Black River is a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

in Jefferson County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, United States. The population was 1,348 at the 2010 census. The village is on the border of the towns of Le Ray and

Rutland Rutland is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town and county town. Rutland has a ...

, east of Watertown.

History

The area was first settled around 1806 by the erection of a mill on the south side of the Black River. The village was previously called "Lockport", and grew to include both sides of the river as well as two small river islands. On February 20, 1890, a large fire destroyed the business section of the downtown. Buildings destroyed by the fire included the Poor Block (which included a three-story building with an opera house on the third floor); the D.J. Scott and Son Block; the Arthur House (a hotel); Parkinson's Store (the old 1881 post office); Whipple and Hadsell's Store; F.H. Dillenbeck's Tinshop and Hardware Store; A.W. McDowell's Store; George Graham's barber shop; the I.O.O.F. Hall and two residential dwellings. The Kennedy Stone house was badly burned, but was later restored. Having no fire department at the time, the residents of Black River immediately made plans to organize a fire department later that year. Black River Fire Company No. 1 was organized September 4, 1890, and incorporated on January 3, 1891. The department was re-incorporated as th
Black River Fire Department
on February 21, 1940. This department still provides fire protection for the village, and is one of the oldest continually operating fire departments in Jefferson County.Black River Fire Department, Inc. Historical Archive The community incorporated as a village in 1891, taking land in the towns of Rutland and Le Ray. The LeRay Mansion was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1974.

Geography

The village of Black River is located in east-central Jefferson County at (44.011567, -75.794773). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, it has a total area of , of which are land and , or 2.88%, are water. The Black River flows through the center of the village and forms the border between the towns of Le Ray and Rutland. New York State Route 3 (Rutland Street) passes through the south side of the village and intersects New York State Route 342 west of the village. NY-3 leads west (downriver) to the center of Watertown and east (upriver) to

Carthage Carthage was an ancient city in Northern Africa, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classic ...

. NY 342 leads northwest to

Interstate 81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at Interstate 40, I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee, Dandridge, Tennessee; its nort ...

north of Watertown.

Climate

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 1,285 people, 521 households, and 373 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 556 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 91.98%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 2.65%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.47% Native American, 2.72% Asian, 0.54% from other races, and 1.63% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.32% of the population. There were 521 households, out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.4% were non-families. 23.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.89. In the village, the population was spread out, with 25.9% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 30.7% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.8 males. The median income for a household in the village was $45,761, and the median income for a family was $54,236. Males had a median income of $36,058 versus $26,458 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the village was $20,524. About 3.0% of families and 6.1% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 5.4% of those under age 18 and 6.8% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

Village of Black River official website
{{authority control Villages in New York (state) Villages in Jefferson County, New York