Westfield (village), New York
Encyclopedia
Westfield is a village in Chautauqua County
, New York
, United States
. USA. The population was 3,481 at the 2010 census.
The Village of Westfield lies within the Town of Westfield
in the northern part of the county. The village is known as the "Grape Juice Capital of the World" because it lies roughly in the geographical center of 30000 acres (121.4 km²) of vineyards, most of which are the Concord grapes from which grape juice
is produced, for years was corporate headquarters for the Welch's Grape Juice
company, and is still home to a Welch's processing plant and other grape-related manufacturers.
Significant institutions in the village include the McClurg Mansion; Westfield Academy and the Patterson Library.
method for grape juice made by the Welch family promoted the production of grapes for this purpose in this region.
It was here in 1861 that Abraham Lincoln
met a little girl named Grace Bedell
, who, during the preceding year's Presidential campaign, urged Lincoln by letter to grow his beard out fully as an attempt to improve his chances at being elected. Lincoln responded by brief letter thanking Grace for the suggestion. He made no promises but shortly afterwards allowed his beard to grow, and by the time he began his inaugural journey by train from Illinois to Washington, D.C., he had a full beard. The trip took him through New York State, and included a stop in Westfield, where thousands gathered to meet the President-Elect. Lincoln asked by name to meet Grace Bedell.
The February 19, 1861 edition of the New York World
recounted the meeting as follows:
Today there is a small park in Westfield commemorating this meeting, on the site of the previous "Grand Theatre" movie house.
The celebrated author of juvenile adventure novels, Charles Austin Fosdick
, better known by his pen name, Harry Castlemon, lived in Westfield for most of his adult life and is buried in the Westfield Cemetery. He was the most-read author for boys in the post-Civil War era.
border. It is a short distance north of Chautauqua Lake
and the tourist attractions there, most importantly the Chautauqua Institution
.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the village has a total area of 3.8 square miles (9.9 km²), all of it land. but Westfield is a short 1 miles (1.6 km) drive from the shore of Lake Erie
.
The most significant geographical feature in the village is the gorge of Chautauqua Creek
, which flows roughly north-south, on the way to Lake Erie
, just west of the main intersection (that of Portage Street, NY 394
, and Main Street, US 20
).
of 2010, there were 3,464 people, 1,367 households, and 918 families residing in the village. The population density
was 914.1 people per square mile (352.8/km²). There were 1,476 housing units at an average density of 387.6 per square mile (149.6/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.6% White, 0.40% Black or African American
, 0.3% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 1.8% from other races
, and 0.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.3% of the population.
There were 1,367 households out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.9% were married couples
living together, 11.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the village the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $32,136, and the median income for a family was $43,028. Males had a median income of $30,878 versus $22,500 for females. The per capita income
for the village was $15,828. About 11.1% of families and 17.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.1% of those under age 18 and 19.1% of those age 65 or over.
Chautauqua County, New York
-Major highways:* Interstate 86/New York State Route 17 * Interstate 90 * U.S. Route 20* U.S. Route 62* New York State Route 5* New York State Route 39* New York State Route 60* New York State Route 394...
, 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...
. USA. The population was 3,481 at the 2010 census.
The Village of Westfield lies within the Town of Westfield
Westfield (town), New York
Westfield is a town in the western part Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The population was 5,232 at the 2000 census. Westfield is also the name of a village within the town.- History :...
in the northern part of the county. The village is known as the "Grape Juice Capital of the World" because it lies roughly in the geographical center of 30000 acres (121.4 km²) of vineyards, most of which are the Concord grapes from which grape juice
Grape juice
Grape juice is obtained from crushing and blending grapes into a liquid. The juice is often sold in stores or fermented and made into wine, brandy, or vinegar. In the wine industry, grape juice that contains 7-23 percent of pulp, skins, stems and seeds is often referred to as "must"...
is produced, for years was corporate headquarters for the Welch's Grape Juice
Welch's
Welch Foods Inc. is an American company, headquartered in Concord, Massachusetts. It is owned by the National Grape Cooperative Association, a co-op of grape growers....
company, and is still home to a Welch's processing plant and other grape-related manufacturers.
Significant institutions in the village include the McClurg Mansion; Westfield Academy and the Patterson Library.
History
The community was settled in 1802 and was formerly known as "Crossroads." The Village of Westfield was incorporated in 1833. The discovery of a pasteurizationPasteurization
Pasteurization is a process of heating a food, usually liquid, to a specific temperature for a definite length of time, and then cooling it immediately. This process slows microbial growth in food...
method for grape juice made by the Welch family promoted the production of grapes for this purpose in this region.
It was here in 1861 that Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
met a little girl named Grace Bedell
Grace Bedell
Grace Greenwood Bedell Billings was an American woman, notable as the person who, as an eleven-year-old, influenced Abraham Lincoln to grow his famous beard....
, who, during the preceding year's Presidential campaign, urged Lincoln by letter to grow his beard out fully as an attempt to improve his chances at being elected. Lincoln responded by brief letter thanking Grace for the suggestion. He made no promises but shortly afterwards allowed his beard to grow, and by the time he began his inaugural journey by train from Illinois to Washington, D.C., he had a full beard. The trip took him through New York State, and included a stop in Westfield, where thousands gathered to meet the President-Elect. Lincoln asked by name to meet Grace Bedell.
The February 19, 1861 edition of the New York World
New York World
The New York World was a newspaper published in New York City from 1860 until 1931. The paper played a major role in the history of American newspapers...
recounted the meeting as follows:
"At Westfield an interesting incident occurred. Shortly after his nomination Mr. Lincoln had received from that place a letter from a little girl, who urged him, as a means of improving his personal appearance, to wear whiskers. Mr. Lincoln at the time replied, stating that although he was obliged by the suggestion, he feared his habits of life were too fixed to admit of even so slight a change as that which letting his beard grow involved. To-day, on reaching the place, he related the incident, and said that if that young lady was in the crowd he should be glad to see her. There was a momentary commotion, in the midst of which an old man, struggling through the crowd, approached, leading his daughter, a girl of apparently twelve or thirteen years of age, whom he introduced to Mr. Lincoln as his Westfield correspondent. Mr. Lincoln stooped down and kissed the child, and talked with her for some minutes. Her advice had not been thrown away upon the rugged chieftain. A beard of several months' growth covers (perhaps adorns) the lower part of his face. The young girl's peachy cheek must have been tickled with a stiff whisker, for the growth of which she was herself responsible."
Today there is a small park in Westfield commemorating this meeting, on the site of the previous "Grand Theatre" movie house.
The celebrated author of juvenile adventure novels, Charles Austin Fosdick
Harry Castlemon
Charles Austin Fosdick , better known by his nom de plume Harry Castlemon, was a prolific writer of juvenile stories and novels, intended mainly for boys. He was born in Randolph, New York, and received a high school diploma from Central High School in Buffalo, New York...
, better known by his pen name, Harry Castlemon, lived in Westfield for most of his adult life and is buried in the Westfield Cemetery. He was the most-read author for boys in the post-Civil War era.
Geography
Westfield is at the second westernmost exit on Interstate 90 (the New York State Thruway) before it reaches the PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
border. It is a short distance north of Chautauqua Lake
Chautauqua Lake
Chautauqua Lake is located entirely within Chautauqua County, New York, USA. The lake is approximately long and wide at its greatest width. The surface area is approximately 13,000 acres . The maximum depth is about 78 feet...
and the tourist attractions there, most importantly the Chautauqua Institution
Chautauqua Institution
The Chautauqua Institution is a non-profit adult education center and summer resort located on 750 acres in Chautauqua, New York, 17 miles northwest of Jamestown in the western part of New York State...
.
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 3.8 square miles (9.9 km²), all of it land. but Westfield is a short 1 miles (1.6 km) drive from the shore of Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
.
The most significant geographical feature in the village is the gorge of Chautauqua Creek
Chautauqua Creek
Chautauqua Creek is a tributary of Lake Erie, approximately long, in the southwestern corner of New York in the United States. The headwaters of the creek rise in the town of Sherman, in Chautauqua County, and flow in a northerly direction through the town and village of Westfield where they empty...
, which flows roughly north-south, on the way to Lake Erie
Lake Erie
Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...
, just west of the main intersection (that of Portage Street, NY 394
New York State Route 394
New York State Route 394 is a state highway located within Cattaraugus and Chautauqua Counties in southwestern New York, United States. Its western terminus is located on the shore of Lake Erie at an intersection with NY 5 in the Westfield hamlet of Barcelona...
, and Main Street, US 20
U.S. Route 20 in New York
U.S. Route 20 is a part of the U.S. Highway System that runs from Newport, Oregon, to Boston, Massachusetts. In the U.S. state of New York, US 20 extends from the Pennsylvania state line at Ripley to the Massachusetts state line in the Berkshire Mountains. US 20 is the longest...
).
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 2010, there were 3,464 people, 1,367 households, and 918 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 914.1 people per square mile (352.8/km²). There were 1,476 housing units at an average density of 387.6 per square mile (149.6/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.6% White, 0.40% Black or African American
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...
, 0.3% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 1.8% 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 0.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.3% of the population.
There were 1,367 households out of which 32.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.9% 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, 11.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.00.
In the village the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 26.0% from 25 to 44, 22.2% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.4 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $32,136, and the median income for a family was $43,028. Males had a median income of $30,878 versus $22,500 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 $15,828. About 11.1% of families and 17.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.1% of those under age 18 and 19.1% of those age 65 or over.
External links
- Westfield Republican Web site
- Westfield Community Web site
- Village of Westfield
- Village government
- Railroad Stations
- http://www.wnyrails.org/cities/westfield.htm