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New York State...
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New York Counties
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New York Counties
There are 62 counties in the State of New York. The first twelve counties in New York were
created immediately after the British annexation of the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam, although two of these
counties have since been abolished. The most recent county formation in New York was in 1912, when Bronx County
was created from the portions of New York City that had been annexed from Westchester County. New York's
counties are named for a variety of Native American words, British provinces, cities, and royalty, early
American statesmen and generals, and state politicians. |
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Columbia County, New York
Columbia County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
County Seat: Hudson
Year Organized: 1786
Square Miles: 636 |
Court House: 401 Union Street
County Courthouse
Hudson, NY 12534-2451
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Etymology - Origin of County Name
From the Latin feminine form of Columbus, the name was popular at
the time as a proposed name for the United States of America
Demographics:
County QuickFacts:
Census Bureau Quick Facts
History
Columbia County, taken from Albany in 1786: its greatest length on the E. line 36, medium breadth 18 miles. Centrally
distant N. from New York 125, from Albany, SE., 34 miles. The surface of the county is considerably diversified, though
no part can be called mountainous. Ranges of small hillocks are interspersed with extensive plains or valleys, and much
of rich alluvion. There are some excellent lands, and much of the larger portion may be, by judicious culture, rendered
highly productive. Nature, in the abundant beds of lime, has furnished the means, as if by a special providence, of
tempering the cold and ungrateful constituents of the clay; and in many places the lime in the form of marl does not
require burning to become a stimulant. Scarce any portion of the state is better adapted to the raising of sheep, and
the profits from this source, already great, are yearly increasing. This county is famed for the quantity and quality of
its Indian corn. Lead and iron ore are found in this county. It is divided into 19 towns. (Historical Collections of the
State of New York, Past and Present, John Barber, Clark Albien & Co, 1851)
Formed from a portion of Albany County by legislature action April 4, 1786, Columbia County is bounded on the
north by Rensselaer, on the south by Dutchess, on the east by a small portion of Dutchess County and on the west by
the Hudson River. As a result of an act passed March 24, 1772, the area now Columbia County was divided into
districts: Kinderhook in the northwest, Kings in the northeast; Claverack, in the central portion; and Livingston
Manor in the southern. Full History at NYSAC
Geography
Columbia County is in the eastern part of New York State, southeast of Albany and immediately west of the
Massachusetts border. The western border is the Hudson River.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 648 square miles (1,679 kmē), of which, 636
square miles (1,647 kmē) of it is land and 13 square miles (32 kmē) of it (1.93%) is water.
The terrain is gentle, rolling hills, rising sharply into the Taconic and Berkshire Mountains along the state line.
The highest point is on the Massachusetts state line near the summit of Alander Mountain, at approximately 2,110
feet (643 m) above sea level, in the town of Copake. The lowest point is at or near sea level along the Hudson.
Neighboring Counties:
- Rensselaer County, New York - north
- Berkshire County, Massachusetts - east
- Dutchess County, New York - south
- Ulster County, New York - southwest
- Greene County, New York - west
- Albany County, New York - northwest
- Litchfield County, Connecticut - southeast
Cities and Towns:
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- Ancram |
town |
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- Austerlitz |
town |
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- Canaan |
town |
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- Chatham |
village |
Incorporated Area |
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- Claverack |
town |
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- Clermont |
town |
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- Copake |
town |
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- East Nassau |
village |
Incorporated Area |
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- Germantown |
town |
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- Ghent |
town |
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- Hillsdale |
town |
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- Hudson
(County Seat) |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Kinderhook |
village |
Incorporated Area |
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- Livingston |
town |
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- New Lebanon |
town |
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- Philmont |
village |
Incorporated Area |
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- Stockport |
town |
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- Stuyvesant |
town |
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- Taghkanic |
town |
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- Valatie |
village |
Incorporated Area |
County Resources:
Enter County Resources and Information Here
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County Resource Guide
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The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic
features of our country!"
But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.
Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally,
act locally." |
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