Wyoming County, New York

Infobox U.S. County
county = Wyoming County
state = New York




map size = 250
founded = 1841
seat = Warsaw | area_total_sq_mi =596
area_water_sq_mi =4
area percentage = 0.59%
census yr = 2000
pop = 43424
density_km2 =28
web = www.wyomingco.net
|

Wyoming County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2000 census, the population was 43,424. The county seat is Warsaw. The name is from a modified Delaware Indian word meaning "broad bottom lands." Wyoming County was formed from Genesee County in 1841.

History

When counties were established in New York State in 1683, the present Wyoming County was part of Albany County. This was an enormous county, including the northern part of New York State as well as all of the present State of Vermont and, in theory, extending westward to the Pacific Ocean. This county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766 by the creation of Cumberland County, and further on March 16, 1770 by the creation of Gloucester County, both containing territory now in Vermont.

On March 12, 1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. One of the other pieces, Tryon County, contained the western portion (and thus, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically still extended west to the Pacific). The eastern boundary of Tryon County was approximately five miles west of the present city of Schenectady, and the county included the western part of the Adirondack Mountains and the area west of the West Branch of the Delaware River. The area then designated as Tryon County now includes 37 counties of New York State. The county was named for William Tryon, colonial governor of New York.

In the years prior to 1776, most of the Loyalists in Tryon County fled to Canada. In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended the American Revolutionary War, the name of Tryon County was changed to Montgomery County in order to honor the general, Richard Montgomery, who had captured several places in Canada and died attempting to capture the city of Quebec, replacing the name of the hated British governor.

In 1789, Ontario County was split off from Montgomery.

Almost all of the land west of the Genesee River, including all of present day Wyoming County, was part of the "Holland Land Purchase" in 1793 and was sold through the Holland Land Company's office in Batavia, starting in 1801.

Genesee County was created by a splitting of Ontario County in 1802. This was much larger than the present Genesee County, however. It was reduced in size in 1806 by creating Allegany County; again in 1808 by creating Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, and Niagara Counties. Niagara County at that time also included the present Erie County.

In 1821, portions of Genesee County were combined with portions of Ontario County to create Livingston and Monroe Counties.

Genesee County was further reduced in size in 1824 by creating Orleans County.

Finally, in 1841, Wyoming County was created from Genesee County.

Points of interest

*Letchworth State Park, on the Genesee River forms part of the southeastern boundary of the county. A deep gorge with three major waterfalls characterize this scenic and historic area, created when the last Ice age glacier diverted the river and forced it to cut a new valley. It is the home area of Mary Jemison, the "White Woman of the Genesee", who was captured as a young person by the Seneca tribe and became an important figure in negotiations between the tribe and the land companies.

*Middlebury Academy, in Wyoming village, the first high school level school west of the Genesee. The Greek revival building still exists and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

*Hillside Inn opened originally as a spa at mineral springs on the hill above Wyoming village around 1841, has entertained many important persons, including Theodore Roosevelt and his family and Susan B. Anthony,

*Attica and Arcade Railroad is a restoration of a steam locomotive.

*Attica maximum security prison is located in the northernmost part of the county.

*Gaslight Village - downtown Wyoming is a historic village lit by gas street lamps. Deposits of natural gas and salt have been an economic factor in the development of the area.

*Silver Lake - this tiny glacial lake is the only one of the Finger Lakes group of lakes that is west of the Genesee.

*Morton Salt- One of the largest salt mines in the Northeast is located in Silver Springs and has been running since the mid to late 1800s.

Geography

Wyoming County is in the western part of New York State, east of Buffalo and slightly west of due south of Rochester. The county is in the Holland Purchase Region.

The county is largely rural, dotted with small towns. Even the county seat, Warsaw is quite small. Much of the area is wooded, used for timber. Some that are predominantly maple are tapped each spring for the production of maple syrup. Agriculture is mostly small family dairy farms, or hobby farms for people who work in Buffalo or Batavia. Apple orchards were once a major agricultural endeavor, but only a few are left. The area is well known for outdoor sports, being an excellent area for fishing, hunting, and snowmobiling.

An active geologic fault runs down the Dale valley through Linden, to the east of Batavia and out into Lake Ontario. Movement of the fault is an occasional source of minor earthquakes, which, at most, have toppled a couple chimneys. The Dale Valley has been developed as a source of salt by way of brine wells, for the chemical industry. A pipeline moves the brine to Niagara Falls.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 596 square miles (1,545 km²), of which, 593 square miles (1,536 km²) of it is land and 4 square miles (9 km²) of it (0.59%) is water.

Oatka Creek, an important tributary of the Genesee River has its source in the Town of Gainesville.

Adjacent counties

*Genesee County, New York - north
*Livingston County, New York - east
*Allegany County, New York - southeast
*Cattaraugus County, New York - southwest
*Erie County, New York - west

Major highways

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 43,424 people, 14,906 households, and 10,717 families residing in the county. The population density was 73 people per square mile (28/km²). There were 16,940 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile (11/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 91.84% White, 5.52% Black or African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.32% from other races, and 0.67% from two or more races. 2.94% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 31.7% were of German, 12.5% English, 10.9% Irish, 10.2% Polish, 9.3% American and 7.7% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000. 97.1% spoke English and 1.8% Spanish as their first language.

There were 14,906 households out of which 34.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.30% were married couples living together, 9.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.10% were non-families. 23.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.08.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.10% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 32.80% from 25 to 44, 22.80% from 45 to 64, and 12.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 118.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 122.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $39,895, and the median income for a family was $45,088. Males had a median income of $31,973 versus $22,252 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,248. About 5.80% of families and 8.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.60% of those under age 18 and 5.80% of those age 65 or over.

Towns and Villages

*Arcade (village)
*Arcade (town)
*Attica (town)
*Attica (village)
*Bennington (town)
*Castile (town)
*Castile (village)
*Covington (town)
*Eagle (town)
*Gainesville (village)
*Gainesville (town)
*Genesee Falls (town)
*Java (town)
*Middlebury (town)
*Orangeville (town)
*Perry (village)
*Perry (town)
*Pike (village)
*Pike (town)
*Portageville
*Sheldon (town)
*Silver Springs (village)
*Strykersville (village)
*Warsaw (village)
*Warsaw (town)
*Wethersfield (town)
*Wyoming (village)

*" Label in parentheses shows official level of government".

Notable residents

*Calvin Fairbank, (1816-1898), born in Allegany County (now Wyoming County), Methodist clergyman and staunch abolitionist.cite book | title = Who Was Who in America, Historical Volume, 1607-1896 | publisher = Marquis Who's Who | location = Chicago | date = 1963]
*Ed Don George, (1905-1985), born in North Java, New York, professional wrestler, naval commander.
*David Starr Jordan, Ph.D., LL.D. (1851–1931), born in Gainesville, New York, a leading ichthyologist, educator and peace activist. President of Indiana University and Stanford University.

ee also

References

External links

* [http://www.wyomingco.net Wyoming County]
* [http://www.wyomingcountyny.com Wyoming County Tourism Promotion Agency]
* [http://www.wycochamber.org Wyoming County Chamber of Commerce]
*
* [http://counties.cce.cornell.edu/wyoming Cornell Cooperative Extension of Wyoming County]