| Poughkeepsie, New York | |
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| — Town — | |
 
Poughkeepsie, New York
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| Coordinates: 41°40′16″N 73°54′25″W / 41.67111°N 73.90694°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| County | Dutchess |
| Area | |
| - Total | 31.2 sq mi (80.8 km2) |
| - Land | 28.8 sq mi (74.5 km2) |
| - Water | 2.4 r ew 3r sq mi (6.3 km2) |
| Elevation | 230 ft (70 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| - Total | 42,777 |
| - Density | 1,487.4/sq mi (574.3/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP codes | 12601-12604 |
| Area code(s) | 845 |
| FIPS code | 36-59652 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0979393 |
Poughkeepsie is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 42,777 at the 2000 census. The name is derived from the native term, "Uppu-qui-ipis-in," which means "reed-covered hut by the water."
The area includes a large IBM campus noted for its ongoing development and manufacturing of IBM mainframes.
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The town was first settled around 1780 and was part of the Schuyler Patent of 1788. The Town of Poughkeepsie was established in 1788 as part of a general organization of towns in the county. In 1854, part of the western section of the town, already an independent village, became the City of Poughkeepsie. At least two National Historic Landmarks are located in the town: the Vassar College Observatory and Main Building (Vassar College).
Vassar College, Dutchess Community College and Marist College are located in the Town of Poughkeepsie.
Our Lady of Lourdes High School is a private, co-educational, Catholic high school located at a former IBM site on Boardman Road.
Poughkeepsie Day School is an independent, co-educational, day school for students from pre-kindergarten (3 years) through grade 12, located at another former IBM site on Boardman Road.
Oakwood Friends School [1] is a private, co-educational middle school and high school located near the western end of State Route 113 (Spackenkill Road).
Spackenkill High School is a co-educational public high school located on Spackenkill Road, part of the Spackenkill Union Free School District. Their school mascot is the Spackenkill Spartan. Due to its proximity to IBM, the majority of the students are direct descendants of "IBMers".
There are several school districts in the immediate area, such as Poughkeepsie City; The Town itself has Arlington, Spackenkill, and parts of Wappingers and Hyde Park's districts. The first Arlington High School was in Poughkeepsie before being moved to the more rural Lagrangeville, New York.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 31.2 square miles (80.8 km²), of which, 28.8 square miles (74.5 km²) of it is land and 2.4 square miles (6.3 km²) of it (7.79%) is water.
The town borders the Hudson River, which marks the boundary of Ulster County. The Town of Poughkeepsie borders the City of Poughkeepsie and is on the western side of Dutchess County. US Route 9, US Route 44 and NY State Route 55 pass through the town. Substantial traffic on these and other highways makes the local court a bit busier.
The Town of Poughkeepsie has operated under a Council-Manager form of government. The Town Supervisor is the chief administrative officer of the town & village, selected to carry out the directives of the Council. The Deputy Supervisor monitors the town's fiscal condition and enforces its ordinances and laws. The Town Supervisor is also involved in the discussion of all matters coming before Council yet has no final vote. The Town Board is the legislative body consisting of the Town Supervisor and five council members. The Town Supervisor serves as the presiding officer of the Council. The Council functions to set policy, approve the annual budget, appoint the Town Supervisor and Town Clerk, and enact local laws, resolutions & ordinances.
Three fire departments cover the Town of Poughkeepsie; The Arlington Fire District covers most of the Town, from the south end to the LaGrange line, from the City line north, and the Fairview Fire Department covers a small 4 mile section in the Northern section of the town near Saint Francis Hospital. The New Hamburg Fire Department covers the southern area. The fire districts operates a total of eight fire stations spread out all over the town, as their district covers a very large area. The departments are capable of handling fires, rescues, extrications and natural disasters. The departments operate a varied fire apparatus fleet, along with both BLS and ALS EMS services within the Arlington Fire District. Within the Fairview section, Transcare EMS is contracted to handle Advanced Life Support calls. All EMS in the New Hamburg Fire District is covered by Mobile Life Support Services through a contract with the Town of Poughkeepsie.
Police protection to the Town of Poughkeepsie is provided by the Town of Poughkeepsie PD. When someone calls 911, the call is routed to the Dutchess 911 center in Poughkeepsie, New York and they route it to the Town of Poughkeepsie Police Department's Communications Center who then dispatch the closest unit(s) based on a GPS map.
Saint Francis Hospital SFH is located in the Town of Poughkeepsie and Vassar Brothers Medical Center VBH is located a mile away in the City of Poughkeepsie.
As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 98,777 people, 54,605 households, and 60,121 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,487.5 people per square mile (574.3/km²). There were 15,132 housing units at an average density of 526.2/sq mi (203.1/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 63.01% White, 38.07% Black or African American, 0.14% Native American, 5.13% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 1.62% from other races, and 2.00% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.27% of the population. These groups enrich the area's biocultural diversity, as is manifested in the neighborhoods and local ethnic markets[2].
There were 54,605 households out of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.7% were non-families. 25.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 16.9% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 91.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.3 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $55,327, and the median income for a family was $65,258. Males had a median income of $46,701 versus $31,005 for females. The per capita income for the town was $23,589. About 3.3% of families and 5.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.6% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.
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   | Poughkeepsie-New Yorker article about the acquiring of Rudco by IBM - IBM Buys 300-Acre Dickerson Tract |
| | Poughkeepsie Town Court - Poughkeepsie Town Court NY |
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