Elizabethtown, New York
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Elizabethtown is a town in Essex County, New York, United States. The population was 1,315 at the 2000 census. The county seat of Essex County6 is a hamlet also called Elizabethtown. The name is derived from Elizabeth Gilliland, the wife of an early settler.
The Town of Elizabethtown is in the east-central part of the county and is north of Albany. The town calls itself the "Pleasant Valley."
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[edit] History
William Gulliland, an investor, bought up large tracts of land in Essex County. The town was first settled around 1792 near New Russia.
The Town of Elizabethtown was established in 1798 from the Town of Crown Point. The community of Elizabethtown in this town became the county seat, succeeding a location in the Town of Essex. Parts of the town were used to form the Towns of Moriah (1808), Keene (1898), and Westport (1815).
The lumber industry and processing iron ore were important in the beginning, but tourism became prominent by the end of the 19th Century.
[edit] Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 215.2 km² (83.1 mi²). 211.6 km² (81.7 mi²) of it is land and 3.6 km² (1.4 mi²) of it (1.68%) is water.
The Black River marks the eastern town line.
Interstate 87, the Northway, is a major divided highway passing through the southeast part of Elizabethtown. US Route 9 is a north-south highway. New York State Route 9N is an east-west highway, which intersects US-9 in Elizabethtown village.
[edit] Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 1,315 people, 497 households, and 318 families residing in the town. The population density was 6.2/km² (16.1/mi²). There were 794 housing units at an average density of 3.8/km² (9.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.49% White, 0.68% African American, 0.61% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.23% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.38% of the population.
There were 497 households out of which 30.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples living together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.0% were non-families. 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.92.
In the town the population was spread out with 23.1% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 22.1% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 24.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 94.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.6 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $32,244, and the median income for a family was $44,531. Males had a median income of $28,295 versus $23,594 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,059. About 9.1% of families and 15.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.8% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Communities and locations in Elizabethtown
- Black River -- A small river that flows into Lincoln Pond.
- Bouquet River -- A small stream the flows northward through the center of the town.
- Colonial Garden -- A display garden east of Elizabethtown on NY-9N.
- Elizabethtown -- The hamlet of Elizabethtown, the county seat is at the junction of US-9 and NY-9N. The community has been the county seat since 1807.
- Euba Mills -- A location in the southwest corner of the town on US-9 at the junction of County Road 70.
- Hurricane Mountain -- A notable elevation in the northwest part of Elizabethtown.
- Lincoln Pond -- A lake in the southeast corner of the town.
- New Pond -- A small lake at the south town line near Euba Mills.
- New Russia -- A hamlet south of Elizabethtown on US-9.
- Pauline Murdock Wildlife Management Area -- A conservation area northeast of Elizabethtown village.
- The Northway --- Interstate 87 traverses the southeastern part of the town.
