Oswego is a city in Oswego County,
New York, United States. The population was 18,096 at
the 2000 census. The 2005 population estimate
for the city of Oswego is 17,705. Oswego is located on Lake Ontario in north-central
New York and promotes itself as "The Port City of Central New York". It is the county seat of
Oswego County.
The city of Oswego is a governmental entity. It is bordered by the Towns of Oswego, Minetto, and Scriba to the west, south, and east, respectively, and by Lake
Ontario to the north. Oswego lies within the Syracuse Metropolitan Statistical Area
The State University of New York at Oswego is located just
outside the city on the lake.
History
The site was first visited in 1615 by the French explorer
Samuel de Champlain. The British established
a trading post in the area in 1722 and fortified it with a log palisade later called
Fort Oswego. In 1755 they added Fort Ontario on the northeast side of the river.
In August 1756, French forces defeated the British in the Battle of Fort Oswego, capturing the fort during the French and Indian War.
Permanent settlement began in the early 19th century, and the Oswego Canal, a branch of the Erie Canal, reached the area in
1829. The city was incorporated in 1848. When the city incorporated
its area and population were removed from the figures reported for the towns.
Oswego is home to the port of Oswego and once was a major railroad hub for the New York Central,
Lackawanna/Erie Lackawanna, and
NY Ontario and Western railways. Three stations remain: two
passenger (D&LW and NYC)
and one freight (NYC) as does a rather large trestle over the Oswego River. The tunnel on a local hiking trail in the city was
the north end of the NYO&W.
Oswego was home to almost 1,000 Jewish refugees during World War
II. Fort Ontario was the first and only attempt by the United States to shelter Jewish refugees during the war.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area
of 29.1 km² (11.2 mi²). 19.8 km² (7.7 mi²) of it
is land and 9.2 km² (3.6 mi²) of it (31.76%) is water.
Oswego is located on the southeastern shore of Lake Ontario at the mouth of the
Oswego River, about 35 miles north of Syracuse, New York and 68 miles east of Rochester, New
York.
New York State Route 481 (from Interstate
81) runs north/south to Oswego from Syracuse and Fulton. New York State Route 104 runs east/west from
Rochester to Oswego. The nearest city is Fulton, located south of Oswego and north of Syracuse.
As Oswego is located on the eastern shore of Lake Ontario, in the center of the
Snowbelt, the region often sees prodigious lake effect
snow accumulations. Oswego is one of the snowiest towns in America, with some winters totaling over 300 inches.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 17,954 people, 7,338
households, and 3,977 families residing in the city. The
population density was 905.0/km² (2,343.4/mi²). There were 8,080 housing units at an average density of 407.3 persons/km² (1,054.6
persons/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.32% White, 1.04% African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.82% Asian, 1.07% from other races, and 1.42% from two or more races.
Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.80% of the population.
There were 7,338 households out of which 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.3% were married couples living together, and 45.8% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of
individuals and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the
average family size was 3.00.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 16.5% from 18 to 24, 25.4% from 25 to 44, 18.7% from
45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 87.8 males.
For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $28,248, and the median income
for a family was $41,613. Males had a median income of $33,220 versus $21,729 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,558. 23.0% of the population and 13.0% of families were below
the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 24.2% are under the age of 18 and 12.5% are 65 or older.
Locations and communities near Oswego:
- Oswego - the town of Oswego
- Minetto - the town of Minetto south of the city
- Scriba - the town of Scriba east of the city
- Southwest Oswego - a hamlet located west of the city
- Fruit Valley - a hamlet located west of the city
- Kingsford Woods - a community located on the west side of the city
Politics
The city is governed by a Mayor and board of
aldermen who are elected from the city's seven
wards.
Notable Current or Former Residents
See List of famous
inhabitants
Famous Alumni of SUNY Oswego
Culture and recreation
Every year the city hosts the Oswego
Harborfest, a four-day festival of music, culture and food, centered around the Oswego Harbor, culminating in a fireworks
display on the last night. The event is sponsored by local businesses, and the entertainment is mostly admission-free.
Media
The city is served by The Palladium Times
newspaper and is the home to the radio stations WRVO, WSGO,
WTKV (TK105), WNYO and WOLF-FM.
Oswego is served by the Syracuse TV market.
Education
The city is part of the Oswego City School District and is home to the State University of New York at Oswego (SUNY Oswego).
Trivia
An e-mail answered by Strong Bad on homestarrunner.com is from a resident of Oswego, and Strong Bad reads the address "Oswego, New York" as
"Os' we go to New York."
See also
References
- ^ a b
External links
{{Commons+cat|Oswego, New York}}
Coordinates:
43.458333° N 76.503056°
W
Municipalities and communities of
Oswego
County, New York |
| County seat: Oswego |
| Cities |
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| Towns |
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| Villages |
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| Hamlets |
Albion Center | Amboy Center | Arthur | Bardeen Corners | Beecherville | Bernhards Bay | Bowen Corners | Bowen's Corners | Boylston Center | Bundy Crossing | Butterfly Corners | Cains Corners | Carley Mills | Carterville | Catfish | Caughdenoy | Centerville | Chateaugay | Clifford | Colosse | Constantia | Constantia Center | Cribbs Corners | Cummings Bridge | Demster | Demster Beach | Doris Park | Drakes Corner | Dugway | Dutcherville | East Amboy | East Boylston | East Palermo | Fairdale | Farley Corners | Fruit Valley | Furmiss | Gayville | Gilbert
Mills | Graftons Square | Granby Center |
Greenboro | Hannibal Center | Happy Valley | Hastings | Hastings Center | Hinmansville | Howardville | Ingalls Crossing | Kasoag | Lansing | Little France | Loomis Corner | Lycoming | Mallory | Mallory Station | Maple Hill | Maple View | McMahon Corners | Morse | Mosher Corners | Mud Hill | Mungers Corners | New Haven | New Scriba | Nicholsville | North Amboy | North Boylston | North Constantia | North Church Corner | North Hannibal | North Scriba | North Shores | North Volney | Orwell | Oswego Beach | Oswego Center | Palermo | Panther Lake | Peacock Corners | Peat Corners | Pekin | Pember Corners | Pennellville | Pineville | Plantz Corners | Pleasant Point Crossing | Prattham | Red Mill | Redfield | Ricard | Roosevelt Corners | Russ Mills | Sala | Sand Ridge
| Sandy Pond | Scriba | Shephard Corners | Smartville | South Granby | South Hannibal | South New Haven | South Scriba | Southwest Oswego | Stewart Corners | Stillwater | Sutton Corner | Texas | The Elms |
Toad Harbor | Upson Corner | Vermillion | Volney | Vorea
| Vorhees Corners | Wellwood |
West Amboy | Williamstown
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