Orleans County, New York
Orleans County is a
county located in the
U.S. state of
New York. As of 2000, the population was 44,171. The
county seat is
Albion. The name is in honor of the
French Royal
House of Orleans.
When counties were established in New York State in
1683, the present Orleans 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
Montgomery County in order 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.
In
1789,
Ontario County was split off from Montgomery.
In
1802, Genesee County was created by a splitting of Ontario County . This was much larger than the present Genesee County, however, containing the present
Allegany,
Cattaraugus,
Chautauqua,
Erie,
Niagara, Orleans, and
Wyoming Counties, and parts of
Livingston and
Monroe Counties.
In
1806, Genesee County was reduced in size by the splitting off of
Allegany County. In
1808, Genesee County was further reduced in size by the splitting off of
Cattaraugus,
Chautauqua, and
Niagara Counties. Niagara County at that time also included the present
Erie County.
In
1821, Genesee County was reduced in size by the splitting off of portions which were combined with portions of
Ontario County to create
Livingston and
Monroe Counties. By this time Genesee County had been reduced considerably in size from its original area of 1802, still containing the present Orleans and Wyoming Counties in addition to its present area, however.
In
1824, Orleans County was created from what was left of Genesee County.
According to the
U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,117
km² (817
mi²). 1,014 km² (391 mi²) of it is land and 1,104 km² (426 mi²) of it (52.12%) is water. The high proportion of water is due to the extension of Orleans County north into Lake Ontario to the Canadian border (a line of latitude running through the middle of the lake). The distance from the Orleans shore north to the international border is greater than the distance from the shore south to the Genesee County line, meaning the area of Orleans underwater is actually greater than that above water.
Orleans County is in western New York State, northeast of
Buffalo and west of
Rochester, on the southern shore of
Lake Ontario.
The
Erie Canal passes (east-west) through the middle of the county.
Adjacent Counties and areas
The northern boundary is
Lake Ontario with the
Canadaian province of
Ontario on the opposite shore. The west boundary in
Niagara County.
Monroe County is to the east, and
Genesee County is to the south.
As of the
census² of 2000, there were 44,171 people, 15,363 households, and 10,846 families residing in the county. The
population density was 44/km² (113/mi²). There were 17,347 housing units at an average density of 17/km² (44/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 89.12%
White, 7.31%
Black or
African American, 0.46%
Native American, 0.32%
Asian, 0.03%
Pacific Islander, 1.54% from
other races, and 1.21% from two or more races. 3.89% of the population were
Hispanic or
Latino of any race.
There were 15,363 households out of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.3% were
married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.4% were non-families. 23.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.13.
In the county the population was spread out with 26.2% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.2 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $37,972, and the median income for a family was $42,830. Males had a median income of $32,450 versus $22,605 for females. The
per capita income for the county was $16,457. About 7.7% of families and 10.8% of the population were below the
poverty line, including 15.0% of those under age 18 and 5.2% of those age 65 or over.
*
Albion (village)
*
Albion (town)
*
Barre (town)
*
Carlton (town)
*
Clarendon (town)
*
Gaines (town)
*
Holley (village)
*
Kendall (town)
*
Lyndonville (village)
*
Medina (village)
*
Murray (town)
*
Ridgeway (town)
*
Shelby (town)
*
Yates (town)
*
label in parentheses refers to official category of political entity.
The county is considered to have five school districts, although the actual district boundaries can extend into neighboring counties, and the same is true for neighboring counties' districts. The five districts, from west to east, are:
*
Lyndonville Central School District (northern half of western third, roughly covering Lyndonville village and the towns of Yates and Ridgeway)
*
Medina Central School District (southern half of western third, roughly covering Medina village and the towns of Ridgeway and Shelby)
*
Albion Central School District (middle third, roughly covering Albion village and the towns of Carlton, Gaines, Albion, and Barre)
*
Kendall Central School District (northern half of eastern third, roughly covering the towns of Kendall and Murray)
*
Holley Central School District (southern half of eastern third, roughly covering Holley village and the towns of Murray and Clarendon)
The only post-secondary education available in the county is a branch of
Genesee Community College located in Albion.
When the county was formed, a dispute arose about naming it after
Andrew Jackson or
John Adams; the conflict was ended by choosing the name Orleans.
The Erie Canal Culvert near Medina is the only roadway that passes
under the Erie Canal.
*
Official Webpage*
Genesee Community College in Orleans County *
Brief historical summary of Orleans County, NY 
