Salem Center, New York

North Salem is a town in the northeastern section of Westchester County, New York, United States. The town, incorporated in 1788, is a suburb of New York City, located approximately 50 miles north of Midtown Manhattan. As of the 2020 census, North Salem was recorded as possessing a population of 5,243 people living on a land area of 21.37 square miles.

Founded prior to the American Revolution, North Salem contains an amalgamation of urban and rural features, including parks, forests, lakes, and horse trails alongside commuter train service and an interstate highway. The town has been referred to as "Billionaires' Dirt Road" due to a number of wealthy residents, although local median household income is not exceptionally high.

History

Revolutionary Era

Prior to the end of the Colonial Era, what would become North Salem and its neighboring town of South Salem were a single municipality, Salem. After the breakout of the American Revolutionary War in 1776, town residents sided with the revolutionary cause.

On September 22, 1780, amidst the war, John Paulding and Isaac Van Wart left from what was later known as the Yerkes Tavern, joined by David Williams. Their expedition resulted in the capture of the British spy Major John André. The foundation of Yerkes (Yerks) Tavern is all that is left of the historic building, once at the intersection of Yerkes Road and Bogtown Road. An historic plaque posted on the site reads:

On this site stood one of North Salem's early taverns. Its proprietor was John Yerkes, who received a license from the town "to operate a tavern or inn for the accommodation and entertainment of travelers" in 1815.
Early records indicate that this property was owned by the Smith family prior to this date.

In late May 1784, soon after the end of the American Revolution, Salem split into two towns. What would become known as North Salem was known as Upper Salem for about four years after the split, until an act of the New York State Legislature in 1788 gave the town its modern name.

Nineteenth Century

The 1800 United States Census recorded several hundred enslaved individuals being held in North Salem. New York State began operating under a policy of gradual abolition in 1799, with full abolition in 1827; the practice of slavery in North Salem can therefore be estimated to have come to an end sometime between the years 1800 and 1827.

The Great Blizzard of 1888, which impacted communities across the northeastern United States, seriously disrupted agricultural production in North Salem and prevented train movement. It took over a week after the storm to restore roads and trains to operational order.

In 1893, the Titicus Reservoir began serving the New York City water supply. Today, the reservoir is stocked with brown trout each spring and fishing from rowboats is permitted.

Modern History

In 1932, the North Salem Free Library was established in the North Salem Town House. It was formally chartered by the State of New York in 1952 and later renamed the Ruth Keeler Memorial Library. Its current building was constructed in 1980 and renovated most recently in 2003.

Beginning in the late 1960s, Interstate 684 was constructed through North Salem. When finished in 1974, the new interstate included an exit on Hardscrabble Road.

North Salem's Union Hall was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.

In 2015, a small Cessna aircraft crashed into the Titicus Reservoir, killing both passengers.

Geography

Putnam County, New York borders North Salem to the north, while the State of Connecticut abuts it to the east. The town itself has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Climatically, the town is in plant hardiness zone 6b on the U.S.D.A. scale, meaning that in extreme circumstances, winter temperature lows could reach .

A geographic curiosity of North Salem is the so-called Standing Rock, a granite boulder sitting on several smaller stones. Since the boulder is not consistent with the geographic surroundings, it has been hypothesized that the rock was deposited by glaciers during the Last Ice Age, although others argue that it may have been moved and placed by Vikings or Native Americans.

Demographics

In 2011, the average income for a household in the town was $157,258, with an average net worth of $1,300,058. The median house value in 2009 was $772,817. The per capita income for the town was $59,403. About 1.5% of families and 2.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.2% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over. As of the census of 2000, there were 5,173 people, 1,764 households, and 1,374 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,979 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 95.44% White, 0.75% African American, 0.08% Native American, 0.97% Asian, 1.12% from other races, and 1.64% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.65% of the population.

There were 1,764 households, out of which 39.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.1% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.1% were non-families. 17.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.17. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.2% under the age of 18, 4.4% from 18 to 24, 28.5% from 25 to 44, 27.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.4 males.

Hamlets

*Croton Falls, New York – a hamlet in the northwest corner of the town, with the Croton Falls station of Metro-North
*Grants Corner – a hamlet southeast of North Salem
*North Salem – a hamlet in the western part of the town. The North Salem Town Hall was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.
*Salem Center – a hamlet at the eastern end of Titicus Reservoir. The fictitious headquarters of the X-Men Marvel Comics superhero team is located in Salem Center.
* Purdys – a hamlet south of Croton Falls, with the Purdy's station of Metro-North. The Joseph Purdy Homestead was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
* Peach Lake- a hamlet and CDP in the northeastern part of town, situated mostly in the town of Southeast, Putnam County.

Education

North Salem Middle School/High School is located on June Road in North Salem. In 2004, the high school was distinguished as a Blue Ribbon School for high levels of educational achievement by the United States Department of Education.

Pequenakonck Elementary School, located away from the middle school/high school, serves grades K-5. The middle school, which shares the same building as the high school, serves grades 6–8. This school is particularly small, with about 90 children on average per grade, making the student to faculty ratio relatively small.

Town government

North Salem's town government consists of a town supervisor and four town board members. The supervisor serves a two-year term, and the board members serve four-year terms. Elections are staggered such that in any given election year, the supervisor and two board members' seats will be up for election.

*Aronchick first won his seat in 2011, lost it in 2015 to Lisa Douglas, and won a seat back in 2016 in a special election.

The town is part of New York's Eighteenth Congressional District, represented by Mike Lawler, a Republican. First elected in 2009, Warren Lucas, a Republican, serves as North Salem's Town Supervisor.

Notable people

* Fanny Crosby (1820-1915), writer
* Chapman Grant (1887-1983), grandson of President Ulysses S. Grant
* Paul Newman (1925-2008), actor, director and race car driver
* Dick Button (1929-2025) figure skater
* David Letterman (born 1947), talk show host
* David Marks (born 1948), original member of the Beach Boys
* Alan Menken (born 1949), film composer and songwriter
* Richard Gere (born 1949), actor
* Steven Rattner, (born 1952), financier, in charge of 2008 General Motors auto bailout, owns a horse farm in North Salem.
* Laurence D. Fink (born 1952), business executive, owns a farm there
* Emily Bindiger (born 1955), singer
* Robbie Kondor, musician
* Rodrigo Pessoa (born 1972), Brazilian show jumper
* Jacob M. Appel (born 1973), author of ''Einstein's Beach House''
* Sam Savitt (1917-2000), equestrian artist and author

See also

* South Salem, New York
* Baxter Preserve, North Salem's most popular park
* Hammond Museum and Japanese Stroll Garden

References

External links

Town of North Salem official websiteRuth Keeler Memorial LibraryNorth Salem Central School DistrictNorth Salem LionsNorth Salem Chamber of Commerce

Balanced Rock of the Hudson Valley - Large perched rock and possible
Druid Dolmen located in North Salem, NY

{{authority control

Towns in Westchester County, New York
Towns in New York (state)
Towns in the New York metropolitan area