Westport, New York
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Westport is a town in Essex County, New York, United States. The population was 1,362 at the 2000 census.
The Town of Westport is on the eastern border of the county.
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[edit] History
The town was founded by William Gilliland, who also established the neighboring towns of Elizabethtown and Willsboro. He originally called the village Bessboro after his daughter.
The Town of Westport was founded in 1815 from part of the Town of Elizabethtown. The Village of Westport in this town was abolished in 1992.
Westport is also home to Camp Dudley YMCA, the oldest summer camp in continuous operation in the United States, founded in 1885 by Sumner F. Dudley.
[edit] Geography
The east town line is formed by Lake Champlain and the border of Vermont. The town is inside the Adirondack State Park.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 173.2 km² (66.9 mi²). 151.3 km² (58.4 mi²) of it is land and 21.9 km² (8.5 mi²) of it (12.65%) is water.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 1,362 people, 593 households, and 381 families residing in the town. The population density was 9.0/km² (23.3/mi²). There were 887 housing units at an average density of 5.9/km² (15.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.65% White, 0.15% African American, 0.29% Native American, 0.73% Asian, 0.15% from other races, and 1.03% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.03% of the population.
There were 593 households out of which 25.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.3% were married couples living together, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.6% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.83.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.1% under the age of 18, 3.7% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 29.2% from 45 to 64, and 20.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 96.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $40,000, and the median income for a family was $49,917. Males had a median income of $31,042 versus $26,550 for females. The per capita income for the town was $22,063. About 5.2% of families and 7.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Rail Transportation
Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Westport, operating its Adirondack daily in both directions between Montreal and New York City. A bus connection is available from Westport to Lake Placid, New York.
[edit] Communities and locations in Westport
- North West Bay -- A bay of Lake Champlain by Westport village.
- Wadhams -- A hamlet in the northern part of the town on Route 9N.
- Westport -- The hamlet of Westport, was formerly a village incorporated in 1907. The community is located on the shore of Lake Champlain on Route 9N.
