Albany County ( ) is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in the

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

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. Its northern border is formed by the

Mohawk River The Mohawk River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 river in the U.S. state of New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson River. The Mohawk f ...

, at its confluence with 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 ...

, which is to the east. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 314,848. The county seat and largest city is Albany, which is also the

state capital Below is an index of pages containing lists of capital cities. National capitals *List of national capitals *List of national capitals by latitude *List of national capitals by population *List of national capitals by area *List of capital citie ...

of New York. As originally established by the English government in the colonial era, Albany County had an indefinite amount of land, but has had an area of since March 3, 1888. The county is named for the

Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of English (later British) monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was Du ...

and of Albany, who became

James II of England James VII and II (14 October 1633 16 September 1701) was King of England and King of Ireland as James II, and King of Scotland as James VII from the death of his elder brother, Charles II, on 6 February 1685. He was deposed in the Gloriou ...

(James VII of Scotland). Albany County constitutes the central core of the

Capital District A capital district, capital region or capital territory is normally a specially designated administrative division where a country's seat of government is located. As such, in a federal model of government, no state or territory has any politica ...

of New York State, which comprises the Albany-

Schenectady Schenectady () is a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-largest city by population. The city is in eastern New Y ...

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...

, NY

Metropolitan Statistical Area In the United States, a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are neither legally Incorporated town, incorporate ...

History

Colonial

After

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

took control of the

colony In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the ''metropole, metropolit ...

New Netherland New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the East Coast of the United States, east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territor ...

from the

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

, Albany County was created on November 1, 1683, by

New York Governor The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a ...

Thomas Dongan Thomas Dongan, (pronounced "Dungan") 2nd Earl of Limerick (1634 – 14 December 1715), was a member of the Irish Parliament, Royalist military officer during the English Civil War, and Governor of the Province of New York. He is noted for hav ...

, and confirmed on October 1, 1691. The act creating the county vaguely defined its territory "to containe the Towns of Albany, the Collony Rensselaerwyck, Schonecteda, and all the villages, neighborhoods, and Christian Plantaçons on the east side of Hudson River from Roelef's Creek, and on the west side from Sawyer's Creek ( Saugerties) to the Sarraghtoga." The confirmation declared in 1691 was similar but omitted the Town of Albany, substituted "Mannor of Ranselaerswyck" for "Collony Rensselaerwyck", and stated "to the uttermost end of Sarraghtoga" instead of just "to Sarraghtoga". Livingston Manor was annexed to Albany County from Dutchess County in 1717. Albany's boundaries were defined more closely as state statutes would add land to the county, or more commonly subtract land for the formation of new counties. In 1772 with the creation of Tryon and

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...

counties, Albany gained definitive boundaries and included what are now Albany, Columbia, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady counties; large parts of Greene and Washington counties; and the disputed southwest corner of Vermont. The city of Albany was the first municipality within this large county, founded as the village (dorp in Dutch) of

Beverwyck Beverwijck ( ; ), often written using the pre-reform orthography Beverwyck, was a fur-trading community north of Fort Orange on the Hudson River in New Netherland that was renamed and developed as Albany, New York, after the English took contro ...

by the

Director-General of New Amsterdam This is a list of Directors, appointed by the Dutch West India Company, of the 17th century Dutch province of New Netherland (''Nieuw-Nederland'' in Dutch) in North America. Only the last, Peter Stuyvesant, held the title of Director General. As t ...

Pieter Stuyvesant Peter Stuyvesant (; in Dutch also ''Pieter'' and ''Petrus'' Stuyvesant, ; 1610 – August 1672)Mooney, James E. "Stuyvesant, Peter" in p.1256 was a Dutch colonial officer who served as the last Dutch director-general of the colony of New Net ...

, who also established the first court in Albany. Albany was established as a city in 1686 by Governor Dongan through the

Dongan Charter The ''Dongan Charter'' is the 1686 document incorporating Albany, New York, as a city. Albany's charter was issued by Governor Thomas Dongan of the Province of New York, a few months after Governor Dongan issued a similarly worded, but less det ...

after the English took over the colony.

to the west was given a patent with some municipal rights in 1684 and became a borough in 1765. The

Manor of Rensselaerswyck The Manor of Rensselaerswyck, Manor Rensselaerswyck, Van Rensselaer Manor, or just simply Rensselaerswyck ( nl, Rensselaerswijck ), was the name of a colonial estate—specifically, a Dutch patroonship and later an English manor—owned by the va ...

was created as a district within the county in 1772, and later divided into two districts, one on each side of the Hudson River in 1779. The west district included all of what is now Albany County other than lands were in the city of Albany at the time. Though the Manor of Rensselaerswyck was the only district (along with the city of Albany) in what is today Albany County, it was not the only district in what was Albany County at the time. Pittstown in 1761, and Duanesburgh in 1764, were created as townships. But when districts were created in 1772, those townships were incorporated into new districts, Pittstown in Schaghticoke and Duanesburgh into the United Districts of Duanesburgh and Schoharie. Schenectady was also made from a borough to a district in 1772. Other districts established in 1772 were Hoosick, Coxsackie,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, Saratoga,

Halfmoon The halfmoon (''Medialuna californiensis''), also known as the blue perch, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a sea chub from the subfamily Scorpidinae, part of the family Kyphosidae. It is native to the coasts of the eastern Pacific Ocean ...

, Kinderhook,

Kings Kings or King's may refer to: *Monarchs: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations, with the male being kings *One of several works known as the "Book of Kings": **The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts **The ''Shahnameh'' ...

, Claverack, Great Imboght, and the Manor of Livingston. In a census of 1697, there were 1,452 individuals living in Albany County; two years later it would be counted as 2,016 at the beginning of

King William's War King William's War (also known as the Second Indian War, Father Baudoin's War, Castin's War, or the First Intercolonial War in French) was the North American theater of the Nine Years' War (1688–1697), also known as the War of the Grand All ...

. By the end of the war in 1698, the population had dropped to 1,482, but rebounded quickly and was at 2,273 by 1703. By 1723, it had increased to 6,501 and in 1731 to 8,573, which was slightly less than the population of the city of New York in the same year. In 1737, the inhabitants of Albany County would outnumber those of New York County by 17 people. In 1774, Albany County, with 42,706 people, was the largest county in colonial New York. According to the first Federal Census in 1790, Albany County reached 75,921 inhabitants and was still the state's largest county.

Formation of towns

On March 7, 1788, the state of New York divided the entire state into towns eliminating districts as administrative units by passing New York Laws of 1788, Chapters 63 and 64.

Timeline of boundary changes

Albany County was one of the original twelve counties created by the

Province of New York The Province of New York (1664–1776) was a British proprietary colony and later royal colony on the northeast coast of North America. As one of the Middle Colonies, New York achieved independence and worked with the others to found the Uni ...

on November 1, 1683. At the time, it included all of New York state north of

Dutchess Dutchess County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 295,911. The county seat is the city of Poughkeepsie, New York, Poughkeeps ...

and

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...

counties, all of what is now

Bennington County Bennington County is a county in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,347. The shire towns (county seats) are jointly Bennington ("The Southshire") and Manchester ("The Northshire"), and the largest municipal ...

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, and theoretically west to the Pacific Ocean.Thorne, Kathryn Ford, Compiler & Long, John H., Editor: ''New York Atlas of Historical County Boundaries''; The Newbury Library; 1993. On May 27, 1717, Albany County was adjusted to gain an indefinite amount of land from Dutchess County and other non-county lands. On October 7, 1763,

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

, as part of his

Proclamation of 1763 The Royal Proclamation of 1763 was issued by King George III on 7 October 1763. It followed the Treaty of Paris (1763), which formally ended the Seven Years' War and transferred French territory in North America to Great Britain. The Procla ...

, created the new

province of Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirteen p ...

, implicitly setting the northern limit of New York at the parallel of 45 degrees north latitude from the Atlantic-St. Lawrence watershed westward to the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting ...

, implicitly setting the northern limit of Albany County, but it was never mapped. On July 20, 1764, King George III established the boundary between

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

and New York along the west bank of the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges at Long Island ...

, north of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

and south of the parallel of 45 degrees north latitude. Albany County implicitly gained present-day

. Although disputes occasionally broke out later, this line became the boundary between New Hampshire and Vermont, and has remained unchanged to the present. When New York refused to recognize land titles through the

New Hampshire Grants The New Hampshire Grants or Benning Wentworth Grants were land grants made between 1749 and 1764 by the colonial governor of the Province of New Hampshire, Benning Wentworth. The land grants, totaling about 135 (including 131 towns), were made o ...

(towns created earlier by New Hampshire in present Vermont), dissatisfied colonists organized in opposition, which led to the creation of independent Vermont in 1777. On July 3, 1766,

Cumberland County Cumberland County may refer to: Australia * Cumberland County, New South Wales * the former name of Cumberland Land District, Tasmania, Australia Canada *Cumberland County, Nova Scotia United Kingdom *Cumberland, historic county *Cumberlan ...

was partitioned from Albany County to cover all territory to the northern and eastern limits of the colony, including Windsor County, most of Windham County, and parts of

Bennington Bennington is a town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester. As of the 2020 US Census, the population was 15,333. Bennington is the most populous to ...

and

Rutland Rutland () is a ceremonial county and unitary authority in the East Midlands, England. The county is bounded to the west and north by Leicestershire, to the northeast by Lincolnshire and the southeast by Northamptonshire. Its greatest len ...

counties in present-day

. On June 26, 1767, Albany County regained all of Cumberland County. On March 19, 1768, Albany County was re-partitioned, and Cumberland County restored. On March 16, 1770, Albany County was again partitioned. Gloucester County was created to include all of

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

Caledonia Caledonia (; ) was the Latin name used by the Roman Empire to refer to the part of Great Britain () that lies north of the River Forth, which includes most of the land area of Scotland. Today, it is used as a romantic or poetic name for all ...

and

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

counties, most of Washington County, and parts of Orleans, Lamoille,

Addison Addison may refer to: Places Canada * Addison, Ontario United States *Addison, Alabama *Addison, Illinois *Addison Street in Chicago, Illinois which runs by Wrigley Field * Addison, Kentucky *Addison, Maine *Addison, Michigan *Addison, New York ...

and Chittenden counties in present-day Vermont. On March 12, 1772, Albany County was partitioned again, this time into the counties of Albany, Tryon (now Montgomery), and

(now

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

). This established a definite area for Albany County of . On March 24, 1772, Albany County was partitioned again, with an additional handed over to Cumberland County. On March 9, 1774, Albany County was partitioned again, this time passing to

Ulster County Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston. The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster. History ...

. On April 1, 1775, Albany was again partitioned, this time giving up to Charlotte County, who then exchanged this land with a like parcel in Cumberland County. On January 15, 1777, Albany County was again partitioned, this time on account of the independence of

from New York, reducing Albany County by an additional . On June 26, 1781, Bennington County, Vermont, attempted to annex a portion of Albany County that today includes portions of

and Rensselaer counties to form what they called "The West Union". The fledgling United States – under the

Articles of Confederation The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was an agreement among the 13 Colonies of the United States of America that served as its first frame of government. It was approved after much debate (between July 1776 and November 1777) by ...

– arbitrated this annexation, and condemned it, resulting in Vermont ceasing the annexation on 1782-02-23. On April 4, 1786, Columbia County was created from of Albany County land. On March 7, 1788, New York, refusing to recognize the independence of

, and the attendant elimination of Cumberland County, attempted to adjust the line that separated Cumberland from Albany County in present-day Vermont, but to no effect. On February 7, 1791, Albany County was partitioned again, this time to form Rensselaer and Saratoga counties. Rensselaer received , while Saratoga received . Also the town of

was transferred to Washington County. A total of changed hands. On June 1, 1795, Albany County was once again partitioned, this time losing to

Schoharie County Schoharie County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 29,714, making it the state's fifth-least populous county. The county seat is Schoharie. "Schoharie" comes from a Mohawk word meaning "f ...

. On April 5, 1798, another partition took place, with passing to

. On March 25, 1800, once again Albany County was partitioned, with being used to create Greene County. On April 3, 1801, all New York counties were redefined, with Albany County gaining . On March 7, 1809,

Schenectady County Schenectady County () is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 158,061. The county seat is Schenectady, New York, Schenectady. The ...

was created from of Albany County land, reducing Albany County to its current size. On March 3, 1888, Albany County ceded Havre Island to

Saratoga County Saratoga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York, and is the fastest-growing county in Upstate New York. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was enumerated at 235,509, representing a 7.2% increase from the 2010 popul ...

Geography

According to the

U.S. 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 county has a total area of , of which is land and (2.0%) is water. Albany County is in the east central part of New York, extending southward and westward from the point where the

joins the

. Its eastern boundary is the Hudson; a portion of its northern boundary is the Mohawk. The terrain of the county ranges from flat near the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers to high and hilly to the southwest, of the

Helderberg Escarpment The Helderberg Escarpment, also known as the Helderberg Mountains, is an escarpment in eastern New York, United States, roughly west of the city of Albany. The escarpment is the northeastern extremity of the Allegheny Plateau. It rises steepl ...

and the

Helderberg Mountains The Helderberg Escarpment, also known as the Helderberg Mountains, is an escarpment in eastern New York, United States, roughly west of the city of Albany. The escarpment is the northeastern extremity of the Allegheny Plateau. It rises steepl ...

. The highest point is one of several summits near Henry Hill at approximately 2,160 feet (658 m) above sea level; The lowest point is above sea level at the Hudson River's southernmost extent in the county.

Climate

The Capital District has a

humid continental A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologic ...

, with cold, snowy winters, and hot, wet summers. Albany receives around of rain per year, with 135 days of at least of

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...

. Snowfall is significant, totaling about annually, but with less accumulation than the lake-effect areas to the north and west, being far enough from

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 ...

. Albany County is however, close enough to the coast to receive heavy snow from

Nor'easter A nor'easter (also northeaster; see below), or an East Coast low is a synoptic-scale extratropical cyclone in the western North Atlantic Ocean. The name derives from the direction of the winds that blow from the northeast. The original use o ...

s, and the region gets the bulk of its yearly snowfall from these types of storms. The county also occasionally receives

Alberta clipper An Alberta clipper, also known as an Alberta low, Alberta cyclone, Alberta lee cyclone, Canadian clipper, or simply clipper, is a fast-moving low-pressure system that originates in or near the Canadian province of Alberta just east of the Rocky ...

s. Winters are often very cold with fluctuating conditions, temperatures often drop to below 0 °F (−18 °C) at night. Summers in the Albany can contain stretches of excessive heat and humidity, with temperatures above and dew points near 70. Severe

thunderstorms A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm or a lightning storm, is a storm characterized by the presence of lightning and its acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder. Relatively weak thunderstorms are someti ...

are common but

tornadoes A tornado is a violently rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. It is often referred to as a twister, whirlwind or cyclone, altho ...

are rare. Albany receives on average per year 69 sunny days, 111 partly cloudy days, and 185 cloudy days; and an average, over the course of a year, of less than four hours of sunshine per day, with just over an average of 2.5 hours per day over the course of the winter. The chance during daylight hours of sunshine is 53%, with the highest percentage of sunny daylight hours being in July with 64%, and the lowest month is November with 37%.

Adjacent counties

Albany County is bordered by six counties. Listed

clockwise Two-dimensional rotation can occur in two possible directions. Clockwise motion (abbreviated CW) proceeds in the same direction as a clock's hands: from the top to the right, then down and then to the left, and back up to the top. The opposite ...

, they are: *

– northwest *

– north *

Rensselaer County Rensselaer County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 161,130. Its county seat is Troy. The county is named in honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original Dutch owner of the la ...

– east * Columbia County – southeast * Greene County – south *

– west

Cityscape

Architecture

Albany County has a myriad of different architectural styles spanning centuries of development. Within the city of Albany alone there is Dutch Colonial (the

Quackenbush House Quackenbush House is a historic building in Albany, New York. It is a house with a double-pitched gable roof that was built in about 1736. an''Accompanying five photos, exterior and interior, from c. 1886, c. 1920, 1969, and undated''/ref> It was ...

), French Renaissance (the

New York State Capitol The New York State Capitol, the seat of the Government of New York State, New York state government, is located in Albany, New York, Albany, the List of U.S. state capitals, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The seat o ...

), Federal style (the original Albany Academy in Academy Park), Romanesque Revival (

Albany City Hall Albany City Hall is the seat of government of the city of Albany, New York, United States. It houses the office of the mayor, the Common Council chamber, the city and traffic courts, as well as other city services. The present building was desi ...

), Art deco (the Alfred E. Smith Building), and Modern (Empire State Plaza). The cities of Albany, Cohoes, and Watervliet and the village of Green Island are more urban in architecture; while the towns of Colonie, Guilderland, New Scotland, and Bethlehem more suburban and the remaining Hilltowns (Berne, Knox, Westerlo, and Rensselaerville) very rural.

Parks

Albany County is home to the Emma Treadwell Thacher Nature Center, which opened in July 2001 and is near the shore of Thompson's Lake between the two state parks that are in Albany County- Thompson's Lake State Park and

John Boyd Thacher State Park John Boyd Thacher State Park is a state park located 15 miles (24 km) southwest of Albany, New York, near Voorheesville, in Albany County on State Route 157. Located mostly atop the Helderberg Escarpment, the park has several hiking trail ...

. There are also state-owned nature preserves with interactive educational programs such as the Five Rivers Environmental Education Center and the

Albany Pine Bush The Albany Pine Bush, referred to locally as the Pine Bush, is one of the largest of the 20 inland pine barrens in the world. It is centrally located in New York's Capital District within Albany and Schenectady counties, between the cities of ...

. The cities, towns, and villages of Albany County have many municipal parks, playgrounds, and protected green areas. Washington Park in the city of Albany and The Crossing in the town of Colonie are two of the largest. There are many small hiking and biking trails and longer distance bike-hike trails such the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail which goes from the city of Albany north to Cohoes and then west along the Mohawk River to Schenectady County.

Festivals

One of the largest events in Albany County is the Tulip Fest held in the city of Albany every spring at Washington Park. The tradition stems from when

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Erastus Corning 2nd Erastus Corning 2nd (October 7, 1909 – May 28, 1983) was an American politician. A Democrat, Corning served as the 72nd mayor of Albany, New York from 1942 to 1983, when Albany County was controlled by one of the last classic urban political ...

had a city ordinance passed declaring the

tulip Tulips (''Tulipa'') are a genus of spring-blooming perennial herbaceous bulbiferous geophytes (having bulbs as storage organs). The flowers are usually large, showy and brightly coloured, generally red, pink, yellow, or white (usually in warm ...

as Albany's official flower on July 1, 1948. The

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

tradition of

Pinkster Pinkster is a spring festival, taking place in late May or early June. The name is a variation of the Dutch word ''Pinksteren'', meaning "Pentecost". ''Pinkster'' in English almost always refers to the festivals held by African Americans (both free ...

fest, whose origins are traced back even further to Dutch festivities, was later incorporated into the Tulip Fest. The Albany LatinFest has been held since 1996 and drew 10,000 to Washington Park in 2008. PolishFest is a three-day celebration of Polish culture in the Capital District, held in the town of Colonie for the past eight years.

Amusement

Albany County has two shopping malls classified as

super-regional mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to refe ...

s (malls with over 800,000 sq ft),International Council of Shopping Centers
Shopping Center Definitions for the U.S. Information accurate as of 2004. Retrieved February 20, 2007.

Crossgates Mall Crossgates Mall is an enclosed, automobile-oriented, super-regional shopping mall located in the Albany, New York suburb of Guilderland. It is the largest indoor shopping center in the Capital District, and the third largest in the State of New ...

Guilderland Guilderland is a town in Albany County, New York, United States. In the 2020 census, the town had a population of 36,848. The town is named for the Gelderland province in the Netherlands. The town of Guilderland is on the central-northwest borde ...

and

Colonie Center Colonie Center is a shopping mall located in Roessleville, New York, a suburb of Albany, at the intersection of Central Avenue, Wolf Road, and Interstate 87. Opening in 1966, it was the first enclosed shopping mall in New York's Capital Region ...

in Colonie with over one million square feet of rentable space in each. Huck Finn's Playland is a children's amusement park open during the summer, which started operations in the Summer of 2015—after purchasing the rides from the former Hoffman's Playland in Newtonville, which was in operation from 1951 to the Fall of 2014. During the winter there are over of official trails for snowshoeing at the

Preserve, in the city of Albany and towns of Colonie and Guilderland.

Culture and contemporary life

Albany is often derided as "Smallbany" (also spelled Smalbany) for its perceived lack of culture and as a backwater in tourism circles, even though it consistently ranks high on lists of top cities/metro areas for culture, such as being 23rd in the book ''Cities Ranked & Rated''. To locals the Smallbany title references the perceived notion residents are interconnected and know each other in some way. Albany is home to some of the oldest museums, historical sites, and places of worship in the state of New York and the United States; some of the finest collections of historical artifacts and art can be found in Albany County.

Museums

Albany County has many historical sites and museums covering a wide range of topics and time periods. The

Albany Institute of History and Art The Albany Institute of History & Art (AIHA) is a museum in Albany, New York, United States, "dedicated to collecting, preserving, interpreting and promoting interest in the history, art, and culture of Albany and the Upper Hudson Valley region". ...

founded in 1791 is one of the oldest museums in the United States, and the

New York State Museum The New York State Museum is a research-backed institution in Albany, New York, United States. It is located on Madison Avenue, attached to the south side of the Empire State Plaza, facing onto the plaza and towards the New York State Capitol. ...

is the oldest and largest state museum in the country. Many of the museums are historical sites themselves, such as Cherry Hill, the

Ten Broeck Mansion The Ten Broeck Mansion in Albany, New York was built in 1797. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. A decade later it was included as a contributing property to the Arbor Hill Historic District–Ten Broeck Triangl ...

, and the

Schuyler Mansion Schuyler Mansion is a historic house at 32 Catherine Street in Albany, New York. The brick mansion is now a museum and an official National Historic Landmark. It was constructed from 1761 to 1765 for Philip Schuyler, later a general in the Cont ...

in the city of Albany and the Pruyn House in Colonie. The

is the second oldest house in the city of Albany and is part of the Albany Heritage Area Visitors Center, which includes a

planetarium A planetarium ( planetariums or ''planetaria'') is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation. A dominant feature of most planetarium ...

. The Albany Pine Bush Discovery Center in the city of Albany includes hands-on activities to learn about the unique Pine Bush Barrens of the city of Albany and towns of Guilderland and Colonie. Covering the history of pharmacy is the Throop Drug Store Museum at the

Albany College of Pharmacy Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (formerly Albany College of Pharmacy) is a private, independent college with campuses in Albany, New York and Colchester, Vermont. ACPHS was named the #1 Value-Added college or university in the cou ...

. The USS Slater, DE-766 is a World War II Destroyer Escort, the last floating Destroyer Escort, owned by the Destroyer Escort Historical Museum is moored from Spring to Fall at the foot of Quay Street in the Hudson River. The ship is open for tours each week and contains an excellent and well-maintained collection of World War II US Naval artifacts. There are several art museums in Albany County; including the

Albany Center Gallery Albany Center Gallery (ACG) is a nonprofit art space located in downtown Albany, New York. Supported by state, corporate and foundation funds, as well as individual donations and memberships, ACG is dedicated to the exhibition of regional artists ...

, in downtown Albany, which exhibits works by local artists within a radius of that city; the University Art Museum, at the

University at Albany, SUNY The State University of New York at Albany, commonly referred to as the University at Albany, UAlbany or SUNY Albany, is a public research university with campuses in Albany, Rensselaer, and Guilderland, New York. Founded in 1844, it is one ...

; and the Opalka Gallery, at the

Sage College of Albany Sage College of Albany, SCA for short, was located at 140 New Scotland Avenue, Albany, New York, 12208. Along with Russell Sage College and the Sage Graduate School, it was one of the three colleges that made up The Sage Colleges. It was also ho ...

. The

Empire State Plaza The Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza (known commonly as the Empire State Plaza, and also as the South Mall) is a complex of several state government buildings in downtown Albany, New York. The complex was built between 1965 a ...

in Albany has one of the most important state collections of modern art in the U.S.

Performing arts

Albany County itself owns the largest venue for performing arts in the county, the

Times Union Center The MVP Arena (originally Knickerbocker Arena, and then the Pepsi Arena and Times Union Center) is an indoor arena located in Albany, New York. It is configurable and can accommodate from 6,000 to 17,500 people, with a maximum seating capacity ...

, which was originally built as the Knickerbocker Arena; it opened on January 30, 1990, with a performance by

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

. In 1996,

The Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

released a concert album from their March 1990 performances titled ''

Dozin' at the Knick ''Dozin' at the Knick'' is a recording of the Grateful Dead performing live in concert at the Knickerbocker Arena in Albany, New York. It was recorded March 24–26, 1990, and was released in 1996. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA on ...

''.

Sports

Many athletes and coaches in major sports have begun their careers in Albany County.

Phil Jackson Philip Douglas Jackson (born September 17, 1945) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive. A power forward, Jackson played 12 seasons in the NBA, winning NBA championships with the New York Knicks in 1970 and ...

, former

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

head coach of the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...

and

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

won his first championship ring as a coach when he guided the

Albany Patroons The Albany Patroons are a professional basketball team that plays in The Basketball League (TBL). Previously, the team competed in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) and in the United States Basketball League (USBL). The Patroons won ...

to the 1984 CBA championship. Three years later, the Patroons completed a 50–6 regular season, including winning all 28 of their home games; at that time,

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

head coach

George Karl George Matthew Karl (born May 12, 1951) is an American former professional basketball coach and player. After spending five years as a player for the San Antonio Spurs, Karl became an assistant with the team before getting the chance to become a ...

was the Patroons' head coach. Future NBA stars

Mario Elie is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creat ...

and

Vincent Askew Vincent Jerome Askew (born February 28, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player who played for nine seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for eight different teams. A 6'6" guard-forward, Askew played college basket ...

were part of that season's squad.

Mike Tyson Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is cons ...

received his early training in the Capital District and his first professional fight was in Albany in 1985 and Tyson's first televised fight was in Troy in 1986. He fought professionally four times in Albany and twice each in Troy and Glens Falls between 1985 and 1986. Since 1988, the

Siena College Siena College is an American private Franciscan college in Loudonville, New York. Siena was founded by the Order of Friars Minor in 1937. The college was named after Bernardino of Siena, a 15th-century Italian Franciscan friar and preacher. St ...

men's basketball team (the

Siena Saints The Siena Saints (formerly the Siena Indians) are composed of 21 teams representing Siena College in collegiate sports. The Saints compete in the NCAA Division I and are members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference The Metro Atlantic Athl ...

) have appeared in six NCAA Tournaments (

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

, and

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

Religious life

Albany County was originally settled primarily by Protestants from northern Europe: the Netherlands, British Isles, and Germany. In the 19th century it was a destination for many Catholic immigrants, first from Ireland – fleeing the Great Famine, and later from southern Germany, central and southern Europe. Late 19th and early 20th century immigrants included Jews from eastern Europe. In addition to other Jewish congregations, the county has one of the few

Karaite Jewish Karaite Judaism () or Karaism (, sometimes spelt Karaitism (; ''Yahadut Qara'it''); also spelt Qaraite Judaism, Qaraism or Qaraitism) is a Jewish religious movement characterized by the recognition of the written Torah alone as its supreme au ...

communities outside Israel. This community is active and has its own synagogue. The Albany Metro Area has consistently been found to be among the highest ranking postchristian cities in the US.

Demographics

As of the 2020 US Census, there were 314,848 people in 126,540 households residing in the county. The population density was 563 people per square mile (217/km²). There were 134,072 housing units at an average density of 248 per square mile (96/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 78.2%

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 ...

, 12.7%

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 ...

, 0.2% Native American, 4.8%

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 ...

, 0.0%

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 ...

, 1.6% 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 2.5% from two or more races. 4.9% of the population were

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. 19.2% were of Irish, 16.0% Italian, 11.0% German, 6.1% English and 5.1% Polish ancestry according to

Census 2000 The United States census of 2000, conducted by the Census Bureau, determined the resident population of the United States on April 1, 2000, to be 281,421,906, an increase of 13.2 percent over the 248,709,873 people enumerated during the 1990 cen ...

. 90.4% spoke English, 2.7% Spanish and 1.0% Italian as their first language. There were 124,682 households, out of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.2% were married couples living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.1% were non-families. 33.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.32 and the average family size was 2.99. In the county, the age distribution of the population shows 22.6% under the age of 18, 11.3% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 91.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.8 males. The median income for a household in the county was $42,935, and the median income for a family was $56,724. Males had a median income of $39,838 versus $30,127 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 county was $23,345. About 7.2% of families and 13.1% 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 14.9% of those under age 18 and 6.3% of those age 65 or over.

2020 Census

Economy

Tech Valley

Since the 2000s, the economy of Albany County and the surrounding Capital District has been redirected toward

high technology High technology (high tech), also known as advanced technology (advanced tech) or exotechnology, is technology that is at the cutting edge: the highest form of technology available. It can be defined as either the most complex or the newest te ...

Tech Valley Tech Valley began as a marketing name for the eastern part of the U.S. state of New York, encompassing the Capital District and the Hudson Valley. Originating in 1998 to promote the greater Albany area as a high-tech competitor to regions such as ...

is a marketing name for the eastern part of New York State, encompassing Albany County, the Capital District, and the

Hudson Valley The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to ...

. Originated in 1998 to promote the greater Albany area as a high-tech competitor to regions such as

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...

and

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, it has since grown to represent the counties in the Capital District and extending to IBM's

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 ...

plants in the south and the Canada–US border to the north. The area's high technology ecosystem is supported by technologically focused

academic institutions Academic institution is an educational institution dedicated to education and research, which grants academic degrees. See also academy and university. Types * Primary schools – (from French ''école primaire'') institutions where children r ...

including

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute () (RPI) is a private research university in Troy, New York, with an additional campus in Hartford, Connecticut. A third campus in Groton, Connecticut closed in 2018. RPI was established in 1824 by Stephen Van ...

and the

State University of New York Polytechnic Institute The State University of New York Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Polytechnic Institute or SUNY Poly) is a public university with campuses in Marcy and Albany, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Founded in 1966 u ...

. Tech Valley encompasses 19 counties straddling both sides of the

Adirondack Northway Interstate 87 (I-87) is a north–south Interstate Highway located entirely within the US state of New York. It is most of the main highway between New York City and Montreal. The highway begins at exit 47 off I-278 in the New York ...

and the

New York Thruway {{Infobox road , state = NY , type = NYST , alternate_name = Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway , maint = NYSTA , map = {{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, type=line, stroke-width=2, type2=line, from2=New Yor ...

, and with heavy state taxpayer subsidy, has experienced significant growth in the

computer hardware Computer hardware includes the physical parts of a computer, such as the computer case, case, central processing unit (CPU), Random-access memory, random access memory (RAM), Computer monitor, monitor, Computer mouse, mouse, Computer keyboard, ...

side of the high-technology industry, with great strides in the

nanotechnology Nanotechnology, also shortened to nanotech, is the use of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale for industrial purposes. The earliest, widespread description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal o ...

sector,

digital electronics Digital electronics is a field of electronics involving the study of digital signals and the engineering of devices that use or produce them. This is in contrast to analog electronics and analog signals. Digital electronic circuits are usual ...

design, and water- and electricity-dependent integrated microchip circuit manufacturing.

Government and politics

For most of its history, Albany County has predominantly backed Democratic Party presidential candidates. In only three elections since 1924 has a Republican Party candidate carried the county in a presidential election, the most recent being

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

in 1972. The Democratic Party dominance has become more pronounced in recent years, with

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

in 1988 the most recent Republican candidate to win even forty percent of the county's vote. Albany County was governed by a board of supervisors until 1968. The board consisted of the

town supervisor The administrative divisions of New York are the various units of government that provide local services in the State of New York. The state is divided into boroughs, counties, cities, townships called "towns", and villages. (The only borou ...

s of each town in the county, as well as county supervisors elected from the wards of each city in the county. In the later years of its existence, the board used a system of

weighted voting Weighted voting can exist in a policy or law making body in which each representative has a variable voting power (weighted vote) as determined by the number principals who have made that person their proxy voting, proxy, or the population or the ...

to comply with recently enacted federal and state

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...

requirements. On January 1, 1976, Albany County government was changed by a new charter establishing a

county executive A county executive, county manager or county mayor is the head of the executive branch of government in a United States county. The executive may be an elected or an appointed position. When elected, the executive typically functions either as a ...

elected

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather than ...

, in addition to the 39-seat county legislature. Each of the 39 legislators are elected from

single-member districts A single-member district is an electoral district represented by a single officeholder. It contrasts with a multi-member district, which is represented by multiple officeholders. Single-member districts are also sometimes called single-winner vot ...

. As of 2022, the county council has 30 Democrats, 9

Republicans Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

. The County Executive is Daniel P. McCoy (D). Other officials elected countywide include District Attorney

David Soares P. David Soares (born October 26, 1969 in Brava, Cape Verde) is the Albany County, New York District Attorney. He is a Democrat. Personal life Soares was the youngest of the six children of Lucas and Lidia Soares.Michael F. Conners. Other elected officials with districts in the county include: * State Assembly ** Christopher Tague, Republican, 102nd District ** John McDonald, Democratic, 108th District **

Pat Fahy Patricia Fahy is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party, who currently represents parts of Albany County in the New York State Assembly, including most of western Albany. She was previously president of the Albany City Boa ...

, Democratic, 109th District **

Phillip Steck Phillip G. Steck (born July 8, 1959) is a Democratic member of the New York State Assembly representing Assembly District 110, which comprises the eastern tip of Schenectady and northeastern tip of Albany County. Early life and career Steck ...

, Democratic, 110th District ** Angelo Santabarbara, Democratic, 111th District * State Senate **

Neil Breslin Neil Breslin (born June 9, 1942) is an American attorney and politician serving as a member of the New York State Senate. A Democrat, he represents parts of Albany and Rensselaer counties, including all of the cities of Albany and Rensselae ...

, Democratic, 44th District ** Michelle Hinchey, Democratic, 46th District * United States House of Representatives **

Paul Tonko Paul David Tonko ( ; born June 18, 1949) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2013. He represented the 21st congressional district from 2009 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Tonko has been called a sta ...

, Democratic, 20th District

Law enforcement

The Albany County Sheriff's Department is one of the oldest law enforcement agencies in the United States, having been established in the 1660s. Sheriff Craig Apple was first elected in 2011. The sheriff is also responsible for the county jail, which was built in 1931, and renamed from the Albany County Correctional Facility to the Albany County Corrections and Rehabilitative Services Center in 2019. This jail has a contract with

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to accept prisoners from their facilities. The New York Times has reported that juveniles sent to Albany were beaten and placed in isolation, which is forbidden in New York City. The department investigated a criminal complaint against Governor Andrew Cuomo during the

Andrew Cuomo sexual harassment allegations Andrew Cuomo, the 56th governor of New York, was accused of sexual harassment by multiple women starting in December 2020, with the accusations covering a range of alleged behavior. He denied all allegations and has apologized for his comments be ...

, and filed a misdemeanor criminal complaint on its own authority to bring charges.

Education

Tertiary

Albany Law School Albany Law School is a private law school in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1851 and is the oldest independent law school in the nation. It is accredited by the American Bar Association and has an affiliation agreement with University at A ...

Albany Medical College Albany Medical College (AMC) is a private medical school in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1839 by Alden March and James H. Armsby and is one of the oldest medical schools in the nation. The college is part of the Albany Medical Center, which ...

Bryant & Stratton College Bryant & Stratton College (BSC) is a private for-profit college with campuses in New York, Ohio, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as an online campus. Founded in 1854, the college offers associate degree programs at all campuses and bachelor's ...

Excelsior College Excelsior University is a private online university in Albany, New York. It offers undergraduate and graduate degrees and comprises three schools: the School of Undergraduate Studies, the School of Graduate Studies, and the School of Nursing. I ...

The College of Saint Rose The College of Saint Rose is a private Roman Catholic college in Albany, New York. It was founded in 1920 by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet as a women's college. It became fully co-educational in 1969; the following year, the college a ...

Sage Graduate School Sage Graduate Schools were a graduate school in upstate New York. It was a member of The Sage Colleges, and operated both in Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and ...

State University of New York at Albany The State University of New York at Albany, commonly referred to as the University at Albany, UAlbany or SUNY Albany, is a public research university with campuses in Albany, Rensselaer, and Guilderland, New York. Founded in 1844, it is one ...

K-12 education

Public school districts include:
Text list
/ref> *

Albany City School District The City School District of Albany (also known as the Albany City School District) is the public school district of Albany, New York. The district is an independent public entity. It is governed by the City School District of Albany Board of Ed ...

* Berne-Knox-Westerlo Central School District *

Bethlehem Central School District The Bethlehem Central School District is a public school district in New York State, serving approximately 4,100 students just south of Albany in the towns of Bethlehem and New Scotland in Albany County with a staff of 800+ and a budget of $1 ...

* Cairo-Durham Central School District * Cohoes City School District *

Duanesburg Central School District Duanesburg is a town in Schenectady County, New York, United States. The population was 6,122 at the 2010 census. Duanesburg is named for James Duane, who held most of it as an original land grant. The town is in the western part of the county. ...

* Green Island Union Free School District *

Greenville Central School District Greenville is the name of several places: Canada * Laxgalts'ap, British Columbia, formerly named Greenville * Greenville, Nova Scotia, in Yarmouth County * Greenville Station, Nova Scotia, in Cumberland County * Lower Greenville, Nova Scotia, in ...

Guilderland Central School District Guilderland Central School District (GCSD) is a school district encompassing most of the Town of Guilderland and parts of Bethlehem, New Scotland, and Knox. The district serves approximately 4,828 K-12 students across seven school buildings ...

* Menands Union Free School District * Middleburgh Central School District *

Niskayuna Central School District The Niskayuna Central School District is a public school district located in Niskayuna, New York, Niskayuna, New York (state), New York. It has a total enrollment of 4,312 students in grades K–12 in 8 schools. The district superintendent w ...

* North Colonie Central School District * Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District *

Rotterdam-Mohonasen Central School District The Mohonasen Central School District (also known as the ''Rotterdam-Mohonasen Central School District'') is a public school district in New York State. Located in Schenectady County and services 2,850 students mostly from the town of Rotterdam ...

* Schalmont Central School District * Schoharie Central School District *

South Colonie Central School District South Colonie Central School District is a public school district located mostly in the Town of Colonie, New York. It has enrollment of 4,847 students in grades PreK–12 in 8 schools and a student to teacher ratio of 13:1. Its graduation r ...

* Voorheesville Central School District * Watervliet City School District

Transportation

Albany County has long been at the forefront of transportation technology from the days of turnpikes and plank roads to the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...

, from the first passenger railroad in the state to the oldest municipal

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

in the United States. Today,

Interstates The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

, and the

Albany International Airport Albany International Airport is six miles (9 km) northwest of Albany, in Albany County, New York, United States. It is owned by the Albany County Airport Authority. ALB covers of land. It is an air port of entry in the town of Colon ...

continue to make the Albany County a major crossroads of the

Northeastern United States The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...

. The Capital District Transportation Committee (CDTC) is the

Metropolitan Planning Organization A metropolitan planning organization (MPO) is a federally mandated and federally funded transportation policy-making organization in the United States that is made up of representatives from local government and governmental transportation authorit ...

(MPO) for the Albany-Schenectady-Troy Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). Every metropolitan area in the United States with a population of over 50,000 must have a MPO in order to get any federal transportation funding. The

US Department of Transportation The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the President of the United States and ...

(USDOT) uses an MPO to make decisions on what projects are most important to a metro area for immediate versus long term funding. The USDOT will not approve federal funds for transportation projects unless they are on an MPO's list.

Interstate and other major highways

Albany County is situated at a major crossroads of the

, first formed by the Mohawk and Hudson rivers. Even before the

Interstate Highway System The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...

and the

U.S. Highway The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...

system, Albany County was the hub of many turnpikes and

plank road A plank road is a road composed of wooden planks or puncheon logs. Plank roads were commonly found in the Canadian province of Ontario as well as the Northeast and Midwest of the United States in the first half of the 19th century. They were oft ...

s that connected the region, as well as the Erie Canal reaching the Great Lakes. Today, Interstate 87 and

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...

meet in Albany County. The Thomas E. Dewey New York State Thruway is a

toll-road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road (almost always a controlled-access highway in the present day) for which a fee (or ''toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented ...

that from Exit 24 in the city of Albany is I-87 and travels south to connect the county with

downstate New York Downstate New York is a region that generally consists of the southeastern and more densely populated portion of the U.S. state of New York, in contrast to Upstate New York, which comprises a larger geographic area with much sparser population di ...

. West from Exit 24, the Thruway is I-90 and connects the county with

, Utica,

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

Rochester Rochester may refer to: Places Australia * Rochester, Victoria Canada * Rochester, Alberta United Kingdom *Rochester, Kent ** City of Rochester-upon-Medway (1982–1998), district council area ** History of Rochester, Kent ** HM Prison ...

, and Buffalo. North of Exit 24, I-87 is the

and connects the city and county of Albany with their suburbs in

and provides long-distance travel to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

. East of Exit 24, I-90 travels along the northern boundary of the city of Albany and exits the county on the

Patroon Island Bridge The Patroon Island Bridge is a multi-span deck truss bridge that spans the Hudson River in Albany, New York. A major crossing, it carries Interstate 90 in the east-west direction between Albany and Rensselaer Counties. It has been in service ...

into

to access Albany's eastern suburbs.

Interstate 787 Interstate 787 (I-787) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US state of New York. I-787 is the main highway for those traveling into and out of downtown Albany. The southern terminus is, per New York traffic data, at the toll plaza fo ...

connects the Thruway (I-87) to

Downtown Albany The Downtown Albany Historic District is a 19-block, area of Albany, New York, United States, centered on the junction of State ( New York State Route 5) and North and South Pearl streets ( New York State Route 32). It is the oldest settled area ...

, Menands, Watervliet, and Cohoes.

U.S. Route 9 U.S. Route 9 (US 9) is a north–south United States highway in the states of Delaware, New Jersey, and New York in the Northeastern United States. It is one of only two U.S. Highways with a ferry connection (the Cape May–Lewes Ferry, between ...

enters the county on the

Dunn Memorial Bridge The Dunn Memorial Bridge, officially known as the Private Parker F. Dunn Memorial Bridge, carries US 9 and US 20 across the Hudson River between Albany, New York and Rensselaer, New York. Description Completed in 1969 to replace an earlier span be ...

and travels through the city of Albany north, connecting it with the suburbs in the Colonie and Saratoga County.

U.S. Route 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. S ...

also enters the county on the Dunn Memorial Bridge and travels west through Albany (city) and the Town of

New York State Route 5 New York State Route 5 (NY 5) is a state highway that extends for across the state of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in the Chautauqua County town of Ripley and passes through Buffalo, Syr ...

and

New York State Route 7 New York State Route 7 (NY 7) is a state highway in New York in the United States. The highway runs from Pennsylvania Route 29 (PA 29) at the Pennsylvania state line south of Binghamton in Broome County, New York, to Ver ...

are two important highways that bisect the county and are developed as important shopping strips.

Mass transit

Albany County is served by the

Capital District Transportation Authority The Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) is a New York State public-benefit corporation overseeing a number of multi-modal parts of public transportation in the Capital District of New York State ( Albany, Schenectady, Rensselaer an ...

, a four-county bus service that also serves Rensselaer, Schenectady, and Saratoga counties.

Greyhound Lines Greyhound Lines, Inc. (commonly known as simply Greyhound) operates the largest intercity bus service in North America, including Greyhound Mexico. It also operates charter bus services, Amtrak Thruway services, commuter bus services, and pac ...

Trailways The Trailways Transportation System is an American network of approximately 70 independent bus companies that have entered into a brand licensing agreement. The company is headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia. History The predecessor to Trailwa ...

, and

Peter Pan Peter Pan is a fictional character created by List of Scottish novelists, Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie. A free-spirited and mischievous young boy who can fly and Puer aeternus, never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending ...

/Bonanza buses all serve a downtown terminal. A

Chinatown bus Chinatown bus lines are discount intercity bus services, often operated by Chinese Americans. They have been established primarily in the Chinatown communities of the East Coast of the United States since 1998, and similar services operate on ...

service leaves from Central Avenue and provides service to Chinatown in

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 ...

Airports

is the only commercial airport in the county. Destinations for flights out of Albany include

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

;

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

; Chicago;

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

; and

Orlando, Florida Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County, Florida, Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Greater Orlando, Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, acco ...

, among many others.

Rail

Since 1968 when

Union Station A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...

in the city of Albany was abandoned for a new station across the Hudson in the city of Rensselaer, Albany County has been without a train station. Amtrak has several routes serving the Albany-Rensselaer Station. The Adirondack (north to

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

and south to the city of New York),

Empire Service The ''Empire Service'' is an Inter-city rail service operated by Amtrak within the state of New York in the United States. The brand name originated with the New York Central Railroad in 1967. Trains on the line provide frequent daily service ...

(west to Buffalo and Niagara Falls, south to New York),

Ethan Allen Express The ''Ethan Allen Express'' is a daily passenger train operated by Amtrak in the United States between New York City and Burlington, Vermont, via Albany, New York. One daily round trip is operated on a north-south route with a 7 hour 35 min ...

(northeast to

Rutland, Vermont Rutland, Vermont may refer to: *Rutland (city), Vermont * Rutland (town), Vermont *Rutland County, Vermont *West Rutland, Vermont West Rutland is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,214 at the 2020 census. The t ...

and south to New York),

Maple Leaf The maple leaf is the characteristic leaf of the maple tree. It is the most widely recognized national symbol of Canada. History of use in Canada By the early 1700s, the maple leaf had been adopted as an emblem by the French Canadians along the ...

(west to Toronto and south to New York), and the

Lake Shore Limited The ''Lake Shore Limited'' is an overnight Amtrak intercity rail, intercity passenger train that runs between Chicago and either New York City or Boston via two Section (rail transport), sections east of Albany, New York, Albany. The train bega ...

(at Albany-Rensselaer separate routes from Boston and New York merge to one train west to Chicago, on way east one train splits to two, one east to Boston and another south to New York).

Communities

Albany County is composed of three cities and 10 towns.

Cities

* Albany (county seat) * Cohoes * Watervliet

Towns

Berne german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese , neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen , website ...

Bethlehem Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital o ...

* Coeymans * Colonie * Green Island *

* Knox * New Scotland * Rensselaerville *

Westerlo Westerlo () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises seven towns: * Westerlo centrum * * Tongerlo * Heultje * Voortkapel * Oosterwijk * In 2021, Westerlo had a total population of 25,288. The ...

Villages

* Altamont * Colonie * Green Island * Menands *

Ravena Ravena is a village in Albany County, New York, United States. The population was 3,271 in the 2020 census an increase of 3 over the 2010 census. The village is in the southeast part of the town of Coeymans. History The village of Ravena ...

* Voorheesville

Census-designated places

* Latham * Loudonville * Preston-Potter Hollow * Roessleville *

* Westmere

Hamlets

* Alcove * Boght Corners * Clarksville * Coeymans * Crescent Station * Delmar * Dunsbach Ferry * Elsmere * Feura Bush *

Fort Hunter Fort Hunter is a hamlet in the Town of Florida in Montgomery County, New York, United States, west of the capital at Albany, on the south bank of the Mohawk River and on the northeast bank of Schoharie Creek. The hamlet developed around a fort of ...

* Fullers * Glenmont *

* Guilderland Center * Karner *

Lisha Kill Lisha Kill is a hamlet in the town of Colonie, Albany County, New York, United States. Lisha Kill lies on New York Route 5 (Central Avenue) in the western section of the town. The hamlet received its name from the creek of the same name, Lisha ...

* Mannsville * McKownville *

Medusa In Greek mythology, Medusa (; Ancient Greek: Μέδουσα "guardian, protectress"), also called Gorgo, was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, generally described as winged human females with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Those ...

* New Salem * Newtonville * Normansville * Selkirk *

Slingerlands Slingerlands is a hamlet in the town of Bethlehem, Albany County, New York, United States. It is located immediately west of Delmar and near the New Scotland town-line and south of the Albany city-limits, and is thus a suburb of Albany. The S ...

* South Bethlehem * Verdoy * Wemple * West Albany

Notes

Sources

External links

Albany County official website

{{coord, 42, 36, N, 73, 58, W, type:adm2nd_region:US-NY, display=title 1683 establishments in the Province of New York Populated places established in 1683

History

Colonial

Formation of towns

Timeline of boundary changes

Geography

Climate

Adjacent counties

Cityscape

Architecture

Parks

Festivals

Amusement

Culture and contemporary life

Museums

Performing arts

Sports

Religious life

Demographics

2020 Census

Economy

Tech Valley

Government and politics

Law enforcement

Education

Tertiary

K-12 education

Transportation

Interstate and other major highways

Mass transit

Airports

Rail

Communities

Cities

Towns

Villages

Census-designated places

Hamlets

See also

Notes

Sources

Further reading

External links