Owego 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 and the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

Tioga County, New York Tioga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 48,455. Its county seat is Owego. Tioga County is part of the Binghamton metropolitan area. The county is part of the Southern Tier region of ...

, United States. The population was 3,896 at the 2010 census. It is part of the

Binghamton metropolitan area The Binghamton Metropolitan Statistical Area, also called Greater Binghamton or the Triple Cities, is a region of southern Upstate New York in the Northeastern United States, anchored by Binghamton. The MSA encompasses Broome and Tioga count ...

. The name is derived from the

Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...

word ''Ahwaga'', meaning ''where the valley widens.'' The Village of Owego is by the west town line of the Town of Owego and is west of

Binghamton, New York Binghamton ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the c ...

. Owego is one of only twelve villages in New York still incorporated under a

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

; all other New York villages have incorporated or re-incorporated under the provisions of Village Law.

History

The village of Owego was established in 1787. When the "Town of Tioga" was created from the Town of Union, Owego village was in Tioga. In 1813, Tioga and Owego switched names, putting the village in the same-named town. The current Town of Tioga is now just west of the village. The village is in the Owego-Apalachin Central School District. Three district buildings are within the village's limits: The District Office Building, the Owego Elementary School, and the combined Owego-Apalachin Middle School and Owego Free Academy building, all on Sheldon Guile Boulevard. On September 27, 1849, a large conflagration now known as "The Great Fire of Owego" began in the Temperance Hall of the Ely building. 104 buildings within the business district were completely burned to the ground. The Evergreen Cemetery, St. Paul's Church, Owego Central Historic District, Tioga County Courthouse, and

United States Post Office The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal serv ...

are 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 ...

. The James C. Beecher House was listed in 2012.

Geography

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 ...

, the village has a total area of 2.7 square miles (7.0 km²), of which, 2.5 square miles (6.5 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.6 km²) of it (8.12%) is water. Owego is on the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...

where the Owego Creek flows into the Susquehanna from the north. A bridge connects the village to the Southern Tier Expressway (

New York State Route 17 New York State Route 17 (NY 17) is a major state highway that extends for through the Southern Tier and Downstate New York, Downstate regions of New York (state), New York in the United States. It begins at the New York–Pennsylvani ...

), which is on the south side of the river. Owego is located on NY-17C, south of the junction of NY-96 and NY-38.

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 3,911 people, 1,664 households, and 978 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 1,913 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 95.42%

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 ...

, 1.15%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.46% Native American, 1.02% Asian, 0.33% from other races, and 1.61% 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 1.82% of the population. There were 1,664 households, out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.5% 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, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.2% were non-families. 35.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.95. In the village, the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.9 males. The median income for a household in the village was $31,742, and the median income for a family was $43,139. Males had a median income of $27,299 versus $20,268 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 $17,068. About 10.3% of families and 13.9% 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 19.0% of those under age 18 and 4.8% of those aged 65 or over.

Local government

The Village of Owego is governed by a Board of Trustees, which is composed of the Mayor and six Trustees. Each member serves staggered two-year terms in a part-time capacity. The Owego Fire Department was founded in August 1828. The all-volunteer organization is made up of five companies in four stations.

Education

The CDP is in the Owego-Apalachin Central School District.
Text list
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Reputation

Owego was named by Budget

Travel magazine Travel is the movement of people between distant geographical locations. Travel can be done by foot, bicycle, automobile, train, boat, bus, airplane, ship or other means, with or without luggage, and can be one way or round trip. Travel can ...

's readers as The Coolest Small Town in the United States in a poll. Results were announced on The Early Show, April 15, 2009, with Budget Travel's editor in chief, Nina Willdorf with Harry Smith.

Strawberry Festival

The Village of Owego is home to a popular annual strawberry festival which has occurred every year in June since 1980 (excepting 2020 and 2021). The festival regularly draws 20,000 visitors and includes a parade, community 5k run, live music and vendors of fresh produce and prepared strawberry based dishes. 2020 would mark the 40th anniversary of the festival, however, the COVID-19 pandemic forced its cancellation. The 40th anniversary observance is scheduled to take place in 2022.

Notable people

* Austin Blair, 1818–1894. Politician, serving in the 40th, 41st, and 42nd U.S. Congress in the House of Representatives from 1867–1873 for Michigan's 3rd district. 13th

Governor of Michigan The governor of Michigan is the head of government of the U.S. state of Michigan. The current governor is Gretchen Whitmer, a member of the Democratic Party, who was inaugurated on January 1, 2019, as the state's 49th governor. She was re-ele ...

, 1861–1865. Practiced law in Owego. * Isaac S. Catlin, 1835–1916. lawyer, Brevetted Major General in the Union Army. Awarded the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

for his efforts in the Battle of the Crater in Petersburg, Virginia. Born and practiced law in Owego. * Daniel Cruger, 1780–1843. Soldier, newspaper publisher, lawyer, state and national politician. As a member of the

Democratic-Republican party The Democratic-Republican Party (also referred to by historians as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party), was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early 1790s. It championed li ...

he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, 1817–1819 for New York's 20th district.

15th United States Congress The 15th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in the Old Brick Capitol in Washingto ...

. * Amasa Dana, 1792–1867. Studied and practiced law in Owego. Later, as a

Democratic Party (United States) The Democratic Party is a Centre-left politics, center-left political parties in the United States, political party in the United States. One of the Major party, major parties of the U.S., it was founded in 1828, making it the world's oldes ...

politician, he would serve New York's 26th and 22nd districts in the

26th United States Congress The 26th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 183 ...

and the

28th United States Congress The 28th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C., from March 4, 184 ...

. * John R. Drake, 1782–1857. Local, state, and national politician. The First Judge of the Broome County Court. As a member of the

he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, 1817–1819 for New York's 15th district, serving simultaneously with fellow Owegan Daniel Cruger in the

. * Washington Gladden, 1836–1918. Leading American Congregational Pastor and pioneer of the

Progressive Era The Progressive Era (1890s–1920s) was a period in the United States characterized by multiple social and political reform efforts. Reformers during this era, known as progressivism in the United States, Progressives, sought to address iss ...

Social Gospel The Social Gospel is a social movement within Protestantism that aims to apply Christian ethics to social problems, especially issues of social justice such as economic inequality, poverty, alcoholism, crime, racial tensions, slums, unclean en ...

Movement. Educated and lived in Owego. * Douglas G. Hurley, born 1966. Is an American engineer,

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

Naval Aviator Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves '' navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seaborne aviation encompas ...

, and

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a List of human spaceflight programs, human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member of a spa ...

. He was also the first Marine to fly the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet. He is a pilot in the

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable launch system, reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. ...

program. Hurley attended Owego Free Academy. * Mame Stewart Josenberger, 1868–1964. African American educator, businesswoman and clubwoman that was born and raised in the village. * Helen Dean King, 1869–1955. Celebrated biologist, professor, author. One of Dr. King's crowning achievements was the breeding of the

Wistar rat Laboratory rats or lab rats are strain (biology), strains of the rat subspecies ''Rattus norvegicus domestica'' (Domestic Norwegian rat) which are bred and kept for scientific research. While Animal testing on rodents, less commonly used for re ...

which would greatly facilitate the future of biological, genetic, and medical research. In 1932, King was awarded the Richards Research prize, also known as the Women’s Nobel. Born in Owego. * Thomas Le Clear, 1818–1882. Famous visual artist. Le Clear is known for his portraits of Edwin Booth-as Hamlet, Presidents: Millard Fillmore, U.S Grant, and his

genre scenes Genre art is the pictorial representation in any of various media of scenes or events from everyday life, such as markets, domestic settings, interiors, parties, inn scenes, work, and street scenes. Such representations (also called genre works, ...

including Interior with Portraits. Born in the Town of Owego, he taught painting at the Owego Female Institute in 1844. Moving to New York City he was elected to full membership in the National Academy of Design in 1863. He was one of the most prominent portrait painters on the East Coast. * Osmund A. Leahy, 1915–1989. Major General United States Army. 1940 graduate of the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

. Awarded three

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

medals during the Second World War. Resident of Owego. * Stephen B. Leonard, 1793–1876. Local publisher, politician, and postmaster. Elected as a Democrat to the 24th and the

. He represented New York's 22nd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives. Lived in Owego. * Belva Ann Lockwood, 1830–1917, Attorney, politician, educator, author, and National Equal Rights Party U.S. presidential candidate (first woman to run for president – 1884), headed a girls' seminary in Owego for three years in the 1860s. Around this time she met Susan B. Anthony; nearby Lockwood is named for her. *

John Alden Loring John Alden Loring (March 31, 1871 – May 8, 1947) was a mammalogist and field naturalist who served with the Bureau of Biological Survey, United States Department of Agriculture, the Bronx Zoological Park, the Smithsonian Institution and numerous ...

, 1871–1947. Noted mammalogist and field naturalist. He served on the Smithsonian-Roosevelt African Expedition (1909–1910). Born and lived in Owego. * Daniel McCallum, 1815–1878, American

railroad engineer A train driver is a person who operates a train, railcar, or other rail transport vehicle. The driver is in charge of and is responsible for the mechanical operation of the train, train speed, and all of the train handling (also known as bra ...

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

of the New York and Erie Railroad and Union Brevet Major General during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, known as one of the early pioneers of management. Lived in Owego. * John M. Parker (New York politician), 1805–1873. Justice who served on the New State Supreme Court and Court of Appeals. Former U.S. Congressman elected as an

Opposition Party In politics, the opposition comprises one or more political parties or other organized groups that are opposed to the government (or, in American English, the administration), party or group in political control of a city, region, state, coun ...

candidate in the 34th, and a Republican in the 35th United States Congress serving New York's 27th congressional district. * Thomas C. Platt, politician. A two-term member of the U.S. House of Representatives (1873–1877) and a three-term U.S. Senator from New York in the years 1881 and 1897–1909. He is best known as the "political boss" of the Republican Party in New York State. Born and lived in Owego. * Darryl Ponicsan, born 1938. American author and screenwriter. Taught high school English in Owego. * Raphael Pumpelly, 1837–1923. World renowned American geologist and explorer. Born in Owego. *George Raymond Sr. 1890–1967 grew up on McMaster street in the village, founder of the Raymond Corporation headquartered in Greene, NY * Henry Martyn Robert, 1837–1923. Brigadier General in the U.S. Army, engineer, and author. In 1876, Robert published the first edition of his manual of

parliamentary procedure Parliamentary procedures are the accepted Procedural law, rules, ethics, and Norm (sociology), customs governing meetings of an deliberative assembly, assembly or organization. Their object is to allow orderly deliberation upon questions of inte ...

Robert's Rules of Order ''Robert's Rules of Order'', often simply referred to as ''Robert's Rules'', is a manual of parliamentary procedure by U.S. Army officer Henry Martyn Robert (1837–1923). "The object of Rules of Order is to assist an assembly to accomplish the ...

, which remains today the most common

parliamentary authority A parliamentary authority is a book of rules for conducting business (parliamentary procedure) in deliberative assemblies. Several different books have been used by legislative assemblies and by organizations' deliberative bodies. Application to ...

in the United States. * Howard W. Robison, 1915–1987. Republican politician elected to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

serving the 37th, 33rd, and 27th districts of New York State from 1958 to 1975. Robison was born in Owego and is buried in Evergreen Cemetery (Owego, New York). *

John D. Rockefeller John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was one of the List of richest Americans in history, wealthiest Americans of all time and one of the richest people in modern hist ...

, 1839–1937. American oil industry business magnate, industrialist, and philanthropist lived in the Owego, NY area as a young child and attended the Owego Free Academy. He is widely considered the wealthiest American of all time, and the richest person in modern history. * Richard Stout, 1836–1896. Union Navy sailor during the American Civil War. Recipient of the United States military's highest decoration-the

for his actions while serving on the USS Isaac Smith in an engagement with Confederate forces on the Stono River in South Carolina. Born, lived, and interred in Owego. * John J. Taylor, 1808–1892. Lawyer, banker, state and local Democratic politician, U.S. Congressman elected to the 33rd United States Congress serving New York's 27th congressional district. * Benjamin Franklin Tracy, 1830–1915. Brigadier General in the U.S. Army-

winner. Lawyer, state politician, 32nd

United States Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the United States Department of the Navy, Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On Mar ...

. Considered the 'Father' of the modern American two ocean fighting Navy. Was educated and practiced law in the Village of Owego. * Gilbert Carlton Walker, 1833–1885. Lawyer, banker, politician. Served as the 36th

Governor of Virginia The governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia is the head of government of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. The Governor (United States), governor is head of the Government_of_Virginia#Executive_branch, executive branch ...

– 1869–1874, first as a provisional Republican then as a Democrat. He also served as a Democratic in the Forty-fourth and Forty-fifth U.S. Congresses. He practiced law in Owego. *

Nathaniel Parker Willis Nathaniel Parker Willis (January 20, 1806 – January 20, 1867), also known as N. P. Willis,Baker, 3 was an American writer, poet and editor who worked with several notable American writers including Edgar Allan Poe and Henry Wadsworth Longfello ...

, 1806–1867. Nationally known author, poet, and editor, lived at his estate Glenmary (namesake of Glen Mary Drive), from 1837 to 1842, in the town just outside the present village. Founder of Town and Country (magazine). Lived on the border of the Village of Owego.

References

External links

*
Town and Village of OwegoOwego Strawberry Festival
{{authority control 1827 establishments in New York (state) Binghamton metropolitan area County seats in New York (state) Populated places established in 1827 Villages in Tioga County, New York Villages in New York (state)