Columbia County, New York
Columbia County is a
county located in the
U.S. State of
New York. As of
2000, the population is 63,094. The
county seat is
Hudson. The name comes from the Latin feminine form of the name of
Christopher Columbus, which was at the time of the formation of the county a popular proposal for the name of the
United States of America.
History
\nWhen counties were established in New York State in
1683, the present Columbia County was part of
Albany County. This was an enormous county, including the northern part of New York State as well as all of the present State of
Vermont and, in theory, extending westward to the
Pacific Ocean. This county was reduced in size on
July 3,
1766 by the creation of
Cumberland County, and further on
March 16,
1770 by the creation of
Gloucester County, both containing territory now in Vermont.
On
March 12,
1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. The other two were called
Tryon County (later renamed
Montgomery County) and
Charlotte County (later renamed
Washington County). From 1772 to
1786 Albany County included, besides the present territory of Albany County, all of the present Columbia County, as well as what are now
Rensselaer,
Saratoga, and
Schenectady Counties, parts of the present
Greene and
Washington Counties, and a piece of what is now southwestern Vermont.
In
1786, Columbia County was split off from Albany County.
\n
Geography
\nColumbia County is in the eastern part of New York State, southeast of
Albany and immediately west of the
Massachusetts border.
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,679
km² (648
mi²). 1,647 km² (636 mi²) of it is land and 32 km² (13 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.93% water.
Demographics
\nAs of the
census2 of
2000, there are 63,094 people, 24,796 households, and 16,588 families residing in the county. The
population density is 38/km² (99/mi²). There are 30,207 housing units at an average density of 18/km² (48/mi²). The racial makeup of the county is 92.09%
White, 4.52%
Black or
African American, 0.21%
Native American, 0.80%
Asian, 0.03%
Pacific Islander, 0.90% from
other races, and 1.45% from two or more races. 2.53% of the population are
Hispanic or
Latino of any race.
There are 24,796 households out of which 29.90% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.20% are married couples living together, 10.30% have a female householder with no husband present, and 33.10% are non-families. 27.10% of all households are made up of individuals and 11.50% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.43 and the average family size is 2.95.
In the county the population is spread out with 24.10% under the age of 18, 6.40% from 18 to 24, 26.90% from 25 to 44, 26.30% from 45 to 64, and 16.40% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 40 years. For every 100 females there are 99.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 95.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county is $41,915, and the median income for a family is $49,357. Males have a median income of $34,702 versus $25,878 for females. The per capita income for the county is $22,265. 9.00% of the population and 6.40% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 11.80% are under the age of 18 and 6.80% are 65 or older.
Cities and towns
\n*
Ancram\n*
Austerlitz\n*
Canaan\n*Chatham\n*
Claverack\n*
Claverack-Red Mills\n*
Clermont\n*
Copake Lake\n*
Copake\n*
Gallatin\n*
Germantown\n*Ghent\n*
Greenport\n*
Hillsdale\n*
Hudson\n*
Kinderhook\n*
Livingston\n*
Lorenz Park\n*
New Lebanon\n*
Niverville\n*
Philmont\n*
Stockport\n*
Stottville\n*
Stuyvesant\n*
Taghkanic\n*
Valatie
