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Cooperstown, New York

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Cooperstown is the County Seat of Otsego County, New York, and best known as the home of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. The population was 2,032 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Otsego County[Geographic references#6GR6]. Cooperstown was named after and founded by Judge William Cooper, the father of author James Fenimore Cooper.

The Village of Cooperstown was incorporated in 1812 and most of the village lies inside the Town of Otsego, but part is in the Town of Middlefield.

Contents

Geography

Cooperstown is located at [42°41′50″N, 74°55′37″W] (42.697335, -74.926913)[Geographic references#1GR1]. The source of the Susquehanna River is Cooperstown, which is on Otsego Lake.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 4.1 km² (1.6 mi²). 4.0 km² (1.5 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (2.53%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census[Geographic references#2GR2] of 2000, there were 2,032 people, 906 households, and 479 families residing in the village. The population density was 509.5/km² (1,317.5/mi²). There were 1,070 housing units at an average density of 268.3/km² (693.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the village was 96.21% White, 0.94% African American, 0.10% Native American, 1.62% Asian, 0.34% from other races, and 0.79% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.31% of the population.

There were 906 households out of which 23.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.9% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 47.1% were non-families. 41.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.05 and the average family size was 2.83.

In the village the population was spread out with 20.2% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 24.7% from 25 to 44, 22.8% from 45 to 64, and 26.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 81.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.8 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $36,992, and the median income for a family was $50,250. Males had a median income of $39,625 versus $20,595 for females. The per capita income for the village was $26,799. About 5.0% of families and 10.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.5% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.

Cooperstown facts

Cooperstown is perhaps best known as the home of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Folklore tells that Abner Doubleday invented baseball on a cow pasture within the Village in 1839. (The actual origins of baseball are much less clear.) Part of the film A League of Their Own was filmed in Cooperstown.

Also present in or around Cooperstown are a number of other attractions. These include the Farmers' Museum, the Fenimore Art Museum, The New York State Historical Association's (NYSHA) library, Brewery Ommegang, and the Clark Sports Center (a large fitness facility). All construction in the village is closely monitored by a village board, so the buildings have maintained a historical feel to a certain extent.

Cooperstown gets a large amount of monetary support from Jane Clark. The Clark family, who became wealthy off of the patent for the Singer Sewing Machine, has donated money for a variety of causes including decorating the village, scholarships, and village construction projects. Jane Clark buys most available real estate as it becomes available around the town, and also "regulates" businesses that may come into the village (ie. no chains inside the city limits).

Also associated with Cooperstown is the Glimmerglass Opera, although the Alice Busch Opera House is actually located 8 miles north of the village.

Cooperstown was home to Henry Nicols, the Eagle Scout who in 1991 revealed that he had contracted HIV through a blood transfusion, about whom the HBO documentary "Eagle Scout: The Story of Henry Nicols" was made.

Cooperstown's downtown has undergone significant change over recent decades. Through the 1970s, Main Street was still home to no fewer than five grocery stores, including Danny's Market, Pic N Pay, Victory, and an A&P. Western Auto had a branch on Main Street. JJ Newberry's had a two story five and dime with a counter food area. Smalley's Theatre, originally a stage theatre, had a single screen across from a Farm & Home store. With the Post Office, Library, and Clark Gymnasium, as well as the Baseball Hall of Fame, Main Street of Cooperstown represented a true village meeting square. The grocery stores are gone now, with larger grocery stores available on the outskirts of town (such as one in a former bowling alley). Western Auto and Farm & Home are also gone. Smalley's Theatre is now a collection of baseball memorabilia shops. Newberry's has been replaced with a single floor store, the stairs to the downstairs floor boarded over. Main Street now has primarily stores for the tourist rather than for residents of Cooperstown. Among the few stores remaining from years past are The Cupboard and FR Woods, both of which have newstand and memorabilia materials.

Less than 2 miles northwest of the town center sits the original Cooperstown Airport, represented by two paved runways, and closed since the late 1960s. Cooperstown is now served by a small grass runway at the Cooperstown-Westville Airport and a paved runway to the south at Oneonta.

External links

 

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