Shandaken, New York
Encyclopedia
Shandaken is a town
in Ulster County
, New York
, United States
. United States
. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population
of 3,235. The name is from a native phrase for "land of rapid waters."
The Town of Shandaken is located on the county's northern border. Shandaken is northwest of Kingston
, New York
. Shandaken is also the home of Timber Lake Camp, one of the more prominent summer camps in the Northeast region.
. Shandaken was established as a town in 1804 from part of the Town of Woodstock
. In 1809, the town was increased by territory from the Town of Neversink
(in Sullivan County
). Later, some of Shandaken was used to help form the Towns of Denning
, Hardenburgh
, and Olive
.
By the final years of the 19th Century, Shandaken had developed the tourist industry which is still the most important part of its economy.
The population of Shandaken in 1900 was 4,053.
An alternate translation of the native word "shandaken" is the "place of the hemlocks."
, the town has a total area of 119.8 square miles (310.3 km²), of which, 119.8 square miles (310.3 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it is water
. The total area is 0.02% water.
The town is inside the Catskill Park, and it is entirely mountainous. Within it lies Slide Mountain
, the Catskill Mountains
' highest peak.
The north town line is the border of Greene County
, and the west town line is the border of Delaware County
.
The Esopus Creek
flows across the town.
of 2000, there were 3,235 people, 1,463 households, and 829 families residing in the town. The population density
was 27.0 people per square mile (10.4/km²). There were 2,666 housing units at an average density of 22.3 per square mile (8.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.65% White, 1.21% African American, 0.40% Native American, 1.17% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 0.56% from other races
, and 1.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.06% of the population.
There were 1,463 households out of which 23.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.0% were married couples
living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.3% were non-families. 34.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.82.
In the town the population was spread out with 20.2% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 24.2% from 25 to 44, 32.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $31,566, and the median income for a family was $40,927. Males had a median income of $38,854 versus $23,063 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $21,121. About 7.4% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.9% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.
, and the Greene County
towns of Lexington
and Westkill. The Town also has a full service Police department located at 64 SR 42 in the hamlet of Shandaken. The Town of Shandaken Police Department originally was established as a constabulary
, and became a police department in the early 1990s. The Police Department consists of four full time members and nine part time members and is dispatched by The Ulster County
Sheriff's Office. The Sheriff's Office has a post located within the town offices located on Route 28. The Sheriff's Office post is not manned 24 hours a day. There are two emergency callboxes located in the Town of Shandaken, one on the North facing side of the Town Hall (SR 28) and the other on the South facing side of the Town Police Department (located on SR 42)
The Shandaken Justice Court is a part-time court, housed within the Town Offices on SR 28; it handles all traffic violations, misdemeanor criminal cases, and civil cases. Traffic court is held every Tuesday with few exceptions. Justice Thomas Crucet holds Court at 7:00pm while Justice Miranda, Michael holds court at 1:30pm; these justices rotate every week. Most criminal cases are held on District Attorney
Night, which is usually held on the third Thursday of every month.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in Ulster County
Ulster County, New York
Ulster County is a county located in the state of New York, USA. It sits in the state's Mid-Hudson Region of the Hudson Valley. As of the 2010 census, the population was 182,493. Recent population estimates completed by the United States Census Bureau for the 12-month period ending July 1 are at...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 3,235. The name is from a native phrase for "land of rapid waters."
The Town of Shandaken is located on the county's northern border. Shandaken is northwest of Kingston
Kingston, New York
Kingston is a city in and the county seat of Ulster County, New York, USA. It is north of New York City and south of Albany. It became New York's first capital in 1777, and was burned by the British Oct. 16, 1777, after the Battles of Saratoga...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Shandaken is also the home of Timber Lake Camp, one of the more prominent summer camps in the Northeast region.
History
The town was first settled around the time of the American RevolutionAmerican Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
. Shandaken was established as a town in 1804 from part of the Town of Woodstock
Woodstock, New York
Woodstock is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 5,884 at the 2010 census, down from 6,241 at the 2000 census.The Town of Woodstock is in the northern part of the county...
. In 1809, the town was increased by territory from the Town of Neversink
Neversink, New York
Neversink is a town in Sullivan County, New York, United States. The population was 3,553 at the 2000 census.The Town of Neversink is in the northeast corner of the county...
(in Sullivan County
Sullivan County, New York
Sullivan County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 77,547. The county seat is Monticello. The name is in honor of Major General John Sullivan, who was a hero in the American Revolutionary War...
). Later, some of Shandaken was used to help form the Towns of Denning
Denning, New York
Denning is a town in Ulster County, New York, USA. The population was 516 at the 2000 census. The name come from an early landowner, William Denning.The Town of Denning is located in the western part of the county...
, Hardenburgh
Hardenburgh, New York
Hardenburgh is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 208 at the 2000 census.The Town of Hardenburgh is located in the western part of Ulster County. The town is inside the Catskill Park.- History :...
, and Olive
Olive, New York
Olive is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 4,579 at the 2000 census.The Town of Olive is an interior town of Ulster County. The town is west of Kingston, New York and is inside the Catskill Park.- History :...
.
By the final years of the 19th Century, Shandaken had developed the tourist industry which is still the most important part of its economy.
The population of Shandaken in 1900 was 4,053.
An alternate translation of the native word "shandaken" is the "place of the hemlocks."
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 119.8 square miles (310.3 km²), of which, 119.8 square miles (310.3 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1035995244 km²) of it is water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
. The total area is 0.02% water.
The town is inside the Catskill Park, and it is entirely mountainous. Within it lies Slide Mountain
Slide Mountain (New York)
Slide Mountain is the highest peak in the Catskills. It is located in the Town of Shandaken in Ulster County, in southern New York. While the contour line on topographic maps is generally accepted as its height, the exact elevation of the summit has never been officially determined by the U.S...
, the Catskill Mountains
Catskill Mountains
The Catskill Mountains, an area in New York State northwest of New York City and southwest of Albany, are a mature dissected plateau, an uplifted region that was subsequently eroded into sharp relief. They are an eastward continuation, and the highest representation, of the Allegheny Plateau...
' highest peak.
The north town line is the border of Greene County
Greene County, New York
Greene County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. Its name is in honor of the American Revolutionary War general Nathanael Greene. Its county seat is Catskill...
, and the west town line is the border of Delaware County
Delaware County, New York
Delaware County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of 2010 the population was 47,980. The county seat is Delhi. It is named after the Delaware River, which was named in honor of Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, appointed governor of Virginia in 1609.-History:When counties...
.
The Esopus Creek
Esopus Creek
Esopus Creek is a tributary of the Hudson River that drains the east-central Catskill Mountains of the U.S. state of New York. From its source at Winnisook Lake on the slopes of Slide Mountain, the Catskills' highest peak, it flows across Ulster County to the Hudson at Saugerties. Many tributaries...
flows across the town.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 3,235 people, 1,463 households, and 829 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 27.0 people per square mile (10.4/km²). There were 2,666 housing units at an average density of 22.3 per square mile (8.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.65% White, 1.21% African American, 0.40% Native American, 1.17% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 0.56% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.06% of the population.
There were 1,463 households out of which 23.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.0% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 9.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.3% were non-families. 34.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.82.
In the town the population was spread out with 20.2% under the age of 18, 5.5% from 18 to 24, 24.2% from 25 to 44, 32.6% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $31,566, and the median income for a family was $40,927. Males had a median income of $38,854 versus $23,063 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $21,121. About 7.4% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.9% of those under age 18 and 7.6% of those age 65 or over.
Services
The town of Shandaken provides Paramedic Ambulance Services for the Town of Shandaken, the Town of Olive, New YorkOlive, New York
Olive is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 4,579 at the 2000 census.The Town of Olive is an interior town of Ulster County. The town is west of Kingston, New York and is inside the Catskill Park.- History :...
, and the Greene County
Greene County, New York
Greene County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. Its name is in honor of the American Revolutionary War general Nathanael Greene. Its county seat is Catskill...
towns of Lexington
Lexington, New York
Lexington is a town in Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 805 at the 2010 census.The Town of Lexington is in the southwest part of Greene County.- History :The town was first settled around 1788....
and Westkill. The Town also has a full service Police department located at 64 SR 42 in the hamlet of Shandaken. The Town of Shandaken Police Department originally was established as a constabulary
Constabulary
Constabulary may have several definitions.*A civil, non-paramilitary force consisting of police officers called constables. This is the usual definition in Britain, in which all county police forces once bore the title...
, and became a police department in the early 1990s. The Police Department consists of four full time members and nine part time members and is dispatched by The Ulster County
Ulster County, New York
Ulster County is a county located in the state of New York, USA. It sits in the state's Mid-Hudson Region of the Hudson Valley. As of the 2010 census, the population was 182,493. Recent population estimates completed by the United States Census Bureau for the 12-month period ending July 1 are at...
Sheriff's Office. The Sheriff's Office has a post located within the town offices located on Route 28. The Sheriff's Office post is not manned 24 hours a day. There are two emergency callboxes located in the Town of Shandaken, one on the North facing side of the Town Hall (SR 28) and the other on the South facing side of the Town Police Department (located on SR 42)
The Shandaken Justice Court is a part-time court, housed within the Town Offices on SR 28; it handles all traffic violations, misdemeanor criminal cases, and civil cases. Traffic court is held every Tuesday with few exceptions. Justice Thomas Crucet holds Court at 7:00pm while Justice Miranda, Michael holds court at 1:30pm; these justices rotate every week. Most criminal cases are held on District Attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
Night, which is usually held on the third Thursday of every month.
Communities and locations in Shandaken
- Allaben – A hamletHamlet (place)A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
east of Shandaken village on Route 28New York State Route 28New York State Route 28 is a state highway extending for in the shape of a "C" between the Hudson Valley city of Kingston and southern Warren County in the U.S. state of New York. Along the way, it intersects several major routes, including Interstate 88 , U.S. Route 20 , and the...
. It is the seat of town government. - Beechford – A hamlet in the southeastern corner of the town.
- Big IndianBig Indian, New YorkBig Indian is a hamlet within the Town of Shandaken in Ulster County, New York, United States, located along State Route 28, within the Catskill Park 17 miles west of Woodstock. The Esopus Creek runs through the area, as Birch Creek feeds in from the north. Big Indian Hollow is located slightly to...
– A hamlet southwest of Shandaken village on Route 28 in the Big Indian Valley. - Bushnellsville – A hamlet by the north town line on Route 42New York State Route 42New York State Route 42 is a north–south, discontinuous state highway in the Catskill Mountains region of New York in the United States. The southernmost of the highway's two segments begins at an intersection with U.S. Route 6 and US 209 in Port Jervis and ends at a junction with...
. - ChichesterChichester, New YorkThe hamlet of Chichester, New York, formerly referred to as Chichesterville, is one of the northernmost communities in the town of Shandaken, New York, being right next to the borderline between Ulster County and Greene County....
– A hamlet in the eastern part of the town, north of Phoenicia on Route 214New York State Route 214New York State Route 214 is a short but scenic state highway in the heart of the Catskill Park. It runs north–south from near the hamlet of Phoenicia up near an old railroad route into the narrow pass known as Stony Clove Notch, then down into the upper Schoharie Creek valley to end...
. Its roots lie in the manufacture of furniture until the Depression destroyed the business. It was founded in 1863. - Highmount – A location northwest of Pine Hill. It was originally called "Summit". It was also known as "Grand Hotel Station"Grand Hotel Railroad StationGrand Hotel Station, MP 41.4 of the Ulster and Delaware Railroad, was located in the small mountain hamlet of Highmount, New York, at the summit between Big Indian and Arkville. A turntable was located here, allowing pusher engines to be turned before descending to Arkville or Big Indian. It...
. - Mt. PleasantMount Pleasant, Ulster County, New YorkMount Pleasant is a populated place in Ulster County, New York, USA. Mount Pleasant is located along New York State Route 28 within Catskill State Park, to the south of Phoenicia and to the north of Boiceville. The community is located at ....
– A hamlet in the eastern part of the town on Route 28 south of Phoenicia. This community was previously called "Longyear" and "Riseley's". - Mt. TremperMount Tremper, New YorkMount Tremper is a populated place in Ulster County, New York, USA. Mount Tremper is situated to the east of New York State Route 28 and to the north of New York State Route 212 within the Catskill Park. The community is located at...
– A hamlet near the east town line. It was called earlier "Ladew Corners" and "The Corner". - OlivereaOliverea, New YorkOliverea is a populated place in Ulster County, New York, USA. Mount Tremper is situated along Ulster Country Route 92 within Catskill State Park. The community is located at . in the town of Shandaken....
– A hamlet, founded in 1886, in the south part of the town on Route 47. It is home to the Winnisook ClubWinnisook ClubThe Winnisook Club is a private club located in Big Indian, New York and has been in operation since 1886. The club is named after Chief Winnisook, a Native American from area folklore. The club is situated on man-made Winnisook Lake with a number of private homes surrounding the lake...
, which is located at the base of Slide Mountain next to Winnisook LakeWinnisook LakeWinnisook Lake is an artificial lake located in Oliverea, New York, United States. It is the source of Esopus Creek and the highest lake in the Catskill Mountains at above sea level....
. - PhoeniciaPhoenicia, New YorkPhoenicia is a hamlet in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 381 at the 2000 census.Phoenicia is located in the northeast part of Town of Shandaken, on Route 28. It is the largest community in the town...
– A hamlet in the eastern part of the town. It was the first community to be connected to the outside world by a railroad (the Ulster and Delaware RailroadUlster and Delaware RailroadThe Ulster and Delaware Railroad Company was a Class I railroad located in New York State, headquartered in Rondout and founded in 1866. It was often advertised as "The Only All-Rail Route To the Catskill Mountains." At its greatest extent, the U&D ran from Kingston Point, on the Hudson River,...
) and the first to begin hotel construction for the tourist industry. - Pine HillPine Hill, New YorkPine Hill is a hamlet in the western part of the town of Shandaken in Ulster County, New York, United States. As of the 2000 census, the CDP had a total population of 308.- History :...
– A hamlet in the western part of the town. - Shandaken – The hamlet of Shandaken is in the north central part of the town on Route 28.
- Slide Mountain – Slide Mountain is the highest point in the Catskill MountainsCatskill MountainsThe Catskill Mountains, an area in New York State northwest of New York City and southwest of Albany, are a mature dissected plateau, an uplifted region that was subsequently eroded into sharp relief. They are an eastward continuation, and the highest representation, of the Allegheny Plateau...
. - Woodland Valley – A hamlet in the southeast part of the town, south of Phoenicia. It is still home to the Roxmor Colony.