Oneida, New York

Oneida, New York
—  City  —
Oneida Main Street in a 1907 postcard
Flag Seal
Oneida, New York Location within the state of New York
Coordinates: 43°5′6″N 75°39′12″W / 43.085°N 75.65333°W / 43.085; -75.65333Coordinates: 43°5′6″N 75°39′12″W / 43.085°N 75.65333°W / 43.085; -75.65333
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Madison
Chartered	1901
Government
– Type	Mayor-Council
– Mayor	Donald W. Hudson (R)
– Common Council	Members' List • W1: Daniel R. Jones (R) • W2: David Cimpi (R) • W3: A. Max Smith (R) • W4: Michael J. Kaiser (D) • W5: Donald Moore (D) • W6: Claudette Buss (D)
Area
– Total	22.1 sq mi (57.2 km2)
– Land	22.0 sq mi (57.1 km2)
– Water	0.0 sq mi (0.1 km2)
Elevation	430 ft (131 m)
Population (2010)
– Total	11,353
– Density	498.7/sq mi (192.6/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
– Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	13421
Area code(s)	315
FIPS code	36-54837
GNIS feature ID	0959363

Oneida is a city in Madison County located west of Oneida Castle (in Oneida County) and east of Canastota, New York, United States. The population was 10,987 at the 2000 census. The city, like both Oneida County and the nearby silver and china maker, takes its name from the Oneida tribe. Some members of the tribe are still concentrated in the municipal vicinity.

Geography

Oneida is located at 43°5′6″N 75°39′12″W / 43.085°N 75.65333°W / 43.085; -75.65333 (43.084961, -75.653375).^[1] The city is located between Syracuse and Utica.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.1 square miles (57 km²), of which, 22.0 square miles (57 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km²) of it (0.23%) is water.

Oneida is centrally placed between Montreal, Toronto, Buffalo, Boston, and New York City; is one hour from the Adirondacks; and is just south of Oneida Lake, the largest lake entirely within New York

Urban planning

The city of Oneida is a good example of pre-war city design. Urban planning makes it pedestrian-focused and bicycle-friendly. With public buildings, parks, and private residences well-mingled and within walking and biking distance, the city is gaining popularity with telecommuters who can choose where they live without the constraints of job location. Most residents of the city core are within walking distance to elementary schools, church activities. Recently, there has been renewed interest for increased bicycle infrastructure, especially a revitalization of the disused light rail pathways that ring the city's south and north side for multi-use by cyclists and recreation, and as a gateway to and from the inner and outer area retail districts.

Oneida benefits from having several post secondary academies within commuting distance including Colgate University, Hamilton College, the State University of New York Institute of Technology, Syracuse University, Le Moyne College, Mohawk Valley Community College, Cazenovia College, the State University of New York at Morrisville, and Utica College.

Recreational waterways such as the Erie Canal and Oneida Creek are located on the perimeter of the city limits. City parks are distributed throughout the city, with the exception of the rural Mount Hope Reservoir park. Oneida has 10 public tennis courts, seven of them lit, and more than 100 acres (40 ha) of public space used for organized youth sports, fishing, hiking, mountain biking, cross country skiing, and a winter ice skating rink. Oneida is centrally located on the New York State Canalway Trail System, a network of more than 260 miles (420 km) of existing multi-use, recreational trails across upstate New York, with major segments adjacent to the waterways of the New York State Canal System. The Main-Broad-Grove Streets area was classified a historic district in 1983. The Oneida Community Mansion House is highlighted in the Madison County Architectural Heritage Trail.

Demographics

As of the census^[2] of 2000, there were 10,987 people, 4,430 households, and 2,724 families residing in the city. The population density was 498.7 people per square mile (192.6/km²). There were 4,672 housing units at an average density of 212.1 per square mile (81.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 96.29% White, 0.80% African American, 1.39% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.18% from other races, and 0.86% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.84% of the population.

There were 4,431 households out of which 32.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 45.3% were married couples living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.5% were non-families. 32.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the city, the population was spread out with 25.1% under the age of 18, 7.9% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $35,365, and the median income for a family was $45,242. Males had a median income of $31,244 versus $23,846 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,966. About 8.8% of families and 12.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.5% of those under age 18 and 10.6% of those age 65 or over.

The graduating class of 2006 at Oneida High School consists of 178 students. According the OHS (Oneida High School) webpage there are currently 847 students attending this public school.

Government

The city government consists of a mayor who is elected at large and six council members who are elected from one of six wards. Each ward elects one member.

Sustainability

Oneida is within one of the best regions in the Northeastern U.S. for wind energy, and is several miles from the Fenner windpower Project,^[3] which boasts 20 1.5 megawatt windmills and is the largest windmill farm in New York. Oneida is located in Madison County, which is seeing a resurgence in sustainable and organic agribusiness tailored to local consumers, and is instituting a Mobile Farmers’ Market called Madison Bounty, where customers (individual households, grocery stores, restaurants, etc.) will be able to order locally grown and processed items online and have them delivered directly to their door.

Facts about Oneida

Oneida is located near the site of the former Oneida Community a social and religious experiment that flourished during the third quarter of the 19th Century. The Oneida Community Mansion House, a national historic monument, is the principal building of the Oneida Community. The international tableware company Oneida Limited, founded 1880, is still headquartered in the city, although all US manufacturing operations have now ceased and all Oneida products are imported. The current mayor of Oneida, NY is again for his second non-consecutive term Leo Matzke.

Oneida, NY is also the home of the world's smallest church.^[4] On March 12, 2007 this small city was broadcast all over the country following a train derailment on the north side. This was the biggest incident to hit the town since the Casket Factory Burning and the 2004 murder in Oneida Heights.

Oneida was formerly known as Oneida Depot. In the nineteenth century its residents were among the closest neighbors to a utopian socialist commune, set up by John Humphrey Noyes, lasting from 1848 until 1881. This commune, called the Oneida Community, produced silk and canned goods until the manufacturing of flatware picked up in the later years of the Community's existence. This would lead to the foundation of Oneida Limited, a company which survived the Community and became one of America's most important flatware producers in the twentieth century.

Oneida was featured in the storyline of the television show "Law & Order"(Episode 250- "Brother's Keeper"), in which an Irish-American Mafia informant for the FBI takes refuge at the Oneida home of his twin brother, who is a teacher at a local university.

See also

• Oneida people
• Samuel de Champlain

References

1. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
2. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
3. ^ Fennerwind.com
4. ^ America's smallest roadside churches, MSNBC, 10 July 2006, (accessed 31 December 2007)

External links

• City of Oneida, NY
• New York State Canalway Trail System
• Madison County Architectural Heritage Trail Guide
• Madison County Historical Society
• Travel Report: Oneida Community Mansion House, Sherrill, NY
• Central New York Community Arts Council (CNYCAC)
• Madison County Agricultural Economic Development
• The Utopia of Sharing in Oneida, N.Y.