Whitesboro, New York
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Whitesboro is a village in
Oneida County, New York Oneida County ( ) is a county in the state of New York, United States. As of February 26, 2024, the population was 226,654. The county seat is Utica. The name is in honor of the Oneida, one of the Five Nations of the Iroquois League or '' ...
, United States. The population was 3,772 at the 2010 census. The village is named after Hugh White, an early settler. The Village of Whitesboro is inside the Town of Whitestown.


History

The village began to be settled in 1784, and was incorporated in 1813. An 1851 list gave the name ''Che-ga-quat-ka'' for Whitesboro in a language of the
Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...
people. The abolitionist
Oneida Institute The Oneida Institute ( ) was a short-lived Presbyterianism, Presbyterian school in Whitesboro, New York, United States, that was a national leader in the emerging Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist movement. Existing from 1827 to 18 ...
(1827–1843) was located in Whitesboro. The older part of the village was bordered by the
Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east–west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigability, navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, ...
and the village's Main Street. When the canal was filled in the first half of the 20th century, Oriskany Boulevard was built over the filled-in canal. The streets that connect the two roads form the oldest part of the village. The Whitestown Town Hall 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 1973. It currently serves as the village courthouse, while offices for the Town of Whitestown are housed in newer buildings outside of Whitesboro.


Village seal controversy

The Whitesboro seal, originating in the early 1900s, displays founder Hugh White wrestling an
Oneida Oneida may refer to: Native American/First Nations * Oneida people, a Native American/First Nations people and one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois Confederacy * Oneida language * Oneida Indian Nation, based in New York * Oneida N ...
Native American. The seal has been controversial because it has been interpreted as a settler choking the Native American; city officials contend it depicts a friendly wrestling match that White won, gaining the respect of the Oneida. The 1970-2017 version of the seal was created after a lawsuit by a Native American group: the version used before the suit showed the settler's hands on the Native American's neck instead of his shoulders. In 1999, Mayor John Malecki suggested a contest for a new seal, but received no submissions. The seal received attention in 2015 as part of national discussion about display of the Confederate flag. In January 2016, the town cooperated with
Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American Cable television in the United States, cable television channel, channel owned by Paramount Global through its Paramount Media Networks, network division's Paramount Media Networks#MTV Entertainment Group, MTV Ente ...
's ''
The Daily Show ''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk show, late-night talk and news satire television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central in the United States, with extended episodes released shortly after on Paramount+ ...
'' to hold a non-binding vote for a new village seal. Many of the alternative seals were humorous, including one depicting the two men as
luchadore ''Lucha libre'' (, meaning "freestyle wrestling" or literally translated as "free fight") is the term for the style of professional wrestling originating in Mexico. Since its introduction to Mexico in the early 20th century, it has develope ...
s and another depicting an
arm wrestling Arm wrestling (also spelled "armwrestling") is a sport in which two participants, facing each other with their bent elbows placed on a flat surface (usually a table) and hands firmly gripped, each attempt to "pin" their opponent's hand by forcing ...
contest. Village residents voted 157 to 55 to keep the seal as-is. Afterwards, Mayor Patrick O'Connor was criticized for not disclosing Comedy Central's involvement. ''The Daily Shows January 21 show covered the vote and the controversy around the seal. At the end of the segment, correspondent Jessica Williams announced that the mayor told her that the town would change the seal. This was confirmed by a joint press release from Whitesboro and the
Oneida Indian Nation The Oneida Indian Nation (OIN) ( ) is a federally recognized tribe of Oneida people in the United States. The tribe is headquartered in Verona, New York, where the tribe originated and held territory prior to European colonialism, and continues ...
the next day. An updated seal was adopted in the summer of 2017. The new seal was created by a
communication design Communication design is a mixed discipline between design and information-development concerned with how media communicate with people. A communication design approach is concerned with developing the message and aesthetics in media. It also crea ...
student at PrattMWP in Utica, under direction of a professor there. While the new seal depicts the same scene as the previous seal, it moves White's hands down to the Oneida chief's upper arms instead of near his neck, and neither man appears to be dominating the other. Additionally, both men were given more realistic skin tones, and their attire was corrected for historical accuracy.


Geography

Whitesboro is located at (43.124, -75.296). 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 , all land. The
Sauquoit Creek Sauquoit Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 31, 2015 river in New York, United States. It lies within the southern part of Oneida County. The creek flow ...
forms the boundary with Yorkville. Areas of Whitesboro near the creek suffer from periodic flooding.


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 3,943 people, 1,778 households, and 992 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 1,921 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 97.69%
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 ...
, 0.53%
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 ...
, 0.03% Native American, 0.33% Asian, 0.53% from other races, and 0.89% 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 1.47% of the population. There were 1,778 households, out of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.9% 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, 15.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.2% were non-families. 39.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.7% had someone living alone who were 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.98. In the village, the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 20.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.2 males. The median income for a household in the village was $31,947, and the median income for a family was $42,741. Males had a median income of $29,408 versus $25,865 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 $17,386.


Notable people

* Sidney Breese, Illinois pioneer * Calvert Coggeshall, painter * Alexander L. Collins, politician * Harriet Elizabeth Cook, a wife of
Brigham Young Brigham Young ( ; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until h ...
, was born in Whitesboro in 1824. * Simon Newton Dexter, politician *
Robert Esche Robert L. Esche (born January 22, 1978) is an American former professional ice hockey goaltender who is the current president of the Utica Comets of the American Hockey League (AHL) and the Utica City FC of the Major Arena Soccer League (MASL) ...
, former professional
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as goalie or netminder) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their own team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays ...
, currently President of the
Utica Comets The Utica Comets are a professional ice hockey team based in Utica, New York. They are members of the North Division in the Eastern Conference of the American Hockey League (AHL) and affiliated with the National Hockey League's (NHL) New Jersey D ...
*
John Frink John Frink is an American television writer and producer. He has written several episodes of the American animated sitcom ''The Simpsons'', many of which he co-wrote with his former writing partner Don Payne (writer), Don Payne. Frink and Payne ...
, writer and executive producer for ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...
'' *
George Washington Gale George Washington Gale (December 13, 1789 – September 13, 1861) was an American Presbyterian minister who founded the Oneida Institute of Science and Industry. He later purchased land in Illinois that became Galesburg, Illinois, named in h ...
, founder of the Oneida Institute of Science and Industry, later the Oneida Institute *
Thomas R. Gold Thomas Ruggles Gold (November 4, 1764 – October 24, 1827) was a United States representative from NYCongDel, New York. Biography Born in Cornwall, Connecticut, he pursued classical studies and was graduated from Yale College in 1786. He stu ...
, politician *
Beriah Green Beriah Green Jr. (March 24, 1795May 4, 1874) was an American reformer, abolitionist, temperance advocate, college professor, minister, and head of the Oneida Institute. He was "consumed totally by his abolitionist views". Former student Alexan ...
, president of the
Oneida Institute The Oneida Institute ( ) was a short-lived Presbyterianism, Presbyterian school in Whitesboro, New York, United States, that was a national leader in the emerging Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist movement. Existing from 1827 to 18 ...
* John Grimes,
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
bishop *
Mark Lemke Mark Alan Lemke (born August 13, 1965) is an American former Major League Baseball player and current broadcaster. Nicknamed "the Lemmer", he was a popular second baseman for the Atlanta Braves from to . He won the 1995 World Series with the B ...
, former Major League baseball player with the
Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...
* William A. Moseley, former US Congressman *
Mark Mowers Mark C. Mowers (born February 16, 1974) is a former professional ice hockey forward (ice hockey), forward and current pro scout for the Minnesota Wild. He had previously played in the National Hockey League with the Nashville Predators, Detroit R ...
, former professional ice hockey winger * Harry S. Patten, politician * Charles Edward Pearce, congressman *
Fred Sisson Frederick James Sisson (March 31, 1879 – October 20, 1949) was an American educator, lawyer, and politician who served two terms as a United States representative from New York from 1933 to 1937. Biography Born in Wells Bridge, Otsego County, ...
, politician * John T. Spriggs, politician * Henry R. Storrs, lawyer *
Johnny Sullivan Johnny Sullivan (19 December 1932 – 4 February 2003) was an English professional middle/light heavyweight boxer of the 1940s, '50s and '60s who won the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) British middleweight title, and British Empire ...
, wrestler *
William Whipple Warren William Whipple Warren (May 27, 1825 – June 1, 1853) was a historian, interpreter, and legislator in the Minnesota Territory. The son of Lyman Marcus Warren, an American fur trader and Mary Cadotte, the Ojibwe-Metis daughter of fur trader M ...
, 19th-century historian of the
Ojibwe The Ojibwe (; Ojibwe writing systems#Ojibwe syllabics, syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the Great Plains, n ...
and
Minnesota Territory The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the state of Minnesota and the w ...
legislator, attended school at the
Oneida Institute The Oneida Institute ( ) was a short-lived Presbyterianism, Presbyterian school in Whitesboro, New York, United States, that was a national leader in the emerging Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist movement. Existing from 1827 to 18 ...
*
Philo White Philo White, Jr., (June 23, 1796February 15, 1883) was an American newspaper publisher, Democratic politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was United States Minister (ambassador) to Ecuador during the presidency of Franklin Pierce, and was a memb ...
, former
Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...
state senator, U.S. diplomat


References


External links

*
Village of Whitesboro, NY
{{authority control Villages in New York (state) Utica–Rome metropolitan area Villages in Oneida County, New York