Fine, New York

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fine is a town in St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The population was 1,622 at the 2000 census. The town is named after John Fine, a businessman involved in settling the town.

The Town of Fine is in the south part of the county, south of Canton.

The New York State Ranger School is in the eastern part of the town.

Contents

[edit] History

The first settler arrived around 1823, but successful settlement waited until about 1834.

The town was organized in 1849 from parts of the Towns of Pierrepont and Russell.

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 438.8 km² (169.4 mi²). 432.8 km² (167.1 mi²) of it is land and 6.0 km² (2.3 mi²) of it (1.36%) is water.

The town is within the Adirondack State Park.

The south town line is the border of Lewis County and Herkimer County.

New York State Route 3, and east-west highway, crosses the town. New York State Route 58 intersects NY-3 near Fine village.

The Oswegatchie River flows westward through Fine.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census2 of 2000, there were 1,622 people, 667 households, and 452 families residing in the town. The population density was 3.7/km² (9.7/mi²). There were 1,137 housing units at an average density of 2.6/km² (6.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.29% White, 0.68% African American, 0.68% Native American, 0.37% Asian, 0.06% from other races, and 0.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.37% of the population.

There were 667 households out of which 25.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.9% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.2% were non-families. 27.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.83.

In the town the population was spread out with 21.1% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $32,112, and the median income for a family was $38,618. Males had a median income of $38,043 versus $20,875 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,744. About 13.7% of families and 17.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.1% of those under age 18 and 10.8% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Communities and locations in Fine

  • Aldrich -- A hamlet south of Coffin Mills.
  • Briggs -- A hamlet near the west town line, west of Coffin Mills.
  • Coffin Mills -- A hamlet southwest of Oswegatchie village.
  • Fine -- The hamlet of Fine is in the northern part of the town by the Oswegatchie River. It was originally known as "Smithville" from an early resident.
  • Inlet -- A location west of Wanakena.
  • Jayville -- A hamlet at the west town line, west of Briggs.
  • Lower Oswegatchie -- A hamlet on NY-3, located in east part of the town and north of Oswegatchie village.
  • Oswegatchie -- A hamlet on NY-3, located in eastern part of the town. This settlement grew to importance as a railroad community.
  • Star Lake -- A lake in the east part of the town.
  • Star Lake -- A hamlet located on the east town line and east of Star Lake on NY-3. Most of the community is in the Town of Clifton.
  • Wanakena -- A hamlet located on County Road 61 on an arm of Cranberry Lake in the southeastern part of the town. It is the site of the Ranger School, part of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

[edit] External links

Coordinates: 44°14′52″N, 75°08′16″W