St. Lawrence County

History

When counties were established by England in the Province of New York in 1683, the present St. Lawrence County was part of Albany County. This was an enormous territory, 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. The 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. The other two were called Tryon County (later renamed Montgomery County) and Charlotte County (later renamed Washington County).

Tryon County contained the western portion (and, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically 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 included what are now 37 counties of New York State. The county was named for William Tryon, colonial governor of New York. Charlotte County contained the eastern portion of Albany County.

In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended the American Revolutionary War, the name "Charlotte County" was changed to Washington County to honor George Washington, the American Revolutionary War general and later President of the United States. Tryon County was changed to Montgomery County to honor the general, Richard Montgomery, who had captured several places in Canada and died trying to capture the city of Quebec. It replaced the name of the British governor, hated by the rebels.

In 1788, Clinton County was split off from Washington County. This was a much larger area than the present Clinton County, including part of what would later become St. Lawrence County, as well as several other counties or county parts of the present New York State.

In 1789, the size of Montgomery County was reduced by the splitting off of Ontario County from Montgomery. The actual area split off from Montgomery County was much larger than the present county, also including the present Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Orleans, Steuben, Wyoming, Yates, and part of Schuyler and Wayne Counties.

Earthquake

On September 5, 1944, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake centered in Massena struck the county. The earthquake was felt from Canada to Maryland, and from Maine to Indiana. The earthquake was the strongest earthquake in New York State history.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,821 square miles (7,310 km2), of which 2,680 square miles (6,900 km2) is land and 141 square miles (370 km2) (5.0%) is water.

It is the largest county by area in the state of New York. It is larger than either of the states of Rhode Island (1544.9 square miles) or the state of Delaware (2488.72 square miles). St. Lawrence County is part of the North Country region.

Part of the county is in the Adirondack Park. It includes much of the Oswegatchie River, Cranberry Lake and Lake Ozonia.

The Port of Ogdensburg in St. Lawrence County is the only U.S. port on the St. Lawrence Seaway. This waterway allows ships and vessels to pass through the St. Lawrence River and on to the Great Lakes. Ogdensburg Harbor Light is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, and in the National Register of Historic Places listings in St. Lawrence County, New York

Adjacent counties

Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry United Counties, Ontario, Canada – north

Leeds and Grenville United Counties, Ontario, Canada – northwest

Franklin County – east

Herkimer County – south

Hamilton County – south

Lewis County – southwest

Jefferson County – west

Demographics

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 113,931 people, 40,506 households, and 26,936 families residing in the county. The population density was 42 inhabitants per square mile (16/km2). There were 49,721 housing units at an average density of 18 units per square mile (6.9/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 94.51% White, 2.38% African American, 0.87% Native American, 0.71% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.69% from other races, and 0.51% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.79% of the population. 16.9% were of French, 16.1% Irish, 13.9% American, 11.6% English, 8.1% French Canadian, 7.9% German and 7.6% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000. 95.6% spoke only English, while 3.2% spoke French and 1.2% Spanish at home.

There were 40,506 households, out of which 31.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.50% were married couples living together, 10.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.50% were non-families. 26.50% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.49 and the average family size was 2.99.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.40% under the age of 18, 13.80% from 18 to 24, 27.40% from 25 to 44, 22.40% from 45 to 64, and 13.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 103.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,356, and the median income for a family was $34,510. Males had a median income of $30,135 versus $24,253 for females. The per capita income for the county was $14,728. About 12.30% of families and 19.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.30% of those under age 18 and 10.30% of those age 65 or over.

Education

School districts

There are 17 school districts with territory in St. Lawrence County. 17 of those centered in the county are under the jurisdiction of the St. Lawrence-Lewis BOCES Supervisory District along with Harrisville Central School District in Lewis County, New York.

Brasher Falls Central School District: St. Lawrence Central School, Brasher Falls

Canton Central School District: Hugh Williams Senior High School, Canton

Clifton-Fine Central School District: Clifton-Fine Central School, Star Lake

Colton-Pierrepont Central School District: Colton-Pierrepont Central School, Colton

Edwards-Knox Central School District: Edwards-Knox Central School, Russell

Gouverneur Central School District: Gouverneur Junior/Senior High School, Gouverneur

Hammond Central School District: Hammond Central School, Hammond

Hermon-Dekalb Central School District: Hermon-Dekalb Central School, Dekalb Junction

Heuvelton Central School District: Heuvelton Central School, Heuvelton

Lisbon Central School District: Lisbon Central School, Lisbon

Madrid-Waddington Central School District: Madrid–Waddington Central School, Madrid

Massena Central School District: Massena Central High School, Massena

Universities and colleges

Saint Lawrence County is home to St. Lawrence University, State University of New York at Potsdam, Clarkson University, the SUNY-ESF Ranger School, and the State University of New York at Canton.

Politics and government

Prior to the 1992 presidential election, St. Lawrence County was a traditionally Republican county, supporting the Democrats only in their sweep of New York State counties in 1964. From 1992 through the 2012 election, St. Lawrence County swung Democratic, posting double-digit victories for Democratic candidates, most notably in 1996 when Bill Clinton won the county by 28-point margin over Bob Dole. The first Republican victory in the county since 1988 came in 2016 when Donald Trump carried the county by an eight-point margin. In 2020, it was one of only a few counties in Upstate New York where Trump improved his margin, this time carrying it by over 10 points. Trump improved on his margin again in 2024, this time performing better than any candidate from any political party since 1984.

The county is governed by a fifteen person board of legislators which oversees the county departments, drafts policies, and sets an annual budget. They serve four year terms, with the last election being in 2022. They appoint an administrator to carry out their policies. Other elected officials include a clerk, a district attorney, four coroners, a sheriff, and a treasurer.

Media

Radio

1340 WMSA, Massena

WVLF-FM Mix 96.1

WRCD-FM 101.5 The Fox

WSNN (99.3, Potsdam)

WPDM (1470, Potsdam)

WSLU (89.5, Canton)

Transportation

Airports

The following public use airports are located in the county:

Massena International Airport (MSS) – Massena

Ogdensburg International Airport (OGS) – Ogdensburg

Potsdam Municipal Airport (PTD) – Potsdam

Moores Airport (1E8) – Degrasse

Communities

Larger settlements

† - County Seat

‡ - Not Wholly in this County