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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.

Cortland County, New York

Cortland County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education

County Seat: Cortland
Year Organized: 1808
Square Miles: 500

Court House:

60 Central Avenue
County Courthouse
Cortland, NY 13045-2717

Etymology - Origin of County Name

Named in honor of Pierre Van Cortlandt, who was the first lieutenant governor of the state (in 1777 he was president of the convention at Kingston that framed the state's first constitution)

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick Facts

County History

Located in the glaciated Appalachian Plateau area of Central New York State, midway between Syracuse and Binghamton, this predominantly rural county is the southeastern gateway to the Finger Lakes Region. Scattered archaeological evidence indicates three different aboriginal cultures hunted the area beginning about 1500 A. D.

What was to become Cortland County remained within Indian territory until the American Revolution. It became part of the Military Tract, when, in 1781, more than 1¼ million acres (5,100 km²) were set aside by the State's Legislature to compensate two regiments formed to protect the State's western section from the English and their Iroquois allies, at the close of the Revolution. To encourage settlement in the upstate isolated wilderness, the State constructed a road from Oxford through Cortland County to Cayuga Lake in 1792-94. This, and construction of privately financed roads, were the major impetus to settlement.

When counties were established in New York State in 1683, the present Cortland County was part of Albany County. This was an enormous county, including the northern part of New York State as well as all of the present State of Vermont and, in theory, extending westward to the Pacific Ocean. This county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766 by the creation of Cumberland County, and further on March 16, 1770 by the creation of Gloucester County, both containing territory now in Vermont.

On March 12, 1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. One of the other pieces, Tryon County, contained the western portion (and thus, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically still extended west to the Pacific). The eastern boundary of Tryon County was approximately five miles west of the present city of Schenectady, and the county included the western part of the Adirondack Mountains and the area west of the West Branch of the Delaware River. The area then designated as Tryon County now includes 37 counties of New York State. The county was named for William Tryon, colonial governor of New York.

In the years prior to 1776, most of the Loyalists in Tryon County fled to Canada. In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended the American Revolutionary War, the name of Tryon County was changed to honor the general, Richard Montgomery, who had captured several places in Canada and died attempting to capture the city of Quebec, replacing the name of the hated British governor. Montgomery County was reduced in size in 1789 by the splitting off of Ontario County. The actual area split off from Montgomery County was much larger than the present county, also including the present Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Orleans, Steuben, Wyoming, Yates, and part of Schuyler and Wayne Counties.

In 1791, Herkimer County was one of three counties split off from Montgomery (the others being Otsego, and Tioga Counties).

Onondaga County was formed from Herkimer County in 1794.

Cortland County was formed by the splitting of Onondaga County in 1808.

Cortland County is located in the glaciated Appalachian Plateau area of central New York midway between Syracuse and Binghamton. This predominately rural county is the southeastern gateway to the Finger Lakes region. Scattered archeological evidence indicates occupation of this area by three different aboriginal cultures, mainly the Onondaga Tribe of the Iroquois Confederacy beginning about 1500 A.D. Full History at NYSAC

Geography

Cortland County is somewhat to the west of the center of New York State, south of Syracuse and north of Binghamton.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 502 square miles (1,299 km²), of which, 500 square miles (1,294 km²) of it is land and 2 square miles (5 km²) of it (0.37%) is water.

Neighboring Counties:

Onondaga County, New York - north
Madison County, New York - northeast
Chenango County, New York - east
Broome County, New York - southeast
Tompkins County, New York - southwest
Tioga County, New York - southwest
Cayuga County, New York - northwest

Cities and Towns:

- Cincinnatus	town
- Cortland (County Seat)	city	Incorporated Area
- Cortlandville	town
- Cuyler	town
- Freetown	town
- Harford	town
- Homer	village	Incorporated Area
- Lapeer	town
- Marathon	village	Incorporated Area
- McGraw	village	Incorporated Area
- Preble	town
- Scott	town
- Solon	town
- Taylor	town
- Truxton	town
- Virgil	town
- Willet	town

County Resources:

Enter County Resources and Information Here

County Resources

The history of our nation was a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names given the counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic features of this 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."