Newburgh (city), New York
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Image:Dutch Reformed Church, Newburgh NY.jpg
- For other places named Newburgh, see Newburgh.
Newburgh is a city located in Upstate Orange County, New York, 60 miles (97 km) north of New York city, and 90 miles south of Albany, on the Hudson River. In 1890, 23,087 people lived in Newburgh, New York; in 1900, 24,943; in 1910, 27,805; in 1920, 30,366; and in 1940, 31,883. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 28,259.
The City of Newburgh is in the southeastern corner of the Town of Newburgh.
Just east of the city, across the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge lies the city of Beacon, New York.
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History
The area that became Newburgh was first explored by Europeans when Henry Hudson stopped by during his 1609 expedition up the river that now bears his name. He is supposed to have called the site "a pleasant place to build a town," although some later historians believe he may actually have been referring to the area where Cornwall-on-Hudson now stands.
The first settlement was made a century later, in 1709 by German Lutherans from the Rhenish Palatinate, who named it the Palatine Parish by Quassic. By 1750, most of the Germans had been replaced by people of English and Scottish descent, who in 1752 changed the name to the Parish of Newburgh (after Newburgh, Scotland). Image:Washington's Headquarters, Newburgh.jpg Newburgh was the headquarters of the Continental Army from March, 1782 until the latter part of 1783. While camped at Newburgh, there was a conspiracy to overthrow the government by some of the senior officers of the Continental Army. General George Washington was able to convince his officers to stay loyal to him. The army was disbanded here in 1783. George Washington received the famous Newburgh letter from Nicola proposing that he become king here. The letter drew a vigorous rebuke from Washington.
Newburgh was incorporated as a village in 1800 and chartered as a city in 1865. At the time of its settlement it was located in Ulster County and was that county's seat. When Rockland County was split from Orange County in 1798, Newburgh and the other towns north of Moodna Creek were put in a redrawn Orange County. Newburgh thus lost its status at the county seat to Goshen. The former Ulster County courthouse still stands as Newburgh's old city courthouse building (currently closed as it awaits renovation).
Newburgh became quite prosperous during the Gilded Age that followed. Its industries included manufactories of cottons, woolens, silks, paper, felt hats, baking powder, soap, paper boxes, brick, plush goods, steam boilers, tools, waterway gates, ice machines, pumps, moving-picture screens, overalls, perfumes, furniture, carpets, carburetors, spiral springs, spiral pipe, shirt waists, shirts, felt goods, lawn mowers; shipyards; foundries and machine shops; tanneries; leatherette works; plaster works. Image:Broadway, Newburgh NY.jpg It has been a city with many distinctions. It is home to the first Edison power plant and thus was the first American city to be electrified and have street lights. In 1915 it became one of the first American cities to delegate routine governmental authority to a city manager. Portions of Liberty Street are still paved in the original brick. Broadway, the widest main street in a US cityTemplate:Citation needed runs through the city. Newburgh was also one of the first two cities in the country to fluoridate its water.
In the early 1960s, city manager Joseph Mitchell and the council attracted nationwide attention and the admiration of political conservatives when they attempted to require that welfare recipients work and attend job training in return for their benefits. While these initiatives failed as they were widely criticized and beyond the city's authority to change, they were the forerunner to the welfare reform measures adopted by Congress in 1996.
Newburgh was hit hard by the economic setbacks of the late 20th century, as factory after factory closed down or relocated to somewhere with cheaper labor costs. In the early 1970s, the city's response was an ambitious urban renewal plan that was only partly completed. Old and decrepit housing along the city's waterfront was cleared and demolished. Residents were relocated, or were supposed to be relocated, to newer housing projects around Muchattoes Lake in the city's interior.
A grand complex that was planned for the cleared area was not built when state and federal spending began to dry up after the 1973 oil shock. To this day, the blocks of land that slope down to the river adjacent to downtown remain open grassy slopes, offering sweeping views of the Hudson but generating no property taxes for the city. Public sentiment is mixed on whether they should be built on again at all, and the city's view-protection ordinances make it less likely. Below, the waterfront has only recently begun to recover, with development taking off in the late 1990s after the city was once again able to secure grants from the state's Environmental Protection fund for riprap to stabilize the shoreline.
Newburgh in the early 21st century is both poorer and more racially diverse than it used to be, as a growing Latin immigrant population complements the city's sizable African American contingent. Economic development is a major local political issue, as the good jobs once found in the local manufacturing sector have not been replaced. Pockets of poverty and high crime (much of it associated with crack and street gangs) persist in the city, often mere blocks away from its many historical and architectural landmarks (some of which are themselves in serious need of repair). Image:Chambers Street, Newburgh, NY.jpg While the city's historic architecture has drawn many newer residents willing to spend the time and money renovating houses, much work remains to be done. Some houses taken by the city in tax foreclosure actions are in such poor shape that the demolition costs exceed the back taxes on the structure, leaving them on the market until some state or federal grant money can be found.
At different times, and by different measures, the city has been the poorest in New York State. Local activists and city officials blame the county's Department of Social Services for making problems worse by using the city as a dumping ground for its poorest clients. County officials respond that they are only sending people where housing costs are the cheapest.
Geography
The city is on the west bank of the Hudson River. Next to it the land rises at first sharply to a bluff, where many historic homes are located due to the sweeping views it offers of the Hudson Highlands to the south, Mount Beacon to the east and the bridge to the north; then more gradually to a relatively level western half. There are some notable hills in outlying areas, such as Overlook Terrace in the city's southeast corner and Mount St. Mary's at the northeast.
The lowest elevation in the city is sea level along the river; the highest is roughly 690 feet (210 m) on Snake Hill along the city's southern boundary with the Town of New Windsor.
Newburgh is located at 41°30'11" North, 74°1'10" West (41.503193, -74.019636)Template:GR.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 12.4 km² (4.8 mi²). 9.9 km² (3.8 mi²) of it is land and 2.5 km² (1.0 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 20.08% water.
New York State Route 32 and U.S. Route 9W pass through the city. New York State Route 17K and New York State Route 207 also reach their eastern termini within city limits. Interstate 84 passes just north of the city and the New York State Thruway is not far to the west.
Demographics
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 28,259 people, 9,144 households, and 6,080 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,856.2/km² (7,393.6/mi²). There were 10,476 housing units at an average density of 1,058.8/km² (2,740.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 42.33% White, 32.96% Black or African American, 0.71% Native American, 0.76% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 18.11% from other races, and 5.07% from two or more races. 36.30% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 9,144 households out of which 40.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.1% were married couples living together, 25.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.5% were non-families. 27.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.97 and the average family size was 3.62.
In the city the population was spread out with 33.2% under the age of 18, 12.7% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 16.1% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 90.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $30,332, and the median income for a family was $32,519. Males had a median income of $26,633 versus $21,718 for females. The per capita income for the city was $13,360. 25.8% of the population and 23.0% of families were below the poverty line. 35.3% of those under the age of 18 and 16.1% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Government
Newburgh has five elected officials, a mayor and four city councilmembers, all elected at-large to four-year terms. The mayor accepts all legal process and often serves as the symbolic head of the city, but other than that has no special powers or role. The city manager, who appoints all other city officials subject to council approval, serves at their pleasure.
Politics in the city has often been a chaotic affair. City managers are frequently hired amidst high hopes and mutual resolve to do better; then fired, almost ritually and sometimes spectacularly, by a bitterly divided council several years later, which then finds someone new and starts the whole process over again. This instability has long been blamed as a major factor in the city's problems — as of 2006, the city has had four mayors and five managers (three if two who served twice aren't counted) in the last decade.
There have been proposals to change the situation by assigning council members to wards or eliminating the city manager's position. But they have been perceived as politically motivated, and thus have not been adopted.
The incumbent mayor is Nick Valentine; Jean McGrane, the first woman ever to hold the position, is the current City Manager.
Politics
Because of Newburgh's diverse population, the vast majority of the voting base is of the Democratic persuasion. In spite of that, Republicans have claimed spotty victories on the backs of ineffectual Democratic candidates. The Democratic Party was recently involved in an upheaval that changed its leadership after 20 years. Although the present City Council consists of 4 Democrats of its 5 members, there is no unity in their majority role. The current City Manager has manipulated the weaker of the Council to make rash and unqualified decisions that have been successfully overturned by public pressure. She has even manipulated a majority of them to agree to renew her 2 year contract, in spite of the fact that she has refused to take up residence, as stipulated in her present expiring 2 year contract.
Facts
- Home to Mount Saint Mary College and SUNY Orange County Community College.
- Karpele's Manuscript Museum is found in the City of Newburgh.
- Highest ratio of houses of worship to residents of any city in the country.
- Downing Park, designed by Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted (designers of NYC's Central Park), is named after Andrew Jackson Downing, Vaux's partner and Olmsted's mentor.
Famous Newburghians
- Andrew Jackson Downing (architect and landscape designer, b. 1815)
- Geraldine Ferraro (member of Congress and vice presidential candidate, b. 1935)
- Saul Williams (hip hop musician and poet, b. 1972)
Literature
- E. M. Ruttenber, History of Orange County with History of the City of Newburgh, (Newburgh, 1876)
- J. J, Nutt, Newburgh: Her Institutions, Industries, and Leading Citizens, (Newburgh, 1891)
- L. P. Powell, (editor) Historic Towns of the Middle States, (New York, 1899)
