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Penn Yan, New York
Village
Historic downtown Penn Yan
Historic downtown Penn Yan
Location in Yates County and the state of New York.
Location in Yates County and the state of New York.
Country United States
State New York
County Yates
Settled 1799 (1799)
Incorporated 1833 (1833)
Named for "Pennsylvania Yankee"
Area
 • Total 2.46 sq mi (6.36 km2)
 • Land 2.40 sq mi (6.22 km2)
 • Water 0.06 sq mi (0.15 km2)
Elevation
728 ft (222 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total 5,159
 • Estimate 
(2019)
4,925
 • Density 2,052.08/sq mi (792.25/km2)
Time zone UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code
14527
Area code(s) 315 Exchanges: 531,536
FIPS code 36-57177
GNIS feature ID 0960144
Website http://www.villageofpennyan.com

Penn Yan is an incorporated village in Yates County, New York, United States. The population was 5,159 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Yates County and lies at the north end of the east branch of Keuka Lake, one of the Finger Lakes. Penn Yan, New York is home to one of the oldest mills in the United States, The Birkett Mills, founded in 1797.

The Village of Penn Yan is primarily in the Town of Milo, but a small section is in the Town of Benton. A smaller section is in the Town of Jerusalem. The Penn Yan Airport is south of the village. The name "Penn Yan" is a syllabic abbreviation of "Pennsylvania Yankee". It houses the Penn Yan Central School District.

History

KeukaLake2192
Vineyard near Keuka Lake, Penn Yan, New York
BarberJohnWarnerPennYan
N.E. view of PENNYAN, Yates Co., N.Y. (circa 1856-1860) by John Warner Barber

The first frame dwelling at Penn Yan was built in 1799. The village became the county seat in 1823, when Yates county was created, and was incorporated in 1833.

The first settlers were chiefly followers of Jemima Wilkinson (1753–1819), a religious enthusiast, born in Cumberland Township, Providence County, Rhode Island, who asserted that she had received a divine commission. Wilkinson preached in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. After obtaining a large tract (which was called Jerusalem in 1789) in the present Yates county, she founded in 1788 the village of Hopeton on the outlet of Keuka Lake about a mile from Seneca Lake. Many followers settled there, and she herself lived there after 1790. Some of her followers left her before 1800, and then the community gradually broke up.

The name of the village is said to have been contrived from the first syllables of "Pennsylvania" and "Yankee", as most of the early settlers were Pennsylvanians and New Englanders (or Yankees).

Old Order Mennonite families are recent arrivals to the area. Beginning in 1974, many families of the Groffdale Conference Mennonite Church moved to Yates County from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, seeking cheaper farmland. The Yates County Old Order Mennonites settlement is the largest horse-and-buggy community in the state of New York. There are also several Old Order Amish settlements in adjacent Steuben and Seneca Counties, that were founded starting in 1979.

The village was the western terminus of the former Crooked Lake Canal.

In 1921 the Penn Yan Boat Company was founded by German immigrant Charles A. Herrman; it produced wooden and glass-fiber boats until 2001.

The Roderick M. Morrison House, Lake View Cemetery, Crooked Lake Outlet Historic District, Yates County Courthouse Park District, Sampson Theatre, United States Post Office, Charles Wagener House, and Penn Yan Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1860 2,388
1870 3,488 46.1%
1880 3,475 −0.4%
1890 4,254 22.4%
1900 4,650 9.3%
1910 4,597 −1.1%
1920 4,517 −1.7%
1930 5,329 18.0%
1940 5,308 −0.4%
1950 5,481 3.3%
1960 5,770 5.3%
1970 5,293 −8.3%
1980 5,242 −1.0%
1990 5,248 0.1%
2000 5,219 −0.6%
2010 5,159 −1.1%
2019 (est.) 4,925 −4.5%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census of 2000, there were 5,219 people, 2,141 households, and 1,261 families residing in the village. The population density was 2,299.7 people per square mile (887.7/km2). There were 2,299 housing units at an average density of 1,013.1 per square mile (391.0/km2). The racial makeup of the village was 97.15% White, 0.67% African American, 0.27% Native American, 0.31% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.33% from other races, and 1.23% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.94% of the population.

There were 2,141 households, out of which 29.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.2% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.1% were non-families. 35.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 18.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.90.

In the village, the population was spread out, with 23.9% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 20.4% from 45 to 64, and 21.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 81.2 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $29,278, and the median income for a family was $39,087. Males had a median income of $30,692 versus $19,263 for females. The per capita income for the village was $15,848. About 9.7% of families and 13.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.8% of those under age 18 and 11.7% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

  • William Babcock, former US Congressman
  • David Bordwell, prominent American film theorist, film critic, and author, grew up on a farm near Penn Yan.
  • Dana H. Born, Brigadier General, former Penn Yan Resident - past Dean of Faculty at the United States Air Force Academy
  • Dan Beach Bradley, born July 18, 1804, studied here c. 1830 before serving as a highly regarded medical missionary to Siam, from 1835 until his death in Bangkok June 23, 1873.
  • Stimson Joseph Brown, Commodore and astronomer, born in Penn Yan
  • Tony Collins, NFL running back who played for the New England Patriots, grew up in Penn Yan.
  • Cris Crissy, NFL Cornerback played for the Washington Redskins, born, raised and grew up in Penn Yan.
  • Sylvester J. Conklin, former Wisconsin State Assemblyman, was born in Penn Yan.
  • Susan Miller Dorsey, former superintendent of Los Angeles schools, was born in Penn Yan.
  • Samuel S. Ellsworth, former US Congressman
  • Jonathan J. Hazard, Rhode Island Antifederalist and Country Party founder; moved to Penn Yan with his wife and children in 1805 and died here in 1812.
  • Thomas Augustine Hendrick, American Roman Catholic bishop, was born in Penn Yan.
  • John Imbrie, paleoceanographer and MacArthur Fellow known for proving the theory of the Earth's ice ages, was born in Penn Yan.
  • Maria Brace Kimball (1852—1933), educator, elocutionist, writer
  • William M. Oliver, former US Congressman
  • John Roche (1893-1952), actor
  • Henry Parker Sartwell, physician and botanist, settled in Penn Yan about 1830 and died there in 1867.
  • Walter H. Stevens, Confederate Brigadier General

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Penn Yan para niños

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