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Wappingers Falls, New York

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The Bain Commercial Building is located at the corner of Church and West Main ( NY 9D ) streets in Wappingers Falls , New York , United States . It is a late 19th-century brick building that was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

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92-545: Wappingers Falls is a village in the towns of Poughkeepsie and Wappinger , in Dutchess County , New York , United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 5,522. The community was named for the cascade in Wappinger Creek . The Wappingers Falls post office covers areas in the towns of Wappinger, Poughkeepsie, Fishkill , East Fishkill , and LaGrange . This can result in some confusion when residents of

184-598: A Sunday school . There were only seven or eight families living in the area at the time. The class was subsequently moved to a corn barn near the Mesier homestead where the village flagpole now stands. The Mesiers attended Trinity Church in Fishkill , the nearest Episcopal church, but felt the need for a church less distant for the farmers of the area and their families. In 1833, the Reverend Doctor George B. Andrews moved to

276-499: A county administrator, who acts on behalf of the legislature, the legislature must maintain ultimate control over the actions of the administrator. Many, but not all, charter counties have an elected executive who is independent of the legislature; the exact form of government is defined in the County Charter. In New York, each city is a highly autonomous incorporated area that, with the exceptions of New York City and Geneva ,

368-550: A farm, "Highmount", between Hughsonville and New Hamburg . On July 14 of that year he conducted the first official service of the Episcopal Church somewhere on the north side of Wappingers Creek. He continued to be driven up from his farm with his family and servants to spend Sundays near the falls. In December 1833, Matthew Mesier gave a small tract of land between the burial ground and the turnpike (now Main Street) in front of what

460-631: A land-use classification for private land under its Adirondack Park Land Use and Development Plan (APLUDP). The APLUDP extends the boundaries for its classification of hamlets "well beyond established settlements" to allow for growth. In New York, a village is an incorporated area. About 85% of villages fall within a single town. Villages in the State of New York are classified by the Census Bureau as incorporated places . Like all municipal corporations, villages have clearly defined legal boundaries. A village

552-417: A mayor and (usually) four trustees. The board is responsible for approving mayoral appointments, managing village finances and property, and approving a budget. The mayor, who is generally the chief executive of the village, may vote in all business before the board and must vote to break a tie. The mayor generally does not possess veto power, unless this is provided for by local law. Administrative duties of

644-774: A school which closed in 2019. Mount Alvernia Retreat Center sits on 204 acres overlooking the Hudson Valley and is run by the Franciscan Friars of the New York Province of the Immaculate Conception. It was built in 1950 and until 1967 served as a seminary to train Franciscan friars for the Roman Catholic priesthood. Its chapel offers daily Mass while the former seminary building hosts retreats and other events. On

736-500: A total area of 1.2 square miles (3.1 km), of which 1.1 square miles (2.9 km) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km), or 6.45%, is water. Wappinger Creek flows through the village. The Wappingers Falls post office serves both the village of Wappingers Falls and the town of Wappinger (as well as portions of Fishkill , East Fishkill , Poughkeepsie and LaGrange ) under the ZIP code "Wappingers Falls, NY 12590". US 9 passes through

828-597: A town; 35.9% were living in a town but outside a village. Whereas cities and villages can cross county boundaries, each town in New York is completely contained within a single county. New York towns are classified by statute as being a town of the first class or a town of the second class . Additionally, a town of the first class can further be classified as a suburban town upon meeting certain criteria. Originally, towns of different classes possessed different powers. Since 1964, all towns, regardless of classification, have had

920-473: A uniform statewide Village Law (twelve villages still operate under charters issued by the state legislature prior to a revision of the State Constitution in 1874 that forbade chartering villages). Also, villages are part of a town (or towns; some villages cross town borders), with residents who pay taxes to and receive services from the town. Cities are neither part of nor subordinate to towns except for

1012-504: A village becomes a city, the Legislature requires clear evidence, usually in the form of a locally drafted charter, that the community in question seeks to incorporate as a city. The forms of government cities can have are council–manager, strong mayor–council, weak mayor–council or commission. Forty-six cities, the majority, use the mayor–council form. The City of New York is a special case. The state legislature reorganized government in

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1104-482: A village or town but will perform some of the functions of the other form. Villages remain part of the towns in which they are located; village residents pay both town and village taxes, and vote in both town and village elections. Towns can contain several hamlets and communities. If the United States Postal Service (USPS) has a post office in a hamlet it often will use the name of that hamlet, as will

1196-423: Is Sherrill, New York , with just 3,071 inhabitants in 2010. The smallest city by area is Mechanicville, New York , which covers 0.91 sq mi (2.4 km ) (of which 0.08 sq mi (0.2 km ) is water). Some places containing the word "city" in their name are not cities. Examples include Johnson City , Garden City , and New City . Several cities, such as Albany, are divided into wards for

1288-408: Is a municipality that provides services to the residents, services that may or may not include garbage collection, management of cemeteries, street and highway maintenance, street lighting, and building codes. Some villages provide their own police and other municipal services. Villages have less autonomy than cities. While cities are not subject to a town's jurisdiction, villages legally remain part of

1380-488: Is a two-story five-by-five bay structure with the Second Empire's signature mansard roof , surfaced in polychrome slate . Its foundation is built into surface that slopes toward the creek, requiring steps to access the building through its front facade , where a central entry to the upper floors is flanked by separate, three-part storefronts themselves consisting of doors flanked by large bay windows . The roofline

1472-402: Is commonplace to change boundaries and define new CDPs for each census. The Census Bureau formerly referred to CDPs as "unincorporated places" from 1950 through the 1970 decennial censuses. The term CDP was first used for the 1980 census , and minimum population criteria for CDPs were dropped with the 2000 census . Though the term "hamlet" is not defined under New York law, many people in

1564-456: Is contained within one county. Cities in New York are classified by the U.S. Census Bureau as incorporated places. They provide almost all services to their residents and have the highest degree of home rule and taxing jurisdiction over their residents. The main difference between a city and a village is that cities are organized and governed according to their charters , which can differ widely among cities, while most villages are subject to

1656-468: Is decorated with a bracketed and panelled cornice , echoed in smaller, less ornate scale above the storefronts. The five windows on the second story give way to three dormer windows on the roof, pierced by chimneys at the center of the north and south elevations. Cast iron columns support the structure where the facade elements intersect. To better facilitate the building's conversion into apartments , wooden stairs and sheds have been added to

1748-548: Is in three towns and two counties. Five towns are coterminous with their single village and have a coterminous town-village form of government. Despite their names, Greenwich Village , the East Village , and Queens Village are not villages, but neighborhoods of the City of New York . A borough is one of the five major administrative divisions of the consolidated City of New York . Boroughs do not currently exist elsewhere in

1840-587: Is located at the corner of South Avenue (NY 9D) and East Main Street. It was originally built in 1940 as the village's new post office, a WPA project. President Franklin D. Roosevelt took a personal interest in the project, as he had with other new post offices in Dutchess County. He wanted it to be built of fieldstone in the style of many Dutch colonial houses in the area, and chose the Brewer-Mesier House in

1932-522: Is located on Market Street in the western corner of the village. It is a large brick residence that was built as housing for the manager of the Dutchess Company, a large local printing works, shortly after the plant was built in 1848. It remained in company ownership until the company failed in the 20th century. In 1984 it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The Police Station

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2024-402: Is the state. All of them have their own governments, sometimes with no paid employees, that provide local services. Centers of population that are not incorporated and have no government or local services are designated hamlets . Whether a municipality is defined as a borough, city, town, or village is determined not by population or land area, but rather on the form of government selected by

2116-425: Is then voted upon by the qualified voters living in the proposed village only. Some villages have fewer than 500 residents, having incorporated before the present population requirement or fallen below the old 500-resident threshold after incorporation. A village may also be dissolved, returning all government control to the town level. The process of dissolution can be initiated by the village board itself, or upon

2208-406: Is water. The town of Webb ( Herkimer County ) has the greatest land area, at 451 sq mi (1,170 km ). The smallest town, Green Island ( Albany County ), covers 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km ). The town of Hempstead ( Nassau County ) has about 760,000 people (2010 census), making it more populous than any city in the state except New York City . Red House ( Cattaraugus County ),

2300-593: The Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of New York . Articles VIII (titled "Local Finances") and IX (titled "Local Government", but commonly referred to as the "Home Rule" article) of the state constitution establish the rights and responsibilities of the municipal governments. The New York State Constitution provides for democratically elected legislative bodies for counties, cities, towns and villages. These legislative bodies are granted

2392-508: The United States Census Bureau as "a statistical entity defined for each decennial census according to Census Bureau guidelines, comprising a densely settled concentration of population" that is not part of a city or a village "but is locally identified by a name." CDPs may cross town and county borders. CDPs are defined collaboratively by state and local officials and the Census Bureau. They are defined for each census, and it

2484-547: The 1830s building provided space for the church school and events. In the mid-2000s, the Kerrigan House was sold and transported across South Avenue to be replaced by a new church building. The Presbyterian Church at Wappingers Falls owed it existence to Mrs. John Fisher Sheafe, whose country seat was near New Hamburg. She asked the Rev. John D. Wells, who was then preaching at Ellessdie Chapel, situated two miles north of New Hamburg on

2576-594: The American state of New York . The state is divided into boroughs , counties, cities, towns, and villages. (The only boroughs, the five boroughs of New York City, have the same boundaries as their respective counties.) They are municipal corporations , chartered (created) by the New York State Legislature , as under the New York State Constitution the only body that can create governmental units

2668-550: The Hudson River. By 1856 it had become one of the largest printworks in the country. A fire that year destroyed the original buildings completely, but they were immediately rebuilt and continued in operation until 1931. The streets on the hillside opposite the mill are lined with frame houses, mostly duplexes, built by the mill for its workers. The two halves of the village are connected by an 1884 stone arch bridge that replaced earlier wooden structures. The village of Wappingers Falls

2760-597: The Methodist Society purchased the former Baptist meeting house, also at Middlebush. In 1841 it became part of the Johnsville circuit. John Given donated land in the then village of Ednam, at the falls west of the Wappingers Creek. Ednamville was established as a mission church served by preachers who rode circuit to Middlebush and New Hamburg. In 1845, a church was built at the corner of West Main and Church Streets. In

2852-457: The National Register of Historic Places in 1984. The Wappingers Falls Historic District includes downtown, several adjacent residential neighborhoods, and Mesier Park & Homestead. Mesier Park has been a public park since ca. 1891, and hosts many annual events that focus around the bandstand and tree-lined paths of the park. In 1984 the district was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The Dutchess Company Superintendent's House

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2944-542: The U.S. Census Bureau as minor civil divisions . Like New Jersey and southern New England , all of New York is incorporated; all residents who do not live in a city or on an Indian reservation live in a town. Towns provide or arrange for the primary functions of local government. While some provide most municipal services for all town residents and selected services for residents of villages, some provide little more than road maintenance. There were 933 towns in New York. As of 2000 , 45.8% of state residents were living in

3036-512: The appropriate modifications made to the building by the Bain descendants who still owned the property. That mix of uses continues today, with one of the storefronts home to a coffee shop . Detached Second Empire commercial buildings are not common in urban or suburban settings; the Bain building's development as such testifies to the minimal development of the Channingville area, particularly as it

3128-451: The area in the 1890s in an effort to consolidate. Other cities, villages, and towns were annexed to become the " City of Greater New York ", (an unofficial term, the new city retained the name of New York), a process basically completed in 1898. At the time of consolidation, Queens County was split. Its western towns joined the city, leaving three towns that were never part of the consolidation plan as part of Queens County but not part of

3220-495: The area of the proposed village must have at least 1,500 inhabitants and not be part of an existing city or village. Additionally, the proposed village can be no more than 5 square miles (13 km ) in area unless its boundaries are to be coterminous with a school, fire, improvement or other district, or the entire town. The process of incorporation begins with a petition by either 20% of residents or owners of 50% of assessed real property. If deemed legally sufficient, incorporation

3312-452: The back. One original shed that remains is considered a contributing outbuilding. The Bain family is believed to have built the building in 1875, shortly after Channingville became part of the village. It was both their residence and their place of business, with the possibility of rental income from the other storefront. In the 20th century, after the village's industries declined, the upper residences were converted into apartments and

3404-427: The cities of New York and Albany city charters, which were recognized by the first State Constitution in 1777. All other cities have been established by act of the state legislature and have been granted a charter. Cities have been granted the power to revise their charters or adopt new ones. There are no minimum population or area requirements in order to become a city. While there is no defined process for how and when

3496-529: The city of Sherrill , which for some purposes is treated as if it were a village of the town of Vernon . Some cities are completely surrounded by a town, typically of the same name. There are sixty-two cities in the state. As of 2000 , 54.1% of state residents were living in a city; 42.2% were living in New York City; 11.9% were living in one of the other 61 cities. In 1686, the English colonial governor granted

3588-601: The consolidated city. Each borough individually elects a borough president and used to elect two at-large city council members, in addition to those elected based on each borough's population. The borough presidents once wielded considerable power as members of the New York City Board of Estimate , but the position is now largely ceremonial and advisory. Boroughs function as counties for certain purposes, but have no county government. The five New York City district attorneys , however, are still elected by county (for example,

3680-468: The corner of Prospect Street and South Avenue. The church building was dedicated on December 5, 1847. In 1967 the Bethel Baptist community purchased Franklindale Baptist, which was dedicated as Bethel Missionary Baptist Church on October 15, 1967. In 1997 the need for additional space brought the purchase of the house across Prospect Street, which had belonged to Dr. Kerrigan. Referred to as "Bethel Annex",

3772-614: The county also publish maps that conflict both in the number of hamlets and their boundaries. Nevertheless, all land not within a village is administered by the town. Most of the rest of New York's hamlets, however, have less well-defined boundaries, and most towns have areas that are not considered to be a part of any hamlet. The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) puts hamlet names on rectangular green signs with white lettering at roadside locations of its choosing. The NYSDOT and local governments also provide community identification signs on some scenic byways to be placed at

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3864-587: The county boundaries—each have a Borough Board made up of the Borough President, the borough's district council members, and the chairpersons of the borough's community boards. A mayor serves as the city's chief executive officer. The most populous and largest city in the state is New York City , with a population of over 8.5 million inhabitants and comprising just over 300 sq mi (777.00 km ) of land (468.87 sq mi (1,214.368 km ) total area, which includes water). The least populous city

3956-783: The district attorney for Brooklyn is called the Kings County District Attorney). Bain Commercial Building It is the only intact Second Empire - style building from that period in the village. It is also one of the few historic structures in the portion of the village west of Wappinger Creek in the Town of Poughkeepsie that was once known as Channingville before it merged with Wappingers Falls in 1871. It has not been altered significantly since its construction and continues in use as multiple-dwelling residences above and business space at street level. The Bain building

4048-690: The executive branch. All town justices were originally part of a town's board. Today, justices belong to a separate judicial branch known as Town Court or Justice Court, part of New York's Justice Court system. A town may contain one or more villages. Many towns have no villages. Five towns are coterminous with their single village and share the same name: Green Island in Albany County ; East Rochester in Monroe County ; and Scarsdale , Harrison , and Mount Kisco in Westchester County . A sixth,

4140-580: The first stone house in the village near the present Mill Street. In 1742, the Brewers built a mill on the east side of Wappinger Creek . Nicholas Brewer built the Mesier Homestead, which he sold in 1777 to Matthew VanBenschoten, who, in turn, sold it to Peter Mesier Sr. , a merchant from New York City. In May 1777, soldiers and local residents attacked Peter Mesier's house in Wappingers Falls, disputing

4232-535: The general provisions of the County Law. Although all counties have a certain latitude to govern themselves, "charter counties" are afforded greater home rule powers. The charter counties are Albany , Broome , Chautauqua , Chemung , Dutchess , Erie , Herkimer , Monroe , Nassau , Oneida , Onondaga , Orange , Putnam , Rensselaer , Rockland , Schenectady , Suffolk , Tompkins , Ulster , and Westchester . Sixteen counties are governed through an assembly with

4324-595: The larger New York – Newark – Bridgeport , NY- NJ - CT - PA Combined Statistical Area . County Players Falls Theatre, a volunteer, non-profit community theatre is located on West Main Street in the village, in the former Academy Theatre building. TV stations (with antenna pointed south) WCBS-TV -2, WNBC-TV -4, WNYW-TV -5, WABC-TV -7, WWOR-TV -9, WPIX-TV -11, WNET -13 TV stations, with antenna pointed north to Albany, include WRGB-TV -6, WTEN-TV -10, WMHT-TV -17 and WCWN -45. These stations are also delivered by cablevision. St. Mary Elementary School

4416-458: The least populous, has 38 permanent residents (2010 census). The use of "town" in a community's name is irrespective of municipal status. Elizabethtown , Germantown and Stephentown are towns. Cooperstown , home of the Baseball Hall of Fame , is a village, Jamestown and Middletown are cities, and Levittown is an unincorporated hamlet. A census-designated place (CDP) is defined by

4508-572: The limits. Based on the ZIP Code, the United States Postal Service (USPS) identifies the correct location for mail delivery. The New York State Gazetteer , published by the New York State Department of Health in 1995, includes a list of hamlets in the state. The criteria used for inclusion in the Gazetteer are not stated. The Adirondack Park Agency also uses the term "hamlet", though as

4600-467: The local fire department or elementary school. Businesses may also use the name of a hamlet as part of their name. The United States Census Bureau will, with consideration from the town, designate a census-designated place (CDP) that may use the name of one or more hamlets, though boundaries may differ from what is used by the ZIP code, local fire department, etc. Towns in New York may be further subdivided into wards, although as of 2017 , only fifteen of

4692-473: The mayor include enforcing laws and supervising employees. A village may also have a full-time village manager who performs these administrative duties instead of the mayor. In 2007, sixty-seven villages had such a manager. Some villages have their own village justice, while others utilize the justice of the town or towns in which they are located. While most villages are subject to a uniform statewide Village Law, twelve villages operate under charters issued by

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4784-611: The mid-19th century; the New York City Council is currently elected from special districts, which are allowed to cross borough lines. New York City has a unique system of divisions, some of which possess governmental power, see Divisions unique to New York City . In New York, a town is a municipal corporation, and is the major division of each county (excluding the five boroughs that comprise New York City ), very similar to townships in other states such as Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana. Towns in New York are classified by

4876-448: The new Borough of Queens. (A small portion of the Town of Hempstead was itself annexed, also.) The next year (1899), the three eastern towns of Queens County separated to become Nassau County . The city today consists of the entire area of five counties (named New York, Kings, Queens, Bronx, and Richmond). While these counties have no county government, boroughs—with boundaries coterminous with

4968-466: The outlying towns, who do not live in the village, give their address as "Wappingers Falls". Grinnell Library, located in the village, is the sixth-oldest library in the state. The Wappinger were an Algonquian-speaking confederacy of Native Americans whose territory in the 17th century extended along the eastern bank of the Hudson River . Primarily based in what is now Dutchess County, their territory

5060-402: The parish was founded to serve southern Dutchess County. In 1850, the first pastor took up residence. Masses were offered in local homes until a church was constructed on Clinton Street. The current church building was consecrated in 1879, although the interior has been renovated a number of times, the last being in the early 2000's. The parish also has a cemetery which is still in operation and

5152-432: The power and fiscal capacity to provide an array of local government services. Such services generally include law enforcement and public safety, social and health services (such as Medicaid ), and education (special needs and community colleges). Every county outside of New York City has a county seat , which is the location of county government. Nineteen counties operate under county charters, while 38 operate under

5244-480: The power of a board of supervisors , composed of the supervisors of its constituent towns and cities. In most of these counties, each supervisor's vote is weighted in accordance with the town's population in order to abide by the U.S. Supreme Court mandate of " one person, one vote ". Other counties have legislative districts of equal population, which may cross municipal borders; these counties may also have an elected County Executive. Most counties in New York do not use

5336-493: The power to enact local laws as needed in order to provide services to their citizens and fulfill their various obligations. The county is the primary administrative division of New York. There are sixty-two counties in the state. Five of the counties are boroughs of the City of New York and do not have functioning county governments. While originally created as subdivisions of the state meant to carry out state functions, counties are now considered municipal corporations with

5428-457: The price of tea for sale in a small store inside his home. Mesier was a merchant from New York City and a Loyalist . The angry mob struck Mesier, beat his slaves, and drank wine stored in the cellar. They also took the tea and left a small amount of money behind. The local waterfall was important for early industrial development. In 1819 a small cotton mill was built in the hollow created by the creek as it descends from Wappinger Lake to drain into

5520-618: The property of the Retreat Center is the Monastery of St. Clare built in 2004 for the Poor Clares , Franciscan nuns who moved to Wappingers Falls from Throgs Neck in the Bronx. Wappingers Falls is situated at the head of navigation on Wappinger Creek , about 2 miles (3 km) above (northeast of) its confluence with the Hudson River . According to the United States Census Bureau , the village has

5612-522: The purposes of municipal representation. Each ward elects one member to the city's legislative body, and the wards are redistricted roughly every ten years. These divisions can go by other names by city; in Buffalo they are known as districts . These divisions can either be numbered or named. New York City was divided into wards at various times in its history between 1683 and 1938, although they were gradually replaced by Assembly and Senate districts starting in

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5704-695: The residents and approved by the New York State Legislature. Each type of local government is granted specific home rule powers by the New York State Constitution. There are still occasional changes as a village becomes a city, or a village dissolves (stops existing), each of which requires legislative action. New York also has various corporate entities that provide local services and have their own administrative structures (governments), such as school and fire districts. These are not found in all counties. Almost every piece of land in

5796-571: The river road, to see if there was a need for a church in Wappingers. This resulted in the organization of the Presbyterian Society in 1848, and the same year a church edifice and parsonage were built by Mrs. Sheafe on Fulton Street. During the pastorate of Rev. O.A. Kingsbury (1879-1883) the Fulton Street property was sold and the present brick structure on South Avenue erected. The new church

5888-728: The roadside boundaries of hamlets, as decided by the sign provider. Many towns have special zoning or planning districts and planning strategies for their hamlets, and many places welcome signs at the gateways to the hamlets. Some hamlets are former villages that have dissolved their incorporation ( Old Forge in Herkimer County ; Rosendale , in Ulster County ; and Andes in Delaware County , for example). Notwithstanding hamlets are not cities or towns, many of them are called out in formal addresses for those residents residing within

5980-450: The same legal powers as were once available only to suburban towns. Even so, towns of different classifications continue to have organizational differences and certain conditions that must be met before a town's classification changes. The town board serves as the legislative branch. The board is composed of one elected town supervisor (or chief executive officer in suburban towns) and a specific number of elected council persons; towns of

6072-575: The second class generally have two but may have four council persons, whereas towns of the first class generally have four but can have two or six. The supervisor presides over the board, voting on all matters but not possessing veto or tie-breaking power. Certain towns operate under a town manager form of government, creating an executive branch in the town government, as permitted by legislation enacted in 1976. As such, some supervisors have additional authority or executive powers, whereas some towns have town managers or chief executive officers who serve as

6164-478: The spring of 1868, with the idea of merging the Wappingers Falls and Middlebush congregations, land was purchased from the estate of Margaret Reese. The old Middlebush church was taken down and the materials used to construct a barn on the new church property on Mesier Avenue. The church was known as the Methodist Episcopal Church until 1939 when the name was changed to The Methodist Church. In 1968, it

6256-456: The state has more than 3,400 active local governments and more than 4,200 taxing jurisdictions. Counties and incorporated municipal governments (also known as "general purpose units of local government"; i.e., cities, towns and villages) in the State of New York have been granted broad home rule powers enabling them to provide services to their residents and to regulate the quality of life within their jurisdictions. They do so while adhering to

6348-404: The state is part of a city or town, which is part of one county. The exceptions are the city of Geneva ; New York City ; and ten Indian reservations . As of 2009 , New York has 62 counties (including New York City's five boroughs ), which are subdivided into 933 towns and 61 cities (including Geneva in both Ontario and Seneca counties, but excluding New York City and Sherrill ). In total,

6440-635: The state legislature prior to 1874. Before a revision to the State Constitution in that year, villages were formed by the state legislature through granting of charters. Many villages reincorporated, dumping their charters in favor of the Village Law. The villages that retain their charters are Alexander , Carthage , Catskill , Cooperstown , Deposit , Fredonia , Ilion , Mohawk , Ossining , Owego , Port Chester , and Waterford . These villages must still comply with those aspects of Village Law that are not inconsistent with their charters. To be incorporated,

6532-580: The state use the term hamlet to refer to a community within a town that is not incorporated as a village but is identified by a name, i.e. an unincorporated community . A hamlet often has a name corresponding to the name of a local school district , post office , or fire district. Because a hamlet has no government of its own, it depends upon the town or towns that contain it for municipal services and government. Because they do not have governments, hamlets have no clear boundaries . Suffolk County publishes maps that give hamlet boundaries, but towns within

6624-423: The state's 932 towns used this system. In towns operating under the ward system, citizens vote for councilmen who represent a specific area (ward) of the town, as opposed to the at-large councilmen elected in the majority of the state's towns. Towns vary in size and population. The largest town by area is Brookhaven ( Suffolk County ), which covers 531.5 sq mi (1,377 km ), but more than half of that

6716-478: The state. Each of the five boroughs of the city is coextensive with a county of the state of New York. Under New York State's General Municipal Law , a borough results when the towns, villages and cities in a county merge with the county itself. This occurred in 1898 when New York City merged with surrounding counties, cities and towns to form its present configuration. The five boroughs are: The boroughs were originally intended to retain some local governance in

6808-508: The submission of a proper petition to the board. The village board must produce a "dissolution plan" that settles specific matters, such as the village's debts, its employees and property, and the financial impact dissolution would have on village and non-village town residents. This plan is voted upon by village voters only. About 15% of villages cross other municipal boundaries. More than 70 villages are located in two or more towns. Seven villages are in two counties. The village of Saranac Lake

6900-405: The term "Board of Supervisors." 34 counties have a County Legislature, six counties have a Board of Legislators, and one county has a Board of Representatives. The five counties, or boroughs, of New York City are governed by a 51-member City Council. In non-charter counties, the legislative body exercises executive power as well. Although the legislature can delegate certain functions and duties to

6992-496: The town of Palm Tree in Orange County was incorporated in 2019 and is coterminous with the village of Kiryas Joel , having acquired land from the town of Monroe . When such an entity is formed, officials from either unit of government may serve in both village and town governments simultaneously. A referendum is held to decide whether residents prefer a village-style or town-style government, which will then function primarily as

7084-419: The town or towns in which they are located. Village residents pay both town and village taxes, and vote in town and village elections. Those services not provided by the village are provided by the town or towns containing the village. As of the 2000 census, 9.9% of the state's population was living in one of the 556 villages in New York. The legislature of a village is the board of trustees, composed of

7176-433: The village as the model for its design. The old post office contains two Treasury Section of Fine Arts murals by Henry Billings . The paintings show two views of the town's waterfall at different points in time, one from 1780 and the other from 1880, facing each other from opposite ends of the small building. Zion Episcopal Church began in 1820 under the shade of an apple tree when Joanna Mesier, wife of Matthew Mesier, began

7268-518: The village was $ 39,123, and the median income for a family was $ 50,000. Males had a median income of $ 38,147 versus $ 26,607 for females. The per capita income for the village was $ 20,491. About 10.4% of families and 12.3% of the population were below the poverty line , including 15.1% of those under age 18 and 14.3% of those age 65 or over. It is part of the Poughkeepsie – Newburgh – Middletown , NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as

7360-480: The village was a cooper, John Crilley, from Ireland by way of Glenham. In 1842 he built the first brick building erected on either side of the creek. By 1836, Ednam had about thirty dwellings and a cotton factory with 2,400 spindles and 90 looms, making 500,000 yards of cloth per annum. J.J. O'Riley's North American Hotel and Eagan's Opera House (built in 1876 by John Eagan, with a seating capacity for five hundred people) were located here. The village's first post office

7452-407: The village, as well as NY 9D . As of the 2010 census, the total population of the village was 5,522. The racial makeup of the village was 72.5% white, 7.4% African American, .03% Native American, 4.8% Asian , 10.2% from other races , and 4.9% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 26.2% of the population. The median age was 35.5 years. The median income for a household in

7544-523: The village. The New Hamburg station on Metro-North Railroad 's Hudson Line serves Wappinger's Falls. Stewart International Airport is located just over the Newburgh–Beacon Bridge , and offers domestic and international flights. Administrative divisions of New York#Village See also: [REDACTED] [REDACTED] The administrative divisions of New York are the various units of government that provide local services in

7636-649: Was Henry Yates Satterlee , assistant rector 1865-75 and senior rector 1875–83, who was elected the first bishop of the Washington Diocese in 1896 and there established the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, popularly known as Washington National Cathedral . The Franklindale Baptist Church was organized in 1838. Benjamin Clapp, former warden of Zion Episcopal, converted to the Baptist faith and donated land on

7728-692: Was a Catholic K-8 school of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York in Wappingers Falls that opened in September 1893 and closed in June 2019. It had 118 students when it closed. The Village of Wappingers Falls is part of the Wappingers Central School District . Since the closing of St. Mary's Elementary School there are no schools within the village, although James S. Evans Elementary School and Wappingers Junior High School border

7820-565: Was bordered by Manhattan Island to the south, the Mahican territory bounded by the Roeliff Jansen Kill to the north, and extended east into parts of Connecticut . Wappinger means "easterner" in most Algonquian languages . The area was part of the Rombout Patent . In 1741, two Dutchmen, Nicholas and Adolphus Brewer, purchased 750 acres (300 ha) of land around the falls and built

7912-678: Was changed to the United Methodist Church. In 1974, with the merger with the New Hamburg Methodist Church it became known as The United Methodist Church of Wappingers. In early 2020 the church merged with the Poughkeepsie United Methodist Church and the building was sold. Roman Catholics of what is now Wappingers Falls were cared for by priests from St. Peter's Church in Poughkeepsie until 1845 when

8004-401: Was dedicated July 23, 1872. The church lasted for just over 150 years before it closed, holding its final service on January 13, 2023. The first Methodist Episcopal Church in the area of Wappingers Falls was started by noted circuit riding preacher Freeborn Garrettson in 1788. By 1824, services were held in the home of Joseph C. Smith at Middlebush , before moving to a schoolhouse. In 1827,

8096-471: Was established here in 1840. The post office bore the name of the creek. The Bain Commercial Building is located at the corner of Church and West Main (NY 9D) streets. The Bain family is believed to have built the building in 1875, shortly after Channingville became part of the village. It was both their residence and their place of business. It is a late 19th-century brick building that was listed on

8188-610: Was forced to close. The repeal of the tariff made it impossible for the company to compete with German-made combs. In 1909, the Garner Print Works were sold and became the Dutchess Bleachery. The plant, which at times employed as many as 1,150 people, stopped printing calico but continued as a bleachery and dye works. On June 3, 2017, downtown Wappingers Falls had a devastating structure fire that left more than 30 people displaced and six businesses temporarily closed. No one

8280-593: Was incorporated in 1871 and included the adjacent community on the west side of the Wappinger Creek, by then called Channingville. The east side was known as Franklindale. In 1885 the Franklindale Cotton Mill, which employed about 130 people, was destroyed by fire. During President Grover Cleveland ’s second administration, the Independent Comb Factory on the corner of Fulton and Prospect streets

8372-559: Was injured during the fire, which spread through a strip of buildings in the East Main Street corridor on Saturday afternoon. That portion of the village lying north of the creek, in the town of Poughkeepsie, was originally known as "Ednam". It later became known as Channingville (sometimes rendered "Chiningville"), which name is derived from the Channing family, who owned the farm on which it mostly lies. The first merchant in this part of

8464-547: Was then Mr. Givens' place. One month later plans were made to construct a church. The stone for the church came from the property of Benjamin Clapp, much of which he hauled himself. Zion Protestant Episcopal Church was dedicated by Bishop Onderdonk on May 6, 1836. Mr. Andrews served as pastor, not only to the church in Wappingers, but often found time to row across the Hudson to conduct services in Marlboro . The church's most notable pastor

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