In the early 1700s, one of the original patent holders, Benjamin Aske, named his land "Warwick", presumably after an area of England near his original ancestral home. He began to sell it off to settlers in 1719. His first parcel of land, 100 acres, was sold to Lawrence Decker. Other familiar family names of the Valley appeared in subsequent years. The European population of the valley grew rapidly from 1730 to 1765, and the previously existing populations of indigenous native people declined as forests and land were cleared for pasture and were re-organized. By the start of the American Revolution, almost all of the native population had disappeared in various ways.[4] The region has been referred to as Warwick since the early eighteenth century, but a governmental form for a town named Warwick was officially created in 1788.[5]
Perspective map of Warwick from 1887 with list of landmarks by L.R. Burleigh
Warwick is situated along a freight rail line, which, as it did with many other towns in Orange County (such as Goshen, Middletown, and Newburgh), contributed to the growth of the area. The nineteenth-century writer and naturalist Henry William Herbert, writing as Frank Forrester, popularized the area with his 1845 book, "The Warwick Woodlands".[6] Today, the town of Warwick is a rural community with many agricultural pursuits that stimulate its economy.[citation needed]
The town of Warwick comprises much of the southern tip of Orange County. It borders the townships of Vernon and West Milford to the south, both in the state of New Jersey. To its north, Warwick is bordered by Chester via Sugar Loaf, Orange County's oldest hamlet, antedating both Warwick and Chester, and which was part of Warwick until the mid-nineteenth century. To its east, Warwick is bordered by the town of Tuxedo, home of the New York Renaissance Faire, and the hamlet of Tuxedo Park.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town is the second largest township in New York State and has a total area of 104.9 square miles (271.6 km2), of which 101.7 square miles (263.3 km2) is land and 3.2 square miles (8.3 km2) (3.04%) is water. Greenwood Lake is Orange County's largest lake, and it is bisected by the border between New Jersey (to the south) and New York (on its north). Glenmere Lake, an extremely critical endangered species habitat, is bisected by Warwick and Chester.
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 30,764 people, 10,868 households, and 7,955 families residing in the town. The population density was 302.6 inhabitants per square mile (116.8/km2). There were 11,818 housing units at an average density of 116.2 per square mile (44.9/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 91.06% White, 4.51% Black or African American, 0.31% Native American, 0.85% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 1.60% from other races, and 1.61% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.47% of the population.
There were 10,868 households, of which 38.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.7% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.8% were non-families. 22.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.25.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.2% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 24.6% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.2 males.
Education
The Warwick Valley Central School District serves as the public school system for Warwick residents and residents of the southern portion of the town of Chester. The Greenwood Lake Union Free School District [1] serves the residents of Greenwood Lake, with the GWL Elementary School and GWL Middle School; students have a choice of Chester Academy or Warwick Valley High School for their high school education. The Florida NY Union Free School District [2] serves the residents of Florida, NY, with Golden Hill Elementary School and S.S.Seward Institute.
Festivals
Applefest is an annual outdoor festival attracting as many as 35,000 people each year in October.[10]
The Hudson Valley Jazz Festival, originally named the Warwick Valley Jazz Festival, takes place during the summer.[11][12]
The annual George Washington Celebration is a tradition that celebrates when the Founding Father, Gen. George Washington, came to Warwick and enjoyed a grog with his men in Baird's Tavern. This free community-wide tradition takes place in July, and is carried on by the Historical Society of the Town of Warwick, also known as the Warwick Historical Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to Warwick since its inception in 1906. George Washington Day is a fun-filled community tradition with free public historic property tours throughout the afternoon. [13]
Transportation
Warwick is served by the 196 and 197 buses to Manhattan (operated by New Jersey Transit). It is also served by the Warwick inter-municipal bus.[14][15]
Communities and locations in the town of Warwick
Warwick – village located by the junction of NY 94 and NY 17A
Greenwood Lake – village located on NY 17A at the north end of Greenwood Lake
Amity – hamlet located between Edenville and Pine Island near the New Jersey state line - It is served by the Amity Station of the Pine Island Fire Department and is the site of the Amity Presbyterian Church, which was first opened in 1796. Amity is also home to the Crystal Inn, a famous restaurant and bar located on Amity Road, which opened in 1965.
Bellvale – hamlet on NY 17A between Warwick village and Greenwood Lake
Black Walnut Hill – hamlet north of Hoopstick on Pulaski Highway
Cascade Lake – a small lake in the hills on the southern part of town
Center – a historic hamlet identified solely by the post office that was located at the Warwick Woodlands Hotel from 1909 to 1916 on the western shore of Greenwood Lake north of Furnace Brook. An earlier post office by the name of Warwick Woodlands, New York, operated at the same location from 1882 to 1891.
Durland – hamlet northeast of Warwick village and west of Wickham Lake
Edenville – hamlet in the western part of Warwick, on Pine Island Turnpike, just off County Route 1 (CR 1)
Greenwood Forest Farms – an early area retreat for African-American families
Hoopstick – hamlet north of Pine Island in the "black dirt" on Pulaski Highway, historically the home of nineteenth century barrel hoop makers
Lake – hamlet along King's Highway near the town line at Chester; Had a depot, freight house, creamery, post office, general store and long passing siding on the Lehigh & Hudson River Railway
Lakeville – hamlet located at the southern end of Sterling Lake
Liberty Corners – hamlet on CR 88, near the New Jersey state line in the southwestern part of the town
Little York – hamlet east of Pine Island
New Milford – hamlet near the New Jersey state line on NY 94
Newport – hamlet south of Pine Island
Pine Island – hamlet at the junction of CR 1 (Pine Island Turnpike), CR 6 (Pulaski Highway), and CR 26 (Glenwood Road) near the northwest town line - It is the commercial center of the "black dirt" region.
Quaker Creek – hamlet south of Snufftown on Pulaski Highway, directly on the border with the town of Goshen
Snufftown – hamlet north of Pine Island near the town line; historically considered the "Snufftown section of the village of Florida", it is the last settlement in the Florida union-free school district, named for the habit of the early twentieth century farmers who relaxed on the front porch of one of the earliest homesteads, drinking beer, and chewing snuff.[citation needed]
Sterling Forest – a hamlet located at the New Jersey state line on the eastern shore of Greenwood Lake, and served by the Sterling Forest, New York, post office. It was the site of the first American rocket airplane flight that carried mail from New York to New Jersey on February 23, 1936.[citation needed] Babe Ruth often rented a cabin there for the summer season during his retirement.[citation needed] The Jehovah's Witnesses' world headquarters building is located in Sterling Forest.[16]
Wisner – hamlet northeast of Warwick village originally known as "Stone Bridge"; Had a depot, freight house, creamery, and siding on the Lehigh & Hudson River Railway as well as a post office, Grange general store and warehouse, the latter of which still stands.
Robert Whitman (1935–2024), visual and performance artist best known for his pieces of the early 1960s combining visual and sound images, actors, film, slides, and evocative props[17]
"Growing Up Greenpoint - A Kid's Life in 1970s Brooklyn". The town at the ending of the book is Warwick, NY, where the author, Tommy Carbone went to high school.
^A Short History of the Warwick Valley - Dr. Richard Hull's History of Warwick. S. Gardner, July 1999. albertwisnerlibrary.org. Retrieved November 2019.
^Kennedy, Randy. "Robert Whitman, Cutting-Edge Performance Artist, Dies at 88", The New York Times, January 20, 2024. Accessed January 21, 2024. "Robert Whitman, a pioneer of performance and multimedia art whose work tapped into primitive, nonverbal human ritual while also anticipating the fractured nature of 21st-century digital existence, died on Friday at his home in Warwick, N.Y., in the Hudson Valley. He was 88."
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