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Woodstock, New York

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For the musical event, see Woodstock Festival.

Woodstock is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 6,241 at the 2000 census.

The Town of Woodstock is in the northern part of the county. Woodstock is northwest of Kingston, New York. The town is inside the Catskill State Park.

History

The first settler arrived around 1770. The Town of Woodstock was established in 1787. Later, Woodstock contributed some of its territory to form the Towns of Middletown (1789), Windham (1798), Shandaken (1804), and Olive (1853).

The Arts and Crafts Movement came to Woodstock around 1902, and, afterwards, Woodstock was always considered an active artist colony in the 19th and early 20th century, including playing host to numerous Hudson River School painters. Its reputation as an arts center contributed to the original Woodstock Festival's organizers planning their concert around the town. Such American painters as E. Charlton Fortune and Spencer Trask were known to use the Woodstock venue.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 175.8 km² (67.9 mi²). 174.8 km² (67.5 mi²) of it is land and 0.9 km² (0.4 mi²) of it (0.53%) is water.

The north town line is the border of Greene County.

Demographics

As of the census2 of 2000, there were 6,241 people, 2,946 households, and 1,626 families residing in the town. The population density was 35.7/km² (92.5/mi²). There were 3,847 housing units at an average density of 22.0/km² (57.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.25% White, 1.30% Black or African American, 0.21% Native American, 1.57% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.79% from other races, and 1.87% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.56% of the population.

There were 2,946 households out of which 21.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.2% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.8% were non-families. 35.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.10 and the average family size was 2.71.

In the town the population was spread out with 18.0% under the age of 18, 3.7% from 18 to 24, 23.0% from 25 to 44, 38.0% from 45 to 64, and 17.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 48 years. For every 100 females there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $49,217, and the median income for a family was $65,938. Males had a median income of $41,500 versus $33,672 for females. The per capita income for the town was $32,133. About 6.9% of families and 10.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.8% of those under age 18 and 3.9% of those age 65 or over.

Woodstock Music and Art

The town is famous for lending its name to the Woodstock Festival, actually held many miles away in Bethel, New York in Sullivan County.

The 1903 Byrdcliffe Art Colony is the nation's oldest Arts & Crafts colony. It brought the first artists to Woodstock to teach and produce furniture, metal works, ceramics, weaving and established Woodstock's first painting school. Byrdcliffe forever changed the cultural landscape of the Town of Woodstock.

The town is home to the Woodstock Artists Association, the oldest artists organization of its kind in the country. Byrdcliffe artists were instrumental in its founding. The Art Students League of New York's summer school was in Woodstock for more then thirty years from 1947 until 1979. The Woodstock School of Art has been operating since 1980.

The Woodstock Guild, also founded by Byrdcliffe artists in 1939 is now the steward of the 350 acre Byrdcliffe Colony. It is a multi-cultural organization which sponsors exhibitions, classes, concerts, dance and theatre events and runs the oldest craft shop in Woodstock, the Fleur de Lis Gallery featuring over 60 artists. Byrdcliffe is on the National Register of Historic Places and is a haven for today's artists.

Famous Inhabitants

The town has long been a mecca for artists, musicians, and writers, even before the music festival made the name "Woodstock" famous. The town has a separate "Artist's Cemetery". Film and art festivals attract big names, and hundreds of musicians have come to Woodstock to record. The list below contains the names of significant artists who actually lived (or still currently live) in the town.

Musicians


Artists

Writers

Others

Communities and locations in Woodstock, NY

  • Bearsville -- A hamlet at the junction of Routes NY-212 and 45, west of Woodstock village.
  • Byrdcliffe -- A location near the junction of Routes 212 and 33, northwest of Woodstock village.
  • Cooper Lake -- A small lake south of Lake Hill and Shady.
  • Daisy -- A hamlet east of Woodstock village near the east town line.
  • Lake Hill -- A hamlet on Route 33.
  • Meads -- A location north of Woodstock village.
  • Montoma -- A hamlet south of Woodstock near the town line with the Town of Hurley.
  • Mount Tobias -- A mountain in the central part of the town.
  • Overlook Mountain -- A mountain in the northeast part of the town.
  • Shady -- A hamlet north of Byrdcliffe on Route 212.
  • Willow -- A hamlet in the northwest part of the town on Route 212.
  • Wittenberg -- A hamlet at the junction of Routes 40 and 45, southwest of Bearsville.
  • Woodstock -- The hamlet of Woodstock and the principal center of local service for the town. The Woodstock Elgin Creamery was established in 1898 at a site now located on the corner of Maple Lane and Deanies Alley.
  • Zena -- A hamlet east of Woodstock village in the southeast part of the town.
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