Petersburgh 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 ...

located in the northeast section of Rensselaer County, New York, United States. The population was 1,372 at the 2020 census.U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 census results, Petersburgh, New York. https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP&q=Petersburgh%20town,%20Rensselaer%20County,%20New%20York The town was named after an early settler named Peter Simmons.

History

The area was settled around the middle of the 18th century and was part of the

Manor of Rensselaerswyck Rensselaerswyck was a Dutch colonial patroonship and later an England, English Proprietary colony, manor owned by the Van Rensselaer (family), van Rensselaer family located in the present-day Capital District, New York, Capital District of New Yor ...

. The town was created in 1791 from the Town of Stephentown. The size of this town was diminished by the formation of other towns in the county, including the Towns of

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

and Lansingburgh in 1806, and Grafton and Nassau in 1807. The Petersburgh United Methodist Church 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 2004.

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 , all land. To the east, the town borders on the states of

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

and

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 ...

. The Taconic Mountains cover a large portion of the town, and the Little Hoosick River joins the

Hoosic River The Hoosic River, also known as the Hoosac, the Hoosick (primarily in New York) and the Hoosuck (mostly archaic), is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed October 3, 2011 tr ...

in the northern part 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 1,563 people, 587 households, and 433 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 695 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.08%

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, 0.19%

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, 0.06% Native American, 0.90% Asian, 0.19% from other races, and 0.58% 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 0.45% of the population. There were 587 households, out of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.9% 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, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.1% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.07. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.2% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 28.3% from 25 to 44, 26.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $45,909, and the median income for a family was $49,125. Males had a median income of $35,500 versus $25,208 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 $21,249. About 9.8% of families and 12.3% 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 16.8% of those under age 18 and 10.3% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations

* North Petersburgh – 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 northern part of the town on Routes 22 and 346. The Steller Homestead is found at the intersection of Route 22 and Rabbit College Road. The

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

treats the name as unacceptable in mailing addresses, preferring "Petersburg".USPS ZIP Code Lookup – Search by city
/ref> * Petersburgh (or Petersburg) – A hamlet on Routes 2 and 22, including the town hall. It was formerly called "South Petersburg" and "Rensselaer Mills", and USPS prefers the Petersburg spelling. *The following hamlets are not officially recognized by USPS: ** Petersburgh Junction – By the northern town line. ** Stillman – Northwest of Petersburgh village on Route 2.

Notable person

* Lydia Baxter (1809–1874), poet

References

Notes Further reading * * * *

External links

Official website

{{authority control Towns in Rensselaer County, New York Towns in New York (state)