Potsdam 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 St. Lawrence County, New York, United States. The town population was 14,901 at the 2020 census. When the

State University of New York at Potsdam The State University of New York at Potsdam (SUNY Potsdam or simply Potsdam) is a public college in Potsdam (village), New York, Potsdam, New York, United States. Founded in 1816, it is the northernmost member of the State University of New Yo ...

and

Clarkson University Clarkson University is a private research university with its main campus in Potsdam, New York. Clarkson has additional graduate programs and research facilities in the New York Capital District. It was established in 1896 and enrolled over 4 ...

are in session, the population increases by approximately 8,000 students. The town is named after the city 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 Germany. The town of Potsdam also contains 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 ...

named

. Potsdam is centrally located within the county and northeast of Canton, the county seat.

History

David Clarkson and Garret van Horn were early investors in the town, and settlement began around 1803. The newcomers found Native Americans residing in the town and in the fur trade. The town was established in 1806 from part of the Town of Madrid. Potsdam is one of the original ten towns of St. Lawrence County. The community of Potsdam set itself apart from the town in 1831 by incorporating as a village. The community of Raquetteville incorporated as the Village of Potsdam Junction (now Norwood) in 1871. St. Lawrence Academy, the predecessor of the

was founded in 1816. In 1896,

was founded. The Potsdam area is well known for its reddish-orange Potsdam sandstone. A large slab of it is on display at the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

The First Presbyterian Church of Dailey Ridge and French Family Farm 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 an area of 103.4 square miles (267.9 km²), of which 101.5 square miles (262.8 km²) is land and 2.0 square miles (5.2 km²) (1.92%) is water. 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 northward through the town's center. The Grasse River flows through the northwestern part of Potsdam.

Communities and locations in the Town of Potsdam

*Bucks Bridge − 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 northwestern corner of the town at the Grass River. The Buck's Bridge Community Church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004 as the Buck's Bridge United Methodist Church. *Burnhams Corners − a location on NY-345 at County Road 35, northwest of Potsdam village. *Casey Corners − a location on County Road 34 in the western part of the town. *

− a private university, southwest of Potsdam village. * Crary Mills − a hamlet. *Hewittville – a hamlet on the western bank of the Raquette River, north of Potsdam village. * Norwood − southern part of the Village of Norwood is by the northern town line on NY-56; formerly called "Raquetteville" and "Potsdam Junction". * Norwood Lake – reservoir southwest of Norwood. *

− Village of Potsdam on the Raquette River. * Potsdam Municipal Airport - Damon Field − small airport east of Potsdam village. *Sissonville − a small hamlet on NY-56 north of Potsdam village. *Slab City − a location on County Road 35 is in the western part of the town and south of West Potsdam. *Stafford Corners − a location south of Potsdam village at the southeastern town line. * SUNY Potsdam − a state college southeast of Potsdam village. *Sugar Island − a location in the Raquette River, south of Potsdam village. *Unionville − a hamlet north of Potsdam village on NY-56; site of one of the first cooperative settlements in New York. Membership included several relatives of

Mormonism Mormonism is the theology and religious tradition of the Latter Day Saint movement of Restorationism, Restorationist Christianity started by Joseph Smith in Western New York in the 1820s and 1830s. As a label, Mormonism has been applied to va ...

leader

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious and political leader and the founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. Publishing the Book of Mormon at the age of 24, Smith attracted tens of thou ...

, including his uncle John Smith. *West Potsdam − a hamlet on County Road 34 in the western part of the town, formerly known as "Smiths Corners", known for its gun shows. In 2022, the scheduled February show was cancelled due to the prior shooting death of a SUNY Potsdam student.

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 2020, there were 14,901 people and 4,988 households in the town. The population density was . The racial makeup of the town was 86.4% non-Hispanic

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 ...

, 4.3%

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 ...

, 0.6% Native American, 2.7% Asian, 0.1%

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 ...

, 0.36% from other races, and 2.4% 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 3.9% of the population. There were 4,988 households, out of which 27.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.5% 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, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.6% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.97. In the town, the population was spread out, with 13.4% under the age of 18, 36.8% from 18 to 24, 19.9% from 25 to 44, 16.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. The town was 48.6% female and 51.4% male. The median income for a household in the town was $37,977. 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 $23,747. About 19.3% 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 ...

Education

The town of Potsdam consists of the Potsdam Central School District, which includes an elementary school (Lawrence Avenue), a middle school (A.A. Kingston), and a high school ( Potsdam High School). The high school is the home of the Potsdam Sandstoners. There are four universities in the area, including SUNY Potsdam (which is known for its Crane School of Music) and

(a private research university known for engineering and business) in Potsdam, as well as both

St. Lawrence University St. Lawrence University is a private liberal arts college in the village of Canton in St. Lawrence County, New York. It has roughly 2,100 undergraduate and 100 graduate students. Though St. Lawrence today is nonsectarian, it was founded in 1 ...

and SUNY Canton in nearby Canton. Due to the number of students in Potsdam during the academic year, Potsdam was ranked as #7 most ‘Collegiest College Town in America’ by the Washington Post.

Media

Radio

* 1340 WMSA * WRCD-FM 101.5 the Fox * WSNN-FM 99.3 * WTSC-FM 91.1 the Source * WVLF-FM Mix 96.1

Television

* WNPI-DT, a full-power WPBS-TV rebroadcaster in South Colton, primarily serves Ottawa. * WWNY-CD, a low-power WWNY (CBS/Fox) retransmitter, is on WNPI's tower.

Transportation

U.S. Route 11 U.S. Route 11 or U.S. Highway 11 (US 11) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway extending across the eastern U.S. The southern terminus of the route is at US 90 in Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refu ...

and New York State Route 11B are east–west highways. New York State Route 56 is a north–south highway. New York State Route 345 is a northwest–southeast highway that intersects

New York State Route 310 New York State Route 310 (NY 310) is a north–south state highway located entirely within St. Lawrence County, New York, St. Lawrence County in the North Country, New York, North Country of the U.S. state of New York (state), Ne ...

near the northwestern town line. The

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected New York metropolitan area, gr ...

's '' St. Lawrence Division'' runs through the town. Until 1964 the New York Central operated passenger trains from Massena, through the town, to Watertown, and to

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

to meet up with the NYC mainline.

Notable people

* Frank B. Kellogg, 45th Secretary of State of the United States and Nobel Peace Prize laureateFrank B. Kellogg Facts
nobelprize.org. Accessed September 22, 2023. * Gigolo Aunts, alternative rock band that formed in Potsdam during the mid-1980s. * Lucinda Banister Chandler (1828-1911), social reformer and author *

Craig Conroy Craig Michael Conroy (born September 4, 1971) is an Americans, American former professional ice hockey player and the current general manager of the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League (NHL). A sixth-round selection of the Montreal Cana ...

, professional hockey player (retired) *

Wes Craven Wesley Earl Craven (August 2, 1939 – August 30, 2015) was an American film director, screenwriter and producer. Amongst his Wes Craven filmography, prolific filmography, Craven worked primarily in the Horror film, horror genre, particularly sla ...

, film director, educator and creator of the ''Nightmare on Elm Street'' and ''Scream'' series. Taught at Clarkson * John Gerrish, music professor and American composer * David A. Kyle, noted science fiction fan, author and publisher * Trevor Scott, professional football player * Jason Sutter, professional drummer, currently playing for Marilyn Manson * Jeff Thacher, percussionist of the band Rockapella * George A. Smith, early leader in the

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by ...

. *

John Lyman Smith John Lyman Smith (November 17, 1828 – February 21, 1898) was an American politician and Mormon missionary. He served as a member of the House of Representatives for Iron County, Utah, in the Utah territorial legislature from 1852 to 1853, and ...

, Utah Territorial Legislator * Jason Liang, chess player *

Renée Fleming Renée Lynn Fleming (born February 14, 1959) is an American soprano and actress, known for performances in opera, concerts, recordings, theater, film, and at major public occasions. A recipient of the National Medal of Arts, Fleming has been nom ...

, Opera superstar, SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music, '81 * Abby Roque (born 1997), professional ice hockey forward for the New York Sirens

Bibliography

* *

References

External links

Potsdam Town Site

Potsdam Village Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Potsdam (Town), New York Towns in St. Lawrence County, New York Towns in New York (state) 1831 establishments in New York (state) Populated places established in 1831