County in New York, United States
County in New York
St. Lawrence County
is a
county
in the
U.S. state
of
New York
. As of the
2020 census
, the population was 108,505.
[1]
The
county seat
is
Canton
.
[2]
The county is named for the
Saint Lawrence River
. This was as named by early French
explorer
Jacques Cartier
for the
Christian
saint
Lawrence of Rome
, as he visited the river on the saint's
feast day
. The county is part of the
North Country
region of the state.
St. Lawrence County comprises the
Ogdensburg
-
Massena
, NY
Micropolitan Statistical Area
and is New York's largest county by area.
History
[
edit
]
When counties were established by England in the
Province of New York
in 1683, the present St. Lawrence County was part of
Albany County
. This was an enormous territory, including the northern part of New York State as well as all of the present State of
Vermont
and, in theory, extending westward to the Pacific Ocean. The county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766, by the creation of
Cumberland County
, and further on March 16, 1770, by the creation of
Gloucester County
, both containing territory now in Vermont.
On March 12, 1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. The other two were called
Tryon County
(later renamed
Montgomery County
) and
Charlotte County
(later renamed
Washington County
).
Tryon County contained the western portion (and, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically extended west to the Pacific). The eastern boundary of Tryon County was approximately five miles west of the present city of
Schenectady
, and the county included the western part of the
Adirondack Mountains
and the area west of the West Branch of the
Delaware River
. The area then designated as Tryon County included what are now 37 counties of New York State. The county was named for
William Tryon
, colonial governor of New York. Charlotte County contained the eastern portion of Albany County.
In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended the
American Revolutionary War
, the name "Charlotte County" was changed to
Washington County
to honor
George Washington
, the
American Revolutionary War
general and later
President of the United States of America
. Tryon County was changed to
Montgomery County
to honor the general,
Richard Montgomery
, who had captured several places in Canada and died trying to capture the city of
Quebec
. It replaced the name of the British governor, hated by the rebels.
In 1788,
Clinton County
was split off from Washington County. This was a much larger area than the present Clinton County, including part of what would later become St. Lawrence County, as well as several other counties or county parts of the present New York State.
In 1789, the size of Montgomery County was reduced by the splitting off of
Ontario County
from Montgomery. The actual area split off from Montgomery County was much larger than the present county, also including the present
Allegany
,
Cattaraugus
,
Chautauqua
,
Erie
,
Genesee
,
Livingston
,
Monroe
,
Niagara
,
Orleans
,
Steuben
,
Wyoming
,
Yates
, and part of
Schuyler
and
Wayne Counties
.
St. Lawrence County is part of
Macomb's Purchase
of 1791.
In 1791, Herkimer County was one of three counties split off from Montgomery (the other two being
Otsego
, and
Tioga County
). This was much larger than the present county, however, and was reduced by a number of subsequent splits. The first was the splitting off in 1794 of
Onondaga County
. This county was larger than the current Onondaga County, including the present
Cayuga
,
Cortland
, and part of
Oswego Counties
. This was followed by the splitting off in 1798 from Herkimer County of two portions: one,
Oneida County
, was larger than the current Oneida County, including the present
Jefferson
,
Lewis
, and part of
Oswego Counties
; another portion, together with a portion of
Tioga County
, was taken to form
Chenango County
.
In 1799, Clinton County was reduced in size by the splitting off of
Essex County
from Clinton County.
In 1802, parts of Clinton, Herkimer, and Montgomery counties were taken to form the new St. Lawrence County. At that time
Ogdensburg
was the county seat. In 1828 the county seat was moved to
Canton
. The selection of Canton as the county seat was a compromise by the state legislature to end competition between factions supporting Ogdensburg and
Potsdam
for the county seat.
[3]
Earthquake
[
edit
]
On September 5, 1944, a 5.8
magnitude
earthquake centered in Massena
struck the county. The earthquake was felt from Canada to Maryland, and from Maine to Indiana. The earthquake was the strongest earthquake in New York State history.
[4]
Geography
[
edit
]
According to the
United States Census Bureau
, the county has a total area of 2,821 square miles (7,310 km
2
), of which 2,680 square miles (6,900 km
2
) is land and 141 square miles (370 km
2
) (5.0%) is water.
[5]
It is the largest county by area in the state of New York. It is larger than either of the states of Rhode Island (1544.9 square miles) or the state of Delaware (2488.72 square miles). St. Lawrence County is part of the
North Country
region.
Part of the county is in the
Adirondack Park
. It includes much of the
Oswegatchie River
,
Cranberry Lake
and
Lake Ozonia
.
The Port of
Ogdensburg
in St. Lawrence County is the only U.S. port on the
St. Lawrence Seaway
. This waterway allows ships and vessels to pass through the St. Lawrence River and on to the
Great Lakes
.
Ogdensburg Harbor Light
is listed in the
National Register of Historic Places
, and in the
National Register of Historic Places listings in St. Lawrence County, New York
Adjacent counties
[
edit
]
Demographics
[
edit
]
Historical population
Census
| Pop.
| Note
| %±
|
1810
| 7,885
| | ?
|
---|
1820
| 16,037
| | 103.4%
|
---|
1830
| 36,354
| | 126.7%
|
---|
1840
| 56,706
| | 56.0%
|
---|
1850
| 68,617
| | 21.0%
|
---|
1860
| 83,689
| | 22.0%
|
---|
1870
| 84,826
| | 1.4%
|
---|
1880
| 85,997
| | 1.4%
|
---|
1890
| 85,048
| | ?1.1%
|
---|
1900
| 89,083
| | 4.7%
|
---|
1910
| 89,005
| | ?0.1%
|
---|
1920
| 88,121
| | ?1.0%
|
---|
1930
| 90,960
| | 3.2%
|
---|
1940
| 91,098
| | 0.2%
|
---|
1950
| 98,897
| | 8.6%
|
---|
1960
| 111,239
| | 12.5%
|
---|
1970
| 111,991
| | 0.7%
|
---|
1980
| 114,254
| | 2.0%
|
---|
1990
| 111,974
| | ?2.0%
|
---|
2000
| 111,931
| | 0.0%
|
---|
2010
| 111,944
| | 0.0%
|
---|
2020
| 108,505
| | ?3.1%
|
---|
As of the
census
[10]
of 2000, there were 113,931 people, 40,506 households, and 26,936 families residing in the county. The
population density
was 42 inhabitants per square mile (16/km
2
). There were 49,721 housing units at an average density of 18 units per square mile (6.9/km
2
). The racial makeup of the county was 94.51%
White
, 2.38%
African American
, 0.87%
Native American
, 0.71%
Asian
, 0.03%
Pacific Islander
, 0.69% from
other races
, and 0.51% from two or more races.
Hispanic
or
Latino
of any race were 1.79% of the population. 16.9% were of
French
, 16.1% Irish, 13.9% American, 11.6% English, 8.1%
French Canadian
, 7.9% German and 7.6% Italian ancestry according to
Census 2000
. 95.6% spoke only English, while 3.2% spoke French and 1.2% Spanish at home.
There were 40,506 households, out of which 31.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.50% were
married couples
living together, 10.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.50% were non-families. 26.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.40% under the age of 18, 13.80% from 18 to 24, 27.40% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 13.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 103.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.10 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,356, and the median income for a family was $34,510. Males had a median income of $30,135 versus $24,253 for females. The
per capita income
for the county was $14,728. About 12.30% of families and 19.90% of the population were below the
poverty line
, including 21.30% of those under age 18 and 10.30% of those age 65 or over.
2020 Census
[
edit
]
Education
[
edit
]
School districts
[
edit
]
There are 17 school districts centered in
St. Lawrence County
, all under the jurisdiction of the
St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES Supervisory District
along with Harrisville Central School District in
Lewis County, New York
.
- Brasher Falls Central School District: St. Lawrence Central School, Brasher Falls
- Canton Central School District: Hugh Williams Senior High School, Canton
- Clifton-Fine Central School District: Clifton-Fine Central School, Star Lake
- Colton-Pierrepont Central School District: Colton-Pierrepont Central School, Colton
- Edwards-Knox Central School District: Edwards-Knox Central School, Russell
- Gouverneur Central School District: Gouverneur Junior/Senior High School, Gouverneur
- Hammond Central School District: Hammond Central School, Hammond
- Hermon-Dekalb Central School District: Hermon-Dekalb Central School, Dekalb Junction
- Heuvelton Central School District: Heuvelton Central School, Heuvelton
- Lisbon Central School District: Lisbon Central School, Lisbon
- Madrid-Waddington Central School District:
Madrid-Waddington Central School
, Madrid
- Massena Central School District: Massena Senior High School, Massena
- Morristown Central School District: Morristown Central School, Morristown
- Norwood-Norfolk Central School District: Norwood-Norfolk Central School, Norfolk
- Ogdensburg City School District:
Ogdensburg Free Academy
, Ogdensburg
- Parishville-Hopkinton Central School District: Parishville-Hopkinton Central School, Parishville
- Potsdam Central School District:
Potsdam High School
, Potsdam
All public high schools in St. Lawrence County compete in the
New York State Public High School Athletic Association
Section X Northern Athletic Conference
.
Universities and colleges
[
edit
]
Saint Lawrence County is home to
St. Lawrence University
,
State University of New York at Potsdam
,
Clarkson University
, the
SUNY-ESF Ranger School
, and the
State University of New York at Canton
.
Politics
[
edit
]
United States presidential election results for St. Lawrence County, New York
[12]
Year
|
Republican
|
Democratic
|
Third party
|
No.
|
%
|
No.
|
%
|
No.
|
%
|
2020
|
24,608
|
54.80%
|
19,361
|
43.11%
|
938
|
2.09%
|
2016
|
19,942
|
50.93%
|
16,488
|
42.11%
|
2,728
|
6.97%
|
2012
|
15,138
|
40.70%
|
21,353
|
57.41%
|
700
|
1.88%
|
2008
|
16,956
|
41.03%
|
23,706
|
57.36%
|
664
|
1.61%
|
2004
|
18,029
|
43.17%
|
22,857
|
54.73%
|
875
|
2.10%
|
2000
|
16,449
|
41.34%
|
21,386
|
53.75%
|
1,951
|
4.90%
|
1996
|
10,827
|
28.14%
|
21,798
|
56.65%
|
5,852
|
15.21%
|
1992
|
13,901
|
32.85%
|
18,197
|
43.00%
|
10,219
|
24.15%
|
1988
|
20,290
|
51.39%
|
18,921
|
47.92%
|
270
|
0.68%
|
1984
|
26,062
|
61.83%
|
15,963
|
37.87%
|
124
|
0.29%
|
1980
|
18,437
|
46.53%
|
17,006
|
42.92%
|
4,181
|
10.55%
|
1976
|
22,249
|
55.71%
|
17,503
|
43.83%
|
182
|
0.46%
|
1972
|
26,145
|
63.00%
|
15,286
|
36.83%
|
72
|
0.17%
|
1968
|
20,982
|
55.31%
|
15,662
|
41.29%
|
1,289
|
3.40%
|
1964
|
12,102
|
29.30%
|
29,173
|
70.62%
|
32
|
0.08%
|
1960
|
25,848
|
57.06%
|
19,430
|
42.89%
|
24
|
0.05%
|
1956
|
31,897
|
74.54%
|
10,892
|
25.46%
|
0
|
0.00%
|
1952
|
28,036
|
68.27%
|
13,000
|
31.65%
|
32
|
0.08%
|
1948
|
21,160
|
60.59%
|
13,200
|
37.80%
|
565
|
1.62%
|
1944
|
21,919
|
58.89%
|
15,223
|
40.90%
|
77
|
0.21%
|
1940
|
24,339
|
60.86%
|
15,569
|
38.93%
|
82
|
0.21%
|
1936
|
26,031
|
65.81%
|
12,763
|
32.27%
|
762
|
1.93%
|
1932
|
22,650
|
63.48%
|
12,687
|
35.56%
|
343
|
0.96%
|
1928
|
25,804
|
66.23%
|
12,567
|
32.26%
|
589
|
1.51%
|
1924
|
22,583
|
71.50%
|
7,103
|
22.49%
|
1,898
|
6.01%
|
1920
|
24,651
|
75.60%
|
7,213
|
22.12%
|
742
|
2.28%
|
1916
|
13,142
|
66.77%
|
6,056
|
30.77%
|
485
|
2.46%
|
1912
|
8,404
|
44.98%
|
5,329
|
28.52%
|
4,952
|
26.50%
|
1908
|
14,151
|
67.87%
|
5,898
|
28.29%
|
800
|
3.84%
|
1904
|
15,274
|
70.43%
|
5,798
|
26.74%
|
614
|
2.83%
|
1900
|
15,296
|
71.02%
|
5,699
|
26.46%
|
544
|
2.53%
|
1896
|
15,287
|
70.97%
|
5,749
|
26.69%
|
505
|
2.34%
|
1892
|
13,177
|
64.17%
|
6,156
|
29.98%
|
1,202
|
5.85%
|
1888
|
14,611
|
67.56%
|
6,509
|
30.10%
|
508
|
2.35%
|
1884
|
13,441
|
67.86%
|
6,035
|
30.47%
|
331
|
1.67%
|
Prior to the
1992 presidential election
, St. Lawrence County was a traditionally Republican county, supporting the Democrats only in their sweep of New York State counties in
1964
. From 1992 through the
2012 election
, St. Lawrence County swung Democratic, posting double-digit victories for Democratic candidates, most notably in
1996
when
Bill Clinton
won the county by 28-point margin over
Bob Dole
. The first Republican victory in the county since 1988 came in
2016
when
Donald Trump
carried the county by an eight-point margin. In 2020, it was one of only a few counties in Upstate New York where Trump improved his margin, this time carrying it by over 10 points.
Media
[
edit
]
Radio
[
edit
]
Transportation
[
edit
]
Airports
[
edit
]
The following public use airports are located in the county:
[16]
Communities
[
edit
]
Larger settlements
[
edit
]
† - County Seat
‡ - Not Wholly in this County
Towns
[
edit
]
Hamlets
[
edit
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
"U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: St. Lawrence County, New York"
. United States Census Bureau.
Archived
from the original on July 13, 2023
. Retrieved
January 2,
2022
.
- ^
"Find a County"
. National Association of Counties.
Archived
from the original on May 31, 2011
. Retrieved
June 7,
2011
.
- ^
Linda Casserly,
County Courthouse Has 'Fiery' History
Archived
June 11, 2011, at the
Wayback Machine
,
St. Lawrence Plaindealer
, May 23, 2000. Archived copy on website of New York 4th Judicial District, St. Lawrence County.
- ^
"Historic Earthquakes"
.
United States Geological Survey
. November 1, 2012. Archived from
the original
on November 10, 2016.
- ^
"2010 Census Gazetteer Files"
. United States Census Bureau. August 22, 2012. Archived from
the original
on May 19, 2014
. Retrieved
January 7,
2015
.
- ^
"U.S. Decennial Census"
. United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
January 7,
2015
.
- ^
"Historical Census Browser"
. University of Virginia Library.
Archived
from the original on August 11, 2012
. Retrieved
January 7,
2015
.
- ^
"Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990"
. United States Census Bureau.
Archived
from the original on February 19, 2015
. Retrieved
January 7,
2015
.
- ^
"Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000"
(PDF)
. United States Census Bureau.
Archived
(PDF)
from the original on December 18, 2014
. Retrieved
January 7,
2015
.
- ^
"U.S. Census website"
.
United States Census Bureau
. Retrieved
January 31,
2008
.
- ^
"P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE ? 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) ? St. Lawrence County, New York"
.
- ^
Leip, David.
"Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections"
.
uselectionatlas.org
.
Archived
from the original on March 23, 2018
. Retrieved
May 1,
2018
.
- ^
"Home"
.
1340wmsa.com
.
- ^
"Home"
.
mymix961.com
.
- ^
"Home"
.
1015thefox.com
.
- ^
St. Lawrence County Public and Private Airports, New York
Archived
October 19, 2011, at the
Wayback Machine
. Retrieved June 13, 2013.
External links
[
edit
]
Further reading
[
edit
]
- Sullivan, James; Williams, Melvin E.; Conklin, Edwin P.; Fitzpatrick, Benedict, eds. (1927), "Chapter III. St. Lawrence County.",
History of New York State, 1523?1927
(PDF)
, vol. 2, New York City, Chicago: Lewis Historical Publishing Co., p. 519-23,
hdl
:
2027/mdp.39015019994048
,
Wikidata
Q114149636
Places adjacent to St. Lawrence County, New York
|
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|
44°30′N
75°04′W
/
44.50°N 75.07°W
/
44.50; -75.07
|
---|
International
| |
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National
| |
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Geographic
| |
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