Corning is a city in

Steuben County, New York Steuben County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 93,584. Its county seat is Bath. Its name is in honor of Baron von Steuben, a Prussian general who fought on the American si ...

, United States, on the

Chemung River The Chemung River ( ) is a tributary of the Susquehanna River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed August 8, 2011 in south central New York and northern ...

. The population was 10,551 at the 2020 census. It is named for

Erastus Corning Erastus Corning (December 14, 1794 – April 9, 1872) was an American businessman and politician from Albany, New York. A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, he was most notable for his service as mayor of Albany, New York, mayor of Alba ...

, an Albany

financier An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital the investor usually purchases some species of property. Types of in ...

and railroad executive who was an investor in the company that developed the community. The city is best known as the headquarters of

Fortune 500 The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune (magazine), Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States Joint-stock company#Closely held corporations and publicly traded corporations, corporations by ...

company Corning Incorporated, formerly Corning Glass Works, a manufacturer of

glass Glass is an amorphous (non-crystalline solid, non-crystalline) solid. Because it is often transparency and translucency, transparent and chemically inert, glass has found widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in window pane ...

and

ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant, and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcela ...

products for industrial, scientific and technical uses. Corning is roughly

equidistant A point is said to be equidistant from a set of objects if the distances between that point and each object in the set are equal. In two-dimensional Euclidean geometry, the locus of points equidistant from two given (different) points is t ...

from

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, being about from both.

Overview

The city of Corning is situated at the western edge of the

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 ...

of Corning and in the southeast part of Steuben County. It is also home to the

Corning Museum of Glass The Corning Museum of Glass is a museum in Corning (city), New York, Corning, New York, United States, dedicated to the art, history, and science of glass. It was founded in 1951 by Corning Incorporated, Corning Glass Works and currently has a ...

, which houses one of the world's most comprehensive collections of glass objects from antiquity to the present. The museum houses the Rakow Library, one of the world's major glass research centers. The city's other major cultural attraction is the Rockwell Museum. It contains an important collection of Western American painting and sculpture assembled over the past 40 years by Robert F. and Hertha Rockwell. The city has been cited several times by ''

American Style This is a list of dance terms that are not names of dances or types of dances. See List of dances and List of dance style categories for those. This glossary lists terms used in various types of ballroom partner dances, leaving out terms of high ...

'' magazine as one of the top twenty-five small city arts destinations in the U.S. – most recently in June 2010. Many of the cultural events and historic landmarks in the city are in Corning's Gaffer District. Corning Country Club annually hosted the Corning Classic, a stop on the Ladies Professional Golf Association tour, from 1979 to 2009. The city has commercial air service available at Elmira/Corning Regional Airport in the nearby town of Big Flats. Corning is also home to the 2006 New York State Class A high school football champions. In 2006, the city council approved public water fluoridation. In 2007, a petition was launched to ban this practice by local resident Kirk Huttleston which eventually became known as Proposition 1. Proposition 1 passed the ban by a close vote of 1,287 to 1,222, according to unofficial results, leading to a full ban on public water fluoridation in 2008. In 2013, Rand McNally's list of best small towns in America named Corning the "Most Fun" town out of all the list's finalists.

History

The first settlement in the town of Corning was made near the site of the future city in 1796. The community was incorporated as 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 ...

in 1848. Corning was incorporated as a city in 1890. As the

industry developed, Corning became known as the "Crystal City" which was supported by companies such as Hawkes, Sinclair, and Hunt - which produced some of the finest American Brilliant Period

cut glass Cut glass or cut-glass is a technique and a style of decorating glass. For some time the style has often been produced by other techniques such as the use of Molding (process), moulding, but the original technique of cutting glass on an abrasiv ...

between 1880 and 1915. The Corning area's first real industry was

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

. The first settlers used the area's river systems to transport logs and finished lumber in fleets downstream to buyers. This gave rise to large mills which helped to develop the area. Rafting of lumber began to wane as timber was depleted. At one time the mills of the Corning area were reputed to be among the biggest in the world. After the lumber was depleted the great mills moved north to new forests. East, across the

from Corning, lies Gibson, the site of a feeder canal for the Chemung Canal system. Some of Corning's early prosperity came from the feeder canal system exposure. Canal cargoes from Corning included soft coal,

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

, and

whiskey Whisky or whiskey is a type of liquor made from Fermentation in food processing, fermented grain mashing, mash. Various grains (which may be Malting, malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, Maize, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky ...

. From April 22 to December 11, 1850, the canal season that year, the newspaper reported that 1,116 boats left the port of Corning. Tolls for the year totaled $54,060.39. Among items shipped were 46,572,400 pounds of coal. The canal's best peacetime year was 1854 when 270,978 tons of freight were hauled. The

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

brought an abnormal amount of business, with a peak of 307,151 tons hauled in one year. After the Civil War, an industrial boom occurred in the region.

Ingersoll Rand Ingersoll Rand Inc. is an American multinational company that provides flow creation and industrial products. The company was formed in February 2020 through the spinoff of the industrial segment of Ingersoll-Randplc (now known as Trane Technol ...

opened during this period in Painted Post, just north of Corning. Corning became a railroad town in the 1880s, many smaller railroad lines busily weaving webs of tracks connecting the major trunk line to smaller communities. In 1912, the Corning train wreck three miles east of Corning in Gibson left 39 dead. The Jenning's Tavern, Corning Armory, Market Street Historic District, Southside Historic District, World War Memorial Library, and

United States Post Office The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal serv ...

are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

The flood of 1972

The flood of 1972 was a major event for the area. On June 22, 1972, the storm that had been

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, ...

struck the

Southern Tier The Southern Tier is a geographic subregion of the broader Upstate New York, Upstate region of New York (state), New York State, geographically situated along or very near the state border with Pennsylvania. Definitions of the region vary wide ...

of New York. The storm combined with a storm system from

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

to drop six to of rain in the

basin. This ultimately overwhelmed the flood control systems of the time, and the Chemung River broke through the dam system on Friday, June 23 at 4:00 a.m. By 9:00 a.m. the river crested and began to recede. In the Corning area, eighteen people were killed and untold millions of dollars of damage was incurred. The river receded within hours, leaving mud which can still be found in basements of homes and businesses in Corning, and there is a section of the

that indicates on the wall how high the flood waters rose. Corning Clock Tower

Geography

Just upstream from Corning, the Cohocton River and the Tioga River merge to form the

which flows through downtown. The river was an important source of

power Power may refer to: Common meanings * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power, a type of energy * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events Math ...

in the early history, and is part of the attractiveness of the region today. The river is prone to floods, as rain water runs off quickly from the steep hillsides of the area. In 1972 the remnants of

dropped fifteen or more inches of rain in the area within a short time causing extensive flooding. Eighteen people were killed in the immediate Corning-Painted Post area. The entire downtown area was flooded, with severe damage. Flooding is now controlled by a system of dams upstream from Corning. I-86 (the Southern Tier Expressway), NY 17, NY 352, NY 414, and NY 415 are major highways connecting in Corning. County Road 40 leads into the city from the south and County Road 41 from the north. I-99 and

US 15 U.S. Route 15 or U.S. Highway 15 (US 15) is a United States Numbered Highway, serving the states of South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New York (state), New York. The route is signed north–sou ...

proceeds southward from Painted Post, west of Corning. 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 city has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (5.18%) is water.

Climate

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 2010, there were 11,183 people in 5,114 households residing in the city. The population density was . There were 5,519 housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 91.8%

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 ...

, 3.2%

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 ...

, 0.3% Native American, 1.8% Asian,

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 2.4% of the population. 4.1% speak a language other than English at home. In 2000, there were 4,996 households, out of which 26.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.6% 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, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 46.6% were non-families. 40.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.89. In the city, the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 21.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $32,780, and the median income for a family was $46,674. Males had a median income of $39,805 versus $27,489 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 city was $22,056. About 9.1% of families and 13.0% 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 18.4% of those under age 18 and 3.8% of those age 65 or over. In 2010, 20.4% were below the poverty line.

Politics

Most local officials are Republicans. The Corning area typically votes Republican, though some outsiders have deemed its constituents "moderate" Republicans. Amo Houghton, the area's long-serving U.S. congressman, was a moderate Republican. While the Town of Corning and surrounding areas are reliably Republican, the City of Corning leans Democratic, voting for both

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 ...

and

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 ...

in recent presidential elections.

Federal representatives

Corning is in New York's 23rd congressional district, which is currently represented by Republican

Nick Langworthy Nicholas Andrew Langworthy (born February 27, 1981) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 23rd district since 2023. He was formerly the chair of the New York State Republican Committee. Langworthy was named ...

State representatives

It is in New York's 53rd Senate District, represented by Tom O'Mara, a Republican. Corning is in the 136th Assembly District, represented by Phil Palmesano, also a Republican.

City Mayors

Democrat Joseph Nasser served for many years as Corning's mayor, and the Nasser Civic Center, headquarters of city government, bears his name. On November 6, 2007, Tom Reed, the head of the city's Republican Party, was elected. He completed his two-year term on December 31, 2009. Richard Negri was elected in November 2009 and took office January 1, 2010. Negri's second term expired December 31, 2013.

Government

Since 1995, the City of Corning operates under the Council-Manager form of government, with the City Manager serving as the chief executive officer. The first City Manager was Suzanne Kennedy who served until July 1997. In July 1997, Mark L. Ryckman was appointed as the city's second City Manager. The city council consists of eight members. One member is elected from each of the eight wards.

Education

The Corning-Painted Post (Consists of the City of Corning, and the Village of Painted Post) School District currently has six public elementary schools, one public middle school, and one public high school located in the greater Corning area. In 2010 a referendum was passed that reconfigured the school district's secondary schools; both of the previous middle schools combined and moved into the former "West High School" building while both of the high schools combined at the former "East High School" campus. This reconfiguration / building project was finished by the beginning of the 2014–2015 school year. In addition to the public and private school options, the Corning-Painted Post District also partners with a regional P-Tech school (known as "The Greater Southern Tier STEM Academy") and sends selected students to a grade 9-14 program on their campus. Public elementary schools include: * Calvin U. Smith * Erwin Valley * Frederick Carder * Hugh W. Gregg * Lindley-Presho (closed) * William E. Severn * Winfield Street Public middle schools include: * Corning Free Academy (Before 2014–2015 school year) * Corning Painted Post Middle School (After 2013–current) * Northside Blodgett (Before 2014–2015 school year) Public high schools include: * Corning Painted Post High School (After 2013–current) * East High School (Before 2014–2015 school year) * High School Learning Center (HSLC) * West High School (Before 2014–2015 school year) Private schools in Corning include: * All Saints Academy (a preK–8 Catholic school)(Closed) * Corning Christian Academy (a P–12 evangelical Christian school) * The Alternative School for Math and Science (ASMS) Higher education in Corning includes: * Corning Community College

Places of interest

Downtown

: a not-for-profit museum dedicated to the art, history, science, and craft of glass. * The Gaffer District is the historic heart of Corning, featuring restored buildings, shopping, dining, and events through the year. ** Market Street is Corning's historic main street, lined with restaurants and shopping. ** The heart of Market Street is Centerway Square, a pedestrianized central square with a covered bandstand and public benches for public concerts and events. A restored historic clock tower serves as Centerway Square's focal point.

Elsewhere in Corning

* Bloody Run – An area near Gorton Creek, it was the site of a battle between forces of American generals John Sullivan and

James Clinton Major general (United States), Major-General James Clinton (August 9, 1736 – September 22, 1812) was a Continental Army officer and politician who fought in the American Revolutionary War. During the war he, along with John Sullivan (ge ...

and Native American villagers. This battle was part of a campaign directly ordered by

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

to break the control of the

Iroquois 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 ...

Indians in the area. It was called Bloody Run for the reports of bloody creek water coming from the battle scene. * Chimney Rocks – A group of tall rock formations that stood east of Corning. The rocks are no longer there but were so named because they were tall and narrow like chimneys. * Heritage Village of the Southern Finger Lakes – Right in the heart of Corning, the Heritage Village is a Living History museum and the site of the Benjamin Patterson Inn, constructed in 1796 to draw settlers to the area. The site also includes a functioning blacksmith shop, one room school house, and an 1850s era log cabin. * Horace D. Page Tunnel – A tunnel connecting the two divided areas of Denison Park, located on the city's South side. It was named after Page, who lost the naming rights to Elmira's Millers (formerly Page's) Pond in a 1912 horse racing bet at Tioga Downs, and was given naming rights to the tunnel as compensation.

Gallery

File:Corning_tower.jpg, Corning's Little Joe Tower File:Corning_6.jpg, Corning File:Corning_3.jpg, Corning

Notable people

* Thomas S. Buechner – artist who became the founding director of the

* Frederick Carder – glassmaker, glass designer, and glass artist * Joseph Costa – aviation pioneer *

Duane Eddy Duane Eddy (April 26, 1938 – April 30, 2024) was an American guitarist. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, he had a string of hit records produced by Lee Hazlewood which were noted for their characteristically "twangy" guitar sound, including ...

– Grammy Award-winning

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

guitarist * Edd Hall – television personality and announcer * Alanson B. Houghton – businessman, politician, and diplomat who served as a

Congressman A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...

and Ambassador * Amory "Amo" Houghton Jr. – politician * Amory Houghton –

United States ambassador Ambassadors of the United States are persons nominated by the president to serve as the United States' diplomatic representatives to foreign nations, international organizations, and as ambassadors-at-large. Under Article II, Section 2 of th ...

to France * James R. Houghton – businessman who was chairman of

Corning Inc. Corning Incorporated is an American multinational technology company specializing in glass, ceramics, and related materials and technologies including advanced optics, primarily for industrial and scientific applications. The company was name ...

* Katharine Houghton Hepburn – social reformer and a leader of the suffrage movement in the United States; mother of

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress whose Katharine Hepburn on screen and stage, career as a Golden Age of Hollywood, Hollywood leading lady spanned six decades. She was known for her headstrong ...

* John N. Hungerford – banker, philanthropist, and politician who served as a United States Congressman * Greg Keagle – MLB player * Caroline Ella Heminway Kierstead – geologist * Harvey Littleton – glass artist and educator * Eric Massa – politician who served as a United States Congressman * Tom Reed – lobbyist, attorney, and politician who served as a United States Congressman *

Margaret Sanger Margaret Sanger ( Higgins; September 14, 1879September 6, 1966) was an American birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse. She opened the first birth control clinic in the United States, founded Planned Parenthood, and was instr ...

– birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse; founder of

Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is an American nonprofit organization

* Samuel Sevian – chess prodigy and grandmaster * John Tillman –

lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...

coach; currently the head coach for the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the Univ ...

Terrapins men's lacrosse team * Charles C. B. Walker – politician who served as a United States Congressman * Christi Wolf – champion female

bodybuilder Bodybuilding is the practice of progressive resistance exercise to build, control, and develop one's muscles via hypertrophy. An individual who engages in this activity is referred to as a bodybuilder. It is primarily undertaken for aesthetic ...

and

professional wrestler Professional wrestling, often shortened to either pro wrestling or wrestling,The term "wrestling" is most often widely used to specifically refer to modern scripted professional wrestling, though it is also used to refer to real-life wrest ...

best known for her stint in

World Championship Wrestling World Championship Wrestling (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of National W ...

Sister cities

* Kakegawa, Shizuoka, Japan (formerly Osuka which was annexed by Kakegawa) *

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

, Ukraine *

San Giovanni Valdarno San Giovanni Valdarno is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Arezzo, Tuscany, central Italy, located in the valley of the Arno River. History According to the Italian medieval historian Giovanni Villani, the town was founded in 1296, by t ...

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...

, Italy

References

External links

Chamber of Commerce website
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Corning (City), New York Company towns in New York (state) Cities in New York (state) Populated places established in 1796 Cities in Steuben County, New York 1796 establishments in New York (state)