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Larchmont, New York

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"Larchmont" redirects here. For other uses, see Larchmont (disambiguation).
Larchmont, New York
Village
Location of Larchmont, New York
Location of Larchmont, New York
StateNew York
CountyWestchester
Government
 • MayorAnne McAndrews
Area
 • Total1.1 sq mi (2.8 km2)
 • Land1.1 sq mi (2.8 km2)
 • Water0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation
52 ft (16 m)
Population
 (2013)
 • Total5,951[1]
Time zoneUTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code
10538
Area code914
FIPS code36-41333
GNIS feature ID0977360
Village Hall and fire station
Chatsworth Avenue School
Public Library

Larchmont is a village located within the Town of Mamaroneck in Westchester County, New York, approximately 18 miles (29 km) northeast of Midtown Manhattan. The population of the village was 5,864 at the 2010 census.[2]

In July 2005, CNN/Money and Money magazine ranked Larchmont 11th on its list of the 100 Best Places to Live in the United States.[3]

History

Colonial period

Originally inhabited by the Siwanoy (an Algonquian tribe), Larchmont was discovered by the Dutch in 1614. In 1661, John Richbell, a merchant from Hampshire, England, traded a minimal amount of goods and trinkets with the Siwanoy in exchange for land that is today known as the Town of Mamaroneck. The purchase included three peninsulas of land that lay between the Mamaroneck River to the east, and Pelham Manor to the west. The east neck is now known as Orienta while the middle neck is what is now known as Larchmont Manor. The third neck was later sold and is now known as Davenport Neck in New Rochelle. The purchase was contested by Thomas Revell who, one month following Richbell's purchase, bought the land from the Siwanoy at a higher price. Richbell petitioned Governor Stuyvesant, Director General of the Colonies of the New Netherlands, and Richbell was issued the land patent in 1662. In 1664 Great Britain took control of the colonies and Richbell recieved and English title for his lands in 1668 whereupon he began to encourage settlement. Inn 1675 Richbell leased his "Middle Neck" to his brother however when he died in 1684 none of his original property remained in his name. In 1700, Samuel Palmer, who had been elected the Town's first supervisor in 1697, obtained the original leases on the "Middle Neck", and in 1722 the Palmer family obtained full title to the land which included what is now the Incorporated Village of Larchmont.[4]

Larchmont's oldest and most historic home, the "Manor House" on Elm Avenue, was built in 1797 by Peter Jay Munro.[5] Munro was the nephew of John Jay, the first Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, and was later adopted by Jay. At the beginning of the 19th Century, Munro was active in the abolitionist movement, helping to found the New York State Manumission Society, along with his uncle and Alexander Hamilton. In 1795 Munro had purchased much of the land owned by Samuel Palmer and by 1828 he owned all of the "Middle Neck" south of the Post Road and much of the land north of the Post Road as well. Munro later became a lawyer with Aaron Burr's law firm and built a home in Larchmont Manor known as the Manor House. Munro's house faced towards the Boston Post Road (the back is now used as the front), which tended to generate a lot of dust in summer months. To combat this, his gardener imported a Scottish species of larch trees that were known to be fast growing. These were planted along the front of the property, eventually giving the village its name. [6]

Summer resort

When Munro died in 1833, his son Henry inherited the property however he soon lost the property and it was sold at auction in 1845 to Edward knight Collins, owner of a steamship line. By the end of the Civil War in 1865, Collins had gone bankrupt and his estate was put up for auction and purchased by Thompson J.S. Flint. Flint divided the estate into building lots and called his development company the Larchmont Manor Company. Flint converted the Munro Mansion into an inn for prospective buyers and reserved some waterfront land for use as a park for the future residents of the Manor. After 1872 the area became a popular summer resort for wealthy New Yorkers. The arrival of the New York & New Haven Railroad replaced the stagecoach and steamboat as the main mode of transportation to and from New York City, making it much easier to commute and thus, modernizing travel which ultimately helped develop much of Westchester from farmland into suburbs by the 1900's. [7]

Establishment of Village

The New York legislature created Mamaroneck as a town in 1788, which includes a part of the Village of Mamaroneck, The Village of Larchmont, and the unincorporated area in the Town of Mamaroneck. This three part division occurred in the 1890's to meet the growing demand for municipal services which the town could not provide. [8] At the time, a town was defined as only being able to provide basic goverment functions leaving residents of Larchmont in need of adequate water supply, sewage disposal, garbage collection, and police and fire protection. In 1891 the residents of Larchmont Manor obtained a charter from the legislature in which they incorporated that section of Town into a village. In order to comply with a law requiring incorporated villages to have at least 300 inhabitants per square mile, the boundaries of the newly incorporated Larchmont village were expanded beyond the Manor's 288 acres to include land to its north and south of the railroad, and east to Weaver Street.[9]

After the advent of the automobile, Larchmont quickly transitioned from a resort community into a one of the earliest suburbs in the United States, catering to wealthy individuals commuting to and from New York City for work on a daily basis. Many of the Victorian "cottages" and a grand hotels (such as the Bevan House and Manor Inn) remain to this day, though these have been converted to other uses such as private residences. The Larchmont Yacht Club hosts an annual Race Week competition (2007 marked the 110th running of this event). It is adjacent to Manor Park, which was designed by Jeremiah Towle, an early summer resident of Larchmont Manor and an engineer. The Larchmont Shore Club (near the Larchmont Yacht Club) hosts an annual Swim Across America challenge, across Long Island Sound.

Larchmont and neighboring Mamaroneck and New Rochelle are noted for their significant French American populace.[10]

Geography

Larchmont is located at 40°55′34″N 73°45′11″W / 40.92611°N 73.75306°W / 40.92611; -73.75306 (40.926201, -73.753108),[11] about 18 miles (29 km) from midtown Manhattan.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km2), all of it land.

A source of confusion for non-locals is that a large portion of the area served by the Larchmont Post Office (zip code 10538) is actually not in the incorporated Village of Larchmont, but is part of the "unincorporated area" of the Town of Mamaroneck.

Demographics

As of the census[12] of 2000, there were 6,485 people, 2,418 households, and 1,709 families residing in the village. The population density was 6,073.6 people per square mile (2,340.1/km2). There were 2,470 housing units at an average density of 2,313.3 per square mile (891.3/km2). The racial makeup of the village was 92% White, 2% African American, 0.09% Native American, 2.82% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 0.77% from other races, and 1.33% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.97% of the population.

There were 2,418 households out of which 38.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.6% were married couples living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.3% were non-families. 25.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.25.

In the village the population was spread out with 29.3% under the age of 18, 3.9% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 90.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.5 males.

According to a 2009 estimate,[13] the median income for a household in the village was $165,375, and the median income for a family was $204,695. The per capita income for the village was $109,664. About 1.6% of families and 2.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 1.5% of those under age 18 and 5.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Village of Larchmont contains one of the six schools in the Mamaroneck Union Free School District, Chatsworth Avenue School, which was established in 1903. Other elementary schools and the high school are in the Village of Mamaroneck. Central School, Hommocks Middle School, and Murray Avenue School, although they have a Larchmont postal address, are located in the unincorporated area of the Town of Mamaroneck.

Parks and recreation

  • Flint Park - offers a variety of sports facilities, including tennis and paddle tennis, three baseball fields, soccer fields, basketball courts, a picnic area, and a playground.
  • Hommocks Park- features a pool, soccer field, baseball fields, and an ice rink where the New York Raptors play. They host an annual Thanksgiving tournament for some Special Hockey International teams. The Raptors are a special needs hockey team that formed in 1996. This is one of the home arenas the Raptors play at. They also play at Westchester Skating Academy. The rink is also home to the Mamaroneck High School hockey team and the Mamaroneck Tigers Youth Hockey Team. The rink is not only used for ice purposes, but other non ice purposes as well.
  • Lorenzen Park - home to village Little League and Soccer League fields.
  • Manor Park - situated along Long Island Sound, with walking paths and views of the water. The park is open to the public but is privately owned by the Larchmont Manor Park Society (which also maintains a beach within the park).
  • Pine Brook Park - a play area for young children, along with a ballfield.
  • Vanderburgh Park - also known as "Turtle Park", a play area for small children and toddlers.
  • Willow/Woodbine Park - an opportunity for observing nature along the Premium River (includes basketball courts, soccer field, and a play area for both toddlers and young children).
  • Mad Men at 16 minutes, 6 seconds into Season 2, episode 8 - Crab Colson comments to Roger Sterling et al. on how lovely it is to travel by taking a "sloop from his folks' place in Old Lyme all the way down to Larchmont for race week."
  • All in the Family - Archie Bunker is stuck in an elevator with a wealthy elderly black man who states in a somewhat snobby voice, "I'm the vice chairman of the Larchmont Rotary. I live in Larchmont."[14]
  • Family Guy - A flashforward shows a middle-aged Stewie going over his phone bills, and shouting out to his unseen wife, "A 20-minute call to Larchmont!? Who do we know in Larchmont?" to which she responds, "my sister-in-law".[15][16]
  • The Odd couple - When Felix sells all of the furniture in the apartment to redecorate, two women show up for the sale at 12:01AM. When told they must come back in the morning they lament "We came all the way from Larchmont."
  • Wall Street - when Gordon Gekko and Bud Fox are in the change room of the health club, Gekko asks another member, "How's Larchmont treating you?"
  • Rabbit Hole - play by David Lindsay-Abaire; set in Larchmont
  • I'll Be Home for Christmas - Jonathan Taylor Thomas of Home Improvement, undergoes some sort of metamorphosis as he makes his way cross-country from California to his home in Larchmont, N.Y., at Christmas break while glued inside a Santa suit.
  • Home scenes in The Smurfs starring Neil Patrick Harris were shot in Larchmont.[citation needed]
  • Many scenes in The Oranges starring Hugh Laurie were shot in Larchmont and the vicinity.
  • The West Wing - In season 3 episode 8, when speaking with President Bartlet, Bruno Gianelli says, "When I was a teenager, I crewed Larchmont to Nassau on a 58-foot sloop called Cantice."[17]

Notable people

Larchmont movie playhouse

References

  1. ^ . U.S Census http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/36/3641333.html. Retrieved 8/5/14. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. ^ "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Larchmont village, New York". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Retrieved November 18, 2011.
  3. ^ "MONEY Magazine: Best places to live 2005: Larchmont, NY snapshot". Money.cnn.com. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
  4. ^ English, Mary O'Connor. Early Town Records of Mamaroneck, 1697-1881. Mamaroneck, 1979
  5. ^ Larchmont's Oldest Home on LHS 25th Anniversary Tour, by Susan Emery, The Larchmont Gazette, April 20, 2006
  6. ^ Fulcher, William Gershom. Mamaroneck from Colonial Times Through the First Century of the Republic. Mamaroneck, The American Revolution Bicentennial Committee, 1976
  7. ^ Spikes, Judith Doolin, Larchmont New York: People and Places Pre-History to 1892. Larchmont, Fountain Square Books, 1991
  8. ^ Fulcher, William Gershom. Mamaroneck Through the Years. Larchmont, The Larchmont Times, 1936
  9. ^ If You're Thinking of Living in: Larchmont, by Jerry Cheslow, NY Times, April 15, 1990
  10. ^ For Expatriate Families, A Home Away From Home; Foreign Enclaves Dot the Landscape as County Attracts Temporary Residents, By Lisa W. Foderaro, The NY Times, May 7, 2000
  11. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  12. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  13. ^ http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ACSSAFFFacts?_event=Search&geo_id=06000US3611932413&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US36%7C05000US36119%7C06000US3611932413&_street=&_county=larchmont&_cityTown=larchmont&_state=04000US36&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=geoSelect&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=060&_submenuId=factsheet_1&ds_name=ACS_2009_5YR_SAFF&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=null&reg=null%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=
  14. ^ "All in the Family - The Elevator Story - Wednesday, Apr 14, 2010 - mReplay Livedash TV Transcript - Livedash - Search what is being mentioned across national TV". Livedash. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
  15. ^ "Family Guy - 2x06: Death Is a Bitch". TVTDB.com. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
  16. ^ Rosenblum, Emma (2002-10-07). "10 Suburbs You Can Afford". Nymag.com. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
  17. ^ "The West Wing - The Indians in the Lobby".
  18. ^ a b c Kolbert, Elizabeth (1985-02-24). "If You'Re Thinking Of Living In - Larchmont - Nytimes.Com". Larchmont (Ny): New York Times. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
  19. ^ Klein, Alvin (1984-12-09). "Theater - Theater - Larchmont Actress To Open In Play - Review". NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
  20. ^ "National Women's History Museum". NWHM. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
  21. ^ Berger, Joseph (January 2, 2009). "Suddenly, There's a Celebrity Next Door". The New York Times. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
  22. ^ Hershenson, Roberta (2005-06-19). "FOOTLIGHTS - NYTimes.com". New York Times. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
  23. ^ Verini, Bob (2008-02-14). "Variety Reviews - Joan Rivers: A Work in Progress by a Life in Progress - Legit Reviews - Regional - Review by Bob Verini". Variety.com. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
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