Owego (town), New York
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Owego 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 Tioga 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 18,728 at the 2020 census. The name is derived from 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 ...
word ''Ahwaga'', meaning "where the valley widens". Owego is in the southeastern corner of the county, west of
Binghamton Binghamton ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of New York, and serves as the county seat of Broome County. Surrounded by rolling hills, it lies in the state's Southern Tier region near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the con ...
. The village of Owego is in the western part of the town.


History

The town was first settled around 1786. The original town of Owego was created at the time Tioga County was formed in 1791. This original town was reduced by formation of later towns in the county. The town's name is a derivative of the Iroquois word "ahwaga", which means "where the valley widens". This name came from the vast floods that run into the valley when the winter snows melt, which caused several deaths a year. The current town of Owego was formed as the town of Tioga in 1800 from the town of Union (now in
Broome County Broome County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the county had a population of 198,683. Its county seat is Binghamton. The county was named for John Broome, the state's lieutenant governor when ...
). Confusion over the location of the village of Owego caused the legislature to have the towns of Owego and
Tioga Tioga may refer to: United States communities *Tioga, California, former name of Bennettville, California *Tioga, Colorado * Tioga, Florida * Tioga, Iowa * Tioga, Louisiana * Tioga, Michigan * Tioga, New York, a town in Tioga County *Tioga County, ...
switch names in 1813 so that Owego village was within the same-named town. The
Hiawatha Farm Hiawatha Farm, also known as the Levi Green and Mary Montanye House, is a historic home and farm complex located at Owego in Tioga County, New York. The two story, five bay center entrance house was built about 1825 in the transitional Federal ...
,
Waits Methodist Episcopal Church and Cemetery Waits Methodist Episcopal Church and Cemetery is a historic Methodist Episcopal church and cemetery located at what was once known as Waits, in the town of Owego in Tioga County, New York. It is a Greek Revival–style structure built in 1853 of ...
, and
Vesper Cliff Vesper Cliff ( also known as Tioga Terrace, Glenbetsy, and Robert C. John House) an architecturally distinguished Greek Revival-style residence located immediately outside of the Town of Owego in Tioga County, New York. The oldest part of the ...
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 ...
.


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 105.8 square miles (273.9 km2), of which 104.2 square miles (269.8 km2) is land and 1.6 square miles (4.1 km2) (1.51%) is water. The
Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...
flows across the town, dividing it into two parts. Owego Creek flows into the Susquehanna at Owego village and marks the western town line.


Transportation

The
Southern Tier Expressway New York State Route 17 (NY 17) is a major state highway that extends for through the Southern Tier and Downstate regions of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in Mina and runs east as a limite ...
(
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 ...
) crosses the town on the river's south bank.
New York State Route 17C New York State Route 17C (NY 17C) is a state highway in the Southern Tier of New York in the United States. Its western terminus is at an intersection with NY 34 in Waverly, Tioga County while its eastern terminus is at an inte ...
follows the river along the north bank.
New York State Route 38 New York State Route 38 (NY 38) is a north–south state highway in the Finger Lakes region of New York in the United States. Its southern terminus is at an intersection with NY 96 in the town of Owego in Tioga County. The nor ...
and
New York State Route 96 New York State Route 96 (NY 96) is a northwest–southeast state highway in the Finger Lakes region of New York (state), New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an interchange with Interstate 86 (Pe ...
converge north of Owego village. Until the 1960s, the
Erie Lackawanna Railroad The Erie Lackawanna Railway , known as the Erie Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. The official motto of the line was "The Friendly Service Route ...
operated passenger trains through Owego, for trips from
Buffalo Buffalo most commonly refers to: * True buffalo or Bubalina, a subtribe of wild cattle, including most "Old World" buffalo, such as water buffalo * Bison, a genus of wild cattle, including the American buffalo * Buffalo, New York, a city in the n ...
to
Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; ) is a City (New Jersey), city in Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the ...
: the ''
Phoebe Snow Phoebe Snow (born Phoebe Ann Laub; July 17, 1950 – April 26, 2011) was an American roots music singer-songwriter and guitarist, known for her hit 1974 and 1975 songs "Poetry Man" and "Harpo's Blues", and her credited guest vocals on Paul Simo ...
'', ending in 1966; the overnight ''New York Mail''/ ''Owl'', ending in 1967; and the Lake Cities between Chicago and Hoboken, which was the last EL passenger train through Owego on January 6, 1970.


Adjacent towns and areas

The eastern town line is the border of
Broome County Broome County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the county had a population of 198,683. Its county seat is Binghamton. The county was named for John Broome, the state's lieutenant governor when ...
and the southern town boundary is the border of
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 ...
(
Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...
and Susquehanna counties). Owego is in 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.


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 2000, there were 20,365 people, 7,733 households, and 5,761 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 8,226 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.78%
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 ...
, 0.70%
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 ...
or
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 ...
, 0.22% Native American, 1.01% Asian, 0.02%
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 ...
, 0.26% from other races, and 1.02% 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 1.11% of the population. There were 7,733 households, out of which 34.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.0% 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, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.5% were non-families. 21.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.03. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $46,987, and the median income for a family was $53,735. Males had a median income of $40,677 versus $25,425 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 $21,996. About 5.0% of families and 6.6% 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 7.5% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.


Communities and locations in the Town of Owego

*
Apalachin Apalachin ( ) is a census-designated place within the Town of Owego in Tioga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,131 in the 2010 census. The CDP is named after Apalachin Creek. Apalachin is in the southeastern section of the ...
– The
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 ...
of Apalachin is south of the Susquehanna River by the Southern Tier Expressway. *Campville – A hamlet on the northern side of the river on NY-17C. It was originally called East Owego until renamed after soldier and settler Asa Camp. * Crest View Heights – A neighborhood 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 counte ...
near the eastern town line, north of the river. *Flemingville – A hamlet north of Owego village on NY Route 38. It was named after soldier and settler David Fleming. *Foster – A location near the eastern town boundary, named after early settlers named Foster. *Gaskill Corners (or Gaskill) – A hamlet north of the river on County Road 39. It is named after early settler Joseph Gaskill. *Gibsons Corners – A hamlet south of the river near the western town line. It is named after Eli Gibson, an early settler. *Hiawatha Island – An
island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...
in the Susquehanna River east of Owego village and west of Apalachin. *Hullsville – A location north of Gaskill on County Road 39. *Oakley Corners – A location in the northeastern section of the town, near Hullsville. * Owego – The village of Owego is located on the north bank of the Susquehanna River by Owego Creek and the west town line. *Owego Creek – A stream that flows southward through the western side of the town and is joined by the Catatonk Creek before it enters the Susquehanna River. *South Apalachin – A location in the southeastern part of the town on County Road 41. *South Owego – A hamlet near the southern town line on County Road 27. * Tioga Terrace – A neighborhood and census-designated place east of Apalachin and south of NY-434. *Waits – A hamlet in the southwestern corner of the town, named after early settler Henry Waits. *Whittemore – A location by the eastern town line, named after early settlers named Foster. A descendant, Reverend Whittemore, preached at the Whittemore Hill church until sometime around the 1980s.


Flood of 2011

On September 8, 2011, the town of Owego was badly damaged by flood waters. Remnants of
Tropical Storm Lee The name Lee has been used for eight tropical cyclones worldwide. In the Atlantic: * Tropical Storm Lee (2005), a short-lived, minimal tropical storm that did not affect land * Tropical Storm Lee (2011), a strong tropical storm that made landfal ...
dumped massive amounts of rain over the region, causing the Susquehanna River to rapidly overflow its banks.


References


External links

*
Village of Owego
{{Authority control Binghamton metropolitan area Towns in Tioga County, New York Towns in New York (state)