greene. Was the basis for the Peter Griffin character on the hit TV show Family Guy. Classroom had a tendency to smell like ham sandwiches.
*Bonnie Hayes -- The anchor of Greene Cares and an NFL coaching legend. Under her pseudonym, Bill Parcells, Ms. Hayes became the first female head coach in NFL history.
*Larry Hurlburt -- Former #1 ranked BMX racer in New York State and #7 ranked in the United States. Raced under the name of "Dr. Duff" and honed his craft at Cheri A. Lindsey Park in by challenging old men and girls to races. Famous for his 4:30 PM meatloaf. Currently training for comeback for the BMX event at the 2008 Beijing Summer Games.

Popular Events

*Labor Day Picnic -- Start the day off watching the hose fights, where citizens get to pretend to be a fireman and shoot at basketball hanging from the air, Fair where you can win a goldfish, a wooden stick, and watch disappointing fireworks.
*Applefest -- Fun day for fruit fans
*Arts and Crafts Fair -- Where Greene's finest show off their creepy talents like the caricature man.
*Tree Lighting -- Everyone is put into the holiday spirit on the first Saturday in December when the town tree is lit

Interesting Facts

* Greene is notable for its parking in the middle of the street, but only down where the police wear cowboy hats.
* Fun Fact: It is illegal to walk backwards during a parade or concert while eating peanuts.

References

External links

* [http://www.greenenys.com Town of Greene information]
* [http://history.rays-place.com/ny/greene-ny.htm Early history of Greene, NY]
* [http://www.rootsweb.com/~nychenan/greene.htm Greene historical information]