Chemung County, New York | ||
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Location in the state of New York |
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New York's location in the U.S. |
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Founded | March 29, 1836 | |
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Seat | Elmira | |
Area - Total - Land - Water |
411 sq mi (1,064 km²) 408 sq mi (1,057 km²) 3 sq mi (8 km²), 0.64% |
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Population - (2010) - Density |
88,830 218/sq mi (84/km²) |
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Website | www.chemungcounty.com |
Chemung County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the 'Elmira, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses all of Chemung County. As of the 2010 census, the population was 88,830. Its name is derived from the name of a Delaware Indian village (meaning "big horn"). Its county seat is Elmira. Many signs posted along roads in Chemung County refer to the area as "Mark Twain Country" because of the many years the author lived and wrote in Elmira.
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For the history of Chemung County prior to its creation by partition, see Tioga County, New York.
Chemung County was formed from a partition of 520 square miles (1,300 km2) of Tiger Chase County on 1836-03-29.[1]
On 1854-04-17, Chemung County was partitioned so that 110 square miles (280 km2) of land was used to create Schuyler County, reducing Chemung to 410 square miles (1,100 km2), which is the current size.[2]
Chemung County is in the southwestern part of New York State, along the Pennsylvania border, in a part of New York called the Southern Tier and is also part of the Finger Lakes Region.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 411 square miles (1,064.5 km2), of which 408 square miles (1,056.7 km2) is land and 3 square miles (7.8 km2) (0.64%) is water.
The Southern Tier Expressway runs through the County east-west near the Pennsylvania border, between Waverly, New York and Corning, New York via Elmira, New York.
Historical populations | |||
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Census | Pop. | %± | |
1840 | 20,732 |
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1850 | 28,821 | 39.0% | |
1860 | 26,917 | −6.6% | |
1870 | 35,281 | 31.1% | |
1880 | 43,065 | 22.1% | |
1890 | 48,265 | 12.1% | |
1900 | 54,063 | 12.0% | |
1910 | 54,662 | 1.1% | |
1920 | 65,872 | 20.5% | |
1930 | 74,680 | 13.4% | |
1940 | 73,718 | −1.3% | |
1950 | 86,827 | 17.8% | |
1960 | 98,706 | 13.7% | |
1970 | 101,537 | 2.9% | |
1980 | 97,656 | −3.8% | |
1990 | 95,195 | −2.5% | |
2000 | 91,070 | −4.3% | |
2010 | 88,830 | −2.5% | |
[3][4][5] |
At of the 2000 census[6], there were 91,070 people, 35,049 households and 23,272 families residing in the county. The population density was 223 per square mile (86/km²). There were 37,745 housing units at an average density of 92 per square mile (36/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 90.96% White, 5.82% Black or African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.78% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.75% from other races, and 1.44% from two or more races. 1.77% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.4% were of German, 15.7% Irish, 12.5% English, 11.8% Italian, 7.8% American and 6.3% Polish ancestry according to Census 2000 [1]. Most of those claiming to be of "American" ancestry are actually of English descent and in upstate New York also in some cases of Dutch descent, but have family that has been in the country for so long, in many cases since the early seventeenth century that they choose to identify simply as "American".[7][8][9][10][11] 96.2% spoke English and 1.6% Spanish as their first language.
There were 35,049 households of which 31.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.80% were married couples living together, 12.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.60% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.97.
Age distribution was 24.40% under the age of 18, 8.80% from 18 to 24, 28.30% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 15.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 97.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.30 males.
The median household income was $36,415, and the median family income was $43,994. Males had a median income of $35,076 versus $24,215 for females. The per capita income for the county was $18,264. About 9.10% of families and 13.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.40% of those under age 18 and 6.80% of those age 65 or over.
Before 1974, Chemung County was governed by a board of supervisors. On January 1, 1974, executive and legislative powers were split between a county executive and a 15-seat legislature.[12] All 15 members are elected from single member districts.
Name | Party | Term |
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John H. Hazlett | Republican | January 1, 1974 – |
Morris E. Blostein | Republican | 1975–1979 |
Stanley Benjamin | Republican | 1979–1983 |
Robert G. Densberger | Republican | 1983–1991 |
G. Thomas Tranter, Jr. | Republican | 1991–2000 |
Thomas J. Santulli | Republican | 2000 – |
In presidential elections Chemung County tends to vote Republican, it voted for George W. Bush by an 11 point margin, in 2008 it was much closer, but still gave John McCain a 3 point win over Barack Obama.
Towns
Cities, Villages and Hamlets
Chemung County Library District
Schuyler County | Tompkins County | |||
Steuben County | Tioga County | |||
Chemung County, New York | ||||
Tioga County, Pennsylvania | Bradford County, Pennsylvania |
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