Painted Post, New York
Encyclopedia
Painted Post is a village in Steuben County
, New York
, United States
. The village is in the town of Erwin
, west of the city of Corning
. The population was 1,842 at the 2000 census. The name comes from a painted and carved post found by explorers at the junction of three local rivers. Corning-Painted Post Airport (7N1) is west of the village.
The following footnote appears in French's Gazetteer of New York State and gives two possible versions of the origin of the name:
In June 1972 the remnants of Hurricane Agnes
stalled over the New York–Pennsylvania border, dropping up to 20 inches (500 mm) of rain into the Chemung Valley, which was among the worst hit areas by the resultant flooding. The Chemung, Tioga, and Cohocton rivers all overflowed their banks, leaving widespread areas of Painted Post as well as Corning, Big Flats
, and Elmira
under water and destroying many bridges.
Willard Nelson Clute
, a noted botanist, was born in Painted Post.
Thomas Martin, a playwright, actor and director, grew up in the village.
Painted Post is featured in the Stephen Vincent Benet
poem "American Names."
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the village has a total area of 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²), of which, 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (4.51%) is water.
New York State Route 415
passes through the village which also borders the Southern Tier Expressway and the Cohocton River
.
Interstate 86
also passes through Painted Post, and continues on until Jamestown, New York
.
of 2000, there were 1,842 people, 811 households, and 480 families residing in the village. The population density
was 1,457.0 people per square mile (564.4/km²). There were 879 housing units at an average density of 695.3 per square mile (269.4/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 95.71% White, 1.36% African American, 0.16% Native American, 1.74% Asian, 0.11% from other races
, and 0.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.76% of the population.
There were 811 households out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% were married couples
living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.8% were non-families. 36.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 23.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the village the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 21.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 84.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $41,477, and the median income for a family was $58,295. Males had a median income of $39,519 versus $26,583 for females. The per capita income
for the village was $23,664. About 4.5% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.0% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.
Steuben County, New York
Steuben County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 98,990. Its name is in honor of Baron von Steuben, a German general who fought on the American side in the American Revolutionary War, though it is not pronounced the same...
, 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...
. The village is in the town of Erwin
Erwin, New York
Erwin is a town in Steuben County, New York, United States. The population was 7,227 at the 2000 census. The name is that of an early settler, who became the first Town Supervisor....
, west of the city of Corning
Corning (city), New York
Corning is a city in Steuben County, New York, United States, on the Chemung River. The population was 10,842 at the 2000 census. It is named for Erastus Corning, an Albany financier and railroad executive who was an investor in the company that developed the community.- Overview :The city of...
. The population was 1,842 at the 2000 census. The name comes from a painted and carved post found by explorers at the junction of three local rivers. Corning-Painted Post Airport (7N1) is west of the village.
History
According to village records, Painted Post was established as a village in 1803. The Erwin brothers are considered the first wealthy European descended settlers to have settled in the Painted Post area in the late 18th century (Painted Post village is in the town of Erwin, named for the brothers and incorporated in 1796). The brothers' 4 mansions are still standing. There are maps in existence dated 1796 which include Painted Post. The village was first incorporated in 1860 and officially re-incorporated in 1893. The name is derived from an historic, although probably unpainted, wooden post seen in the area at the end of the 18th century. The origin and purpose of the post remain controversial. A glyph of the post is visible on the aforementioned 1796 map.The following footnote appears in French's Gazetteer of New York State and gives two possible versions of the origin of the name:
In the summer of 1779, a party of tories and Indians, under the command of a loyalist named McDonald, returned from an incursion into the Susquehanna settlements, bringing with them many of their number wounded. At the confluence of TiogaTioga River (Chemung River)The Tioga River is a tributary of the Chemung River, approximately long, in northern Pennsylvania and western New York in the United States...
and ConhoctonCohocton RiverThe Cohocton River is a tributary of the Chemung River in western New York in the United States. Via the Chemung River, it is part of the Susquehanna River watershed, flowing to Chesapeake Bay...
[sic] Rivers, Captain Montour, son of the famous Queen Catharine, a Seneca chief of great promise, died of his wounds. "His comrades buried him by the riverside, and planted above his grave a post on which were painted various symbols and rude devices. This monument was known throughout the Genesee Forests as 'The Painted Post.' It was a landmark well known to all the Six NationsIroquoisThe Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
, and was often visited by their braves and chieftains." This account of the origin of the Painted Post was given to Benj. Patterson, the hunter, by a man named Taggart, who was carried to Fort Niagara a prisoner by McDonald's party, end was a witness of the burial of Capt. Montour, or at least was in the encampment at the mouth of the Tioga at the time of his death. Col. Harper, of Harpersfield, the well known officer of the frontier militia of New York in the Revolution, informed Judge Knox, of Knoxville, in this co., that the Painted Post was erected over the grave of a chief who was wounded at the battle of the "Hog-Back" and brought in a canoe to the head of the Chemung, where he died. It was well understood by the early settlers that this monument was erected in memory of some distinguished warrior who had been wounded in one of the border battles of the RevolutionAmerican Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
and afterward died at this place. The post stood for many years after the settlement of the co.; and the story goes that it rotted down at the butt, and was preserved in the bar-room of a tavern till about the year 1810 and then mysteriously disappeared. It is also said to have been swept away in a freshet. — McMasters's Hist, of Steuben. Simm's Hist, Schoharie, p. 333.
In June 1972 the remnants of Hurricane Agnes
Hurricane Agnes
Hurricane Agnes was the first tropical storm and first hurricane of the 1972 Atlantic hurricane season. A rare June hurricane, it made landfall on the Florida Panhandle before moving northeastward and ravaging the Mid-Atlantic region as a tropical storm...
stalled over the New York–Pennsylvania border, dropping up to 20 inches (500 mm) of rain into the Chemung Valley, which was among the worst hit areas by the resultant flooding. The Chemung, Tioga, and Cohocton rivers all overflowed their banks, leaving widespread areas of Painted Post as well as Corning, Big Flats
Big Flats, New York
Big Flats, New York may refer to:* Big Flats , New York in Chemung County* Big Flats , New York, a Census-Designated Place within the Town of Big Flats...
, and Elmira
Elmira, New York
Elmira is a city in Chemung County, New York, USA. It is the principal city of the 'Elmira, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses Chemung County, New York. The population was 29,200 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Chemung County.The City of Elmira is located in...
under water and destroying many bridges.
Willard Nelson Clute
Willard Nelson Clute
Willard N. Clute was an American author, naturalist and botanist. He was born in Steuben County, New York, the son of George N. and Ruth Wright Clute. He married Ida Martin , who illustrated some of his works....
, a noted botanist, was born in Painted Post.
Thomas Martin, a playwright, actor and director, grew up in the village.
Painted Post is featured in the Stephen Vincent Benet
Stephen Vincent Benét
Stephen Vincent Benét was an American author, poet, short story writer, and novelist. Benét is best known for his book-length narrative poem of the American Civil War, John Brown's Body , for which he won a Pulitzer Prize in 1929, and for two short stories, "The Devil and Daniel Webster" and "By...
poem "American Names."
Geography
Painted Post is located at 42°9′40"N 77°5′29"W (42.161188, -77.091315). Painted Post is west of the city of Corning, New YorkCorning (city), New York
Corning is a city in Steuben County, New York, United States, on the Chemung River. The population was 10,842 at the 2000 census. It is named for Erastus Corning, an Albany financier and railroad executive who was an investor in the company that developed the community.- Overview :The city of...
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
United 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 village has a total area of 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²), of which, 1.3 square miles (3.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (4.51%) is water.
New York State Route 415
New York State Route 415
New York State Route 415 is a state highway located in Steuben County, New York, United States. It is a north–south trunk road that parallels in part, the Cohocton River, Interstate 86 and Interstate 390. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 414 in...
passes through the village which also borders the Southern Tier Expressway and the Cohocton River
Cohocton River
The Cohocton River is a tributary of the Chemung River in western New York in the United States. Via the Chemung River, it is part of the Susquehanna River watershed, flowing to Chesapeake Bay...
.
Interstate 86
Interstate 86 (east)
Interstate 86 is an Interstate Highway that extends for through northwestern Pennsylvania and southern New York in the United States...
also passes through Painted Post, and continues on until Jamestown, New York
Jamestown, New York
Jamestown is a city in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. The population was 31,146 at the 2010 census.The City of Jamestown is adjacent to Town of Ellicott and is at the southern tip of Chautauqua Lake...
.
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 1,842 people, 811 households, and 480 families residing in the village. 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 1,457.0 people per square mile (564.4/km²). There were 879 housing units at an average density of 695.3 per square mile (269.4/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 95.71% White, 1.36% African American, 0.16% Native American, 1.74% Asian, 0.11% 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 0.92% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.76% of the population.
There were 811 households out of which 27.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.2% 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, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.8% were non-families. 36.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 23.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the village the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 21.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 84.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $41,477, and the median income for a family was $58,295. Males had a median income of $39,519 versus $26,583 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 village was $23,664. About 4.5% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.0% of those under age 18 and 5.7% of those age 65 or over.