Ossining (town), New York

Ossining, New York
—  Town  —
First Baptist Church of Ossining
Nickname(s): The Volunteer-Spirited Town
Location within the county of Westchester
Ossining, New York Location within the state of New York
Coordinates: 41°9′45.47″N 73°51′41.75″W
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Westchester
Area
• Total	15.6 sq mi (40.4 km2)
• Land	11.7 sq mi (30.3 km2)
• Water	3.9 sq mi (10.1 km2)
Population (2010)
• Total	37,674
• Density	3,123.0/sq mi (1,205.6/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	10562
Area code(s)	914
FIPS code	36-55530
GNIS feature ID	0959520
Website	Official website

Painting by Samuel Colman of the view looking north from Ossining (1867)

A photograph of Sing Sing Prison from about the same time (c.1863-1885)

Ossining is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 37,674 at the 2010 census. It contains two villages, the Village of Ossining and part of Briarcliff Manor, the rest of which is located in the Town of Mount Pleasant.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 15.6 square miles (40.4 km²), of which 11.7 square miles (30.3 km²) is land and 3.9 square miles (10.1 km²) (25.06%) is water.

Ossining is bounded to the west by the Hudson River and to the north by the Croton River.

History

Like most of the river towns along the Hudson in the middle- to late-19th century, Ossining was the location of the mansions and estates of the rich. The Kane Mansion was built in 1843....

...while "Hillside", the house of General Edwin McAlpin, was built prior to 1895.

Frederick Philipse bought the area which presently constitutes the Town of Ossining from the Sint Sinck Indians in 1685. His manor extended from Spuyten Duyvil Creek on the border between present day Manhattan and the Bronx to the Croton River. The last lord of the manor, also named Frederick Philipse, was a Loyalist in the American Revolutionary War, so the State of New York confiscated the manor in 1779.

In 1813, the village of Sing Sing was incorporated, and in 1845, the New York State Legislature created a new town out of the northern part of what had been the Town of Mount Pleasant. A local Indian authority suggested the town be named Ossinsing, a different form of the name Sing Sing. One year later the last "s" was removed for ease in pronunciation. In 1881, the town considered changing its name to "Garfield Plains" to honor the recently assassinated President of the United States, James Garfield, but dropped the idea after the much larger city of White Plains in southern Westchester County objected. In 1901, to prevent confusion of goods made in the village with Sing Sing prison-made items, local officials had the village name changed to Ossining as well.

In 1902 an area east of the village of Ossining, then known as Whitson's Crossing, was incorporated as the village of Briarcliff Manor.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 36,534 people, 12,355 households, and 8,537 families residing in the town. The population density was 3,123.0 people per square mile (1,205.6/km²). There were 12,733 housing units at an average density of 1,088.4 per square mile (420.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 70.26% White, 14.28% Black or African American, 0.35% Native American, 4.54% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 7.34% from other races, and 3.21% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 19.93% of the population.

There were 12,355 households out of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.4% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.9% were non-families. 25.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.14.

In the town the population was spread out with 21.8% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 34.5% from 25 to 44, 22.9% from 45 to 64, and 13.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 106.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.4 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $65,485, and the median income for a family was $81,943 (these figures had risen to $77,753 and $98,593 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $51,286 versus $40,618 for females. The per capita income for the town was $34,195. About 5.0% of families and 8.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.

Ossining is ranked the #2 best community to live in Westchester by Westchester Magazine, based on criteria such as Diversity, Housing Costs, Parks & Recreation, Property Tax, Proximity to NYC, Safety, Schools, Proximity to Water, Nightlife, Shopping, and Downtown.

Public library

The Ossining Public Library, originally chartered in 1893 as the Sing Sing Public Library, serves the residents of the Village and Town of Ossining, and parts of Briarcliff Manor, Yorktown, and New Castle. The current collections of the library include over 110,000 books, 25,000 non-print items, and 300 newspaper and magazine titles. As a charter member of the 38-member Westchester Library System, the Ossining Public Library can also offer its patrons access to the more than one million holdings of the other county libraries. An ambitious ($15.8 million) building program was started in 2005 to replace its 1960s-era facility with a new 48,000-square-foot (4,500 m2) building. The new Ossining Public Library opened in March, 2007 and added many new or enhanced services, including over 50 public Internet terminals, a 250-seat theater, an art gallery, a cafe, and the county's first radio frequency (RFID) circulation system. The building program was initiated and supervised by Edward Falcone, the library's director since 1992. In late 2006, Mr. Falcone left Ossining to assume the Deputy Director's position at the Yonkers (NY) Public Library. He was replaced by Elizabeth Bermel, who started in May 2007. Ms. Bermel left Ossining in October 2009 to become the director of the Scarsdale Public Library, and Ossining is currently operating with an interim director.About 98% of the Library's budget comes from local tax support, and the remainder is raised by the Library itself.

Photogallery

Two arched bridges cross Sing Sing Kill in Ossining. Route 9 is carried on the lower bridge, while the Croton Aqueduct was carried on the upper one.

The upper bridge is today used as a pedestrian bridge, and is part of the state Old Croton Aqueduct Trail

Notable residents

• David T. Abercrombie – co-founder of Abercrombie & Fitch
• John Cheever – author
• John Chervokas – advertising executive
• Kara DioGuardi – singer-songwriter
• Peter Falk – actor
• Anne Francis – actress
• Khalid Khannouchi – American record holder for the marathon
• Sonny Sharrock – jazz guitarist

External links

• Town of Ossining official web site
• Village of Ossining
• Ossining Public Library
• Ossining.com: Ossining, NY's Hometown Web-newspaper
• GuideToOssining.com: business directory
• Hudson Valley Arts and Science