Scotia is 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 ...

in Schenectady 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, incorporated in 1904. The population was 7,272 at the 2020 census. Scotia is part of the town of Glenville, and is connected with the city of

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 ...

by the Western Gateway Bridge over the

Mohawk River The Mohawk River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 river in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson R ...

History

The land was purchased by Alexander Lindsay Glen, a native of

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, from the

Mohawk people The Mohawk, also known by their own name, (), are an Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous people of North America and the easternmost nation of the Haudenosaunee, or Iroquois Confederacy (also known as the Five Nations or later the ...

in the 17th century. Glen named his estate ''Scotia'' (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

for "Scotland") after his home country.Village of Scotia History
/ref> Scotia was the location of a military encampment during both the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

of 1754 and again during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

. During the 1800s, Scotia was known for its production of

broom A broom (also known as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool, consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. It is thus a ...

s, over 1 million annually for a time. In the 20th century, Scotia became a thriving bedroom community for employees of Schenectady employers such as

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

. During World War II the Scotia Naval Supply Depot (1942–1971) employed over 2000 workers. Historic buildings: * Glen Sanders Mansion, parts dating to 1713 * Abraham Glen House, 1730s * Flint House, early 19th century * First Baptist Church, 1872 * Holland House (W.T. Mynderse mansion), built 1914 * Scotia Reformed Church, founded 1818, present building 1952. * The

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

, built 1940, contains a tempera mural, ''The Glen Family Spared by French and Indians – 1690'', painted by muralist

Amy Jones (artist) Amy Jones (1899–1992) was an American artist and muralist in the early 20th century. She was one of the founding members of the Saranac Lake Art League. Though most known for her watercolors, like ''Sandy Acre'' which is in the permanent collect ...

in 1941. in tempera and 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

Scotia is on the north bank of the

at (42.8313, -73.9654). 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 village has a total area of , of which is land and , or 5.82%, is water.

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 7,729 people, 3,362 households, and 2,006 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 3,519 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 95.4%

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 ...

, 1.2%

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 ...

, 0.2% Native American, 1.1% 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 ...

, 0.4% from other races, and 1.8% 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 2.8% of the population. Of 3,362 households, 30% included individuals under the age of 18, 42.1% 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, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 40.3% were non-families, 33.7% were individuals living alone, and 13.1% were individuals age 65 or older living alone. The average household size was 2.3 and the average family size was 2.95. The village population was composed of 23.1% under the age of 18, 3.3% from 18 to 20, 31% from 21 to 44, 28.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37.2 years. The female population was 51.6% and the male population was 48.4%. In 2015, the estimated median income for a household in the village was $54,607, and the median

income Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. F ...

for a family was $75,182. Males had a median income of $54,364 versus $45,603 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 village was $26,853. An estimated 4.0% of families and 6.1% 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 6.9% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 5.6% or over.

Community

:''Aerial photo:'
Collins Park and vicinity
Scotia is served by the Scotia-Glenville Central School District. Schools located in the village of Scotia include Lincoln and Sacandaga elementary schools, while Scotia-Glenville High School and Scotia-Glenville Middle School stand just outside the village limits. The private Mekeel Christian Academy occupies the former Scotia High School building in the village. Local residents may enjoy pastimes at all seasons in Collins Park and nearby Freedom Park. Winter events include sledding and ice skating, while summer activities include baseball, tennis, swimming, pond and river fishing, picnicking, concerts, and waterskiing on the Mohawk River.

Transportation

Scotia is served by the historic New York Route 5, and is the terminus for both Route 50 and Route 147 providing access to

Saratoga County Saratoga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York, and is the fastest-growing county in Upstate New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the county's population was enumerated at 235,509, its highest decennial count ever and a ...

. The Route 5 link to Schenectady is over the Western Gateway Bridge, originally built in 1923-25, and replaced in 1971. From 1874 to 1925 the Mohawk River had been crossed by a bridge running from the foot of Washington Ave., Schenectady to Washington Ave., Scotia, a steel bridge built upon the seven piers of a former wooden bridge, built in 1808, called the Burr Bridge. Scotia was formerly served by railways, including the

New York Central The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midw ...

(which operated a switch yard in the village), the Delaware and Hudson, and the

Boston and Maine Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and financial center of New England, a region of the Northeastern United States. It has an area of and a ...

, as well as the electric Fonda, Johnstown and Gloversville interurban line. Two nearby airports, located in the town of Glenville, serve the village: Mohawk Valley Airport is a privately owned airport for public use located three nautical miles (6 km) along State Route 5, northwest of the village of Scotia.

Schenectady County Airport Schenectady County Airport is a county-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) north of the central business district of Schenectady, a city in Schenectady County, New York, United States. It is included in the N ...

is a joint civil-military public airport located two nautical miles (3 km) north-northeast of the village of Scotia.

Notable people

* Helmut Karl Buechner (1918–1975), ecologist, field biologist, Director of the Office of Ecology for 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 ...

, born in Scotia * Joe Cremo (born 1996), pro basketball player, born in Scotia *

Philip Dalton Lt. Philip Dalton (April 1, 1903 – July 25, 1941) was a United States military scientist, pilot and engineer. Dalton is best known for his invention of several slide-rule analog flight computers, the most famous being the E6B. Dalton was born ...

(1903–1941), military scientist and pilot, born in Scotia * Laura Diaz (born 1975), professional golfer on

LPGA Tour The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekly ...

, born in Scotia * Robert Doherty (1885–1950), electrical engineer, president of

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became the Carnegie Institu ...

, died in Scotia *

Saul Dushman Saul Dushman (July 12, 1883 – July 7, 1954) was a Russian-American physical chemist. Dushman was born on July 12, 1883, in Rostov, Russia; he immigrated to the United States in 1891. He received a doctorate from the University of Toronto in ...

(1883–1954), Russian-born physical chemist, resided, died in Scotia *

Conyers Herring William Conyers Herring (November 15, 1914 – July 23, 2009) was an American physicist. He was a professor of applied physics at Stanford University and the Wolf Prize in Physics recipient in 1984/5. Academic career Conyers Herring complete ...

(1914–2009), solid state physicist, born in Scotia * Steve Kuczek (1924–2010), major league baseball player, died in Scotia * Kathleen Paige (born 1948), rear admiral, U.S. Navy, program director, Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense * James Parry (born 1967),

Usenet Usenet (), a portmanteau of User's Network, is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose UUCP, Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Elli ...

personality known as "Kibo", born in Scotia *

David Pietrusza David Pietrusza is an American author and historian, and is considered an expert on US Politics in the 1920s. He has written a number of books, including ''Roosevelt Sweeps Nation: FDR's 1936 Landslide and the Triumph of the Liberal Ideal,'' w ...

(born 1949) author, lived in Scotia * George Runner (born 1952), California state senator, born in Scotia

References

External links

Village of Scotia official website

Village of Scotia business websiteNY Air National Guard - 109th Airlift Wing - Scotia/Schenectady Hometown
{{authority control Villages in New York (state) Villages in Schenectady County, New York Populated places on the Mohawk River