Everything about Goshen Village New York totally explained
Goshen is the county seat of
Orange County,
New York,
United States. The population was 5,676 at the 2000 census; this number dipped slightly to 5,437 by 2005, according to a Census Bureau estimate.
The village is within the
Town of Goshen, some fifty miles northwest of
New York City, on
New York State Route 17 in the center of Orange County. Goshen is the home of the
Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame, and hosted harness racing's top event, the
Hambletonian, from 1930 to 1956, at the former
Good Time Park. Racing is still held at the
Historic Track, a
National Historic Landmark in the center of the village.
History
The village was settled in 1714 and incorporated in 1809. In 1727 it was declared the "half-shire town" of Orange County, a predecessor to its current status as county seat. It didn't take on that full status, however, until
Rockland County was split from the county in 1798, and Goshen was designated the seat since
Orangetown was in the new county. For a while afterward it shared that status with
Newburgh, moved into Orange as compensation for the lost territory, but since the late 19th century all county government functions have been centralized in Goshen.
The village (or the town, which are indistinguishable in old records) was the site of the hanging of the famous outlaw
Claudius Smith, a British
Loyalist who— along with the Mohawk Indian Chief
Joseph Brandt— raided the countryside surrounding Goshen during the
American Revolutionary War.
He and Brandt are said to have buried their many stolen treasures in the hills surrounding Goshen, and that Claudius is himself buried somewhere on the grounds of the old
Presbyterian Church – with his skull having been embedded in the wall.
Smith was hanged on
January 22,
1779, and exactly six months later, on
July 22,
1779, Brandt raided what is now
Port Jervis. A militia from Goshen set out to stop Brandt, engaging in the disastrous
Battle of Minisink, in which 45 local militiamen were killed. A monument in the center of town marks the spot where their bones were buried in a mass grave 43 years after the battle.
As early as the 1750s, residents used to race their horses along what is now Main Street in the village's downtown. In 1838, a circular track was built around a nearby
circus ground, and. This was the first incarnation of the
Historic Track, where races are still held for one week each year, making it the oldest horse racing facility still in use in the United States. Later, the larger
Good Time Park was built, which hosted the
Hambletonian in later years. The
Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame near the track recognizes Goshen's historic importance to the sport.
In 1950, Goshen had a population of 3,311 people. By 1990, the village had been largely built out, and the number of people stood at 5,255; despite a building boom in the
town, the village has remained about the same size.
Geography
Goshen is located at (41.401546, -74.325199). Its
topography consists of a flat central area with gently rolling hills cresting at the village limits. The highest elevation is approximately 620 feet (189 m) at the
USGS Murray
benchmark on the eastern border; the lowest elevation is the Good Time Park site at 420 feet (128 m). According to the
United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 3.2
square miles (8.3
km²).None of the area is covered with water. Most of the village lies within the
Moodna Creek watershed via its tributary the
Otter Kill; a small portion on the west feeds the
Wallkill River, and both streams eventually drain into the
Hudson River.
Goshen was once located on the
Erie Railroad Main Line across southern New York, which made a loop around Good Time Park through the center of the village; the tracks are gone but the
right-of-way remains visible as the Heritage
Rail Trail east of the village and Railroad Avenue within it. The former station has been
converted into the village's
police headquarters. Passenger rail service is available today via the
Metro-North Port Jervis commuter line a few miles north of the village at
Campbell Hall, on the Erie's onetime freight bypass.
The railroad has been replaced as the village's main long-distance transportation connection by
NY 17, which ran through the south portion of the village and was expanded into a
freeway in the 1960s. It will eventually be redesignated as part of
Interstate 86. The western terminus of
US 6 and
NY 17M's
overlap with Route 17 is at Exit 122 in the southwestern corner of the village; from there Route 6 connects Goshen to
Middletown and
Port Jervis while 17 continues to
Binghamton and the
Southern Tier. To the east, 6, 17 and 17M lead to the
New York State Thruway at
Harriman, with Route 6 continuing on to the
Bear Mountain Bridge.
NY 207, the former Newburgh-Goshen Turnpike, begins at the interchange with 17 and becomes first Greenwich Street, then Main Street before leaving the village at the north end to continue across the county to
Newburgh. South of 17 the same roadway becomes
NY 17A, signed east-west but leading first south to
Florida and then to
Warwick. Two Orange County roads also connect Goshen to nearby communities: Orange County 8, named Sarah Wells Trail after a local pioneer woman, begins in the north of the village and parallels 207 to the south towards
Washingtonville; and Orange County 83,
Scotchtown Avenue, follows the old Goshen Turnpike to Scotchtown and later,
Circleville.
There are two airports within a short drive of the village. Passenger flights leave from
Stewart International Airport, near Newburgh on 207, and
general aviation uses
Orange County Airport, near
Montgomery via 207 and
NY 416.
The triangular park at the village's central area, containing the landmark spire of First Presbyterian Church and the 1887 county office building, has been listed on the
National Register of Historic Places as the
Church Park Historic District. When first recognized in 1980, it included just the park, Webster Street and the Historic Track, but in 2004 its boundaries were extended to include many of the historic buildings on Main Street north to Erie Street and the block south of the park to Green Street. The village has designated it an Architectural Design District in its
ordinances, to insure that any new construction or renovation within it's in keeping with the area's historic character. Outside the historic district, the village's
post office downtown and the
Everett-Bradner and
Wisner houses on South Street have also been listed on the Register.
The historic district mainly consists of churches, county government buildings and residences along the side streets. Much of Goshen's shopping district is located to its immediate south, in the blocks between Greenwich and West Main streets along the old Erie right-of-way. To its south, land use in the area along Route 17 reflects the proximity of the highway, with a small commercial strip along Matthew Street featuring
gas stations and
chain restaurants on the north side and an
industrial park along Hatfield Lane paralleling the freeway to the south.
Arden Hill Hospital sits on the high ground overlooking Route 17 in the village's southeast corner and
John S. Burke Catholic High School, Orange County's principal Catholic high school, is located on Fletcher Street near the freeway in the southwest.
Goshen's northern section is dominated by the
Orange County Government Center, a
brutalist work by
Paul Rudolph that has long been despised locally. Due to problems that have developed over the years with the building, particularly its many leaky roofs, it may be demolished. In the northeast corner is a large property that was formerly a school run by the
Salesians of Don Bosco; the village has been converting it into a park since it acquired it several years ago. The northwestern area of the village is mostly residential, with the village's schools all located a short walk from each other and the district offices in an old high school building on Main Street.
Demographics
As of the
census of 2000, there were 5,676 people, 2,039 households, and 1,227 families residing in the village. The
population density was 1,770.5 people per square mile (682.7/km²). There were 2,150 housing units at an average density of 670.7/sq mi (258.6/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 87.53%
White, 7.61%
Black or
African American, 0.14%
Native American, 1.55%
Asian, 0.07%
Pacific Islander, 2.26% from
other races, and 0.85% from two or more races.
Hispanic or
Latino of any race were 7.63% of the population.
There were 2,039 households out of which 29.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% were
married couples living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.8% were non-families. 34.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.14.
In the village the population was spread out with 22.3% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 102.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $50,922, and the median income for a family was $66,250. Males had a median income of $41,932 versus $31,711 for females. The
per capita income for the village was $22,443. About 1.9% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 0.8% of those under age 18 and 7.3% of those age 65 or over.
Government
The village has a
mayor-council government that follows the same form as all other villages with that government in New York: a five-member Village Board consisting of a mayor and four trustees, all with equal voting power. The
mayor is the village's chief executive and carries out all day-to-day management functions. Bob Weinberger currently holds the post; his term expires in April 2009. Weinberger, who had previously been village mayor from 1989-91, defeated Phil Canterino and John Higgins in elections held
March 20,
2007. There are four village trustees: Lynn Cione, Kevin Corr, Susan Bloom (elected 2007) and Susan Fast (re-elected 2007).
As with other villages in New York, all residents pay town taxes as well and are eligible to vote in its elections. The
Goshen Central School District includes the entire village, and three of its four schools are located in it.
Notable residents
Howard Mills III was born in Goshen.Further Information
Get more info on 'Goshen Village New York'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://goshen__village___new_york.totallyexplained.com">Goshen (village), New York Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
