Rensselaer County is a

county 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 ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 * ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 161,130. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...

. The county is named in honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer, the original Dutch owner of the land in the area. The county is part of the Capital District region of the state. Rensselaer County is part of the Albany-

Schenectady Schenectady ( ) is a City (New York), city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-most populo ...

-Troy, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The area that is now Rensselaer County was inhabited by the Algonquian-speaking

Mohican The Mohicans ( or ) are an Eastern Algonquian Native American tribe that historically spoke an Algonquian language. As part of the Eastern Algonquian family of tribes, they are related to the neighboring Lenape, whose indigenous territory was ...

Indian tribe In the United States, an American Indian tribe, Native American tribe, Alaska Native village, Indigenous tribe, or Tribal nation may be any current or historical tribe, band, or nation of Native Americans in the United States. Modern forms of t ...

at the time of European encounter. Kiliaen van Rensselaer, a Dutch jeweler and merchant, purchased the area in 1630 and incorporated it in his

patroonship In the United States, a patroon (; from Dutch '' patroon'' ) was a landholder with manorial rights to large tracts of land in the 17th-century Dutch colony of New Netherland on the east coast of North America. Through the Charter of Free ...

Rensselaerswyck Rensselaerswyck was a Dutch colonial patroonship and later an English manor owned by the van Rensselaer family located in the present-day Capital District of New York in the United States. The estate was originally deeded by the Dutch West In ...

. (It was part of the Dutch colony

New Netherland New Netherland () was a colony of the Dutch Republic located on the East Coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva Peninsula to Cape Cod. Settlements were established in what became the states ...

). The land passed into English rule in 1664; the Dutch regained control in 1673, but the English took it back in 1674. Until 1776, the year of American independence, the county was under English or

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

control. The county was not organized as a legal entity until after the Revolution, in 1791, when it was created from an area that was originally part of the very large Albany County. In 1807, in a county re-organization, the rural sections of

were set off as Towns, and the city was incorporated. The two towns created were Brunswick (named for Duke Friedrich Wilhelm of Braunschweig-Lüneburg) and Grafton (named for Henry FitzRoy, 5th Duke of Grafton). A third town, Philipstown, was set off in 1806. In 1808, it was renamed Nassau after the

duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

of that area.

Geography

According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.9%) is water. Rensselaer County is located in the far eastern part of New York State. The eastern boundary of the county runs along the

–

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

–

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 ...

borders. The terrain runs from level and flat near the Hudson and then rises into the Rensselaer Plateau around Poestenkill and Sand Lake, then to the Taconic Mountains along the Massachusetts state line. The highest point is Berlin Mountain, above sea level, in the town of Berlin. The lowest point is above sea level at the Hudson River's southernmost extent in the county. 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 ...

, a tributary of the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

, is in the northern part of the county. Depending on precise location within the county, road travel distance to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

ranges between .

Adjacent counties

* Washington County — north *

Bennington County, Vermont Bennington County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 37,347. The shire towns (county seats) are jointly Bennington, Vermont, Bennington ("The So ...

— northeast *

Berkshire County, Massachusetts Berkshire County (pronounced ) is the Western Massachusetts, westernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state, U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 129,026. Its la ...

— east * Columbia County — south * Greene County — southwest * Albany County — west * Saratoga County — northwest

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 2010, there were 159,429 people, 62,694 households, and 39,989 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 69,120 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 88.73%

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 ...

, 7.14%

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 ...

, 0.23% Native American, 1.71% 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 ...

, 0.89% from other races, and 1.34% from two or more races. 5.01% of the population were

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. 22.3% were of Irish, 14.7%

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

, 12.8%

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, 7.5% English, 6.2% French, 5.3% American and 2.3% Puerto Rican ancestry according to Census 2010. 95.4% spoke English and 2.7%

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

as their first language. There were 61,094 households, out of which 33.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.80% 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, 12.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.80% were non-families. 27.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.02. In the county, the population was spread out, with 24.20% under the age of 18, 10.10% from 18 to 24, 29.10% from 25 to 44, 23.00% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 95.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.70 males. The median income for a household in the county was $42,905, and the median income for a family was $52,864. Males had a median income of $36,666 versus $28,153 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 county was $21,095. About 6.70% of families and 9.50% 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 11.90% of those under age 18 and 6.60% of those age 65 or over.

2020 census

Government and politics

From

1884 Events January * January 4 – The Fabian Society is founded in London to promote gradualist social progress. * January 5 – Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera '' Princess Ida'', a satire on feminism, premières at the Savoy The ...

through the 1988 campaign, voters in Rensselaer County chiefly supported the Republican candidate.

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

carried the county in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

. Beginning in 1791, Rensselaer County was governed by a Board of Supervisors, which acted as the

Legislature A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial power ...

, with the chairman of the board serving as a ''de facto'' Executive. The Board of Supervisors form of government was terminated as a result of a class action lawsuit brought by Troy attorney Marvin I. Honig on behalf of his wife, Nedda, during March 1968. Mr. Honig brought this lawsuit to declare that the Board of Supervisors, as constituted, violated the "one man, one vote" principal declared by the United States Supreme Court. Mr. Honig's motive in bringing the lawsuit was to punish the Rensselaer County Republican Party chairman and certain members of the Board of Supervisors for defaulting on an agreement with him. The NY Supreme Court ruled in Honig's favor, and ordered the creation of a legislative body. Several plans were offered, but a plan proposed by Honig was adopted by the Court, and its decision was affirmed by the Appellate Division and Court of Appeals. The first "Honig Plan" was drawn to favor the Democratic party, which had not had control of the county government in decades. That plan, which controlled the 1969 election, resulted in the Democrats winning control of the new Rensselaer County Legislature. Thereafter, following a change of leadership in the Republican party, Honig brought a new plan, drawn to favor Republican candidates, to the court, which adopted his revised plan. The second "Honig Plan" was affirmed by the Appellate Division and the Court of Appeals. The Republican candidates won back the County Legislature in the 1971 election, and Honig became the Renssselaer County Attorney, a position he held for well over a decade. A full explanation of the creation of the Rensselaer County Legislature can be found at http://nassau-stories.blogspot.com/2006/04/reapportionment.html. See also: The Troy Record, July 8, 1971, page 1. In 1970, the Rensselaer County Legislature was created, which elected Edward J. "Ned" Quinn as chairman. The chairman served as the equivalent to an executive until the office of County Executive was created in 1972. Since its creation, Democrats have never won the office, although they controlled the Legislature until 1994. One notable candidate for Executive was Edward Pattison who was later elected to Congress, and whose son Mark served two terms as Mayor of

. The current county executive is Steve McLaughlin (R). Legislative authority is vested in the County Legislature, which consists of 19 members representing 17 different communities, separated into six districts. The current composition of the Legislature is as follows (ten Republicans, six Democrats, two Conservatives who caucus with the Republicans, and one Independent who caucuses with the Republicans): District 1 – City of Troy: * Cynthia B. Doran (D), Deputy Minority Leader * Mark J. Fleming (D) * Peter D. Grimm (D), Minority Leader * Nina M. Nichols (D) * Carole C. Weaver (D) * Ken Zalewski (D) District 2 – East Greenbush, North Greenbush, and Poestenkill: * Robert W. Bayly (R), Vice Chairperson for Finance * Leon B. Fiacco (R) * Thomas Grant (R) * Kelly Hoffman (C), Chairwoman District 3 – Brunswick, Pittstown, and Schaghticoke: * Dan Casale (R) * Kenneth H. Herrington (R), Majority Leader * William Maloney (R) District 4 – Nassau, Sand Lake, and Schodack: * Wayne Gendron (R) * Thomas Choquette (B) * Robert R. Loveridge (R), Vice Chairperson District 5 –

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 ...

, Grafton, Hoosick, Hoosick Falls, Petersburgh, and Stephentown: * Bruce Patire (R) * Jeffrey Wysocki (R) District 6 – City of Rensselaer: * Brian Stall (C) the current sheriff is Patrick A. Russo. Notably, Russo was the only sheriff in the state to embrace Immigration and Nationality Act Section 287(g), which authorizes local and county law enforcement to detain undocumented immigrants.

Education

The county is serviced by 16 school districts. Some are completely contained in the county while some cross county lines into other counties. No school districts cross either the

state borders. Below is a table that shows the districts within the county, which

BOCES ''Boces'' is the second album by Mercury Rev, released in 1993. It was their final album with frontman David Baker, who was asked to leave shortly after the supporting tour concluded. The title is derived from the Boards of Cooperative Educati ...

they belong to, and which other counties they may serve.Rensselaer County School Districts.Capital District Regional Planning Commission.
Retrieved October 14, 2008. The county is also home to

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (; RPI) is a private university, private research university in Troy, New York, United States. It is the oldest technological university in the English-speaking world and the Western Hemisphere. It was establishe ...

, the oldest operating technological college in America. Note: a possible competitor for this title is the United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, which claims to have the oldest engineering department in the US . While this is true, it is still true that RPI offered the first engineering ''degree'' (Civil Engineering) in 1835. The statement of being 'the oldest" is thus justified in different ways by both. The modifier "in continuous existence" appears in Ricketts, Palmer C. ''History of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. 2nd e''.