Parishville 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 the east-central part of St. Lawrence County, east of

Potsdam Potsdam () is the capital and largest city of the Germany, German States of Germany, state of Brandenburg. It is part of the Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region. Potsdam sits on the Havel, River Havel, a tributary of the Elbe, downstream of B ...

, in the

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

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 2,038 at the 2020 census.

History

The town was laid out in 1809 on a tract of land that

David Parish David Parish (December 4, 1778April 27, 1826) was a German-born land speculator and financier who played a major role in financing the United States military effort in the War of 1812 and in chartering the Second Bank of the United States. Early ...

had purchased from J. D. Le Ray de Chaumont in 1808.History of Parishville, NY
/ref> The first settlers arrived around 1810. The town was formed in 1814 from the town of Hopkinton. The town was named for David Parish. In 1843, part of Parishville was used to form the town of Colton. The Luke Brown House was 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 ...

in 2003.

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 (3.20%) is water. The town is situated partly in the

Adirondack Park The Adirondack Park is a park in northeastern New York (state), New York protecting the Adirondack Mountains. The park was established in 1892 for "the free use of all the people for their health and pleasure", and for watershed protection. At , ...

. The West Branch of the

St. Regis River The St. Regis River (or rivière Saint-Régis in Quebec) is an river in northern New York (state), New York in the United States. It flows into the Saint Lawrence River at the hamlet of Saint Regis, New York, Saint Regis in the St. Regis Moha ...

flows northward through the town. The

Raquette River The Raquette River, sometimes spelled Racquette, originates at Raquette Lake in the Adirondack Mountains in the U.S. state of New York. long, it is the third longest river entirely in the state of New York. The river is a popular destinatio ...

flows through the southern part of Parishville. New York State Route 72 is an east–west highway in the north part of the town.

New York State Route 56 New York State Route 56 (NY 56) is a north–south state highway in eastern St. Lawrence County, New York, in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with New York State Route 3, NY 3 in the t ...

cuts across the southwestern corner of the town.

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 2,049 people, 797 households, and 564 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,204 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.98%

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 ...

, 0.05%

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 ...

, 0.29% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.10% from other races, and 0.44% 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 0.73% of the population. There were 797 households, out of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.5% 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, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.2% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.02. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.4% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 29.1% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.9 males. The median income for a household in the town was $32,210, and the median income for a family was $37,981. Males had a median income of $30,842 versus $22,938 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 $14,924. About 6.1% of families and 10.7% 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 13.3% of those under age 18 and 7.9% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Parishville

*Allens Falls – A location in the northern part of town and site of an early settlement. *High Flats – 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 ...

in the western part of town on County Road 58. *Joe Indian Pond – A

lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

near the southern town line. * Blake Falls Reservoir – An

artificial lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from t ...

by the southern town line. * Parishville – A hamlet, with the same name as the town, on NY-72. *Parishville Center – A hamlet west of Parishville hamlet on NY-72. *Pickettville – A hamlet south of Parishville hamlet, located on the edge of the Adirondack Park. *

Rainbow Falls Reservoir Rainbow Falls Reservoir is a man-made lake located east of South Colton, New York, as part of the Raquette River. It is within the town of Parishville, New York, though the hamlet of South Colton is the closest community accessible by car via R ...

– An artificial lake in the southwest part of Parishville. *Sinclair Corners – A location north of Parishville Center. *Stafford Corners – A location at the western town line, north of West Parishville. *West Parishville – A hamlet near the western town line.

In popular culture

The character Rose Lalonde in the webcomic ''

Homestuck ''Homestuck'' is an Internet fiction series created by American author and artist Andrew Hussie. The fourth and best-known of Hussie's four ''MS Paint Adventures'', it originally ran from April 13, 2009, to April 13, 2016. Though normally describ ...

'' lives in a fictional house over Rainbow Falls in Parishville.

References

External links

Early Parishville history
{{authority control Towns in St. Lawrence County, New York Towns in New York (state)