Geneva, New York
Geneva is a city in Ontario and Seneca counties in the U.S. state of New York. The population was 13,617 at the 2000 census.[1] Some claim it is named after the city and canton of Geneva in Switzerland. Others believe the name came from confusion over the letters in the word "Seneca" written in cursive. Ironically, though its own origin is unclear, the New York city is known to be the namesake of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.
Geneva's Ontario County portion (which is most of the city) is surrounded by the town of Geneva. The city says it is the "Lake Trout Capital of the World."[2]
History
The site was originally the Seneca Native American village of Kanadasaga. It became a strongpoint after being fortified by the British against the French and later against the Americans. The village was abandoned following its destruction by the punitive Sullivan Expedition of 1779, but resettled by Europeans around 1793 as a town developed by the Pulteney Association. The "Village of Geneva" was incorporated in 1806, 1812, and 1871, formally separating it from the surrounding area of Geneva Town. Later the village became a city. Col. Seth Reed and his family settled in Geneva around 1790 before moving to Erie, Pennsylvania.[3]
Geography
Geneva lies at the northern end of the Seneca Lake, in the Finger Lakes region, the largest wine-producing area in New York State. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 5.8 square miles (15.2 km²). 4.3 square miles (11.0 km²) of it is land and 1.6 square miles (4.1 km²) of it (27.18%) is water.
Geneva on east-west US Route 20 conjoined with New York State Route 5. New York State Route 14 is a north-south highway through the city. The Cayuga-Seneca Canal linked the area to the Erie Canal, completed in 1825. It is fairly equidistant from Rochester, New York and Syracuse, New York, each being about 45 miles away.[4]
Government
Geneva uses a mayor-council form of government. The mayor is elected at large. The council consists of eight members. Six are elected from one of six wards. The other two are elected at large.
Education
Private schools
- Children's Hours School is a private school[5] for toddlers through first grade.[6] Its enrollment is about 27 students.[7] The current director is Mary Bohle.[5]
Public schools
The Geneva City School District operates the local public primary and secondary schools. The district has two elementary schools, North Street School[11] (3rd-5th) and West Street School[11] (K-2). The district's secondary schools are Geneva Middle School and Geneva High School.[11]
Colleges and universities
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 13,617 people, 5,014 households, and 2,933 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,199.5 inhabitants per square mile (1,234.2/km²). There were 5,564 housing units at an average density of 1,307.4 per square mile (504.3/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 81.52% White, 10.22% African American, 0.25% Native American, 1.23% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 3.39% from other races, and 3.34% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.50% of the population.[1]
There were 5,014 households out of which 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.6% were married couples living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.5% were non-families. 34.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 3.03.[1]
In the city the population was spread out with 23.2% under the age of 18, 18.9% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 18.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 87.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.5 males.[1]
The median income for a household in the city was $31,600, and the median income for a family was $41,224. Males had a median income of $31,315 versus $23,054 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,609. About 13.7% of families and 17.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.2% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.[1]
Tourism
One of the major industries in and around Geneva is winemaking. The area is becoming increasingly popular for agritourism: there are over 100 wineries in the Finger Lakes Region, and the Seneca Lake wine trail provides easy access to many of these from Geneva. As Geneva grows as a tourist destination so do the number of rooms available.
Notable natives and residents
- Riley FitzGerald, was an important political figure in the early history of the United States of America. After serving as a Continental Army officer in the Revolutionary War, FitzGerald became a successful lawyer and politician. He was elected twice to the New York State Assembly and was appointed New York State Attorney General.
- Travie McCoy, frontman of the alternative hip-hop group Gym Class Heroes.[13]
- Debito Arudou/Dave Aldwinckle, English teacher, author and activist in Japan.[14]
- Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to become qualified as a medical doctor in the United States, studied here, graduating from the medical school at what was then Geneva College in 1849.[15]
- Cynthia DeFelice, children's book author
- Marshall P. Wilder Humorist
- Arthur Dove, artist [16]
- Charles J. Folger, lawyer, jurist and statesman.[15]
- Gym Class Heroes music group [17]
- Michael Hashim, jazz musician [18]
- Thomas Hillhouse, farmer, banker and statesman [15]
- Lauren Holly, actress[19]
- Samuel B. Howd - Inventor (Water Turbine)[20]
- David Hudson, lawyer, writer and statesman.[21]
- Michael Muhammad Knight, author [22]
- Christine Lavin, folk singer[23]
- Seth Reed, Lt. Colonel who fought at Bunker Hill, early settler of Geneva, (1790–1795), was instrumental in adding E Pluribus Unum to US coins, and founded Erie, PA in 1795
- Eliakim Sherrill, Politician, brigade commander in the Union Army during the American Civil War.[24]
- William W. Wright, politician [25]
- Rocky Fratto - A stand out amateur boxer.Former NABF jr middleweight champion & world title challenger. Had a brief but successful career as a boxing promoter; Promoting George Foreman's comeback, Bernard Hopkins, Oscar De La Hoya, Charles Murray, and Irish Micky Ward early on in their careers. Later trained Robert "Push up" Frazier to challenge for a World title.[26]
References
- ^ a b c d e f "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ Faber, Harold (9/12/1993). "The World Capital of Whatever". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE6DC1430F931A2575AC0A965958260. Retrieved 11-08-2008.
- ^ Turner, Eramus (1909). Pioneer History of the Holland Purchase of Western New York. Volume II. pp. 319.
- ^ "The page cannot be found". http://www.geneva.ny.us/index.asp?Type=B_LOC&SEC={5FF1CAFB-61A8-4731-B59B-BA8A6F1BA576}.
- ^ a b "NYS Admin Listing". NYSED. http://www.nysed.gov/admin/430700/998673.html. Retrieved 2010-06-14. "Record Type: Non-Public[...] Chief School Officer: DIRECTOR - MARY M. BOHLE"
- ^ "Childrens Hours School". http://www.childrenshours.com. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ "Moodie's Children's Hours School - Geneva, New York - NY - school overview". http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/ny/private/7445.
- ^ a b "NYS Admin Listing". NYSED. http://www.nysed.gov/admin/430700/166227.html. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ "Desales High School - Geneva, New York - NY - school overview". GreatSchools Inc.. http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/ny/private/4820. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ "NYS Admin Listing". NYSED. http://www.nysed.gov/admin/430700/166659.html. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ a b c "Schools". Geneva City Schools. http://www.genevacsd.org/schools.cfm. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ "Geneva Campus Center : Finger Lakes". Finger Lakes Community College. http://www.flcc.edu/geneva/. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ "Travis McCoy". Wikipedia.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Travie_McCoy. Retrieved 2010-07-16.
- ^ Brooke, James (2004-05-12). "LETTER FROM ASIA; Foreigners Try to Melt an Inhospitable Japanese City". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E06E7DA103CF931A25756C0A9629C8B63. Retrieved 2008-02-03.
- ^ a b c Emmons, Thayles (1982). "The Story of Geneva". The Finger Lakes Times.
- ^ Murphy, Jessica. "Arthur Dove (1880–1946)". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/TOAH/hd/dove/hd_dove.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-24.
- ^ Crofut, Rachel (2008-12-08). "Gym Class drummer donates set to city school". Finger Lakes Times.
- ^ "Jazz Giants - Mike Hashim". Roberto's Winds Inc.. http://www.robertoswinds.com/jazz_giants.php?id=52. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000452/bio
- ^ http://www.sil.si.edu/exhibitions/doodles/cf/recording.cfm
- ^ "Obituary 1 -- No Title". The New York Times. 1860-01-14. http://www.nytimes.com/1860/01/14/news/obituary-1-no-title.html?pagewanted=1?pagewanted=1.
- ^ Knight, Michael Muhammad (2009). Impossible Man.
- ^ "Christine Lavin". Tidewater Friends of Folk Music. http://www.tffm.org/concerts/102508.html. Retrieved 2008-12-24.
- ^ "SHERRILL, Eliakim - Biographical Information". congress.gov. http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=S000351. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ "Ontario County NY Obituaries". Ontario County NYGenWeb, et al. http://ontario.nygenweb.net/WrtoWzobituaries.htm. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ http://www.genevasportshof.org/bio.php?bio=Fratto%20Ralph
Jimmer Freddette-College basketball player for Brigham Young University (BYU)
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‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties
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