Fort Covington, New York

This article is about the town in Franklin County that borders Canada. For the town in Wyoming County in Western New York, see Covington, New York.
Fort Covington
Town
Fort Covington

Location within the state of New York

Coordinates: 44°57′51″N 74°30′7″W / 44.96417°N 74.50194°W
Country United States
State New York
County Franklin
Government
  Type Town Council
  Town Supervisor Patricia Manchester (D)
  Town Council
Area
  Total 36.7 sq mi (95 km2)
  Land 36.7 sq mi (95 km2)
  Water 0.0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation 187 ft (57 m)
Population (2010)
  Total 1,676
  Density 46/sq mi (18/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
  Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 12937
Area code(s) 518
FIPS code 36-26737
GNIS feature ID 0978966

Fort Covington is a town in Franklin County, New York. The population was 1,676 at the 2010 census. The name is derived from a War of 1812 fortification. The original name of the town was "French Mills."

The Town of Fort Covington is on the county's northern border.

History

Many of the early settlers were from Canada and Vermont, and the town was settled before 1800. In July 1813 a blockhouse was built here to shelter wounded soldiers and to provide a winter headquarters. The fort was named after General Leonard Covington,[1] a casualty of the War of 1812.

The Town of Fort Covington was formed in 1817 from the Town of Constable. In 1833, the west part of Fort Covington was made into the Town of Bombay.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 36.8 square miles (95 km2), all land.

The north town line is the international border of Canada (Quebec) at the Fort Covington–Dundee Border Crossing. The town also borders the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation.

New York State Route 37 is an east-west highway.

Demographics

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 1,645 people, 621 households, and 466 families residing in the town. The population density was 44.8 people per square mile (17.3/km²). There were 706 housing units at an average density of 19.2 per square mile (7.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 87.13% White, 0.36% African American, 10.81% Native American, 0.55% Asian, 0.30% from other races, and 0.85% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.22% of the population.

There were 621 households out of which 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.8% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.03.

In the town the population was spread out with 26.7% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 26.5% from 25 to 44, 25.2% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 90.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $31,532, and the median income for a family was $39,205. Males had a median income of $26,369 versus $22,011 for females. The per capita income for the town was $14,932. About 10.3% of families and 14.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.3% of those under age 18 and 13.9% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Fort Covington

Notable locals

References

  1. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. p. 128.
  2. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.

External links

Coordinates: 44°59′21″N 74°29′41″W / 44.98917°N 74.49472°W