Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston.  The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster.

History

In 1683, New York State established its first twelve counties. Ulster County was one of them. Its boundaries at that time included the present Sullivan County, and portions of the present Delaware and Greene Counties.  In 1777, the capital of New York State (the first state capital of independent New York) was established at Kingston, though it was subsequently moved when the British burned that city.  In 1797, portions of Otsego and Ulster Counties were split off to create Delaware County.  In 1800, portions of Albany and Ulster Counties were split off to create Greene County.  In 1809, Sullivan County was split off from Ulster County.

Geography

Ulster County is in the southeast part of New York State, south of Albany, immediately west of the Hudson River. Much of the county is within the Catskill Mountains and the Shawangunk Ridge. Ulster County also has Sam's Point Preserve, which includes rare dwarf pine trees and VerKeerderkill falls.  The highest point is Slide Mountain, at approximately 4,180 feet (1,274 m) above sea level. The lowest point is sea level along the Hudson River.  According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,006 km (1,161 mi). 2,918 km (1,126 mi) of it is land and 89 km (34 mi) of it is water. The total area is 2.95% water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, the county had 181,440 people, 67,499 households, and 43,536 families. The population density was 158 people per square mile (61/km2). There were 77,656 housing units at an average density of 69 per square mile (27/km2). The county's racial makeup, as of 2008, was 83.2% white, 6.50% black or African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.7% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 2.15% from other races, and 1.70% from two or more races. 7.6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 19.2% were of Italian, 16.8% Irish, 15.5% German, 6.8% English, and 4.7% American ancestry according to Census 2000. 90.3% spoke English, 4.5% Spanish, 1.2% Italian, and 1.0% German as their first language.

There were 67,499 households, of which 30.70% had children under age 18 living with them, 49.20% were married couples living together, 10.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.50% were non-families. Of all households, 27.90% were made up of individuals, and 10.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.03.

23.50% of the county's population was under age 18, 8.70% was from age 18 to 24, 29.70% was from age 25 to 44, 24.70% was from age 45 to 64, and 13.30% was age 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.60 males.

The county's median household income was $42,551, and the median family income was $51,708. Males had a median income of $36,808 versus $27,086 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,846. About 7.20% of families and 11.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.00% of those under age 18 and 8.70% of those age 65 or over.

(Source: Wikipedia Encyclopedia...wikipedia.org)
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