Chester is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in Orange County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, United States. The population was 12,646 at the 2020 census.US Census Bureau, 2020 Census Report Chester, Orange County, New York QuickFacts https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/chestertownorangecountynewyork Chester contains a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

, also called

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

. Chester is the birthplace of Philadelphia-style

cream cheese Cream cheese is a soft, usually mild-tasting fresh cheese made from milk and cream.Oxford English Dictionary Cream cheese is not naturally matured and is meant to be consumed fresh, so it differs from other soft cheeses such as Brie and Neuf ...

History

The

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 ...

people have settled in Orange County for over 5,000 years. Europeans first settled in the 1700s which were ethnic Dutch and English colonists. The economy of the early town was based on dairy products, particularly milk. This industry flourished because completion of the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Northeastern United States, originally connecting Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City, New Jersey, with Lake Erie at Dunkirk, New York. The railroad expanded west to Chicago following its 1865 ...

in 1841, which ran through Chester, enabled local farmers to ship their products to New York City, where demand was high. For instance, local farmer Phil Gregory would ship 240 quarts () of milk by train to New York City. The railroad earned $1.20 ($ in modern dollars) in freight charges; Gregory's business eventually grew to 300,000 quarts () of milk per day, which in turn gave the railroad over $1,000 ($ in modern dollars) in daily profit.

Late 20th century to present

In 2018, the Town of Chester approved a large residential development. It learned that the development appeared to be targeted toward the Satmar Hasidic community, whose rapid growth in this area had caused tensions. The large families of the Orthodox created strains for the local public school system, and there were other tensions between the strict Kiryas Joel and neighboring communities. Town supervisor Alex Jamieson told a local newspaper that the town would be buying up areas of undeveloped open space, including around the planned development in Chester, in order "to keep the Hasidic out so that they can't control the Town Board." His comments were widely reported and criticized by ''

The Forward ''The Forward'' (), formerly known as ''The Jewish Daily Forward'', is an American news media organization for a Jewish American audience. Founded in 1897 as a Yiddish-language daily socialist newspaper, ''The New York Times'' reported that Set ...

'' as

antisemitic Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and (0.24%) is water. Conjoined

NY-17 New York's 17th congressional district is a congressional district for the United States House of Representatives located in Southern New York (state), New York. It includes all of Rockland County, New York, Rockland County and Putnam County, N ...

and US-6 pass through the northern part of Chester. NY-94 crosses NY-17 south of Chester village.

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 2017, there were 12,140 people, 3,848 households, and 3,016 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 3,984 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 76.7%

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 ...

, 9.8%

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 ...

, 0.5% Native American, 4.3% Asian, 0.0%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, 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 th ...

, and 3.2% from two or more races.

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 were 10.14% of the population. There were 3,782 households, out of which 41.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.7% 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, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 21.6% were non-families. 16.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.92 and the average family size was 3.31. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.4% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 33.8% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 7.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 111.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $69,280, and the median income for a family was $75,222. Males had a median income of $53,528 versus $36,673 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 town was $25,900. About 2.7% of families and 7.2% 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 4.9% of those under age 18 and 3.7% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Chester

* Camp Monroe – a multi-denominational Jewish sleep-away

summer camp A summer camp, also known as a sleepaway camp or residential camp, is a supervised overnight program for children conducted during the summer vacation from school in many countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer residential camps ...

founded in 1941 near the southern border with the town of Monroe. *

– a village located on NY-94. * East Chester – a

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 ...

southeast of Chester village. * Greycourt – site of former major railroad intersection and depot on the Erie Main Line. * Glenmere Lake – a reservoir at the western town line * Goose Pond Mountain State Park – a

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "Federated state, state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on accou ...

southeast of Chester village. * Lake Hill Farms– a subdivision of about 175 homes in the southwestern corner of the town first developed in 1973. *

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

– the oldest community in the town, antedating Chester town by more than a century (1738). The hamlet is home to the harness-racing horse

Hambletonian 10 Hambletonian 10, or Rysdyk's Hambletonian (May 5, 1849 – March 27, 1876), was an American trotter and a founding sire of the Standardbred horse breed. The stallion was born in Sugar Loaf, New York, on 5 May 1849. Hambletonian has been induct ...

. * Surrey Meadows – a late 1960s subdivision north of Chester village. The elementary school is located in this area. * Walton Park – a hamlet on the border of the towns of Chester and Monroe.

Education

School districts covering sections of the Town of Chester include Chester Union Free School District, Monroe-Woodbury Central School District, Wallkill Central School District and Florida Union Free School District.
Text list
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Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York The Archdiocese of New York () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in the State of New York. It encompasses the boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island in New York City and the count ...

operates area Roman Catholic schools. St. Columba School in Chester closed in 1991.

References

External links

Town website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chester, New York Towns in Orange County, New York Towns in New York (state) Kiryas Joel–Poughkeepsie–Newburgh metropolitan area Chester, Orange County, New York Towns in the New York metropolitan area