Pulaski () is a

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 ...

Oswego County Oswego County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 117,525. The county seat is Oswego. The county name is from a Mohawk-language word meaning "the pouring out place", referring to the point at ...

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

, United States. The population was 2,365 at the 2010 census. The Village of Pulaski is within the Town of Richland, and lies between the eastern shore of

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

and the

Tug Hill Tug Hill, sometimes referred to as the Tug Hill Plateau, is an upland region in northern New York State, famous for heavy winter snows. The Tug Hill region is east of Lake Ontario, north of Oneida Lake, and west of the Adirondack Mountains. The r ...

region. The village is located on U.S. Route 11 and is adjacent 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 I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Island ...

. Pulaski lies in the

Snowbelt The Snowbelt is the region near the Great Lakes in North America where heavy snowfall in the form of lake-effect snow is particularly common. Snowbelts are typically found downwind of the lakes, principally off the eastern and southern shores. Ca ...

, which is characterized by heavy amounts of lake effect snow. It has a regional reputation for its heavy snow accumulations and adverse traveling conditions in winter, and for the long duration of winter conditions, often from mid-November through mid-April. Although the village takes its name after General Casimir Pulaski ( ), area residents have traditionally pronounced it with a long "i" ( ). The historic core of the village was 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 ...

in 1983 as the Pulaski Village Historic District.

History

Pulaski history shows that during the early years before incorporation on April 26, 1832, the village was known by various other names. It was once called “Fishville” and sometimes it was called “Salmon River”.The Palladium Times, Oswego, N.Y., Nov. 20, 1945 It was also stated that the name “Pulaski” was often spelled “Polaski”. It was also used for years with the spelling of Polaski from ''The Palladium Times'' to official state documents. Pulaski bird's eye2

Mary Parker, the local historian, offered two possible theories regarding the selection of the town's name in an article titled "Name Selection is a Mystery." According to Parker, the most credible theory is that in 1829, three years before the town's incorporation, the prominent lawyer and abolitionist Thomas C. Baker proposed the name at a meeting.Mary Parker, Pulaski Historical Society, Article "Name Selection Is a Mystery" Another story indicates that the name was chosen when Revolutionary War heroes put names in a hat and pulled the name of Casimir Pulaski. As Mary Parker says, one or both may not be true but local historians are researching how the name was picked. In October 1816 the first court of Oswego County was held in Oswego, when a number of people presented themselves and were admitted to the bar, thus being the only business transacted. However, in February 1817 the first jury was selected for court was convened in Pulaski.History of Oswego County, N.Y. 1789-1877 published by Everett& Ferriss, 1878 It was only three years after the first court was held in Oswego County was there a court house erected in Pulaski. Selkirk lighthouse

A few miles to the west from the village of Pulaski at the mouth of the Salmon River a lighthouse was built. In the 1830s the government engineers determined that the mouth had sufficient depth that it could harbor thirty ships. So in August 1838 the lighthouse was inaugurated. The lamp originally ran on

whale oil Whale oil is oil obtained from the blubber of whales. Whale oil from the bowhead whale was sometimes known as train oil, which comes from the Dutch word ''traan'' ("tears, tear" or "drop"). Sperm oil, a special kind of oil obtained from the ...

. The harbor was deactivated in 1858. In 1989 a Coast Guard Class II navigation aid was installed. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in March 1979. “In 1853 the citizens of the village became interested in the education of their children and youth. An act of legislature was passed to consolidate parts of three school districts within the village into one”. It was called the “Pulaski school district” and the school was named “Pulaski Academy”. Pulaski Academy and Central School currently occupies two buildings: Lura Sharp Elementary School (built in 1939 and originally housed grades K-12 until 1969) and the Pulaski Middle-Senior High School (built in 1969, originally housing grades 7-12 as Pulaski Jr.-Sr. High School, grade 6 was moved into the facility in 2007). Other elementary school buildings in the hamlets of Richland and Fernwood were closed in the late 1960s or early 1970s, with the Richland school being used as the Headquarters of the Half-Shire Historical Society since 1973. In the early hours of October 6, 1881 in a bakery in the back of M.L. Hollis store a fire started. In just over three hours the whole business portion of Pulaski was destroyed by the fire.Article Pulaski Democrat, Pulaski Historical Society The reason it took so little time to burn was because of the buildings structure being built of wood and the fire stations facilities inability to hold the fire in check. From the 1840s to the present there have been many factories located in and around the village. With the village lying on the banks of the Salmon River it was a major asset in its development. “There have been at least hundred and twenty factories” come and go. From wood mills to iron works, there have been many different factories located in Pulaski. Only a small number of industrial companies now remain, including Fulton Companies, Healthway, and Schoeller Technical Paper. The Pulaski Village Historic District and Selkirk Lighthouse are listed on the

Demographics

As of 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 2,398 people, 1,034 households, and 585 families residing in the village. 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 729.4 people per square mile (281.4/km²). There were 1,155 housing units at an average density of 351.3 per square mile (135.5/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 98.21%

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 ...

, 0.91%

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 ...

, 0.01% Native American, 0.09%

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 ...

, and 0.00% 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 0.00% of the population. There were 1,034 households, out of which 29.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.1% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.4% were non-families. 37.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 20.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 3.05. In the village, the population was spread out, with 25.3% under the age of 18, 8.0% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 18.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.5 males. The median income for a household in the village was $28,977, and the median income for a family was $40,089. Males had a median income of $34,850 versus $23,913 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 village was $16,458. About 12.1% of families and 15.6% 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 19.8% of those under age 18 and 18.7% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Nearby

allows local residents access to the nearby cities of Syracuse and

Watertown Watertown may refer to: Places in China In China, a water town is a type of ancient scenic town known for its waterways. Places in the United States *Watertown, Connecticut, a New England town **Watertown (CDP), Connecticut, the central village ...

. This proximity promotes the Pulaski area as a primary access point for the Lake Ontario and Tug Hill recreational tourism. Pulaski is served by Trailways Bus Lines as well as three Oswego County Public Transit Lines.

Commerce

Commerce in Pulaski revolves heavily around fishing tourism. It is located on the Salmon River, which is named for the

salmon Salmon () is the common name for several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family (biology), family Salmonidae, which are native to tributary, tributaries of the ...

which return to the river each fall during the

salmon run ''Salmon Run'' is a 1982 video game for the Atari 8-bit family created by Bill Williams and distributed via the Atari Program Exchange. ''Salmon Run'' was the first game in Williams's career, followed by a string of successes noted for their o ...

. The area is a major draw for sportfishing, as is

, the shore of which is three miles to the west of the village. The fishing season culminates in the fall with the Salmon River Festival, held each year at the site of the farmers' market. In addition to the massive influx of visitors to the area they also bring an increase in tourism revenue for the area. In the article "There's Nothing Fishy About the Salmon Industry" written in 1987, the mayor at the time Dan Briggs is quoted saying "Our community cash flow ranges between $3 to $5 million a year just in the village because of salmon season". Since then it is likely that that price has only gone up in relation to economic growth in the past 32 years. This has tremendous impact on all of the local businesses as they thrive on the salmon fever. Fishermen and women can find a fishing report to get a good idea the best time is to hit the steams. Pulaski is also located on an extensive snowmobile trail system which connects to other trail systems throughout central and northern New York. This results in a growing amount of winter tourism as the trail system grows in reputation; this is helped by the reliable snowfall in the area, particularly throughout the Tug Hill region. Summer tourism is also strong in the Pulaski area because of its proximity to Lake Ontario and its numerous seasonal activities which include white water rafting, residences, parks, and resorts where thousands of people around NY camp every year. However, the town lost some of its touristic luster with the loss of their 'Ringgold Fireman's Field Days' that occurred annually on the first weekend of August.

References

External links