Warwick 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 ...

in the southwestern part of

Orange County, New York Orange County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 401,310. The county seat is Goshen. This county was first created in 1683 and reorganized with its present boundaries in 1798. Orange ...

, United States. Its population was 32,027 at the 2020 census. The town contains three villages (

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, Greenwood Lake, and

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

) and eight hamlets ( Amity, Bellvale, Edenville, Little York, Wisner, New Milford, Pine Island, and Sterling Forest).

History

In the early 1700s, one of the original patent holders, Benjamin Aske, named his land "Warwick", presumably after an area of England near his original ancestral home. He began to sell it off to settlers in 1719. His first parcel of land, 100 acres, was sold to Lawrence Decker. Other familiar family names of the Valley appeared in subsequent years. The European population of the valley grew rapidly from 1730 to 1765, and the previously existing populations of indigenous native people declined as forests and land were cleared for pasture and were re-organized. By the start of the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

, almost all of the native population had disappeared in various ways. The region has been referred to as Warwick since the early eighteenth century, but a governmental form for a town named Warwick was officially created in 1788. During the American War for Independence, Warwick was the site of a

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...

encampment. The Hudson River Chain was forged at Sterling Iron Works in Warwick, preventing the British Navy from sailing up 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 ...

. In 1783,

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

traveled through Warwick, stopping at Baird's Tavern and spending the night in the home of John Hathorn. Warwick is situated along a freight rail line, which, as it did with many other towns in Orange County (such as Goshen, Middletown, and Newburgh), contributed to the growth of the area. The nineteenth-century writer and naturalist

Henry William Herbert Henry William Herbert (7 April 1807 – 17 May 1858), pen name Frank Forester, was a British-born American novelist, poet, historian, illustrator, journalist and writer on sport. Starr writes that "as a classical scholar he had few equals i ...

, writing as Frank Forrester, popularized the area with his 1845 book, "The Warwick Woodlands". Today, the town of Warwick is a rural community with many

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...

pursuits that stimulate its economy.

Geography

The town of Warwick comprises much of the southern tip of

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

. It borders the townships of Vernon and West Milford to the south, both in the state of

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. To its north, Warwick is bordered by

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

via

Sugar Loaf A sugarloaf was the usual form in which refined sugar was produced and sold until the late 19th century, when granulated and cube sugars were introduced. A tall cone with a rounded top was the end product of a process in which dark molasses, a r ...

, Orange County's oldest

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

, antedating both Warwick and Chester, and which was part of Warwick until the mid-nineteenth century. To its east, Warwick is bordered by the town of

Tuxedo Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal element fo ...

, home of the

New York Renaissance Faire The New York Renaissance Faire is a Renaissance faire located in Tuxedo, New York off New York State Route 17A. In 2022, the faire celebrated its 45th season. The faire comprises permanent structures and has twenty stages and more than 100 shops. ...

, and the hamlet of Tuxedo Park. 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 is the second largest township in New York State and has a total area of 104.9 square miles (271.6 km²), of which 101.7 square miles (263.3 km²) is land and 3.2 square miles (8.3 km²) (3.04%) is water. Greenwood Lake is Orange County's largest lake, and it is bisected by the border between New Jersey (to the south) and New York (on its north). Glenmere Lake, an extremely critical endangered species habitat, is bisected by Warwick and Chester. Warwick is served by Warwick Municipal Airport and two regional state highways, New York State Route 17A (NY 17A) and NY 94. The Appalachian Trail passes through Warwick, which has been designated an Appalachian Trail Community.

Climate

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 30,764 people, 10,868 households, and 7,955 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 11,818 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 91.06%

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 ...

, 4.51%

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 have o ...

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 ...

, 0.31% Native American, 0.85%

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 ...

, 0.05%

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 ...

, 1.60% from other races, and 1.61% 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 6.47% of the population. There were 10,868 households, of which 38.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.7% 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, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.8% were non-families. 22.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.25. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.2% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.2 males.

Education

The Warwick Valley Central School District serves as the public school system for Warwick residents and residents of the southern portion of the town of Chester. The Greenwood Lake Union Free School Distric

serves the residents of Greenwood Lake, with the GWL Elementary School and GWL Middle School; students have a choice of Chester Academy or Warwick Valley High School for their high school education. The Florida NY Union Free School Distric

serves the residents of Florida, NY, with Golden Hill Elementary School and S.S.Seward Institute.

Festivals

Applefest Applefest is a yearly village-wide food, entertainment and crafts fair, taking place in several towns in Canada, the United States and England. Canada Brighton, Ontario Brighton, Ontario's Applefest, founded in 1975, is held annually on the last ...

is an annual outdoor festival attracting as many as 35,000 people each year in October. The Hudson Valley Jazz Festival, originally named the Warwick Valley Jazz Festival, takes place during the summer. The annual George Washington Celebration is a tradition that celebrates when the Founding Father, Gen. George Washington, came to Warwick and enjoyed a grog with his men in Baird's Tavern. This free community-wide tradition takes place in July, and is carried on by the Historical Society of the Town of Warwick, also known as the Warwick Historical Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to Warwick since its inception in 1906. George Washington Day is a fun-filled community tradition with free public historic property tours throughout the afternoon.

Transportation

Warwick is served by the 196 and 197 buses to

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 ...

(operated by New Jersey Transit). It is also served by the Warwick inter-municipal bus.

Communities and locations in the town of Warwick

– village located by the junction of NY 94 and NY 17A *

– village located on NY 17A * Greenwood Lake – village located on NY 17A at the north end of Greenwood Lake * Amity – hamlet located between Edenville and Pine Island near the

state line - It is served by the Amity Station of the Pine Island Fire Department and is the site of the Amity Presbyterian Church, which was first opened in 1796. Amity is also home to the Crystal Inn, a famous restaurant and bar located on Amity Road, which opened in 1965. * Bellvale – hamlet on NY 17A between Warwick village and Greenwood Lake * Black Walnut Hill – hamlet north of Hoopstick on Pulaski Highway * Cascade Lake – a small lake in the hills on the southern part of town * Center – a historic hamlet identified solely by the post office that was located at the Warwick Woodlands Hotel from 1909 to 1916 on the western shore of Greenwood Lake north of Furnace Brook. An earlier post office by the name of Warwick Woodlands, New York, operated at the same location from 1882 to 1891. * Durland – hamlet northeast of Warwick village and west of Wickham Lake * Edenville – hamlet in the western part of Warwick, on Pine Island Turnpike, just off County Route 1 (CR 1) * Greenwood Forest Farms – an early area retreat for African-American families * Hoopstick – hamlet north of Pine Island in the "black dirt" on Pulaski Highway, historically the home of nineteenth century barrel hoop makers * Lake – hamlet along King's Highway near the town line at Chester; Had a depot, freight house, creamery, post office, general store and long passing siding on the

Lehigh and Hudson River Railway The Lehigh and Hudson River Railway (L&HR) was the smallest of the six railroads that were merged into Conrail in 1976. It was a bridge line running northeast–southwest across northwestern New Jersey, connecting the line to the Poughkeepsie Br ...

* Lakeville – hamlet located at the southern end of Sterling Lake * Liberty Corners – hamlet on CR 88, near the New Jersey state line in the southwestern part of the town * Little York – hamlet east of Pine Island * New Milford – hamlet near the New Jersey state line on NY 94 * Newport – hamlet south of Pine Island * Pine Island – hamlet at the junction of CR 1 (Pine Island Turnpike), CR 6 (Pulaski Highway), and CR 26 (Glenwood Road) near the northwest town line - It is the commercial center of the "black dirt" region. * Quaker Creek – hamlet south of Snufftown on Pulaski Highway, directly on the border with the town of Goshen * Snufftown – hamlet north of Pine Island near the town line; historically considered the "Snufftown section of the village of Florida", it is the last settlement in the Florida union-free school district, named for the habit of the early twentieth century farmers who relaxed on the front porch of one of the earliest homesteads, drinking beer, and chewing snuff. * Sterling Forest – a hamlet located at the New Jersey state line on the eastern shore of Greenwood Lake, and served by the Sterling Forest, New York, post office. It was the site of the first American rocket airplane flight that carried mail from New York to New Jersey on February 23, 1936. Babe Ruth often rented a cabin there for the summer season during his retirement. The

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The group reports a worldwide membership of approximately 8.7 million adherents involved in ...

' world headquarters building is located in Sterling Forest. * Wisner – hamlet northeast of Warwick village originally known as "Stone Bridge"; Had a depot, freight house, creamery, and siding on the

and a post office, Grange general store and warehouse, the latter of which still stands. * Glenmere Lake – a reservoir that hosts New York's last population of the endangered northern cricket frog * Greenwood Lake – a lake on the border of New York and New Jersey * Mount Adam – a granite and shale mount directly on the border of the "black dirt", near the northern town line and directly southwest of Mount Eve * Mount Eve – a granite and shale mount, one-quarter mile south of Snufftown and northeast of Mount Adam * Pochuck Neck – a location near the western town line between Liberty Corners and Pine Island *

Sterling Lake Sterling Lake is a lake located in Sterling Forest State Park, New York. The lake contains a number of fish species including Lake Trout, Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Chain Pickerel and Panfish. Fishing is permitted from the shore only; no boa ...

– a lake in the eastern part of the town *

Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge is part of the National Wildlife Refuge system. Established in 1990 by Public Law 101-593, the refuge straddles of the Wallkill River at and just south of the New York-New Jersey border. Most of the refug ...

– northernmost part only * Wickham Lake – a small lake near the northern town line

Notable people

* Mike Jackson - Jazz Guitarist * Damon Amendolara - radio host on

CBS Sports Radio CBS Sports Radio is a sports radio network that debuted with hourly sports news updates on September 4, 2012, and with 24/7 programming on January 2, 2013. CBS Sports Radio is owned by Paramount Global and distributed by Westwood One. Programmin ...

* Steve Brinster – professional disc golfer and winner of the 2013 United States Disc Golf Championship *

Carleton Carpenter Carleton Upham Carpenter Jr. (July 10, 1926 – January 31, 2022) was an American film, television and stage actor, magician, songwriter, and novelist. Early and personal life Carpenter was born in Bennington, Vermont, where he attended Benni ...

, actor *

E. Jean Carroll Elizabeth Jean Carroll is an American journalist, author, and advice columnist. Her "Ask E. Jean" column appeared in ''Elle'' magazine from 1993 through 2019, becoming one of the longest-running advice columns in American publishing. In her 201 ...

– advice columnist with '' Elle'' magazine *

James Cromwell James Oliver Cromwell (born January 27, 1940) is an American actor and activist. Some of his best-known films include ''Babe'' (1995), '' Star Trek: First Contact'' (1996), ''L.A. Confidential'' (1997), '' The Green Mile'' (1999), ''The Queen'' ...

– actor and long-term activist for community issues concerning environment * Jasper Francis Cropsey – Hudson River School artist *

Gus Dapperton Brendan Patrick Rice (born March 11, 1997), better known by his stage name Gus Dapperton, is an American singer and songwriter from Warwick, New York. History Dapperton has received particular attention for his fashion style, consisting at som ...

- indie pop musician *

Susan J. Elliott Susan J. Elliott (born November 19, 1956) is an American author, media commentator, and lawyer from New York City. She wrote the book, ''Getting Past Your Breakup: How to Turn a Devastating Loss Into the Best Thing That Ever Happened to You.'' P ...

– author and media commentator, owns a residence in Pine Island * James Emery - jazz guitarist and founding member of the

String Trio of New York The String Trio of New York is an American jazz chamber ensemble. The group was founded in 1977, by bassist John Lindberg, violinist Billy Bang, and guitarist James Emery. Though they initially worked on improvisational playing and on their ow ...

* Kory Enders - racing driver * Frederick Franck - painter, sculptor, and author * John Hathorn – Commander 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 ...

and New York politician *

Derek Jeter Derek Sanderson Jeter ( ; born June 26, 1974) is an American former professional baseball shortstop, businessman, and baseball executive. As a player, Jeter spent his entire 20-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the New York Yankees ...

– owns a residence on the western shore of Greenwood Lake, originally known as Tiedemann Castle, built in 1915. * Michael N. Kane – lawyer, judge, and politician *

Richard Kiley Richard Paul Kiley (March 31, 1922 – March 5, 1999) was an American stage, film and television actor and singer. He is best known for his distinguished theatrical career in which he twice won the Tony Award for Best Actor In A Musical. Kiley ...

– actor *

Bill Pennington William Mark Pennington (born December 12, 1956) is an American journalist, sportswriter and author. A reporter for ''The New York Times'' since 1997, Pennington has become best known for his sports journalism on golf, skiing, baseball, football, ...

– sports reporter for

The 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 ...

and author of multiple books *

Emilio Sanchez Emilio may refer to: * Emilio Navaira, a Mexican-American singer often called "Emilio" * Emilio Piazza Memorial School, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State * Emilio (given name) * ''Emilio'' (film), a 2008 film by Kim Jorgensen See also * Emílio (dis ...

– painter with works in The Metropolitan Museum of Art and other collections *

William H. Seward William Henry Seward (May 16, 1801 – October 10, 1872) was an American politician who served as United States Secretary of State from 1861 to 1869, and earlier served as governor of New York and as a United States Senate, United States Senat ...

– Secretary of State to

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

, born and raised in the village of Florida *

Jimmy Sturr James W. Sturr Jr. is an American polka musician, trumpeter, clarinetist, saxophonist and leader of Jimmy Sturr & His Orchestra. His recordings have won 18 out of the 24 Grammy Awards given for Best Polka Album. Sturr's orchestra is on the Top Te ...

– eighteen-time Grammy Award winner, grew up and resides in the village of Florida *

Jonathan Talbot Jonathan Talbot, (born November 14, 1939) is an American collage artist, painter, and printmaker. He also is the creator of an innovative collage technique that eliminates liquid adhesives from the collage assembly process. His technique i ...

– internationally known painter,

collage Collage (, from the french: coller, "to glue" or "to stick together";) is a technique of art creation, primarily used in the visual arts, but in music too, by which art results from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole. ...

artist, and author *

Robert Whitman Robert Whitman (born 1935 in New York City) is an American artist best known for his seminal theater pieces of the early 1960s combining visual and sound images, actors, film, slides, and evocative props in environments of his own making. Since t ...

(1935–2024), visual and performance artist best known for his pieces of the early 1960s combining visual and sound images, actors, film, slides, and evocative props * Gretchen Wyler – American actress and dancer

References

Greenwood Lake history, Chronogram magazine, October 26, 2023: https://www.chronogram.com/hv-towns/greenwood-lake-the-liquid-playground-turns-100-19299566

External links

*
Town of Warwick

Directory of Warwick's three villages and eight hamlets
{{Authority control Kiryas Joel–Poughkeepsie–Newburgh metropolitan area Towns in Orange County, New York Towns in New York (state) Towns in the New York metropolitan area Wallkill River