The North Country of

Upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region of New York (state), New York that lies north and northwest of the New York metropolitan area, New York City metropolitan area of downstate New York. Upstate includes the middle and upper Hudson Valley, ...

is the northernmost region of the U.S. state of New York. It is bordered by

Lake Champlain Lake Champlain ( ; , ) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec. The cities of Burlington, Ve ...

to the east and further east to the adjacent state of

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

and the

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

region; the

Adirondack Mountains The Adirondack Mountains ( ) are a massif of mountains in Northeastern New York which form a circular dome approximately wide and covering about . The region contains more than 100 peaks, including Mount Marcy, which is the highest point in Ne ...

/ Adirondack Park and the Upper Capital District with the state capital of Albany to the south; the Mohawk Valley region of New York to the southwest; the Canadian-American international border (with the Province of Ontario in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

) to the north; and

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 ...

, (the eastern-most of 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 the Saint Lawrence River / Saint Lawrence Seaway, and beyond the waters again to

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

to the west. A mostly

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry are typically desc ...

forested area, the North Country includes seven

counties 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 ...

(or 14, according to another group) of the 62 in New York state. Fort Drum, a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

base, is also located in the North Country region in Jefferson County, near Watertown, as is the adjacent Adirondack Park of 6.1 million acres, established 1892 as the oldest

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 ...

in the nation, and preserved / operated by the Adirondack Park Agency and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. As of 2024, the population of the region was 420,311 (revised figure from the last 2020 United States census). Boldtcastle

The term "North Country" was first widely popularized within New York by the 1900

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

'' Eben Holden'' by Irving Bacheller.

Economy

From a report on the North Country from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the North Country made up 1.5% of the total population of New York State in 2023 and its population declined 3.9% over 10 years prior. The region contributed .83% to New York State’s total GDP. Job growth experienced a 3.2% decline over 5 years prior to 2023 in part due to steep declines in the region’s manufacturing sector. Key local job sectors include education, government, healthcare, agriculture, retail, tourism, manufacturing, and timber. Unemployment rates have disproportionately been higher in the region compared to New York state overall since the 1990s, though it has been steadily declining.

Counties

According to the Empire State Development Corporation in the state capital of

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...

, the North Country encompasses the following seven counties: * Clinton County * Essex County * Franklin County * Hamilton County * Jefferson County * Lewis County * St. Lawrence County However, according to another interest group of the Adirondack North Country Association, the North Country consists of a larger designated area of 14 counties; with those listed above and also the following further south and west: * Fulton County * Herkimer County * Oneida County * Oswego County * Saratoga County * Warren County * Washington County These are all counties in which part of Adirondack State Park resides. Herb Hallas summarizes both views:

References

External links

*
Development Authority of the North Country website
a New York state public benefit corporation
Hudson River-Black River Regulating District website
a New York state public benefit corporation {{coord, 44.471, -74.840, type:adm3rd_globe:earth_region:US-NY, display=title Regions of New York (state) Upstate New York

Economy

Counties

See also

References

External links