La Fargeville is a

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 ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...

(CDP) in the

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 ...

of Orleans in Jefferson County, New York, United States. The population was 608 at the 2010 census. The hamlet is named after John Frederick La Farge, one of the early proprietors of the town.Yarnall, James L. ''John La Farge: A Biographical and Critical Study''. Ashgate 2012. La Fargeville was once a

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

, but dissolved its

municipal corporation A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally ...

in 1922. La Fargeville is north of

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

. The small hamlet has one school, LaFargeville Central School, which serves Pre-K through 12th grade. La Fargeville Central School is ranked the 911th largest public school, 17,312th nationally, and has a total student population of 552.

History

The hamlet was previously called "Log Mills" when it was first settled around 1816, due to the construction of a sawmill for logs. John Frederick La Farge, a French immigrant who had Americanized his name from Jean Frédéric de la Farge, arrived in 1826. Already wealthy from an import business he had set up in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, he began in the 1820s to buy real estate and build houses in Jefferson County, speculation that eventually led to La Fargeville being named after him. His son

John La Farge John La Farge (March 31, 1835 – November 14, 1910) was an American artist whose career spanned illustration, murals, interior design, painting, and popular books on his Asian travels and other art-related topics. La Farge is best known for ...

became a well-known artist. By 1850, the population was about 300.

Geography

La Fargeville is in northern Jefferson County, in the central part of the town of Orleans. The Chaumont River, a southwest-flowing tributary of

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

, flows through the center of the community. 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 t ...

, the CDP has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.62%, are water. La Fargeville is at the junction of

New York State Route 180 New York State Route 180 (NY 180) is a north–south state highway in the northwestern part of Jefferson County in the U.S. state of New York. The southern terminus of the route is at NY 3 in the Hounsfield hamlet of Baggs Co ...

and

New York State Route 411 New York State Route 411 (NY 411) is an east–west state highway in Jefferson County, New York, in the United States. The western terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 180 in the community of La Fargeville in the tow ...

(Plank Road). NY-180 leads north to Fishers Landing on 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 ...

and south to Dexter at the mouth of the Black River into Lake Ontario. NY-411 leads east to

Interstate 81 Interstate 81 (I-81) is a north–south (physically northeast–southwest) Interstate Highway in the eastern part of the United States. Its southern terminus is at I-40 in Dandridge, Tennessee; its northern terminus is on Wellesley Isla ...

and to

Theresa Teresa (also Theresa, Therese; french: Thérèse) is a feminine given name. It originates in the Iberian Peninsula in late antiquity. Its derivation is uncertain, it may be derived from Greek θερίζω (''therízō'') "to harvest or re ...

. County Road 181 (Plank Street) serves the hamlet from the west, leading to Clayton on the St. Lawrence.

, the Jefferson

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

, is south of La Fargeville via Routes 180 and 12.

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 in ...

of 2000, there were 588 people, 219 households, and 160 families residing in the CDP. The

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

was 169.2 per square mile (65.2/km²). There were 236 housing units at an average density of 67.9/sq mi (26.2/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 95.41%

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 o ...

, 2.21%

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 ...

, 1.36% Native American, 0.34% Asian, and 0.68% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, 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 viceroyalties forme ...

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

of any race were 0.17% of the population. There were 219 households, out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.3% were married couples living together, 13.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.9% were non-families. 25.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.11. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 28.2% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 12.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.9 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $29,286, and the median income for a family was $41,705. Males had a median income of $21,750 versus $24,306 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 CDP was $13,816. About 22.5% of families and 28.1% 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 48.9% of those under age 18 and 8.9% of those age 65 or over.

References

{{authority control Hamlets in New York (state) Census-designated places in New York (state) Former villages in New York (state) Census-designated places in Jefferson County, New York Hamlets in Jefferson County, New York