Waterford (town), New York

Waterford is a town in Saratoga County, New York, USA. The population was 8,515 at the 2000 census. The name of town is derived from its principal village.

The Town of Waterford contains a village, also called Waterford. The town and village are in the southeast corner of the county, north of the City of Troy.

History

The town is part of the Van Schaick patent of 1687. The first settlement took place at the site of the current Waterford village, then called "Half Moon Point."

The town was formed by splitting the area of southeastern Saratoga County known as Halfmoon (anglicized from the Dutch name Halve Maan) into Town of Halfmoon and the Town of Waterford in 1816.

The Village of Waterford is the oldest incorporated village in the USA, having been incorporated in 1794, before the town was formed.

Waterford has been host to "Canal Fest" and "Tugboat Roundup" for many years.

Waterford has a developing waterfront community

Waterford is home to the Northeast's largest annual Tugboat festival. Every September a 3 day festival is held in Waterford, NY along the waterfront in the village. 30,000 visitors attend over the 3 day weekend. You can find arts, crafts, farmers market items, games, music, story telling and of course TUGBOATS. Many historic boats travel through the locks in Waterford as it is the entrance to the modern New York State Canal system. You can take a walk down the waterline and often will meet very friendly people.

Plans are in the works for a completion to the historic replica lighting posts that have been installed in the village over the last 4 years. In the future the village could greatly benefit from a line burial project to take down the poles and thereby raise the property values.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 7.4 square miles (19.2 km²), of which, 6.6 square miles (17.0 km²) of it is land and 0.9 square miles (2.2 km²) of it (11.59%) is water.

The east town line, defined by the Hudson River, is the border of Rensselaer County, and the south town line, defined by the Mohawk River, is the border of Albany County. The easternmost section and locks of the Erie Canal, which connects with the Hudson River pass through the town. The "Waterford flight" of locks is one of the highest in the world. The Erie Canal is linked to the Champlain Canal at Waterford.

US Route 4, partly conjoined with New York State Route 32, is a north-south highway through eastern Waterford.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 8,515 people, 3,497 households, and 2,287 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,299.2 people per square mile (501.9/km²). There were 3,725 housing units at an average density of 568.3/sq mi (219.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.86% White, 0.74% Black or African American, 0.20% Native American, 1.09% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 1.01% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.94% of the population.

There were 3,497 households out of which 30.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.0% were married couples living together, 11.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.6% were non-families. 27.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the town the population was spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 32.6% from 25 to 44, 21.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $46,362, and the median income for a family was $56,345. Males had a median income of $39,913 versus $27,879 for females. The per capita income for the town was $22,538. About 3.5% of families and 5.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.7% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in the Town of Waterford

*Cohoes Falls -- A waterfall on the Mohawk River and a source of power to early industry.
*Goat Island -- An island at the south part of the town.
*Northside -- Actually the South side of the Town of Waterford. The name may be derived from its location on the North side of the Mohawk River. Northside derives its name from at one time being the "northside" part of the Cohoes Post Office, e.g. 123 Any street, Northside, Cohoes, N.Y. About 1960, all of Waterford, was serviced by the Waterford Post Office.
*Peebles Island State Park -- A state park in the south part of the town.
*Prospect Hill -- A hamlet north of Waterford village on County Road 96.
*Schulusky Estates -- A location northwest of Waterford village.
*State Canal Park -- A part in the western part of Waterford.
*Sugarloaf Pond -- A pond in the south part of the town.
*Swazey Acres -- A location northwest of Waterford village.
*Waterford -- The Village of Waterford on the Hudson River.

References

External links

* [http://www.town.waterford.ny.us/ Town of Waterford]
* [http://www.waterford-ny.com Town of Waterford]
* [http://www.waterfordmuseum.com/ Waterford Historical Museum]
* [http://history.rays-place.com/ny/waterford-ny.htm Early history of Waterford]
* [http://www.waterfordlibrary.net Waterford Public Library]