When England established colonial counties in theProvince of New York in 1683, the territory of present Oneida County was included in a very large, mostly undevelopedAlbany County. This county included the northern part of present-day New York State as well as all of the present state ofVermont and, in theory, extended westward to thePacific Ocean. This county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766, to createCumberland County, 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.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 west of the present city ofSchenectady in the Mohawk River Valley, and the county included the western part of theAdirondack Mountains and the area west of the West Branch of theDelaware River. Tryon County was later divided to organize 37 distinct counties of New York State. The county was named forWilliam Tryon, colonial governor of New York.
During and after the Revolution, most of the Loyalists in Tryon County fled toCanada. In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended theAmerican Revolutionary War, Americans changed the name of Tryon County toMontgomery County to honor the general,Richard Montgomery, who had captured several places in Canada and died attempting to capture the city ofQuebec. They replaced the name of the British governor.
After continued new settlement, in 1791Herkimer County was one of three counties taken from Montgomery (the other two beingOtsego, andTioga County). It was much larger than the present Herkimer County, however, and was reduced by a number of subsequent splits.
In 1794, Herkimer County was reduced in size by the creation ofOnondaga County. This county was larger than the current Onondaga County, including the presentCayuga,Cortland, and part ofOswego counties.
In 1798, Oneida County was created from another part of Herkimer County. This county was larger than the current Oneida County, as it included the present-dayJefferson (which extends along Lake Ontario),Lewis, and part ofOswego counties.
In 1805,Jefferson andLewis counties were split off from Oneida. In 1816, parts of Oneida and Onondaga counties were taken to form the newOswego County.
Together withUtica, Oneida county was the cultural centre ofWelsh settlement in New York state. By the mid-nineteenth century, the lexicorapherJohn Russell Bartlett noted that the area had a number ofWelsh language newspapers and magazines, as well as Welsh churches. Indeed Bartlett noted in hisDictionary of Americanisms that "one may travel for miles and hear nothing but the Welsh language". By 1855, there were four thousandWelshmen in Oneida.[6][7]
In 1848,John Humphrey Noyes founded a religious andUtopian community, theOneida Community, near Oneida. Its unconventional views on religion and relations between the sexes generated much controversy. The community lasted until 1881. TheOneida Silver Company was founded here to manufacture sterling silver, silverplate holloware and, later, stainless steel flatware.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,258 square miles (3,260 km2), of which 1,212 square miles (3,140 km2) is land and 45 square miles (120 km2) (3.6%) is water.[8]
Oneida County is in thecentral portion of New York State, east ofSyracuse, and west ofAlbany.Oneida Lake is on thenorthwestern corner of the county, and theAdirondack Park is on the northeast. Part of theTug Hill Plateau is in the northern part of the county. Oneida County's highest point lies neither on the plateau nor in the Adirondack Park, but in the county's southern extremity. The peak's name is Tassel Hill. It is located slightly southeast of Hardscrabble Road (Tassel Hill Road), between the villages of Waterville and Cassville.
TheErie Canal, completed in 1825, runs east–west along the Mohawk River through the county. It stimulated considerable trade and settlement.Oneida Lake andOneida Creek form part of the western boundary.
Oneida 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[23] of 2000, there were 235,469 people, 90,496 households, and 59,184 families residing in the county. The population density was 194 inhabitants per square mile (75/km2). There were 102,803 housing units at an average density of 85 units per square mile (33/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 90.21%White, 5.74%African American, 0.23%Native American, 1.16%Asian, 0.02%Pacific Islander, 1.11% fromother races, and 1.52% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 3.20% of the population.
There were 90,496 households, out of which 30.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.10% weremarried couples living together, 12.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.60% were non-families. 29.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.02.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.90% under the age of 18, 8.60% from 18 to 24, 28.20% from 25 to 44, 22.90% from 45 to 64, and 16.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 98.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $35,909, and the median income for a family was $45,341. Males had a median income of $32,194 versus $24,295 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $18,516. About 9.80% of families and 13.00% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 18.90% of those under age 18 and 8.50% of those age 65 or over.
A board of supervisors governed Oneida County until 1962, when the county charter was changed to create acounty executive and a 29-seat county legislature. The entire county elects the county executive. On January 1, 2014, the Oneida County Legislature was reduced to 23 seats. All 23 members are elected from single-member districts. Currently, there are 17Republicans and 6Democrats.
Oneida County also leans Republican in major statewide and national elections. The last Democratic presidential nominee to carry Oneida County wasBill Clinton in1996, by plurality. The last Democrat to win a majority in the county wasLyndon Johnson in his1964 landslide. In2008, RepublicanJohn McCain won the county by 6,000 votes out of 90,000 cast. He won all municipalities in the county except the city ofUtica and the town ofKirkland. In2012, RepublicanMitt Romney won the county by even fewer votes, by around 4,000 plus votes. RepublicanDonald Trump returned the county to its reliably red roots, posting strong victories in2016,2020, and2024.
The main product of Oneida County was once silverware, chiefly manufactured at Oneida Ltd.'s headquarters inSherrill. In January 2005, the company ceased manufacturing their product, closing its main plant and selling its assets. The factory, under new ownership, continues to produce American-made silverware under theLiberty Tabletop brand.
Currently[as of?] the largest non-governmental, non-healthcare product of Oneida County is gambling. Turning Stone Casino Resort is an enterprise of the Oneida Indian Nation of New York, and the largest private employer in Oneida County.[25]
Koch, Daniel (2023).Land of the Oneidas: Central New York State and the Creation of America, From Prehistory to the Present. Albany: State University of New York Press.
