New Paltz (village), New York

From Free net encyclopedia

New Paltz is a village in Ulster County in the U.S. state of New York. It is about 90 miles north of New York City. As of the 2000 census, the village had a total population of 6,034.

The Village of New Paltz is located within the Town of New Paltz. New Paltz is also home to the State University of New York New Paltz, founded in 1828.

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History

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Early development

The village of New Paltz was established in 1678. Prior to the establishment of the village, Native American tribes were living in the area.

The first European settlers were Huguenot refugees from France. These refugees first fled to the Palatinate in Germany before emigrating to the New World and settling in New Netherland. The Palatinate is called the Pfalz in the German language, and Palz (pronounced "pahltz") in the Palatine dialect. This is the origin of the name New Paltz.

The refugees were led by Louis Dubois, who along with his son and 10 other leading Huguenots, formed a self-governing council called the duzine, one of the earliest representative forms of colonial government in the Americas.

Huguenot Street, a National Historic District, has stone houses built by these refugees. This street is known as the oldest street in America with its original houses.

Under nominal Dutch rule, the refugees had purchased from the local tribe a several-thousand acre tract of land from the Hudson River to the mountains, and later had their grant confirmed by the English.

New Paltz was incorporated as a village in 1887.

The National Historic Landmark Mohonk Mountain House was built in 1869.

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Modern New Paltz

Starting in the late twentieth century, New Paltz increasingly became an outer commuting suburb of New York City. Residents either commute daily, commute part time, or telecommute. This trend accelerated as a result of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

This suburbanization increasingly uses agricultural lands for housing and commercial development. Much of this land in the New Paltz area had been apple orchards.

The mayor is Jason West, elected on the Green Party ticket along with deputy mayor and fellow Green Party member Rebecca Rotzler as well as Julia Walsh. The three became the only Green Party majority in power at that point in the country. On February 26, 2004, West announced that the village would start performing same-sex civil weddings. See Same-sex marriage in the United States. On June 8 2004, a New York judge ruled that West lacked the authority to perform any further marriages.

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Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 4.6 km² (1.8 mi²). 4.5 km² (1.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.70% water.

The Wallkill River runs north through New Paltz and flows into the Hudson River. The portion of the Shawangunk Ridge which includes the Mohonk Preserve and Minnewaska State Park, is just outside of New Paltz. This mountain is considered to be one of the best rock climbing sites in America.

The Shawangunk Ridge Coalition [1] is an environmental protection interest group. The Phillies Bridge Farm Project [2] provides local, environmentally friendly agriculture practices and education programs.

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Demographics

As of the census2 of 2000, there were 6,034 people, 1,898 households, and 586 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,346.7/km² (3,482.5/mi²). There were 1,957 housing units at an average density of 436.8/km² (1,129.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 73.42% White, 7.79% Black or African American, 0.27% Native American, 7.01% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 8.35% from other races, and 3.07% from two or more races. 11.93% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 1,898 households out of which 12.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 21.1% were married couples living together, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 69.1% were non-families. 41.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.03 and the average family size was 2.66.

In the village the population was spread out with 6.9% under the age of 18, 58.7% from 18 to 24, 19.0% from 25 to 44, 10.1% from 45 to 64, and 5.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females there were 80.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.8 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $21,747, and the median income for a family was $51,186. Males had a median income of $33,103 versus $22,935 for females. The per capita income for the village was $11,644. 36.9% of the population and 11.8% of families were below the poverty line. 18.6% of those under the age of 18 and 12.2% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

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Notable residents

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New Paltz in fiction

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Politics

The Village of New Paltz Government has an elected Mayor and Village Board. Mayor Jason West and deputy mayor Rebecca Rotzler are members of the Green Party.

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Transportation

New Paltz is exit 18 on the New York State Thruway which is also designated as Interstate 87. There is frequent bus service between The Port Authority Bus Terminal in New York City and New Paltz with connections to many other villages and cities. Stewart International Airport is the nearest major airport to New Paltz. The Wallkill Valley Rail Trail [3] is on the bed of the Wallkill Valley Rail transport, the former main transportation link for New Paltz.

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External links

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