Wawarsing 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 ...

Ulster County Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston. The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster. The count ...

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 12,771 at the 2020 census.US Census Bureau, 2020 Census, Wawaring town, Ulster County, https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP&q=Wawarsing%20town,%20Ulster%20County,%20New%20York The name Wawarsing was once believed to mean "a place where the streams wind" in the

Lenape language The Delaware languages, also known as the Lenape languages (), are Munsee and Unami, two closely related languages of the Eastern Algonquian subgroup of the Algonquian language family. Munsee and Unami were spoken aboriginally by the Lenape ...

, referring to the geography in the hamlet of Wawarsing; specifically, the joining of the Ver Nooy Kill and the Rondout Creek at Port Ben. The name Wawarsing was used by the Lenape to designate the current hamlet and the fields to the north and south of it for at least six miles in both directions. It is the only Lenape name known to refer to an exact location in Ulster County. The town is in the western part of the county. The southern and easternmost portions are on the

Shawangunk Ridge The Shawangunk Ridge , also known as the Shawangunk Mountains or The Gunks, is a ridge of bedrock in Ulster County, Sullivan County and Orange County in the state of New York, extending from the northernmost point of the border with New Jers ...

. Most of the hilly town is in the Appalachian foothills, while the northernmost part is in the

Catskills The Catskill Mountains, also known as the Catskills, are a physiographic province and subrange of the larger Appalachian Mountains, located in southeastern New York. As a cultural and geographic region, the Catskills are generally defined a ...

. It has three state forests (Shawangunk Ridge, VerNooykill, and Witches Hole), as well as most of Minnewaska State Park and Sam's Point Preserve, and portions of the Catskill Preserve and Sundown State Park.

US 209 U.S. Route 209 (US 209) is a long U.S. Highway in the states of Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York. Although the route is a spur of U.S. Route 9, US 9, US 209 never intersects US 9, coming within five miles of ...

crosses the town, passing through many principal communities: Spring Glen, Laurenkill, Ellenville, Napanoch, the hamlet of Wawarsing, Soccanissing, and Kerhonkson.

US 44 U.S. Route 44 (US 44) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that runs for through four states in the Northeastern United States. The western terminus is at US 209 and New York State Route 55 (NY 55) in Kerhonks ...

begins at a junction with 209 near the east town line. N.Y. Route 52 runs east–west near the southern border. All three roads are part of the Shawangunk Ridge National Scenic Byway.

History

The Lenape settlement "at Wawarasinke" was burned by English militiamen, led by Marten Crieger, after the Natives attacked

Wiltwyck Kingston is the only Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in, and the county seat of, Ulster County, New York, United States. It is north of New York City and south of Albany, New York, Albany. The city's metropolitan area is grou ...

and took captives in 1663. In 1685, Warnaar Hoornbeek leased land there and was accepted as its first European pioneer. In 1703 the areas of Mombaccus and Wawarasink, Ulster County, were made The Town of Rochester. During The Revolutionary War, Wawarsing, Napanoch and Pinebush (Kerhonkson area) were attacked by British raiders, who massacred many women and children and burned the farms. In 1906, Wawarsing, Napanoch, Laurenkil, Lackawack and Grenfield joined together to form The Town of Wawarsing out of Southern Rochester and parts of unincorporated Ulster County. The O & W Railroad Station at Port Ben 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 2002.

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 (2.32%) is water. The western and southern borders of the town are Sullivan County,

. The northern part of the town is the southernmost portion of the Catskill Mountains. The eastern border is the Shawangunk Ridge (pronounced ). Rondout Creek passes through the town, as do the Sandburg, Laurenkill, Beerkill, Fantinekill and Vernooy Kill creeks.

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 12,889 people, 4,382 households, and 2,966 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 5,821 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 75.03%

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 ...

, 12.45%

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 ...

, .52% Native American, 1.17% Asian, .01%

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 ...

, 7.76% from other races, and 3.06% 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 18.05% of the population. There were 4,382 households, out of which 32.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.8% 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, 14.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.3% were non-families. 26.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.8% 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 3.07. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.2% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 23.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 117.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 119.9 males. The median income for a household in the town was $35,872, and the median income for a family was $43,828. Males had a median income of $32,121 versus $24,656 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 $16,512. About 13.3% of families and 19.1% 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 23.6% of those under age 18 and 12.9% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Wawarsing

*East Wawarsing – a hamlet southeast of Wawarsing hamlet. * Ellenville – a village at the junction of routes 52 and 209. The town government building is located on Canal Street, Ellenville. * Cragsmoor – a hamlet in the southeastern part of the town. *Dairyland – a hamlet near the western town line on Route 52. * Greenfield Park – a hamlet west of Ellenville on Route 52. * Kerhonkson – a hamlet located by the northern town line along Route 209. *Honk Hill – located in Napanoch, near Honk Lake. *Honk Lake – a small lake south of Honk Hill. *Lackawack – a hamlet northwest of Wawarsing hamlet and at the edge of the Catskill Park. * Minnewaska State Park – a

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "Federated state, state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on accou ...

partly in the town. * Napanoch – a hamlet north of Ellenville on Route 209. *Pine Bush – a hamlet at the northeastern town line. *Potterville – an abandoned community in the town. *Rondout Reservoir – a

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

partly in the northwestern part of the town. * Sam's Point Preserve – a

nature preserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geolog ...

southeast of Ellenville. * Soyuzivka – a Ukrainian resort in Kerhonkson * Spring Glen – a hamlet by the southern town line. * Stony Kill Falls – an 87-foot-high

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

. *The Cape – a hamlet northwest of Ellenville on Route 52. *Ulster Heights – a hamlet in the western part of the town. The Ulster Heights Synagogue was listed on the

in 2001. *Wawarsing – this eponymous hamlet is on Route 209. *Yagerville – an area near the Rondout Reservoir, too small to be a hamlet.

Notable people

* Max Schubel, composer * John Simon, record producer * Joseph Terwilliger, geneticist

References

Bibliography

External links

Town of Wawarsing official website

The Shawangunk Journal, Town Paper of Wawarsing

Wawarsing.Net Magazine archive

Ellenville/Wawarsing Chamber of Commerce
{{authority control Towns in Ulster County, New York Towns in New York (state) Shawangunks Populated places established in 1685 Towns in the New York metropolitan area 1685 establishments in the Province of New York