Chautauqua County, New York

Chautauqua County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2000 census, the population was 139,750. Its name is a contraction of a Seneca Indian word meaning "where the fish was taken out." Its county seat is Mayville. Other cities and villages in Chautauqua County are Brocton, Cassadaga, Chautauqua, Cherry Creek, Dunkirk, Fredonia, Jamestown, Sherman, Sinclairville and Westfield.

History
When counties were established in New York State in 1683, the present Chautauqua County was part of Albany County. This was an enormous county, including the northern part of New York State as well as all of the present State of Vermont and, in theory, extending westward to the Pacific Ocean. This county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766 by the creation of Cumberland County, and further on March 16, 1770 by the creation of Gloucester County, both containing territory now in Vermont.

On March 12, 1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. One of the other pieces, Tryon County, contained the western portion (and thus, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically still extended west to the Pacific). The eastern boundary of Tryon County was approximately five miles west of the present city of Schenectady, and the county included the western part of the Adirondack Mountains and the area west of the West Branch of the Delaware River. The area then designated as Tryon County now includes 37 counties of New York State. The county was named for William Tryon, colonial governor of New York.

In the years prior to 1776, most of the Loyalists in Tryon County fled to Canada. In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended the American Revolutionary War, the name of Tryon County was changed to Montgomery County in honor of the general, Richard Montgomery, who had captured several places in Canada and died attempting to capture the city of Quebec, replacing the name of the hated British governor.

Ontario County was split off from Montgomery County in 1789. In turn, Genesee County was split off from Ontario County in 1802. Genesee County was made smaller in 1806, by the splitting off from it of Allegany County.

Chautauqua County was formed in 1808, split off from Genesee County. However, until 1811, for record-keeping purposes Chautauqua County was treated as part of Niagara County.

Geography
Chautauqua County, in the southwestern corner of New York State, along the New York-Pennsylvania border, is the westernmost of New York's counties. Chautauqua Lake is located in the center of the county, and Lake Erie is its northern border.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,885 km² (1,500 mi²). 2,751 km² (1,062 mi²) of it is land and 1,134 km² (438 mi²) of it (29.20%) is water.

Adjacent Counties/Borders

 * Lake Erie - northwest
 * Erie County, New York - northeast
 * Cattaraugus County, New York - east
 * Warren County, Pennsylvania - southeast
 * Erie County, Pennsylvania - southwest

Major Highways

 * [[Image:I-86.svg|20px]] [[Image:NY-17.svg|20px]] Interstate 86/New York State Route 17 (Southern Tier Expressway)
 * [[Image:I-90.svg|20px]] Interstate 90 (New York State Thruway)
 * [[Image:US 20.svg|20px]] U.S. Route 20
 * [[Image:US 62.svg|20px]] U.S. Route 62
 * [[Image:NY-5.svg|20px]] New York State Route 5
 * [[Image:NY-39.svg|20px]] New York State Route 39
 * [[Image:NY-60.svg|20px]] New York State Route 60
 * [[Image:NY-394.svg|20px]] New York State Route 394
 * [[Image:NY-430.svg|20px]] New York State Route 430

Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 139,750 people, 54,515 households, and 35,979 families residing in the county. The population density was 51/km² (132/mi²). There were 64,900 housing units at an average density of 24/km² (61/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 94.04% White, 2.18% Black or African American, 0.43% Native American, 0.36% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.73% from other races, and 1.23% from two or more races. 4.22% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.3% were of German, 15.1% Italian, 11.6% Swedish, 10.9% English, 9.3% Polish, 9.2% Irish and 5.6% American ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 54,515 households out of which 30.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.90% were married couples living together, 10.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.00% were non-families. 28.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.50% under the age of 18, 10.30% from 18 to 24, 26.30% from 25 to 44, 23.00% from 45 to 64, and 16.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 95.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $33,458, and the median income for a family was $41,054. Males had a median income of $32,114 versus $22,214 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,840. About 9.70% of families and 13.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.30% of those under age 18 and 8.20% of those age 65 or over.

Education
Jamestown Community College has two campuses in the county at Jamestown and Dunkirk. The State University of New York at Fredonia is located in the northern part of the county. Jamestown Business College offers two year degrees and certificates in Jamestown.