Smithtown, New York

Smithtown, New York
Town
Town of Smithtown

Seal

U.S. Census Bureau Map
Coordinates: 40°51′46″N 73°12′55″W / 40.86278°N 73.21528°W / 40.86278; -73.21528Coordinates: 40°51′46″N 73°12′55″W / 40.86278°N 73.21528°W / 40.86278; -73.21528
Country United States
State New York
County Suffolk
Government
 • Town Supervisor Patrick Vecchio (R)[1]
Area
 • Total 111.4 sq mi (288.5 km2)
 • Land 53.6 sq mi (138.8 km2)
 • Water 57.8 sq mi (149.7 km2)
Elevation 105 ft (32 m)
Population (2010)[2]
 • Total 117,801
 • Density 2,160/sq mi (833.9/km2)
Time zone EST (UTC−5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC−4)
ZIP codes 11725, 11745,11754, 11780, 11787, 11788, 11768 (part), 11755 (part), 11779 (part)
Area code(s) 631
FIPS code 36-68000
GNIS feature ID 0979498
Website www.smithtownny.gov

Smithtown is a town in Suffolk County, New York, United States, on the North Shore of Long Island. The population was 117,801 at the 2010 census.

The census-designated place (CDP) of Smithtown lies within the town's borders.

History

Statue of the Smithtown Bull that Richard Smith was said to have ridden in order to claim the land that became the Town of Smithtown.

Smithtown originally, known as "Smithfield", was first settled around 1665. Local legend has it that, after rescuing a Native American chief's kidnapped daughter, Richard Smith was told that the chief would grant title to all of the land Smith could encircle in one day "on a bull". Smith chose to ride the bull on the longest day of the year (summer solstice), to enable him to ride longer "in one day". The land he acquired in this way is said to approximate the current town's location. There is a large anatomically correct[3] statue of Smith's bull, known as Whisper, at the fork of Jericho Turnpike (New York State Route 25) and St. Johnland Road (New York State Route 25A).

The border between Smithtown and the town of Huntington is partially defined by Bread and Cheese Hollow Road (Suffolk County Road 4), so named after Bread and Cheese hollow, which according to legend is where Smith stopped on his ride to have a lunch of bread and cheese. The road is reputed to follow part of his original ride. The border between Smithtown and Huntington was also the site of Fort Salonga, a British fort that was the site of a battle of the American Revolution during 1781.

Geography

The Town of Smithtown is located at 40° 52' 13" North, 73° 13' 3" West (40.862786, -73.215175).[4]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 111.4 square miles (288.5 km²), of which, 53.6 square miles (138.8 km²) of it is land and 57.8 square miles (149.7 km²) of it (51.89%) is water.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
17901,022—
18001,41338.3%
18101,59212.7%
18201,87417.7%
18301,686−10.0%
18401,93214.6%
18501,9722.1%
18602,1308.0%
18702,1360.3%
18802,2495.3%
18903,35749.3%
19005,86374.6%
19107,07320.6%
19209,11428.9%
193011,85530.1%
194013,97017.8%
195020,99350.3%
196050,347139.8%
1970114,657127.7%
1980116,6631.7%
1990113,406−2.8%
2000115,7152.0%
2010117,8011.8%
Est. 2014118,446[5]0.5%
U.S. Decennial Census[6]

As of the census[7] of 2000, there were 115,715 people, 38,487 households, and 31,482 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,159.9 people per square mile (833.9/km²). There were 39,357 housing units at an average density of 734.6 per square mile (283.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was:

There were 38,487 households out of which 38.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 71.6% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.2% were non-families. 15.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.28.

Main Street, Smithtown

In the town the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 24.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 94.6 males. For every 1000 females age 18 and over, there were 911.2 males.

According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the town was $100,165, and the median income for a family was $110,776. Males had a median income of $61,348 versus $38,208 for females. The per capita income for the town was $31,401. About 2.1% of families and 3.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.9% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.

Ancestries: Italian (35.3%), Irish (26.0%), German (18.7%), Polish (6.9%), English (5.0%), Russian (4.1%).

Communities and locations

Villages (incorporated)

Hamlets (unincorporated)

Other communities

State parks

Notable people

Media

Smithtown is the city of license for two radio stations, WFRS Family Radio and WWSK "94.3 the Shark", repeater W228BI for WNYC, and the TV station WFTY-TV. Smithtown broadcasts its board meetings on SGTV, the Town of Smithtown Public service television station; Cablevision channel 18 or Verizon channel 27. SGTV is also available on the web at http://www.smithtowngtv.org/ Smithtown has three local newspapers, Smithtown Messenger, The Times of Smithtown, and The Smithtown News, which carry community-based articles. Web sites such as SmithtownRadio.com serve as hyper-local news outlets for the community.

Emergency services

Fire Protection and Emergency Medical Services are provided by the seven Volunteer Fire Departments, and two Volunteer Ambulance Corps that cover parts of the Township. The Smithtown, Kings Park, Saint James, Nesconset, and Nissequogue Fire Departments provide both Fire Protection, as well as Emergency Medical Services to their districts. The Commack Fire Department and Commack Volunteer Ambulance Corps provide coverage for the Commack hamlet, which is divided between the Town of Smithtown, and the Town of Huntington. The Hauppauge Volunteer Fire Department and Central Islip-Hauppauge Volunteer Ambulance Corps provide coverage to the Hauppauge hamlet, which is divided between the Town of Smithtown, and the Town of Islip.

Smithtown is policed by the 4th Precinct of the Suffolk County Police Department. The Suffolk County Police are the primary law enforcement agency in Smithtown. They are responsible for responding to all 911 emergency calls. The Smithtown Department of Public Safety is an agency with limited powers. The Park Ranger Division is made up peace officers as defined in the Criminal Procedural Law of the state of New York.[8] Their enforcement powers are limited to Smithtown town property. The Department of Public Safety also has a Harbor Master division and Fire Marshall division.

Emergency medical care can be found at St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center, located in Smithtown, as well as the nearby Stony Brook University Hospital, located in Stony Brook, in the neighboring Town of Brookhaven.

Transportation

Railroad lines

The Town of Smithtown is also home to the Kings Park, Smithtown, and Saint James Stations of the Long Island Rail Road's Port Jefferson Branch.

Bus service

The Town of Smithtown is served entirely by Suffolk County Transit bus routes.

Major roads

Schools

Smithtown Central School District is home of eight elementary schools, three middle schools, and two high schools, all on different campuses.

The Town of Smithtown is also home to the Kings Park Central School District, a portion of the Commack Union-Free School District (shared with the Town of Huntington), a portion of the Hauppauge School District (shared with the Town of Islip) and a portion of the Sachem Central School District (shared with the Town of Brookhaven).

Elementary schools

Middle schools

Smithtown High School

Smithtown High School West

Private schools

Former Smithtown schools (No longer used as K-12 Facilities)

See also

References

  1. ↑ MacGowan, Carl; Harrison, Lauren (14 May 2013). "Patrick Vecchio gets Smithtown GOP endorsement". Newsday. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  2. ↑ Metropolitan & Central City Population: 2000-2005. Demographia.com, accessed September 3, 2006.
  3. ↑ "The Bull, Smithtown Long, Island". Maggie Land Blanck.
  4. ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  5. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  7. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  8. ↑ NYS CPL Article 2 Section 2.10(9)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Town of Smithtown, New York.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Smithtown.


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