Ossining is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

located along the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

Westchester County Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population o ...

, New York. The population was 40,061 at the time of the 2020 census. It contains two

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

s, the Village of Ossining and part of

Briarcliff Manor Briarcliff Manor () is a suburban village in Westchester County, New York, north of New York City. It is on of land on the east bank of the Hudson River, geographically shared by the towns of Mount Pleasant and Ossining. Briarcliff Manor inc ...

, the rest of which is located in the Town of Mount Pleasant. Ossining is the location of

Sing Sing Sing Sing Correctional Facility, formerly Ossining Correctional Facility, is a maximum-security prison operated by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision in the village of Ossining, New York. It is about north of ...

maximum-security prison.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

, the town has a total area of 15.6 square miles (40.4 km²), of which 11.7 square miles (30.3 km²) is land and 3.9 square miles (10.1 km²) (25.06%) is water. Ossining is bounded on the west by the Hudson River and on the north by the

Croton River The Croton River ( ) is a river in southern New York with three principal tributaries: the West Branch, Middle Branch, and East Branch. Their waters, all part of the New York City water supply system, join downstream from the Croton Falls Rese ...

History

Frederick Philipse Frederick Philipse (born Frederick Flypsen;Appleton, W.S. ''The Heraldic Journal, Recording the Amorial Bearings and Genealogies of American Families'', Wiggen & Lunt, Boston, 1867 1626 in Bolsward, Netherlands – December 23, 1702), first Lord ...

bought the area which presently constitutes the Town of Ossining from the Sint Sinck Indians in 1685. The Sint Sinck were members of the

Matinecock Matinecock is a village located within the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 810 at the 2010 census. History Matinecock incorporated as a village on April 2, 1928, in order to ...

(

Algonquin Algonquin or Algonquian—and the variation Algonki(a)n—may refer to: Languages and peoples *Algonquian languages, a large subfamily of Native American languages in a wide swath of eastern North America from Canada to Virginia **Algonquin la ...

) tribe, who originally resided in the area of

Cow Neck Peninsula The Cow Neck Peninsula is a peninsula in Nassau County, New York, on the North Shore of Long Island. Description The Cow Neck Peninsula was named Cow Neck in the 17th Century, in large part due to the fact that it served as a common pasture ...

Long Island, New York Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18th ...

. His Manor extended from Spuyten Duyvil Creek on the border between present-day

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

and the

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

to the Croton River. The last Lord of the Manor,

Frederick Philipse III Frederick Philipse III (September 20, 1720 – April 30, 1785) was the third and last Lord of Philipsburg Manor, a hereditary estate in lower Westchester County, New York, and a Loyalist during the Revolutionary War. Early life Frederick Phi ...

, was a Loyalist in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

who fled to England. The State of New York confiscated the manor in 1779. In 1813, the village of Sing Sing was incorporated. Sing Sing Prison, now known as

Sing Sing Correctional Facility Sing Sing Correctional Facility, formerly Ossining Correctional Facility, is a maximum-security prison operated by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision in the village of Ossining, New York. It is about north of ...

, which is a maximum-security prison, opened in 1826. The prison was opened to replace the Newgate Prison that was located in New York City. In 1845, the New York State Legislature created a new town out of the northern part of what had been the Town of Mount Pleasant. A local Indian authority suggested the town be named Ossinsing, a different form of the name Sing Sing. One year later the last "s" was removed for ease in pronunciation. In 1881, the town considered changing its name to "Garfield Plains" to honor the recently assassinated President of the United States, James Garfield, but dropped the idea after the much larger city of White Plains in southern

objected. In 1901, to prevent confusion of goods made in the village with

prison-made items, local officials had the village name changed to Ossining as well. In 1902 an area east of the village of Ossining, then known as Whitson's Corners, was incorporated as the village of

. The

Jug Tavern The Jug Tavern, also known as the Davids–Garrison House or the Grapevine Inn, is located at the junction of Revolutionary Road and Rockledge Avenue in Sparta section of Ossining, New York, United States. It is a wood frame building, the old ...

and

Scarborough Historic District The Scarborough Historic District is a national historic district located in the suburban community of Scarborough-on-Hudson, in Briarcliff Manor, New York. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, and contai ...

are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

Demographics

In the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of 2000, there were 36,534 people, 12,355 households, and 8,537 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 3,123.0 people per square mile (1,205.6/km²). There were 12,733 housing units at an average density of 1,088.4 per square mile (420.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 70.26%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, 14.28%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.35% Native American, 4.54%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe the original p ...

, 7.34% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 3.21% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to Vic ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 19.93% of the population. There were 12,355 households, out of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.4% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.9% were non-families. Of all households 25.5% were made up of individuals, and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.14. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.8% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 34.5% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $65,485, and the median income for a family was $81,943 (these figures had risen to $77,753 and $98,593 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $51,286 versus $40,618 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $34,195. About 5.0% of families and 8.4% 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 t ...

, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

The Town of Ossining is governed by a town supervisor and a four-member town board. It comprises two incorporated villages, Village of Ossining and Village of Briarcliff Manor, each of which has a mayor and a village board. Each village maintains its own police department and village justice court. In addition to the two incorporated villages, there is an unincorporated section of the town that is not part of either village. The unincorporated section of the town has its own highway department. Fire, EMS and water services are provided by either the Village of Ossining or the Village of Briarcliff Manor. Law enforcement services for the unincorporated section of the town are provided through an inter-municipal agreement with the Village of Ossining Police Department (the town's police department was disbanded in 2011).

Education

Ossining Union Free School District Ossining Union Free School District is a school district headquartered in the Village of Ossining, Town of Ossining, New York. The district includes sections of the towns of Ossining and New Castle. Included within the portions of the school ...

operates public schools, including

Ossining High School Ossining High School (OHS) is a comprehensive public high school located in Ossining, New York, United States, along the Hudson River in northern Westchester County, New York. Serving grades 9 through 12, it is the sole high school within the ...

. The Ossining Public Library, originally chartered in 1893 as the Sing Sing Public Library, serves the residents of the Village and Town of Ossining, and of the Ossining School District. The current library collections include 110,000 books, 25,000 non-print items, and 300 newspaper and magazine titles. As a charter member of the 38-member Westchester Library System, the Ossining Public Library offers its patrons access to the more than one million holdings of the other county libraries. A $15.8-million building program was started in 2005 to replace the 1960s-era facility with a new building. The new Ossining Public Library opened in March 2007 and added many new or enhanced services, including over 50 public Internet terminals, a 250-seat theater, an art gallery, and the county's first radio frequency (

RFID Radio-frequency identification (RFID) uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects. An RFID system consists of a tiny radio transponder, a radio receiver and transmitter. When triggered by an electromag ...

) circulation system.

Notable people

David T. Abercrombie David Thomas Abercrombie (June 6, 1867 – August 29, 1931) was the founder of the American lifestyle brand Abercrombie & Fitch. A topographer and expert in the outdoors, Abercrombie opened the company as New York's outfitter for the elite ...

, co-founder of Abercrombie & Fitch *

Jason Robert Brown Jason Robert Brown (born June 20, 1970) is an American musical theatre composer, lyricist, and playwright. Brown's music sensibility fuses pop-rock stylings with theatrical lyrics. He is the recipient of three Tony Awards for his work on ''Parad ...

, musical theatre composer, lyricist, and playwright *

Northern Calloway Northern James Calloway (September 10, 1948 – January 9, 1990) was an American actor and singer, best known for playing David on ''Sesame Street'' from 1971 to 1989. He was institutionalized in a psychiatric hospital and died less than eight mo ...

, actor, David on ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Workshop until June 2000) a ...

'' * John Cheever, author * John Chervokas, advertising executive *

Jennifer Cihi Jennifer Cihi (born April 2, 1966) is an American singer/actress who performed on Broadway, television, commercial jingles and provided several songs for animated series and films. She is best known for being the original English dub singer of ...

, singer (Broadway/television) *

Ted Daniel Ted Daniel (born June 4, 1943) is an American jazz trumpeter and composer. Biography He studied trumpet in elementary school, and began his professional career playing local gigs with his childhood friend, the legendary guitarist Sonny Sharrock. ...

, jazz trumpeter *

Kara DioGuardi Kara Elizabeth DioGuardi (; born December 9, 1970) is an American songwriter, record producer, music publisher, A&R executive, and singer. She writes music primarily in the pop rock genre. DioGuardi has worked with many popular artists; sales o ...

, singer-songwriter * Meredith Dixon, member of the

New Mexico House of Representatives ) is the lower house of the New Mexico State Legislature. There are 70 members of the House. Each member represents roughly 25,980 residents of New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , ...

* Peter Falk, actor * Albert Fish, serial killer *

Mike da Fonte Mike da Fonte (born 18 April 1991) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender. Career Youth and college Mike da Fonte played his youth soccer with JBS FC a soccer club that was based out of Westchester County, New York. ...

, professional soccer player * Anne Francis, actress *

Khalid Khannouchi Khalid Khannouchi ( ar, خالد خنّوشي) (born September 12, 1971) is a retired American marathoner. He was born in Meknes, Morocco. He is the former world record holder for the marathon and held the former road world best for the 20 km ...

, American record holder for the

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

Erica Leerhsen Erica Lei Leerhsen (born February 14, 1976) is an American actress. She first gained recognition for her leading part in the moderately successful horror sequel '' Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2'' (2000). Her work led her to take on a recurring r ...

, actress *

Ingersoll Lockwood Ingersoll Lockwood (August 2, 1841 – September 30, 1918) was an American lawyer and writer. He wrote children's novels, including the ''Baron Trump'' novels (1889/93), as well as the dystopian novel, ''1900: or; The Last President'', a play, ...

(1841–1918), lawyer and writer, author of the

Baron Trump novels The Baron Trump novels are two children's novels written in 1889 and 1893 by American author and lawyer Ingersoll Lockwood. They remained obscure until 2017, when they received media attention for perceived similarities between their protagoni ...

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' (1918-10-03). "Ingersoll Lockwood, Lawyer", p. 13. The New York Times, 3 October 1918. Retrieved from https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1918/10/03/98271682.pdf. *

Jamie Loeb Jamie Loeb (born March 8, 1995) is an American tennis player. She has career-high WTA rankings of 132 in singles, achieved in February 2018, and 120 in doubles, achieved in July 2018. Loeb has won nine singles and nine doubles titles on the ITF ...

(born 1995), tennis player *

Fonda Rae Fonda Rae Wood (performing as simply Fonda Rae) is an American R&B singer best known for her club hits like "Over Like a Fat Rat" and " Touch Me" (the latter which was later covered by Cathy Dennis). She has also worked with artists such as Don ...

, singer *

Sonny Sharrock Warren Harding "Sonny" Sharrock (August 27, 1940 – May 25, 1994) was an American jazz guitarist. He was married to singer Linda Sharrock, with whom he recorded and performed. One of only a few prominent guitarists who participated in the firs ...

, jazz guitarist *

Jesse Lee Soffer Jesse Lee Soffer (born April 23, 1984) is an American actor and television director. He is known for portraying Will Munson on the CBS soap opera ''As the World Turns,'' and received three Emmy nominations for his work on the show. From 2014 to ...

, actor *

Matt Striker Matthew Kaye (born June 26, 1974) is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling commentator, actor and former high school teacher, using the ring name Matt Striker. During his career he has worked for WWE, Impact Wrestling, Luc ...

WWE World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...

interviewer and commentator *

, actor

In popular culture

Don Draper Donald Francis Draper, born Richard “Dick” Whitman, is a fictional character and the protagonist of the AMC television series ''Mad Men'' (2007–2015), portrayed by Jon Hamm. Up to the Season 3 finale, Draper was creative director of ficti ...

, the primary

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

of ''

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its fict ...

'', lives with his family in Ossining.

Gallery

File:Colman Looking North from Ossining.jpg, Painting by

Samuel Colman Samuel Colman (March 4, 1832 – March 26, 1920) was an American painter, interior designer, and writer, probably best remembered for his paintings of the Hudson River. Life and career Born in Portland, Maine, Colman moved to New York City ...

of the view looking north from Ossining (1867) File:Prison and workshops, looking south, from Robert N. Dennis collection of stereoscopic views crop.jpg, A photograph of

Sing Sing Prison Sing Sing Correctional Facility, formerly Ossining Correctional Facility, is a maximum-security prison operated by the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision in the village of Ossining, New York. It is about north of ...

from about the same time (c.1863-1885) File:Kane Mansion Ossining.jpg, Like most of the river towns along the

Hudson Hudson may refer to: People * Hudson (given name) * Hudson (surname) * Henry Hudson, English explorer * Hudson (footballer, born 1986), Hudson Fernando Tobias de Carvalho, Brazilian football right-back * Hudson (footballer, born 1988), Hudso ...

in the middle- to late-19th century, Ossining was the location of the mansions and estates of the rich. The Kane Mansion was built in 1843.... File:McAlpin Hillside House.JPG, ...while "Hillside", the house of General Edwin McAlpin, was built prior to 1895 File:DoubleArch1907.jpg, Two arched bridges cross Sing Sing Kill in Ossining.

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

is carried on the lower bridge, while the

Croton Aqueduct The Croton Aqueduct or Old Croton Aqueduct was a large and complex water distribution system constructed for New York City between 1837 and 1842. The great aqueducts, which were among the first in the United States, carried water by gravity fro ...

was carried on the upper one File:Pathway over arched bridge Ossining.jpg, The upper bridge is today used as a pedestrian bridge, and is part of the state

Old Croton Aqueduct Trail The Croton Aqueduct or Old Croton Aqueduct was a large and complex water distribution system constructed for New York City between 1837 and 1842. The great aqueducts, which were among the first in the United States, carried water by gravity from ...

References

C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American cable and satellite television network that was created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a nonprofit public service. It televises many proceedings of the United States ...

's ''

Alexis de Tocqueville Tour The ''Alexis de Tocqueville Tour'' was a series of programs produced by C-SPAN in 1997 and 1998 that followed the path taken by Alexis de Tocqueville and Gustave de Beaumont through the United States during their 1831–32 visit. It explored man ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Ossining (Town), New York Towns in Westchester County, New York Towns in the New York metropolitan area