When counties were established in the British colony of New York in 1683, the present Oswego County was part ofAlbany County. This was an enormous county, including the northern part of what is now New York state as well as all of the present state ofVermont and, in theory, extending westward to the Pacific Ocean. This county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766, by the creation ofCumberland County in the British colony, and further on March 16, 1770, by the creation ofGloucester 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. One of the other pieces,Tryon County, contained the western portion (and thus, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically still extended west to the Pacific). The eastern boundary of Tryon County was approximately five miles (8.0 km) west of the present city ofSchenectady, and the county included the western part of theAdirondack Mountains and the area west of the West Branch of theDelaware River. The area then designated as Tryon County now includes 37 counties of New York State. The county was named forWilliam Tryon, colonial governor of New York.
In the years prior to 1776, most of the Loyalists in Tryon County fled to Canada. In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended theAmerican Revolutionary War, the name of Tryon County was changed toMontgomery County to honor the general,Richard Montgomery, who had captured several places in Canada and died attempting to capture the city ofQuebec, replacing the name of the hated British governor.
In 1791,Herkimer County was one of three counties split off from Montgomery (the other two beingOtsego, andTioga County). This was much larger than the present county, however, and was reduced by a number of subsequent splits.
In 1794,Onondaga County was created from a part of Herkimer County. This county was larger than the current Onondaga County, including the presentCayuga,Cortland, and part of Oswego counties.
In 1798,Oneida County was created from a part of Herkimer County. This county was larger than the current Oneida County, including the presentJefferson,Lewis, and part of Oswego counties.
In 1805, Oneida County was reduced in size by the splitting off ofJefferson andLewis counties.
In 1816, Oswego County was created as New York State's 48th county from parts of Oneida and Onondaga counties.
In 1841, businessmen in Oswego attempted to divide Oswego County into two counties. They failed to persuade the State to do so, however. Occasionally, the topic still resurfaces today by dividing the county into an east part and a west part, with the east portion being renamed "Salmon County".
At various times, beginning in 1847 and as late as 1975, attempts were made to move the county seat to theVillage of Mexico. However, none of these attempts succeeded.
On April 20, 2002, at around 6:50 am, many residents of Oswego County were shaken awake by a magnitude 5.2 earthquake centered near Plattsburgh, New York. Minor damage to a Fire Hall in Altmar was the only report of damage. No injuries were sustained.
DuringFebruary 1–12, 2007, a majorlake effect snowfall dumped over 10 feet (3 m) of snow in many places in Oswego County, resulting in several roof collapses, some communities being cut off, and some people being snowed-in in their homes. A state of emergency was declared for the county, and the National Guard was sent in to help clear the snow.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,312 square miles (3,400 km2), of which 952 square miles (2,470 km2) is land and 360 square miles (930 km2), comprising 27%, is water.[4]
Oswego County is in northwestern New York State, just north ofSyracuse and northwest ofUtica, on the eastern shore ofLake Ontario. Part of theTug Hill Plateau is in the eastern part of the county and, at 1,550 feet (470 m), is the highest point.[5] TheSalmon River Falls, a 110-foot (34 m) waterfall, is a popular sightseeing destination in the northeastern portion of the county.[6]
There are two harbors in the county: Oswego Harbor at the mouth of theOswego River and Port Ontario on theSalmon River. The first major port of call on the Great Lakes is the Port of Oswego Authority dock.
Oswego County, New York – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
As of thecensus[21] of 2000, there were 122,377 people, 45,522 households, and 31,228 families residing in the county. The population density was 128 inhabitants per square mile (49/km2). There were 52,831 housing units at an average density of 55 units per square mile (21/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 97.17%White, 0.59% Black or African American, 0.41%Native American, 0.42%Asian, 0.01%Pacific Islander, 0.48% fromother races, and 0.93% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 1.30% of the population. 15.5% were of Irish, 14.0% German, 13.7% Italian, 13.3% English, 9.6% American, 7.9% French and 5.3% Polish ancestry according toCensus 2000. 96.2% spoke English and 1.7% Spanish as their first language.
There were 45,522 households, out of which 35.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.80% were married couples living together, 10.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.40% were non-families. 24.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.08.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.80% under the age of 18, 10.90% from 18 to 24, 28.90% from 25 to 44, 22.10% from 45 to 64, and 11.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 97.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.40 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,598, and the median income for a family was $43,821. Males had a median income of $34,976 versus $23,938 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $16,853. About 9.70% of families and 14.00% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 17.10% of those under age 18 and 9.50% of those age 65 or over.
Taft Bay Park[24] atBernhards Bay, New York, and other swimming on Oneida Lake. Oswego County includes the majority of the northern shore of the lake, running east to the hamlet ofCleveland, New York. It also includes all of the lake surface from the north shore to the south shore, which is the northern edge of Onondaga and Madison counties. So swimming out from beaches on the southern shore, even, puts you in Oswego County. Oswego County runs east along the south shore almost to the hamlet of Lakeport.
Oswego's economy is most prominent as industry; in 2012, manufactured shipments made up $2.1 billion of the local economy. Retail made up the next most prominent sector, totaling $1.2 billion or more than $10,000 per resident. Wholesale merchants also made $368 million sales the same year. Services made up the final total, equal to over $500 million in food service, healthcare, accommodation, and social services.[26]
Sample News Group owns and publishes four periodical newspapers in the county,The Palladium-Times,Valley News,Oswego County News andOswego Shopper. These collectively operate the website OswegoCountyNewsNow.com.[27][28]
The Oswego County Legislature has 25 members, elected from equal population districts, reduced from 36 in 1993. The legislators are split between seven committees that meet monthly and also attend a general meeting once per month. The seven standing committees as of December 2019 were Government, Courts and Consumer Affairs; Public Safety; Infrastructure, Facilities and Technology; Economic Development and Planning; Health; Human Services; and Finance and Personnel.[30]
In the 2019 general election, the county GOP won three more seats previously occupied by Democrats, expanding its control of the legislature to 23–2. The two Democratic candidates who were elected ran unopposed, and there was only one other Democrat running for any of the 25 seats. Meanwhile, a proposition that sought to expand legislator terms from two years to four years was rejected, with 65.06 percent of 17,701 total votes countywide going against the proposition.[31]
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