Orange County, New York Totally Explained

Everything about Orange County New York totally explained

Orange County is a county located in the upstate portion of the U.S. state of New York. At the northern reaches of the New York metropolitan area, it sits in the state's scenic Mid-Hudson Region of the Hudson Valley. Its name is in honor of William III of Orange, who was greatly esteemed by the original settlers of the region. As of the 2000 census, the population was 341,367. The County Executive is Ed Diana, and the county seat is Goshen. The center of population of New York is located in Orange County, in Deerpark (External Link

History

Orange County was one of the first twelve counties established by the Province of New York in 1683. Its boundaries at that time included present-day Rockland County, which split from Orange County in 1798.

Geography

Orange County is in southeastern New York State, directly north of the New Jersey-New York border, west of the Hudson River, east of the Delaware River and northwest of New York City. It borders the New York counties of Dutchess, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester, as well as Passaic and Sussex counties in New Jersey and Pike County in Pennsylvania.
   Orange County is the only county in New York State which borders both the Hudson and Delaware Rivers.
   Orange County is where the Great Valley of the Appalachians finally opens up and ends. The western corner is set off by the Shawangunk Ridge. The area along the Rockland County border (within Harriman and Bear Mountain state parks) and south of Newburgh is part of the Hudson Highlands. The land in between is the valley of the Wallkill River. In the southern portion of the county the Wallkill valley expands into a wide glacial lake bed known as the Black Dirt Region for its fertility.
   The highest point is Schunemunk Mountain, at 1,664 feet (507 m) above sea level. The lowest is sea level along the Hudson.
   According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 839 square miles (2,172 km²), with 816 square miles (2,114 km²) as land and 22 square miles (58 km²) as water.

Transportation

The county is served by Stewart International Airport, located two miles west of Newburgh, New York. The airport serves AirTran Airways, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue Airways, Northwest Airlines, and US Airways. Ground transportation within Orange County is provided primarily by New Jersey Transit, ShortLine, and Metro-North Railroad's Port Jervis Line, as well as amenities such as senior citizen bussing and car services, which usually restrict themselves to their respective town or city.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 341,367 people, 114,788 households, and 84,483 families residing in the county. The population density was 418 people per square mile (161/km²). There were 122,754 housing units at an average density of 150 per square mile (58/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 83.70% White, 8.09% Black or African American, 0.35% Native American, 1.51% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 4.09% from other races, and 2.23% from two or more races. 11.64% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 18.3% were of Italian, 17.4% Irish, 10.2% German and 5.0% Polish ancestry according to Census 2000. 9.23% reported speaking Spanish at home, 3.29% Yiddish, and 1.20% Italian.(External Link

) By 2005, census estimates placed Orange County's non-Hispanic white population at 72.4%. African Americans were now 10.2% of the population. Native Americans were at 0.4%, a change that was less than can be measured by the precision of the 2005 estimates being used for these figures. Asians were up to 2.2% of the population. Latinos had however made the largest gain as an increase in their percentage of the population, and now constituted 14.9% of the counties population.
   There were 114,788 households out of which 39.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.90% were married couples living together, 11.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.40% were non-families. 21.50% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.85 and the average family size was 3.35.
   In the county the population was spread out with 29.00% under the age of 18, 8.70% from 18 to 24, 30.00% from 25 to 44, 21.90% from 45 to 64, and 10.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 100.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.50 males.
   The median income for a household in the county was $52,058, and the median income for a family was $60,355. Males had a median income of $42,363 versus $30,821 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,597. About 7.60% of families and 10.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.80% of those under age 18 and 8.00% of those age 65 or over.
   Despite its rural roots, Orange County is considered to be among the fastest growing suburb/exurb regions of the New York City Metropolitan Area.

Governmental Positions

County Executive: Edward A. Diana (Republican)
County Clerk: Donna L. Benson
Sheriff: Carl E. DuBois (Republican)
District Attorney: Francis D. Phillips

Places

Hamlets

There are many hamlets in Orange County. Some Towns may have 5 or more. A Hamlet is defined as an Unincorporated Village.

Points of interest

Points of interest in Orange County include, the United States Military Academy at West Point, Brotherhood Winery, America's oldest winery, in Washingtonville, the birthplace of William H. Seward in Florida, the home and birthplace of Velveeta Cheese, the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame in Goshen, the Times Herald-Record newspaper, the first cold press offset daily in the country, in Middletown, Galleria at Crystal Run, in Middletown, the Orange County Fair in Middletown. The only state parks include Goosepond Mountain State Park, Harriman State Park and Sterling Forest State Park. There is also the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets. It is also the location of Orange County Choppers, the custom motorcycle shop featured on The Learning Channel television series American Chopper.

Famous Residents Past and Present

William Seward, U.S. Secretary of State

Whoopi Goldberg, Academy Award winning actress

Paul Teutul, Sr., custom motorcycle builder of Orange County Choppers

Paul Teutul, Jr., custom motorcycle builder of Orange County Choppers

Geraldine Ferraro, 1984 U.S. Vice-Presidential Candidate, U.S. Congresswoman

James Patterson, author

Spencer Tunick, famed photographer

Noah Webster

Stephen Crane, author of The Red Badge of Courage

Pierre Lorillard, tobacco magnate

Tony Gilroy, Academy Award nominated director and writer

James Mangold, film director

Armand Assante, actor

Emily Post, author

Barry Bostwick, actor

Cyndi Lauper, used to spend summers in Tuxedo Park

Greg Anthony, former New York Knicks player

Matt Morris, baseball pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates

Joe Nathan, baseball player for the Minnesota Twins

Scott Pioli, Vice-President of Player Personnel for the New England Patriots

Rose Thompson Hovick, famous stage mother of Gypsy Rose Lee and June Havoc

Nathaniel White, serial killer

	North: Sullivan and Ulster Counties
West: Delaware River Sullivan County and Pike County, Pennsylvania	Orange County	East: Hudson River Dutchess and Putnam Counties
	South:Rockland and Westchester Counties Passaic and Sussex Counties in New Jersey

Further Information

Get more info on 'Orange County New York'.

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