Bedford was made a part of Connecticut in 1697 when a patent fixed the boundaries as a six-mile square. Only when King William III of England issued a royal decree in 1700 settling a boundary dispute did Bedford become part of New York.
The town served as the county seat of Westchester County during the American Revolutionary War after the Battle of White Plains, until Bedford was burned by the British in July 1779.[7][8] British forces led by Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton burned the town leaving only one structure standing in the town.[9] After the Revolution, Bedford was made one of two seats of county government, alternating with White Plains, until 1870. Westchester County's oldest government building is the Court House in Bedford village, which was built in 1787 and renovated in the 1960s.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 39.4 square miles (102.1km2), of which 37.2 square miles (96.3km2) is land and 2.2 square miles (5.8km2), or 5.70%, is water.[11] The town is bordered to the west by Mount Kisco and the town of New Castle, to the south by Armonk in the town of North Castle, to the north by Lewisboro and to the east by Pound Ridge.
The Cross River Reservoir is situated on the northern portion of the town. The town is part of the Croton River watershed. The northern portion of the Byram Lake Reservoir is situated on the southern limits of the town.
The Mianus River runs throughout the town of Bedford. The northernmost point of the river is also located in the town. The river originates in a series of small ponds in Armonk and flows north into the town of Bedford. The river flows north along Greenwich Road and begins to turn just south of the Bedford Village Town Park before crossing Greenwich Road. The river reaches its northernmost point at the entrance of Middle Patent Road. The river then runs south and enters the Mianus River Gorge Preserve which is located in the town of Bedford. The river flows south through the entirety of the Mianus River Gorge Preserve and eventually leaves the town and enters Stamford, Connecticut.[12]
Landmarks
In the hamlet of Katonah are two national historic landmarks, which are "Stepping Stones - Historic Home of Bill & Lois Wilson" (home of the Alcoholics Anonymous co-founders; "Bill W.", who died in 1971 and "Lois W.", who died in 1988) and "John Jay Homestead", home of one of the United States Founding Fathers and first Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Some minor landmarks are centered on Bedford Green in the Town of Bedford's Hamlet of "Bedford", a small patch of green space at the center of the Bedford Village Historic District (along Route 22), including the former court house, the oldest government building in Westchester County and now a museum. There is a small graveyard dating back to the founding of the town; the old one-room stone schoolhouse; and a few colonial-era houses, still lived in, which are kept painted white with black or green shutters.
Bedford Oak, October 2022
The Bedford Free Library is located in Bedford on the village green. Along with the branches in Bedford Hills and Katonah, the Bedford Free Library is part of the Westchester Library System.
Along Route 22, at Hook Road, there is a large 500-plus-year-old white oak known as the Bedford Oak.[13][14]
As of the 2000 census,[3] there were 18,133 people, 5,731 households and 4,395 families residing in the town. The population density was 486.9 inhabitants per square mile (188.0/km2). There were 6,020 housing units at an average density of 161.6 unitsper square mile (62.4 units/km2). The racial/ethnic makeup of the town was 87.5% white, 7.12% black, 1.98% Asian and 1.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.57% of the population. 0.09% ethnic Native American. .08% ethnic Pacific Islander and 1.88% from other ethnicities.
There were 5,731 households, out of which 41.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.5% were married couples living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present and 23.3% were non-families. 18.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.82 and the average family size was 3.21.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.4% under the age of 18, 6.6% from 18 to 24, 32.2% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64 and 10.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $100,053 and the median income for a family was $118,820. Males had a median income of $88,561 versus $47,468 for females. The per capita income for the town was $53,046. About 2.4% of families and 4.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.9% of those under age 18 and 3.3% of those of age 65 or over.
Local media
The Record-Review, a weekly newspaper, reports on local issues in Bedford and Pound Ridge. The newspaper began publishing in 1995.
Communities and locations in Bedford
Bedford Corners– A neighborhood bordering the village of Mount Kisco in the southern part of town.
Bedford Hills– A hamlet in the western part of the town, just south of Katonah. The historic Richard H. Mandel House was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.[10]
Bedford– A hamlet in the southeastern part of the town, commonly known as Bedford Village. The Bedford Village Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.[10]
Florence Jaffray Harriman, socialite, suffragist, and diplomat. The Harriman family estate in Bedford Corners has traditionally had a Mt. Kisco mailing address
↑ ...Beatrice Arthur has sublet the family's cooperative apartment on Central Park West and the country home in Bedford, New York ... Moritz, Charles (editor) (1973) "Arthur, Beatrice" Current Biography Yearbook, 1973 H. W. Wilson, New York, pp. 17–20, page 20, ISBN0-8242-0543-X
↑ Chamoff, Lisa, "Westport to host Clinton fundraiser", news article in The Advocate of Stamford, Connecticut, Norwalk edition, July 25, 2007, page A13 ("[...] Chevy Chase, a resident of Bedford, N.Y. [...]")
Westchester County is a county located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of New York, bordering the Long Island Sound to its east and the Hudson River on its west. The county is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population of 1,004,456, its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 55,344 (5.8%) from the 949,113 counted in 2010. Westchester covers an area of 450 square miles (1,200 km2), consisting of six cities, 19 towns, and 23 villages. Established in 1683, Westchester was named after the city of Chester, England. The county seat is the city of White Plains, while the most populous municipality in the county is the city of Yonkers, with 211,569 residents per the 2020 census. The county is part of the Hudson Valley region of the state.
Chappaqua is a hamlet and census-designated place in the town of New Castle, in northern Westchester County, New York. It is approximately 30 miles (50 km) north of New York City. The hamlet is served by the Chappaqua station of the Metro-North Railroad's Harlem Line. In the New York State Legislature it is within the New York State Assembly's 93rd district and the New York Senate's 40th district. In Congress the village is in New York's 17th District.
Goldens Bridge is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Lewisboro in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 1,630 at the 2010 census.
Greenburgh is a town in western Westchester County, New York. The population was 95,397 at the time of the 2020 census. The town consists of 6 villages and an unincorporated area.
Lewisboro is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 12,265 at the 2020 census. The town is named after John Lewis, an early settler. Lewisboro is a suburb of New York City.
New Castle is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 18,311 in the 2020 United States census, an increase over 17,569 at the 2010 census. It includes the named hamlets of Chappaqua and Millwood, but residents and businesses in the Town of New Castle can also have a designated city address of Ossining, or Millwood as well as Chappaqua or even Mt. Kisco.
Pound Ridge is a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 5,082 at the 2020 census. The town is located toward the eastern end of the county, bordered to the north and east by the town of Lewisboro, by Stamford, Connecticut, and New Canaan, Connecticut, to the south, Bedford, New York, and North Castle to the west.
Somers is a town located in northern Westchester County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town had a population of 21,541. The nearby Metro-North Commuter Railroad provides service to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan with an average commute time of 65 to 75 minutes from stations at Purdys, Goldens Bridge, Croton Falls, and Katonah.
Mount Kisco is a village and town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The town of Mount Kisco is coterminous with the village. The population was 10,959 at the 2020 United States census.
Bedford Hills is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Bedford, Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 3,001 at the 2010 census. Two New York State prisons for women, Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women and Taconic Correctional Facility, are located in the hamlet.
Katonah is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) within the town of Bedford, Westchester County, in the U.S. state of New York. The Katonah CDP had a population of 1,603 at the 2020 census.
Interstate 684 (I-684) is a 28.53-mile (45.91 km) auxiliary Interstate Highway in the state of New York in the United States. There is also a short portion in Connecticut with no junctions. The highway connects I-84 with I-287 and the Hutchinson River Parkway, primarily serving commuter traffic to and from the northern suburbs of the New York metropolitan area. Most of the route is in northern Westchester County. The route of the highway was originally designated as part of I-87 from 1968 to 1970. The first section of the roadway opened to traffic in October 1968, and the final segment was completed in December 1974.
Northern Westchester refers to the upper portion of Westchester County, New York, a suburban area north of New York City. Lying north of Interstate 287/Cross Westchester Expressway, these communities are distinguished by distance from New York City and their more rural character from those of Southern Westchester. The area is notable for its general affluence and high degree of watershed for New York City, being home to two major collection reservoirs supplying drinking water to it, the New Croton and Kensico.
The Saw Mill River Parkway is a limited-access parkway that extends for 28.93 miles (46.56 km) through Westchester County, New York, in the United States. It begins at the border between Westchester County and the Bronx, as the continuation of the Henry Hudson Parkway leaving New York City, and heads generally northeastward to an interchange with Interstate 684 (I-684). At its north end, the parkway serves as a collector/distributor road as it passes east of the hamlet of Katonah. The parkway is named for the Saw Mill River, which the highway parallels for most of its length.
The Mianus River is a 20.3-mile-long (32.7 km) river in Westchester County, New York, and Fairfield County, Connecticut, in the United States. It begins in the town of North Castle, New York in a series of ponds at about 600 feet (180 m) altitude. Flowing northeast into the town of Bedford, it abruptly turns south and passes through the Mianus River Gorge, a nature preserve, before entering Stamford, Connecticut, where it is dammed into the Mianus Reservoir, officially known as the Samuel J. Bargh Reservoir of the Greenwich Water Company. From there, it flows south through Stamford and Greenwich into Long Island Sound, at sea level.
Byram is a neighborhood/section and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Greenwich in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It had a population of 4,146 at the 2010 census, and a census-estimated population of 4,216 in 2018. An endcap of Connecticut's Gold Coast, Byram is the southernmost point in the town of Greenwich and the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is separated from Port Chester, Westchester County, New York, by the Byram River. Byram was once known as East Port Chester.
New York State Route 117 (NY 117) is a 15.23-mile (24.51 km) state highway in Westchester County, New York, in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with U.S. Route 9 (US 9) north of the village of Sleepy Hollow. The northern terminus is at an interchange with the Saw Mill River Parkway just south of Interstate 684 (I-684), south of Katonah, a hamlet in the town of Bedford. NY 117 meets the Taconic State Parkway in Pleasantville and parallels the Saw Mill Parkway from Pleasantville to Bedford.
New York State Route 172 (NY 172) is an 8.89-mile (14.31 km) state highway in Westchester County, New York, in the United States. The route runs from NY 117 in the village of Mount Kisco east to the hamlet of Pound Ridge at NY 137.
Bedford Corners is a hamlet in the Westchester County town of Bedford, New York, United States, northeast of the town of Mount Kisco, with which it shares a post-office and zip code. The area is very hilly with rocky terrain and substantial native hardwood deciduous trees.
This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in northern Westchester County, New York, excluding the city of Peekskill, which has its own list.
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