Ghent, New York

Ghent, New York
Town
Taconic State Parkway in Ghent
Location of Ghent, New York
Coordinates: 42°18′56″N 73°38′57″W / 42.31556°N 73.64917°W
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Columbia
Government
• Type	Town Council
• Town Supervisor	Michael Benvenuto (R)
• Town Council	Members' List • Mallory Mort (D) • Pete Nelson (R) • Richard Sardo (R) • Charles Wood (R)
Area
• Total	45.4 sq mi (117.6 km^2)
• Land	45.1 sq mi (116.9 km^2)
• Water	0.3 sq mi (0.7 km^2)
Elevation	404 ft (123 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	5,402
• Density	120/sq mi (46.2/km^2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	12075
Area code(s)	518
FIPS code	36-28871
GNIS feature ID	0979000
Website	townofghent.org

Ghent is a town in Columbia County, New York, United States, with a ZIP code of 12075. The population was 5,402 at the 2010 census.^[1] Ghent is centrally located in the county and is northeast of the city of Hudson.

History

Around 1735, early settlers, exploiting areas cleared by the natives, moved into the area. In 1818, the town of Ghent was founded from parts of the towns of Chatham, Claverack, and Kinderhook. The name has its origin in the Flemish city Ghent, in Flanders, Belgium. Located at Ghent is the historic Van Valkenburgh-Isbister Farm, added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.^[2]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 45.4 square miles (117.6 km²), of which 45.1 square miles (116.9 km²) is land and 0.27 square miles (0.7 km²), or 0.59%, is water.^[1]

The Taconic State Parkway crosses the southeast corner of the town.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1820	2,379		—
1830	2,790		17.3%
1840	2,558		−8.3%
1850	2,293		−10.4%
1860	2,803		22.2%
1870	2,886		3.0%
1880	2,953		2.3%
1890	2,903		−1.7%
1900	2,693		−7.2%
1910	2,819		4.7%
1920	2,451		−13.1%
1930	2,818		15.0%
1940	2,948		4.6%
1950	3,173		7.6%
1960	3,485		9.8%
1970	3,729		7.0%
1980	4,636		24.3%
1990	4,812		3.8%
2000	5,272		9.6%
2010	5,402		2.5%
Est. 2014	5,276	[3]	−2.3%
U.S. Decennial Census[4]

As of the census^[5] of 2000, there were 5,276 people, 2,020 households, and 1,397 families residing in the town. The population density was 116.8 people per square mile (45.1/km²). There were 2,244 housing units at an average density of 49.7 per square mile (19.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.93% White, 1.10% Black or African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.19% Asian, 0.28% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.35% of the population.

There were 2,020 households out of which 32.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.98.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.2% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 25.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.8 years. For every 100 females there were 94.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.5 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $43,529, and the median income for a family was $52,096. The median house value is $114,000. Males had a median income of $32,191 versus $23,958 for females. The per capita income for the town was $21,365. About 2.2% of families and 4.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Ghent

• Arnolds Mill – A hamlet in the northeast corner of the town, northeast of Ghent village.
• Buckleyville – A hamlet in the northeast part of the town, northeast of Ghent village.
• Chatham – The southern half of the village of Chatham is in the northeast corner of Ghent, on the north town line.
• Columbia County Airport (1B1) – An airport in the southwest part of the town.
• Ghent – The hamlet of Ghent is on Route 66 in the northeast part of the town of Ghent. The Bartlett House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.^[6]
• Omi – A hamlet in the northwest part of the town, east of West Ghent on County Road 22.
• Pulvers – A hamlet in the south part of the town.
• West Ghent – A hamlet in the northwest part of the town on Route 9H.

Education

High schools in Ghent include Columbia Christian Academy and Hawthorne Valley Waldorf School.

Notable people

• Stephen Metcalf, writer, critic, and podcaster^[7]
• Kristanna Loken, actress
• Parker Posey, actress^[8]
• Henry Hogeboom^[9]

References

1. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Ghent town, Columbia County, New York". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Retrieved December 10, 2014.
2. National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
3. "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015.
4. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
5. "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
6. "National Register of Historic Places Listings". Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 5/07/12 through 5/11/12. National Park Service. 2012-05-18.
7. Ralph Gardner (16 July 2013). "Author Koethi Zan's Thriller of a Turnaround - WSJ". WSJ. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
8. Sam Pratt. "Hudson Valley's Celebrity Anti-Scene - Observer". Observer. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
9. "Biography of Hon. Henry Hogeboom". Retrieved 6 September 2015.

External links

• Town of Ghent official website
• Historical information about Ghent

Coordinates: 42°19′45″N 73°36′56″W / 42.32917°N 73.61556°W