Allegany County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 46,456. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Belmont. Its name derives from a

Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historica ...

word, applied by European-American settlers of Western New York State to a

trail A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or a small paved road (though it can also be a route along a navigable waterways) generally not intended for usage by motorized vehicles, usually passing through a natural area. Ho ...

that followed the

Allegheny River The Allegheny River ( ; ; ) is a tributary of the Ohio River that is located in western Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. It runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border, nor ...

; they also named the county after this. The county is part of the

Western New York Western New York (WNY) is the westernmost region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The eastern boundary of the region is not consistently defined by state agencies or those who call themselves "Western New Yorkers". Almost all so ...

region of the state. The county is bisected by the

Genesee River The Genesee River ( ) is a tributary of Lake Ontario flowing northward through the Twin Tiers of Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. The river contains several waterfalls in New York at Letchworth State Park and Roch ...

, flowing north to its mouth on

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 (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

. During the mid-nineteenth century, the Genesee Valley Canal was built to link southern markets to the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

and

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 (state), New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson R ...

. The county was also served by railroads, which soon superseded the canals in their capacity for carrying freight. Part of the Oil Springs Reservation, controlled by the

Seneca Nation The Seneca ( ; ) are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west within the Six Nations or Iroquois Leag ...

, is located in the county.

History

For centuries, Allegany County was the territory of the

Seneca people The Seneca ( ; ) are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west within the Six Nations or Iroquois Leag ...

, at the westernmost nation of the Five Nations of the ''

Haudenosaunee The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...

'', a confederacy of

Iroquoian languages The Iroquoian languages () are a language family of indigenous peoples of North America. They are known for their general lack of labial consonants. The Iroquoian languages are polysynthetic and head-marking. As of 2020, almost all surviving I ...

-speaking peoples. European-American permanent settlement did not take place until after the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

and the forced cession by the Seneca of most of their lands in western New York. New York State sold off the lands cheaply to attract new European-American settlers and agricultural development. Allegany County was created by the state legislature on April 7, 1806, when

Genesee County, New York Genesee County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,388. Its county seat is Batavia. Its name is from the Seneca word Gen-nis'-hee-yo, meaning "the Beautiful Valley".THE AMERICAN REVIEW; ...

, was partitioned to set aside some to the new county. The first County Seat was established at Angelica, New York, where it remained for half a century. It was later moved to Belmont, a village located along the

. On March 11, 1808, the borders were adjusted so that of Steuben County passed to Allegany County, and of Allegany County passed to Genesee County. This established the current border between Genesee and Steuben counties, and reduced the size of Allegany County to . On June 12, 1812, the legislature authorized the attachment of

Cattaraugus County, New York Cattaraugus County (locally known as Catt County) is a county in Western New York, with one side bordering Pennsylvania. As of the United States 2020 census, the population was 77,042. The county seat is Little Valley. The county was created ...

, to Allegany County for administration reasons, but for practical reasons this action did not take place at that time. However, on April 13, 1814, the eastern half of Cattaraugus County was so attached and administered from Belmont. This attachment was ended on March 28, 1817. With continued settlement through the mid-nineteenth century, the legislature periodically adjusted county borders as new counties were organized in western New York. On April 1, 1846, Allegany County lost to Wyoming County, reducing the size of Allegany County to , and establishing the current border between Allegany and Wyoming counties. On May 11, 1846, Allegany County lost to Livingston County, reducing the total to , and establishing the western portion of the current border with Livingston County. On March 23, 1857, Allegany County lost another to Livingston County, passing the Ossian, New York, area to Livingston County, and establishing the current border between them.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.5%) is water. Allegany County is in the southwestern part of New York State, along the

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

border. Allegany County does not lie along the

, as its name would suggest. The highest point in the county is Alma Hill, with an elevation of above sea level. This is the highest point in the state west of the Catskill Mountains. The highest point of Interstate 86 is located in the town of West Almond with an elevation of 2,110 feet. This is also believed to be the highest point of any interstate in the New York. The county is unique from a watershed perspective as it is providing water to three major watersheds of North America: The eastern part near Alfred has Canacadea Creek that goes into the Canisteo River, Susquehanna River and eventually to Chesapeake Bay. The

bisects the county from south to north, flowing north out of the County through Letchworth State Park with its three waterfalls on to Rochester over three more waterfalls to its mouth on Lake Ontario and then on to the St. Lawrence River and Atlantic Ocean. The southwestern part of the County flows into the Allegheny River that flows into the Ohio and then to the Mississippi River basin to the Gulf of Mexico. In June 1972 the remnants of

Hurricane Agnes Hurricane Agnes was the List of costliest Atlantic hurricanes, costliest hurricane to hit the United States at the time, causing an estimated $2.1 billion in damage. The hurricane's death toll was 128. The effects of Agnes were widespread, ...

stalled over the area, dropping more than of rain. Flooding took place in the valley communities of Wellsville, Belmont, Belfast, and others in the county. Long a necessary transportation waterway for the Seneca and other Native Americans, and successive European-American settlers, since the late 20th century, the Genesee River has been extremely popular with canoeists. The river is also favored by fishermen as it abounds in

smallmouth bass The smallmouth bass (''Micropterus dolomieu'') is a species of freshwater fish in the Centrarchidae, sunfish family (biology), family (Centrarchidae) of the order (biology), order Centrarchiformes. It is the type species of its genus ''Micropterus ...

trout Trout (: trout) is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the ...

and panfish.

Adjacent counties

* Livingston County – northeast * Steuben County – east * Potter County,

– southeast * McKean County,

– southwest * Cattaraugus County – west * Wyoming County – northwest

Major highways

Interstate 86 (Southern Tier Expressway) * NY-17

New York State Route 17 New York State Route 17 (NY 17) is a major state highway that extends for through the Southern Tier and Downstate New York, Downstate regions of New York (state), New York in the United States. It begins at the New York–Pennsylvani ...

(Southern Tier Expressway) * NY-19

New York State Route 19 * NY-21

New York State Route 21 * NY-305

New York State Route 305 * NY-417

New York State Route 417 New York State Route 417 (NY 417) is an east–west state highway located in the Southern Tier of New York (state), New York in the United States. It begins at exit 20 of the Southern Tier Expressway (Interstate 86 (east), Inters ...

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2020, there were 46,456 people. Based on earlier (2000) censuses, there were 18,009 households, and 12,192 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

was . There were 24,505 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.03%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 0.72%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.28% Native American, 0.72% Asian, 0.37% from other races, and 0.88% from two or more races. 0.91% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. 22.3% identified as being of German, 16.6% English, 13.8% Irish, 11.9% American and 7.0%

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

ancestry according to Census 2000. 96.5% spoke English and 1.3% Spanish as their first language. There were 18,009 households, out of which 31.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.20% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 9.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.30% were non-families. 26.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.04. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.40% under the age of 18, 15.50% from 18 to 24, 23.90% from 25 to 44, 22.20% from 45 to 64, and 14.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 99.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $32,106, and the median income for a family was $38,580. Males had a median income of $30,401 versus $21,466 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $14,975. About 10.50% of families and 15.50% 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 ...

, including 19.20% of those under age 18 and 7.50% of those age 65 or over.

2020 census

Government and politics

Allegany County is part of New York's 23rd congressional district. In the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

, it is part of the 57th district and is represented by Republican George M. Borrello, and the 58th district is represented by Thomas F. O'Mara. In the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

, the county is in the 148th Assembly District represented by Republican Joseph Sempolinski. Allegany County is divided into five districts, delineated by town borders. The Allegany County Board of Legislators consists of 15 members, three from each of the five legislative districts: District 1: Angelica, Belfast, Caneadea, Centerville, Granger, Hume, Rushford, and the village of Angelica. District 2: Amity, Clarksville, Cuba, Friendship, New Hudson, Ward, and the villages of Belmont and Cuba. District 3: Alma, Bolivar, Genesee, Independence, Scio, Willing, Wirt, and the villages of Bolivar and Richburg. District 4: Andover, Wellsville, and the villages of Andover and Wellsville. District 5: Alfred, Allen, Almond, Birdsall, Burns, Grove, West Almond, and the villages of Alfred, Almond, and Canaseraga. The current chairperson of the legislature is W. Brooke Harris. The County Administrator is Carissa M. Knapp. Allegany County is considered to be a strongly Republican county. In 2004, it voted for

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

over

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...

63% to 34%, and in 2008 it voted for

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...

over

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

59% to 39%. It has been reported that in the last 170 years, the only Democratic candidates to win were

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. A northern Democratic Party (United States), Democrat who believed that the Abolitionism in the United States, abolitio ...

in 1852 and

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

in 1964. Even in 1964, when Republican nominee

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...

lost the county by 14 points, he still managed to carry the towns of Centerville, Caneadea, Granger, Hume, and Rushford. In 2006, neither Democrat

Eliot Spitzer Eliot Laurence Spitzer (born June 10, 1959) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 54th governor of New York from 2007 until his resignation in 2008 after a prostitution scandal. A member of the Democratic Party, he was also ...

nor

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

carried it in their otherwise landslide elections for governor and US senator, respectively. Eliot Spitzer lost 48.98% to John Faso's 49.03%. Hillary Clinton lost the county by 3 points. In 2010,

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...

lost by a wide margin while Senator

Chuck Schumer Charles Ellis Schumer ( ; born November 23, 1950) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from New York (state), New York, a seat he has held since 1999. ...

carried it by a narrow margin of 49.46% to Jay Townsend's 48.86% a margin of 78 votes. It was one of only two counties that Senator

Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten Elizabeth Gillibrand (; ; born December 9, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from New York (state), New York since 2009 ...

lost to Wendy Long in

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

. In the 2016, 2020, and 2024 presidential elections, Republican

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

received over two-thirds, the first for a Republican since 1988.

Education

Primary Education

The county has twelve school districts with their buildings in the county and parts of an additional seven districts located outside the county. Districts include: Alfred-Almond Central and Canaseraga Central that are part of th
Greater Southern Tier BOCES
with a facility in Hornell. Districts in association with th
Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES
include: Andover Central, Whitesville Central, Wellsville Central, Bolivar-Richburg Central, Scio Central, Genesee Valley Central, Belfast Central, Fillmore Central, Friendship Central, and Cuba-Rushford Central. Districts with their buildings outside the County include Arkport, Hinsdale, Portville, Yorkshire-Pioneer, Letchworth, Canisteo-Greenwood, and Keshequa. There are two private schools: Immaculate Conception in Wellsville and Houghton Academy in Houghton. There are also two Montessori Schools which are located in Wellsville and Alfred

Secondary Education

* Alfred University * Houghton University * The New York State College of Ceramics (a member of SUNY) * Alfred State College, with a main campus in Alfred, NY and the School of Applied Technology located at the Wellsville campus.

Communities

Allegany County comprises 29 towns and 10 villages. † - County seat ‡ - Not wholly in this county

Towns

* Alfred * Allen * Alma *

Almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', Synonym (taxonomy)#Botany, syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree from the genus ''Prunus''. Along with the peach, it is classified in the subgenus ''Amygdalus'', distinguished from the other subgenera ...

* Amity * Andover *

Angelica ''Angelica'' is a genus of about 90 species of tall Biennial plant, biennial and Perennial plant, perennial herbaceous, herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as ...

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

* Birdsall * Bolivar *

Burns Burns may refer to: Astronomy * 2708 Burns, an asteroid * Burns (crater), on Mercury People * Burns (surname), list of people and characters named Burns ** Burns (musician), Scottish record producer Places in the United States * Burns, ...

* Caneadea * Centerville * Clarksville *

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

Friendship Friendship is a Interpersonal relationship, relationship of mutual affection between people. It is a stronger form of interpersonal bond than an "acquaintance" or an "association", such as a classmate, neighbor, coworker, or colleague. Althoug ...

* Genesee * Granger * Grove * Hume *

Independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

* New Hudson * Rushford * Scio *

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

* Wellsville * West Almond * Willing * Wirt

Villages

* Alfred * Almond * Andover * Angelica * Belmont * Bolivar * Canaseraga * Cuba * Richburg * Wellsville

Census Designated Places (CDP)

* Belfast * Fillmore * Friendship * Houghton * Rushford * Scio * Stannards

Hamlets

In New York, the term

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

, while not defined in law, is used to describe an unincorporated community and geographic location within a town. The town in which each hamlet is located is in parentheses. * Alfred Station (Alfred) * Tinkertown (Alfred) * Tip Top (Alfred) * Allen Center (Allen) * Aristotle (Allen) * West Allen (Allen) * Allentown (Alma) * Alma (Alma) * Petrolia (Alma) * Pikeville (Alma) * Bishopville (Almond) * Karrdale (Almond) * North Almond (Almond) * Belvidere (Amity) * Withey (Amity) * Elm Valley (Andover) * Rockville (Belfast) * Hiltonville (Birdsall) * Scholes (Birdsall) * Bowler (Bolivar) * Hoben (Bolivar) * Kossuth (Bolivar) * Little Genesee (Bolivar) * Sawyer (Bolivar) * South Bolivar (Bolivar) * Vosburg (Bolivar) * Garwoods (Burns) * Gas Spring (Burns) * Houghton (Caneadea) * Oramel (Caneadea) * Centerville (Centerville) * Fairview (Centerville) * Higgins (Centerville) * Germantown (Clarksville) * Obi (Clarksville) * West Clarksville (Clarksville) * North Cuba (Cuba) * South Cuba (Cuba) * Hardy Corners (Farmersville) * Higgins (Friendship) * Nile (Friendship) * Ceres (Genesee) * Sanford (Genesee) * Short Tract (Granger) * Swain (Grove) * Fillmore (Hume) * Mills Mills (Hume) * Rossburg (Hume) * Wiscoy (Hume) * Fulmer Valley (Independence) * Spring Mills (Independence) * Whitesville (Independence) * Bellville (New Hudson) * Black Creek (New Hudson) * Lyons Corners (New Hudson) * Marshall (New Hudson) * Rawson (New Hudson) * Balcom Beach (Rushford) * Hillcrest (Rushford) * McGrawville (Rushford) * Rushford (Rushford) * Knight Creek (Scio) * Norton Summit (Scio) * Scio (Scio) * Phillips Creek (Ward) * Stannards (Wellsville) * Bennetts (West Almond) * Hallsport (Willing) * Mapes (Willing) * Paynesville (Willing) * Shongo (Willing) * Inavale (Wirt) * West Notch (Wirt)

Indian reservations

* Oil Springs Reservation (part) The Oil Springs Reservation is an Indian reservation of the Seneca Nation shared with Cattaraugus County having a total area of only . This is the site of the famed spring described by the Franciscan Missionary Joseph DeLa Roch D'Allion in 1627, the first recorded mention of oil on the North American Continent. In 1927, the New York State Oil Producers Association sponsored the dedication of a monument at the site describing the history of the oil industry in North America. There is a small park with parking and a footbridge to the monument. The remainder of the reservation is mostly utilized for cottages on Cuba Lake, Seneca-run gas stations, and woodlands.

Notes

References

External links

Allegany County Tourism Information

Allegany County Data and Information Resource

{{coord, 42.25, -78.02, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-NY_source:UScensus1990 Western New York 1806 establishments in New York (state) Populated places established in 1806 New York (state) placenames of Native American origin