Seneca Falls (village), New York

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Seneca Falls, New York
settlement_type = Village
nickname = Sneaky Falls
motto =

imagesize =
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pushpin_label_position =
pushpin_map_caption =Location within the state of New York
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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = New York
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Seneca
government_footnotes =
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leader_title =
leader_name =
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leader_name1 =
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established_date =

unit_pref = Imperial
area_footnotes =
area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 11.9
area_land_km2 = 11.5
area_water_km2 = 0.4
area_total_sq_mi = 4.6
area_land_sq_mi = 4.4
area_water_sq_mi = 0.2

population_as_of = 2000
population_footnotes =
population_total = 6861
population_density_km2 = 598.5
population_density_sq_mi = 1550.2

timezone = Eastern (EST)
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 137
elevation_ft = 449
latd = 42 |latm = 54 |lats = 31 |latNS = N
longd = 76 |longm = 47 |longs = 53 |longEW = W

postal_code_type = ZIP code
postal_code = 13148
area_code = 315
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 36-66322
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 0964826
website =
footnotes =

Seneca Falls is a village in Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 6,861 at the 2000 census. The village is in the Town of Seneca Falls, east of Geneva, New York.

Finger Lakes Regional Airport (0G7) is south of the village.

History

Early history

The region was in the domain of the Cayuga tribe and visited by Jesuit missionaries in the 17th Century.

American Revolution and aftermath

The Cayuga were allies of the British and attacked American settlements from the outset of the revolution. The Sullivan Expedition of 1779 was sent to destroy native villages and kill the warriors. After the war, the village and surrounding land became part of the Central New York Military Tract, land reserved for veterans of the war. The north end of Cayuga Lake was set aside as a reservation for returning Cayuga tribal members.

The early village

The first pioneers arrived around 1787. The early settlement was called "Mynderse Mills" after early settler and land owner Wilhelmus Mynderse.

When the village was first incorporated in 1831, it was named after the series of small falls and rapids on the Seneca River which drains Cayuga and Seneca of the Finger Lakes. The river was partially canalized for navigation in 1818, and connected the lakes with the Erie Canal in 1828. The village was re-incorporated in 1837, 1860, and 1896 with new charters. The New York State Barge Canal project in 1915 eliminated what remained of the rapids, canalizing the entire river and building a pair of locks to replace the three smaller locks which had made it possible for boat traffic to pass through the village.

The growth of Seneca Falls through technology

The falls were also the cause of the village's existence, providing water power for mills, distilleries, tanneries, and other factories. By the mid 19th Century, Seneca Falls was the third largest flour milling center in the world, after Rochester and Oswego. There is still a small hydroelectric power generating station a little upstream.

A young man, Birdsall Holly, moved to Seneca Falls from Auburn to work as a mechanic in one of these mills. His son, Birdsall Holly Jr., was entranced by the water power, studying hydraulics and mechanics until he became one of the foremost American inventors. Holly became a partner in the Silsby Company, also called "The Island Works." While working for this company, he obtained his first patent, which was for a rotary water pump. He later removed to Lockport, New York, where he continued inventing, but his work with pumps was continued by Seabury S. Gould Sr. who cast the first all-metal pump and founded Gould Pumps, a worldwide pump manufacturer, which still maintains its headquarters and a major factory in Seneca Falls.

While working for the Silsby Company, Holly also developed the rotary steam engine. This technology was married to the pump technology and was utilized in making the first successful steam fire engine. The Silsby Company eventually moved to Elmira, New York and became American LaFrance, famous for its fire engines.

Social movements in the village and surrounding area

The Village of Seneca Falls has played a prominent role in the Women's Rights Movement. It was the residence of Amelia Bloomer, who popularized a dress reform in her newspaper The Lily which became known as bloomers, a design believed to be influenced by native women of the area. In addition, Abolitionist causes against slavery were popular in the village.

In August 1843 Abby Kelley, an outspoken abolitionist, came to Seneca Falls and addressed a crowd on the south side of the Seneca River. She confronted the nation and its institutions, including a local Presbyterian Church and its minister, over slavery. Within a year, a member of that church was found guilty of "disorderly and unchristian conduct" after she personally confronted that minister on the issue of slavery.

Early Feminist leaders Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott with Martha C. Wright, Mary Ann McClintock, and Jane Hunt, organized the first Women's Rights Convention, also known as the Seneca Falls Convention, held here in 1848 at the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel. A "Declaration of Sentiments", drafted by Stanton, was adopted which included support for women's suffrage. Frederick Douglass, a former slave and publisher of a Rochester New York abolitionist newspaper, attended the convention. His support for the women's suffrage resolution was instrumental in its passage. Nearby Waterloo was the planning location for the convention, which is commemorated by the Women's Rights National Historical Park in the two villages.

In July 1923 the National Women's Party celebrated the 75th anniversary of the 1848 Seneca Falls convention with a pageant and pilgrimage to Susan B. Anthony’s grave in nearby Rochester. Alice Paul presented the draft of the Equal Rights Amendment, referred to as "the Lucretia Mott Amendment", for the delegates’ approval at the general conference held at the First Presbyterian Church in Seneca Falls.

The National Women's Hall of Fame was established in Seneca Falls in 1969. It honors American women for their contributions to society.

The first woman mayor of Seneca Falls is current Mayor Diana M. Smith, first elected in 2004 and re-elected for a 2nd term in 2008.

Geography and History

Seneca Falls is located at coor dms|42|54|31|N|76|47|52|W|city (42.908713, -76.797986)GR|1. According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 4.6 square miles (11.9 km²), of which, 4.4 square miles (11.5 km²) of it is land and 0.2 square miles (0.4 km²) of it (3.28%) is water.

Seneca Falls is intersected by conjoined US Route 20 and NY Route 5. NY-414 intersects both routes in the village.

The Seneca River/Cayuga-Seneca Canal bisects the village.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 6,861 people, 2,870 households, and 1,813 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,550.2 people per square mile (598.0/km²). There were 3,136 housing units at an average density of 708.5/sq mi (273.3/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 96.43% White, 0.73% Black or African American, 0.25% Native American, 1.34% Asian, 0.35% from other races, and 0.90% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.18% of the population.

There were 2,870 households out of which 29.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.9% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.8% were non-families. 29.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.93.

In the village the population was spread out with 24.1% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.2 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $36,543, and the median income for a family was $49,280. Males had a median income of $35,911 versus $24,268 for females. The per capita income for the village was $18,520. About 7.5% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.2% of those under age 18 and 8.1% of those age 65 or over.

Bibliography

*Glenn C. Altschuler, Jan M. Saltzgaber: "Revivalism social conscience, and community in the Burned-over District. The trial of Rhoda Bement". Cornell University Press, Ithaca NY 1983 ( [http://historical.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/cul.cdl/docviewer?did=cdl166 online version)]

References

External links

* [http://www.senecafalls.com/ Seneca Falls, NY]
* [http://www.npg.si.edu/col/seneca/senfalls1.htm 1848 Women's Rights Convention]
* [http://nysparks.state.ny.us/heritage/herit_area.asp New York State Heritage Areas]