Skaneateles (village), New York

Skaneateles is a village in Onondaga County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 2,616. The name is derived from the native term for the adjacent lake.

The Village of Skaneateles is in the Town of Skaneateles. Both village and town are about twenty miles southwest of Syracuse, New York.

History

Settlers populated the eastern Finger Lakes region rapidly in the 1790s. Water power from the outlet from Skaneateles Lake made the site of the present village attractive. The old Genesee Road between Utica, Marcellus, Auburn, Geneva and Avon became the Seneca Turnpike in 1800, The first bridge across Skaneateles Creek was built that year. The Seneca Turnpike, together with the Hamilton and Skaneateles Turnpike, begun in 1826, made the new community more accessible. Isaac Sherwood, founder of the Sherwood Inn, developed a stage coach line through Skaneateles.

The village, incorporated in 1833 and 1855, attracted prominent residents from an early date. In 1803 a major New York State landowner from New York City, William J. Vredenburgh, erected an ambitious mansion. [ [http://home.earthlink.net/~ggghostie/vredenburgh.html Kihm Winship. "The First Postmaster", 2006.] ] In 1839 Nicholas Roosevelt, another New York State landowner and "one of the leading industrial entrepreneurs of the period [who] had built the big steam engines for the Philadelphia waterwork", on retiring moved with his wife, Lydia Latrobe (daughter of the famous architect, Benjamin Henry Latrobe) from New York City to Skaneateles. house became known as "Roosevelt Hall."

Reuel Smith, a wealthy Massachusetts importer, retired to Skaneateles. In 1852 he built an architecturally distinguished house, designed in the Gothic Revival style by Alexander Jackson Davis, who designed at least one other building in the village. The Reuel Smith House has been designated to the National Reguistry, the plans are in the Library of Congress, all made possible by the local owners.

Roosevelt Hall, originally the DeZeng House furthermore may be the work of his partner, Ithiel Town. Frederick Roosevelt, cousin of President Theodore Roosevelt, built a fine house on the lake in 1879, said to be designed by Stanford White (although the architect was in Europe at the time). The building reputedly was constructed in New York City, dismantled and relocated in Skaneateles. [ [http://www.authenticleadershipforwomen.com/AboutStella.html Authentic Leadership for Women - About the Stella Maris Retreat] ]

Many early residents such as James Canning Fuller came from Great Britain, largely because of the Quaker community here, giving the early village a cosmopolitan tone. Fuller and his wife, Lydia, maintained an active Underground Railroad station at their village home (built 1815, extant at 98 Genesee Street). Fuller was co-founder of the British-American Institute, a Canadian school for fugitive slaves, together with the adjoining settlement of Dawn, near Dresden, Ontario.

For more than two centuries Skaneateles has also attracted visitors. An excursion boat, launched in 1816, probably was the first instance of commercial tourist recreation in the Finger Lakes region.

Geography

Skaneateles is located at coor dms|42|56|48|N|76|25|42|W|city (42.946893, -76.428586)According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.7 square miles (4.5 km²), of which, 1.4 square miles (3.7 km²) of it is land and 0.3 square miles (0.7 km²) of it (16.28%) is water.

The village is at the north end of Skaneateles Lake, in the eastern end of the Finger Lakes District.

The village is at the junction of US Route 20, an east-west highway, and three north-south highways, New York State Route 321, New York State Route 41 and New York State Route 41A.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,616 people, 1,104 households, and 705 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,826.8 people per square mile (706.3/km²). There were 1,190 housing units at an average density of 831.0/sq mi (321.3/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 99.16% White, 0.08% Black or African American, 0.31% Asian, 0.04% from other races, and 0.42% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.31% of the population.

There were 1,104 households out of which 31.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.9% were married couples living together, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.1% were non-families. 33.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the village the population was spread out with 25.8% under the age of 18, 4.3% from 18 to 24, 22.9% from 25 to 44, 27.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 87.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.1 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $57,083, and the median income for a family was $85,403. Males had a median income of $60,529 versus $36,797 for females. The per capita income for the village was $29,170. About 0.9% of families and 3.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 0.8% of those under age 18 and 5.9% of those age 65 or over. In 2006 164 residential properties in the Town of Skaneateles were assessed at more than a million dollars, compared to only two such properties in all the rest of Onondaga County.

Local attractions

Village attractions include boat excursions, inns, restaurants and a spa, as well as boutique shopping. [http://www.johndbarrowgallery.com/ An art gallery] is devoted to the work of local painter, John Dodgson Barrow, who designed the large Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument in Lakeview Cemetery (1895). The summer [http://skanfest.org/ Skaneateles Festival] of music is a seasonal event, as is the annual [http://www.skaneateles.com/boatshow.html/ Skaneateles Antique and Classic Boat Show] and the [http://www.skaneateles.com/dickens.html/ Dickens Christmas in Skaneateles] with actors in period costume performing on the streets.

References

* William Beauchamp. "Notes of other days in Skaneateles, written for the Skaneateles democrat in 1876. Cornell Library New York State Literature [http://historical.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/cul.nys/docviewer?did=nys364&view=50&frames=0&seq=1]
* Kihm Winship. "Living History", 2005. [http://home.earthlink.net/~ggghostie/livinghistory.html]
* Syracuse-Onondaga County Planning Agency. "Onondaga Landmarks". 1975.
* Harley McKee, Patricia Earle, Paul Malo. "Architecture Worth Saving in Onondaga County". Syracuse University Press. 1964. [http://syracusethenandnow.org/WorthSaving/WorthSaving.htm]
* Paul K. Williams. "The Historic Homes and Buildings of Skaneateles." Auburn, NY: Topical Review Book Company, 1987. Reprinted 1992.
* Paul K. Williams and Charles N. Williams. "Skaneateles Lake". Arcadia - Postcard History series. 2002.
* Sue Ellen Woodcock. "Skaneateles". Arcadia-Images of America. 2001
* Christopher T. Baer. "Turnpikes." Syracuse University Press. "Encyclopedia of New York State". 2005
* Howard S. Ford. "Sure Signs: Stories Behind the Historical Markers of Central New York". 2002

External links

* [http://www.skaneateles.com Skaneateles Chamber Website]
* [http://www.skaneateles.com/history.html Skaneateles Historical Society]
* [http://www.rootsweb.com/~nyononda/SKANEAT/SKANEAT.HTM Skaneateles History] at RootsWeb
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