West Point (New York)
| West Point | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 West Point as seen from the Hudson River |
|||
| Location in New York | |||
|
|||
| Basic data | |||
| State : | United States | ||
| State : | new York | ||
| County : | Orange County | ||
| Coordinates : | 41 ° 23 ′ N , 73 ° 57 ′ W | ||
| Time zone : | Eastern ( UTC − 5 / −4 ) | ||
| Residents : | 6,763 (as of 2010) | ||
| Population density : | 132.3 inhabitants per km 2 | ||
| Area : | 53.5 km 2 (approx. 21 mi 2 ) of which 51.1 km 2 (approx. 20 mi 2 ) is land |
||
| Height : | 48 m | ||
| Postcodes : | 10996, 10997 | ||
| Area code : | +1 845 | ||
| FIPS : | 36-80747 | ||
| GNIS ID : | 970844 | ||
 West Point, New York by Seth Eastman oil on canvas, 1875. |
|||
West Point is a military reserve and a census-designated place (CDP) north of Highland Falls in Orange County , New York . In 2010 West Point had 6,763 residents. The place is best known for the military academy located there , the United States Military Academy , which is usually just called West Point .
geography
The place is on the west bank of the Hudson River across from the city of Cold Spring .
According to the United States Census Bureau , the CDP has an area of 64.9 km²; 63.0 km² of this is on land and 1.9 km² on water.
history
West Point was a fortification during the Revolutionary War , originally chosen for its location on the unusual S-curve that the Hudson River makes at this point. It was built by the Polish general Tadeusz Kościuszko . During the war the fort was occupied by a small garrison of American soldiers. There were plans that an iron chain should be placed across the river here to prevent Royal Navy ships from sailing up the Hudson River. There are no documents as to whether this plan has been implemented. The complex consisted of several redoubts , including Fort Putnam, which still looks today from the War of Independence. A well-known case of treason in American history occurred here in 1780 when General Benedict Arnold attempted to turn the base over to the British. This had given him the post of brigadier general in the British Army and a financial reward of 20,000 pounds sterling promised. The plan failed because the British Major John André was intercepted as a spy.
In 1937 the West Point Bullion Depository was established; it became the West Point Mint in 1988 , a subsidiary of the United States Mint .
Demographics
At the time of the 2000 United States Census, West Point was inhabited by 7,138 people. The population density was 113.3 people per km ². There were 1,044 housing units at an average of 16.6 per km ². West Point's population was 82.31% White , 9.09% Black or African American , 0.50% Native American , 3.35% Asian , 0.15% Pacific Islander , 1.64% said belonging to other races and 2.96% named two or more races. 6.56% of the population declared to be Hispanic or Latinos of any race.
The residents of West Point were distributed to 996 households out of which 75.1% had children under 18 years of age. 87.8% of households were married, 4.8% had a female head of household without a husband, and 5.7% were not families. 5.4% of households were made up of individuals and no one lived alone in any household. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.66. This statistic and also the following one on age distribution are typical for military bases.
The population was divided into 21.9% minors, 51.2% 18–24 year olds, 23.0% 25–44 year olds, 3.8% 45–64 year olds and 0.1% aged 65 years or more. The median age was 21 years. For every 100 women there were 207.3 men. For every 100 women over 18, there were 259.7 men.
The median household income in West Point was 56,516 US dollars and the median family income reached the amount of 56,364 US dollars. About 2% of the population and 2% of families had an income below the poverty line , including 2.6% of minors.
Born here
- Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840–1914), Rear Admiral in the US Navy, naval writer and strategist
- Thomas Robins (1868–1957), inventor
- Gore Vidal (1925–2012), writer