Amenia (town), New York
Amenia, New York | |
---|---|
Town | |
845 | |
FIPS code | 36-027-01693 |
GNIS feature ID | 0942425[2] |
Website | www |
Amenia is a
History
Amenia is one of the original towns formed by act of March 7, 1788. It comprises the width of the Oblong Tract, and the east tier of lots in the Great Nine Partners Patent.
Inhabitants prior to European incursion were
In 1703 Richard Sackett was granted a patent for land along Wassaic Creek. As this land was already included in the previous Great Nine Partners Patent, Sackett's title was invalid. Sackett was also one of the partners in the Little Nine Partners Patent.[5] He settled about one mile south of Wassaic at a site called the "Steel Works", as furnace and foundry were established there during the Revolution to manufacture steel for the use of the army. There was a forge at that location as early as 1770.[6]
In 1724 Captain Garret Winegar (Winnegar) came to Amenia Union from
The house of worship known as the "Red Meeting House" was built in 1758, and stood about a mile northeast of the village of Amenia. George Whitefield preached there in the summer of 1770. The Precinct of Amenia was established by act of the colonial legislature in 1762.
In the summer of 1778, a large number of prisoners - mostly Hessians, taken at the battle of Saratoga the year before - were marched through the town on their way to Fishkill Landing, where they crossed the Hudson. It is said that some of the Hessian soldiers solicited the people to aid them in escaping; a few succeeded, and remained in this country.
Jacob Bockee, a captain in the company in Col. Willet's Regiment, was a member of the Assembly in 1795 and 1797, where he introduced a bill for the abolition of
About the year 1812, a company was organized in this town for the manufacture of woolen goods, styled as the "Amenia Manufacturing Company" and owned by the Barker, Benton, Ingraham, Park, and Canfield families. Its factory was located on the banks of Webatuck Creek at Leedsville.[6]
Amenia was officially named a town, in separation from the eponymous presinct, in 1788.[10]
Geography
According to the
The eastern town line is the border of
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1820 | 3,114 | — | |
1830 | 2,389 | −23.3% | |
1840 | 2,179 | −8.8% | |
1850 | 2,229 | 2.3% | |
1860 | 2,288 | 2.6% | |
1870 | 2,662 | 16.3% | |
1880 | 2,697 | 1.3% | |
1890 | 2,362 | −12.4% | |
1900 | 2,374 | 0.5% | |
1910 | 2,123 | −10.6% | |
1920 | 1,831 | −13.8% | |
1930 | 1,969 | 7.5% | |
1940 | 6,873 | 249.1% | |
1950 | 7,481 | 8.8% | |
1960 | 7,546 | 0.9% | |
1970 | 7,842 | 3.9% | |
1980 | 6,299 | −19.7% | |
1990 | 5,195 | −17.5% | |
2000 | 4,048 | −22.1% | |
2010 | 4,436 | 9.6% | |
2020 | 3,769 | −15.0% | |
U.S. Decennial Census[11] 2020[12] |
As of the
There were 1,625 households, out of which 29.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.4% were married couples living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.9% were non-families. 27.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.7% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.6 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $39,231, and the median income for a family was $51,294. Males had a median income of $32,038 versus $28,769 for females. The
Education
Primary and secondary schools
The Webutuck Central Schools District serves the town of Amenia.[14] The district serves pre-kindergarten to twelfth grade. Schools include Webutuck Elementary School, Eugene Brooks Intermediate School and Webutuck High School.[15]
Two private schools serving the town are
Library
The Amenia Free Library serves Amenia. The library was founded in 1938 and has a collection of rare historical books.[18]
Infrastructure
Transportation
The main thoroughfare of Amenia is
In 2006, the NYSDOT administered the repaving of Route 22 through the town of Dover, New York. The prime contractor was Callanan Industries, Inc., an Albany, New York based contractor. In 2007, repaving continued north from the town line into Amenia, New York with two other contractors - Peckham Road Corp. for paving in Wassaic and A. Colarusso & Son Inc., a Hudson, New York based contractor for the portion north of Wassaic.
Notable people
- John Barlow (1872–1944), entomologist and college administrator[19]
- Joel Benton (1832–1911), poet, resided in Amenia[20]
- Gail Borden (1801-1874), inventor of condensed milk, established his first factory in Amenia[21]
- Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen; the couple built a home in Silo Ridge, located in Amenia.[22]
- Michael Cole (born 1966), television broadcaster for World Wrestling Entertainment[23]
- Joseph Cummings (1817-1890), president of Wesleyan University (1857-1875), president of Northwestern University (1881-1890)[24]
- United States senator[25]
- Erastus Otis Haven (1820-1881), bishop of the Methodist Church, formerly principal of Amenia Seminary (1846), president of the University of Michigan (1863-1869), president of Northwestern University (1869-1872), chancellor of Syracuse University (1874-1880)[23]
- John Miller (1774–1862), born in Amenia, physician and congressman from New York[25]
- Lewis Mumford (1895-1990), historian of science, lived and died in Amenia[23]
- Peter C. Rhodes (1909-1965), reporter and writer
- Joel Elias Spingarn (1875-1939), educator, literary critic, and civil rights activist, lived in Amenia[26]
- Frank Stella (born 1936), painter, resided in Amenia[23]
- Benjamin Swift (1781-1847), U.S. congressman and U.S. senator[27]
- Smith Thompson (1768-1848), justice on the US Supreme Court
- Charles Augustus Wheaton, (1809–1882) Abolitionist
- Thomas Young (1731–1777), physician, American Revolutionary patriot, participant in the Boston Tea Party
Communities and locations in Amenia
- hamletin the northeastern part of the town.
- Amenia Union – A hamlet on the eastern town line on the border with Connecticut.
- Leedsville – A location in the northeastern part of the town, east of Amenia (CDP).
- Sharon Station – A hamlet at the northern town line.
- Silo Ridge– An upscale development with a long development history.[28]
- Smithfield – A hamlet on the town line in the northwestern part of the town.
- South Amenia – A hamlet at the junction of Routes 2 and 3 in the eastern part of the town.
- Wassaic – A hamlet in the south-central part of the town.
- Wassaic Creek – A stream on the western side of the town, passing through the community of Wassaic.
Buildings in Amenia listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Buildings in Amenia listed on the National Register of Historic Places include:
- Beth David Synagogue
- Indian Rock Schoolhouse
- Lewis Mumford House
- Hendrik Winegar House
- St. Thomas Episcopal Church
Notes
- Mohican, and/or Schaghticoke. See Native Land
References
- ^ "2016 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Amenia (town), New York
- ^ US Census Bureau, 2020 Census Report, Amenia town, Dutchess County, New York https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP&q=Amenia%20town,%20Dutchess%20County,%20New%20York Accessed December 29, 2022
- ^ a b "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Amenia town, Dutchess County, New York". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
- ^ a b c Reed, Newton. Early History of Amenia, De Lace & Wiley, Amenia, NY, 1875
- ^ a b c Smith, Philip H., "History of Amenia, NY", General History of Dutchess County, 1877
- ^ "A Brief History of Amenia Union", Sharon Historical Society
- ^ Smith, James H. "Town of Amenia", History of Dutchess County, D. Mason & Company, Syracuse, 1882
- ^ "Amenia". ePodunk. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
- ISBN 9781429023108.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ US Census Bureau, 2020 Census Report, Amenia town, Dutchess County, New York https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP&q=Amenia%20town,%20Dutchess%20County,%20New%20York Accessed December 29, 2022
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "Webutuck Central School District". Webutuck Central School District. Retrieved May 6, 2014.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Webutuck Schools". Webutuck Central School District. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
- ^ "Maplebrook School". Maplebrook School. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
- ^ "The Kildonan School". The Kildonan School. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
- ^ "Amenia Public Library". Amenia Free Library. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
- ^ "Peru, Oxford, Maine Genealogy Project". Ancestry.com. Retrieved May 7, 2014.
- ISBN 9780823212026.
- ^ "Gail Borden". Today in Science History. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
- ^ "Behind the Gates of Silo Ridge—the Country's Most Exclusive New Residential Enclave". Architectural Digest. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Amenia, NY". Tri-State Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original on May 7, 2014. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
- ^ "Wesleyan's Fifth President". Wesleyan University. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
- ^ a b c Who Was Who in America, Historical Volume, 1607-1896. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who. 1963.
- ^ "Joel Elias Spingarn Papers (PP)". The New York Botanical Garden. Archived from the original on October 17, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
- ^ "SWIFT, Benjamin, (1781 - 1847)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved May 6, 2014.
- ^ John Ferro (February 6, 2016). "At Silo Ridge, concerns over water, views and bullets". www.poughkeepsiejournal.com. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
External links