Wappinger, New York


Wappinger, officially the Town of Wappinger, is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The Town is located in the Hudson River Valley region, north of New York City, on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. The population was 27,048 at the 2010 census. The name is derived from the Wappinger Indians who inhabited the area. Wappinger comprises 3/4 of the incorporated Village of Wappingers Falls, the unincorporated hamlets of Chelsea, Diddell, FowlerHouse, Hughsonville, Middlebush, Myers Corners, New Hackensack, and Swartwoutville, and a number of neighborhoods.

History

The Wappinger were a confederacy of Native Americans whose territory, in the 17th century, was spread along the eastern shore of the Hudson River. Primarily based in what is now Dutchess County, their territory bordered Manhattan Island to the south, the Mahican territory bounded by the Roeliff Jansen Kill to the north, and extended east into parts of Connecticut.
They spoke an eastern-Algonkian language. Culturally they were closely related to the Lenape people to the west and south of Wappinger lands, and also related to the Mahican people to their immediate north and to the Metoac peoples of Long Island. Wappinger means "easterner" in most Algonkian languages.
The town of Wappinger, originally a part of the town of Fishkill, was formed on May 20, 1875, and lies wholly within the limits of the historic Rombout Patent, granted in 1685. The geographical area of Wappinger was first illegally settled in 1659 by members of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Seeking religious freedom, they settled near the mouth of the Wappinger Creek until Dutch Authorities removed them months later. It wasn’t until 1685 when Francis Rombout and Gulian Verplanck were the first to legally purchase 85,000 acres from the Wappinger This would later be known as the Rombout Patent. The patent covered the towns of Fishkill, East Fishkill, Wappinger, the City of Beacon, and parts of LaGrange and Poughkeepsie, these municipalities were once all a part of the Town of Fishkill. Following the Rombout Patent, the first legal land purchase within the Town of Wappinger was in 1714 when Elias Van Benschoten purchased land and settled in the hamlet of New Hackensack. Following him were other families from Hackensack, New Jersey. The Town of Wappinger is made up of many small hamlets and communities and was primarily agricultural, while mills lined the creek in the Village of Wappingers Falls. Once the Town of Wappinger was officially created from the Town of Fishkill on May 20, 1875, it took another year to elect officials. The first meeting was held at the Brower Brother’s Wagon Shop on Mill Street. The meetings of Town officials took place in the homes of the elected officials, whose jobs were mostly to maintain roadways and bridges.

Historic districts

Government

Wappinger is the second largest populated town in Dutchess County and is governed by a five-member Town Board. The Town of Wappinger has an elected Town Supervisor, held by Town Supervisor, Richard L. Thurston, who was elected to the office as the 29th Town Supervisor in Wappinger history in November 2017. The Town Supervisor is the presiding officer over Town Board meetings and is the chief financial and operating officer of the Town.
The town is structured as a ward system with Town Council-members representing different areas within Wappinger. Councilman William H. Beale represents Ward 1, which includes the Village of Wappingers Falls, northern US Route 9 corridor, Hughsonville hamlet, and Middlebush hamlet. Ward 2 Councilwoman Angela Bettina represents the southern areas of Wappinger which consists of Chelsea hamlet, Swartwoutville hamlet, and the southern part of the US Route 9 corridor. Representing Ward 3 is Councilman Christopher Phillips which includes the middle of the town including part of Myers Corners hamlet, Rockingham Farms, Quiet Acres, Wildwood, and Shamrock Hills subdivisions. Councilman Alfred J. Casella oversees the northern part of Wappinger in Ward 4, which consists of New Hackensack hamlet, Myers Corners hamlet, Hudson Valley Regional Airport, and Edgehill Manor subdivision.
The Town of Wappinger has an elected Town Clerk, held by Joseph P. Paoloni, who is tasked with maintaining town records and taking minutes of Town Board meetings. The Highway Department is overseen by the elected Superintendent of Highways Michael J. Sheehan. The town has two Town Justices, Carl Wolfson and Heather Kitchen.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of, of which is land and, or 5.18%, is water. Part of the west town line is located at the Hudson River and borders Orange County.
Wappinger's boundaries are Fishkill to the south, East Fishkill across Sprout Creek to the east, the town of Newburgh across the Hudson River to the west, Wappinger Creek to the northwest, and LaGrange to the northeast. The town of Wappinger contains part of the village of Wappingers Falls, the other section of which is across Wappinger Creek in the town of Poughkeepsie.
The highest point in Wappinger is above sea level on a hilltop between Smithtown Road and Cedar Hill Road in the southern part of the town, and the lowest point is sea level, along the Hudson River.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 26,274 people, 9,793 households, and 6,992 families residing in the town. The population density was 963.3 people per square mile. There were 10,144 housing units at an average density of 371.9 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 86.18% White, 4.96% African American, 0.24% Native American, 4.29% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 2.44% from other races, and 1.88% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.87% of the population.
There were 9,793 households out of which 34.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.1% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.6% were non-families. 23.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.17.
In the town, the population was spread out with 25.4% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 32.5% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $58,079, and the median income for a family was $66,273. Males had a median income of $49,007 versus $31,444 for females. The per capita income for the town was $25,817. About 3.2% of families and 4.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.1% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Wappingers Central School District was formed in 1937 and is the second largest school district in the state. It was decided to close all of the one room school houses in the area and condense them into one centralized school. The first school in the Wappingers Central School District was the Wappingers Falls Junior High School, which was a K-12 school with students from the towns of Wappinger, Fishkill, Philipstown, Kent, East Fishkill, Lagrange, and Poughkeepsie. There are now 14 schools under the district's control: 9 primary, 2 junior high, and 3 high schools. Within Wappinger there are Myers Corners Elementary School, James S. Evans Elementary School, Wappingers Falls Junior High School, and Roy C. Ketcham Senior High School. The Randolph School is a private school and educates children grades K-6.

Transportation

, NY 9D, New York State Route 82 and NY 376 pass through the town. Hudson Valley Regional Airport is located in Wappinger's New Hackensack hamlet. Dutchess County Public Transit buses also run through the town. Metro-North's Hudson Line tracks go through Wappinger, with the nearest stop being at New Hamburg.

Notable people