Yosts, New York
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Mohawk 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
Montgomery County, New York Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 49,532. The county seat is Fonda. The county was named in honor of Richard Montgomery, an American Revolutionary War general killed in 1 ...
, United States. The population was 3,572 at the 2020 census, down from 3,844 in
2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
. The town is on the northern border of the county, west of
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
. The county seat, Fonda, is in Mohawk.


History

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...
missionaries entered the region from
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
around 1642 to work among 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 ...
. The principal village of the Mohawk was Caughnawaga, which was later developed as the site of Fonda. The area that became Mohawk was settled around 1725 by colonists from the English/Dutch region to the east around Albany. The Mohawk District, which became the original town of Mohawk, was created in March 1772 by
Sir William Johnson Major-General Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet ( – 11 July 1774), was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Ireland known for his military and governance work in British colonial America. As a young man, Johnson moved to t ...
when Tryon County was split off from Albany County. It was the easternmost of five districts in the new county, which eastern boundary ran north from the
Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...
at the Pennsylvania line through present Schoharie County to a north–south line that now forms the eastern boundaries of Montgomery, Fulton, and
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
counties, all the way to Canada. The district's western limit was an arbitrary north–south line drawn through "the noses", prominent rock prominences through which the Mohawk River flows four miles east of
Canajoharie Canajoharie (), also known as the "Upper Castle", was the name of one of two major towns of the Mohawk nation in 1738. The community stretched for a mile and a half along the southern bank of the Mohawk River, from a village known as ''Dekanohag ...
(on the south side). During the
American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
, the town was invaded in 1780 by an army of British-allied
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 ...
and British
Loyalists Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...
. The original District or "Town of Mohawk" was eliminated in 1793 by its division into the towns of
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
and Charleston. The present town was created from part of the town of Johnstown in 1837, the population of which was 3,112. In 1865, the population of Mohawk was 2,948. In 1993, Montgomery Manor, a colonial estate of Major Jelles Fonda, was purchased by the not-for-profit community Kanatsiohareke ("Gah nah joe hah lay geh"). This
Haudenosaunee 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 ...
community, led by elder and spiritual leader Tom Sakokwenionkwas Porter, looks to promote the development of the traditions, philosophy, and governance of the Haudenosaunee and to contribute to the preservation of their culture.


Geography

The town of Mohawk is in north-central Montgomery County. It is bordered to the north by Fulton County, to the east by the town of
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
, to the west by the town of
Palatine A palatine or palatinus (Latin; : ''palatini''; cf. derivative spellings below) is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman Empire, Roman times.
, and to the south by 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 ...
. The village of Fonda, the Montgomery County seat, is in the south-central part of the town, on the north bank of the Mohawk.
New York State Route 5 New York State Route 5 (NY 5) is a state highway that extends for across the state of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in the Chautauqua County town of Ripley and passes through Buffalo, Sy ...
parallels the Mohawk River, leading east (downriver) to
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
and west (upriver) to Palatine Bridge. New York State Route 30A and New York State Route 334 intersect NY-5 at Fonda. NY 30A leads north to Johnstown and south to Sloansville. NY 334 leads northwest to Sammonsville. 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 town of Mohawk has a total area of , of which are land and , or 2.01%, are water. The town is drained by south-flowing tributaries of the Mohawk River, most notably Cayadutta Creek, which enters the Mohawk at Fonda, and Danascara Creek, which drains the eastern part of the town.


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 3,844 people, 1,528 households, and 1,043 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,607 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.7% White, 0.4% African-American, 0.2% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.2% of the population. There were 1,528 households, out of which 26.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.3% 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, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.7% were non-families. 30.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 28% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.98. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.4% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 24.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $25,714, and the median income for a family was $62,174. Males had a median income of $37,465 versus $36,891 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 $27,725. About 2.8% of families and 7.4% 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 3.4% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.


Locations in the town

*Berryville – A hamlet northwest of Fonda. *Big Nose – A location in the southwestern part of Mohawk. With "Little Nose" on the opposite bank of the Mohawk River, it marks a place called "The Noses". *East Stone Arabia – A hamlet in the western part of the town. * Fonda – A village on the north bank of the Mohawk River and NY Route 5. It is the Montgomery
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 ...
and is near the
Caughnawaga Indian Village Site Caughnawaga Indian Village Site (also known as the Veeder site) is an archaeological site located just west of Fonda in Montgomery County, New York. It is the location of a 17th-century Mohawk nation village. One of the original Five Nations of ...
. * Tribes Hill – A hamlet in the eastern part of the town on NY-5. *Yosts – A hamlet on NY-5 and the north bank of the Mohawk River, west of Fonda.


References


External links

*
Early history of Mohawk
{{authority control Towns in Montgomery County, New York Towns in New York (state) Populated places on the Mohawk River