Downsville, New York

Downsville, New York
Census-designated place
Downsville
Coordinates: 42°4′51″N74°59′44″W / 42.08083°N 74.99556°W / 42.08083; -74.99556 Coordinates: 42°4′51″N74°59′44″W / 42.08083°N 74.99556°W / 42.08083; -74.99556 [1]
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Delaware
Town	Colchester
Area [2]
• Total	4.47 sq mi (11.58 km2)
• Land	4.39 sq mi (11.38 km2)
• Water	0.08 sq mi (0.21 km2)
Elevation	1,125 ft (343 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	474
• Density	107.92/sq mi (41.67/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code	13755
Area code	Area code 607
FIPS code [3]	36-20852
GNIS feature ID [1]	948622

Downsville is a hamlet, census-designated place (CDP), and former village in the town of Colchester, Delaware County, New York, United States. ^[4] The population was 617 at the 2010 census. ^[3]

History

It is the site of the Downsville Bridge, a covered bridge, and the historic Union Free School. Both are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. ^[5]

Downsville is named for Abel Downs, who had a tannery there. ^[6] The hamlet is located on the East Branch of the Delaware River. A dam on this portion of the river, at Downsville, was completed by locals and UNION workers paid for by New York City in 1954, creating the Pepacton Reservoir, which is part of the New York City water supply system. The Delaware and Northern Railroad ran south of town. There was a station on Depot Street.^{[ citation needed ]}

Downsville Central School, located on Maple Avenue, serves families from the surrounding areas, including municipalities as far away as East Branch. Downsville Central School's colors are purple and white and their mascot is the Eagle. ^[7]

Geography

Downsville is located in the northern part of the town of Colchester, along Downs Brook just north of its confluence with the East Branch Delaware River. New York State Route 30 passes through the hamlet, leading southwest 15 miles (24 km) to the hamlet of East Branch at NY 17, and east 26 miles (42 km) along the Pepacton Reservoir to Margaretville. New York State Route 206 leads northwest from Downsville 10 miles (16 km) to Walton and southeast 14 miles (23 km) to NY 17 at Roscoe.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the Downsville CDP has a total area of 4.0 square miles (10.4 km²), of which 3.9 square miles (10.2 km²) is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²), or 1.97%, is water. ^[3]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
2020	474		—
U.S. Decennial Census [8]

References

1. "Downsville". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior . Retrieved November 10, 2015.
2. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
3. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Downsville CDP, New York". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
4. "Local Government Handbook - Table 13" (PDF) (5th ed.). New York State Department of State. 2008. p. 77. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-03-26. Retrieved 2009-06-06.
5. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
6. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Govt. Print. Off. p.  109.
7. "Downsville Central School District Home". www.dcseagles.org. Retrieved 2019-08-14.
8. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2016.

External links

• Old photo of Downsville