Geneseo (village), New York

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Geneseo is a village in the Town of Geneseo in Livingston County, New York, USA. Its population is approximately 9,600. The name is from a native term for "beautiful valley." The village of Geneseo is one of a handful of National Historic Landmark Districts in the United States.

The Village of Geneseo is the county seat of Livingston County. It is located in the western part of the town at the junction of Routes 39, 63, and US 20A.

Geneseo Airport (D52) is west of the village.

1 History
2 Civic Organizations
3 Geography
4 Demographics
5 External links and references

[edit] History

The Settlement of Geneseo began after the arrival of James and William Wadsworth in 1790 in the Genesee River Valley from Connecticut. They were agents of their Uncle, Colonel Jeremiah Wadsworth, authorized to sell and administer the land he had purchased.Geneseo became the county seat of Livingston County in 1821 and was incorporated as a village in 1832. The State Normal School, now SUNY Geneseo, was opened in 1871 inside the village. The Village was incorporated in 1832. By 1835 it consisted of 83 families and the streets were Main, Second, North, South, Center and Temple Hill. The Village grew steadily and in the 1850s Elm street was opened. With the advent of the State Normal School in 1871, there was a new sugrge of development and Oak Street was opened in the late 1880s.

The Village of Geneseo is governed by a Mayor and four trustees. Geneseo is the home of the State University College. A portion of the village was designated a National Historic Landmark by the United States Department of the Interior in 1991. According to the National Park Service Geneseo is "one of the most remarkably preserved villages in northwestern New York, Geneseo is one of the best examples of "Picturesque" architecture and town planning as expounded by American landscape architect Andrew Jackson Downing (1815-1852) in his enormously popular and influential books. The cohesive quality of the surviving town displays a textbook of styles and is almost unique in American architectural history. The relatively sophisticated and imposing structures included in the district reflect the village's early 19th century prosperity as a market place for the valley's farming communities."

[edit] Civic Organizations

Association for the Preservation of Geneseo: The purpose of the Association for the Preservation of Geneseo (APOG) is to preserve, improve, and restore the places of civic, architectural, and historic interest to Geneseo, Livingston County, New York and to educate members of the community to their architectural and historical heritage. Additional aims and purposes are to encourage others to contribute their knowledge, advice, and financial assistance.

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 117.1 km² (45.2 mi²). 113.9 km² (44.0 mi²) of it is land and 3.2 km² (1.2 mi²) of it (2.74%) is water.

The Genesee River passes by the northwest part of the village.

Interstate 390 passes the village on its southeast border. New York State Route 39 parts from US Route 20A in the village, and New York State Route 63 passes through the southwest part of the community.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,654 people, 2,523 households, and 1,301 families residing in the town. The population density was 84.8/km² (219.6/mi²). There were 2,698 housing units at an average density of 23.7 persons/km² (61.4 persons/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 93.91% White, 1.48% African American, 0.11% Native American, 2.61% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.69% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. 2.19% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,523 households out of which 23.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.3% were married couples living together, 8.3% have a woman whose husband does not live with her, and 48.4% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 2.92.

In the town the population was spread out with 11.9% under the age of 18, 51.3% from 18 to 24, 15.2% from 25 to 44, 13.2% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females there were 72.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 68.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $40,660, and the median income for a family was $62,206. Males had a median income of $42,218 versus $25,969 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,303. 29.8% of the population and 8.7% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 12.2% are under the age of 18 and 5.5% are 65 or older.

[edit] External links and references

	Livingston County, New York
	County seat	Geneseo
	Villages	Avon \| Caledonia \| Dansville \| Leicester \| Lima \| Livonia \| Mount Morris \| Nunda
	Towns	Avon \| Caledonia \| Conesus \| Geneseo \| Groveland \| Leicester \| Lima \| Livonia \| Mount Morris \| North Dansville \| Nunda \| Ossian \| Portage \| Sparta \| Springwater \| West Sparta \| York