Cortland, New York

History

The city is within the former Central New York Military Tract. It is named after Pierre Van Cortlandt, the first lieutenant governor of New York.

Cortland, settled in 1791, was made a village in 1853 (rechartered in 1864), and incorporated in 1900 as New York's 41st city. When the county was formed in 1808, Cortland vied with other villages to become the county seat. Known as the "Crown City" because of its location on a plain formed by the convergence of seven valleys, Cortland is 1130 ft above sea level. Forty stars representing the 40 cities incorporated before Cortland circle the State of New York and Crown on the city's official seal. The seven points of the crown represent the seven valleys surrounding Cortland. The 41st star in the center of the crown illustrates Cortland as the incorporated city closest to New York's geographic center.

Cortland's leading industry in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was the Wickwire Brothers wire-drawing mill, noted for its production of wire hardware cloth for use as window screens. The extent of the Wickwires' wealth is demonstrated in the two magnificent mansions they commissioned. The Victorian Chateauesque-style home of Chester Wickwire is now operated as the 1890 House Museum & Center for Victorian Arts. Charles Wickwire's 1912 home is now owned and operated by the SUNY Cortland Alumni Association. It is open to the public and used by the Alumni Association to host college-related events and house visiting dignitaries.

Cortland was also the location of Brockway Motor Company, a pioneering truck maker. Begun in 1875 as Brockway Carriage Works, it was taken over by Mack Trucks in 1956 and survived until 1977. The city continues to host an annual show of Brockway trucks.

From 1960 to 1992, Smith Corona typewriters were manufactured in Cortland.

Cortland boasts a classic octagon house. The Cortland Rural Cemetery is styled as a garden setting and is still in operation.

In 1868, Cortland became the home of the Cortland Normal School, which gradually developed into a four-year college. With graduate programs and research capacity, it has expanded into the State University of New York at Cortland.

In 2006, Cortland's historic clock tower burned down. It was later rebuilt, with spaces in the building for both businesses and apartments.

The Cortland County Courthouse, Cortland County Poor Farm, Cortland Fire Headquarters, Cortland Free Library, First Presbyterian Church Complex, William J. Greenman House, Randall Farm, Tompkins Street Historic District, Unitarian Universalist Church, and United States Post Office are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Notable people

• Carl Carmer, author
• Charles Henry De Groat, Union Army brigadier general
• William Dillon, composer, lyricist, and vaudevillian
• Ronnie James Dio, former frontman for Rainbow and Black Sabbath; street in Cortland is named for him (Dio Way)
• Nancy Duffy, Syracuse news personality and founder of the Syracuse St. Patrick's Day Parade
• Katharine May Edwards, Wellesley College professor and classics scholar
• Col. Arnald Gabriel, Commander and Conductor of US Air Force Band, US Air Force Symphony Orchestra, and Singing Sergeants.
• Milo Goodrich, former US congressman.
• Charles W. Goodyear, businessman and railroad owner.
• Leidy Klotz, retired soccer player; professor, author.
• Jim Mahady, former Baseball second baseman for the New York Giants.
• Dennis Mepham, retired soccer player.
• Nathan Lewis Miller, former governor of New York.
• Gideon C. Moody, former senator of South Dakota.
• Mark Nauseef, musician.
• Alton B. Parker, Democratic candidate for president in 1904.
• Sime Silverman, publisher.
• Eric Soderholm, former professional baseball player.
• Elmer Ambrose Sperry, inventor of gyroscopic compass who held over 400 patents; USS Sperry is named after him.
• Aljamain Sterling, Current UFC bantamweight champion, MMA fighter.
• Joel Eric Suben, composer and conductor.
• Raymond Gram Swing, journalist.
• Samuel Ringgold Ward, African-American who escaped enslavement to become an abolitionist, newspaper editor and Congregational minister.
• Spiegle Willcox, jazz trombone player, composer, and singer.
• Gary Wood, NFL quarterback.

Geography

Cortland is in west-central Cortland County at (42.600658, −76.181284). Cortland lies between Syracuse and Binghamton; it is surrounded by the town of Cortlandville.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 10.14 km2, of which 10.09 km2 is land and 0.05 km2, or 0.51%, is water.

The Tioughnioga River, a tributary of the Susquehanna River, flows southward past the city.

Transportation

Roads and highways

Interstate 81, U.S. Route 11, and New York State Route 281 are north-south highways servicing the city. New York State Route 13 and New York State Route 41 also serve the city. Via I-81 it is 40 mi north to Syracuse and 40 mi south to Binghamton. NY-13 leads southwest 18 mi to Ithaca.

Bus

Local public transportation by bus is provided by Centro, which replaced Cortland Transit on March 31, 2025. Greyhound and Trailways of New York provide the city with intercity bus service with connections to Syracuse, Binghamton, and points beyond. OurBus connects Cortland to Binghamton, New York City, and other destinations. The closest Amtrak train station is in Syracuse.

Air

Air service is provided by Cortland County Airport located west of the city. The nearest commercial airport is Ithaca Tompkins International Airport.

Climate

Cortland has a humid continental climate (Koppen Dfb), with cold, snowy winters and warm summers. |Jan record high F = 68 |Feb record high F = 65 |Mar record high F = 85 |Apr record high F = 90 |May record high F = 93 |Jun record high F = 96 |Jul record high F = 100 |Aug record high F = 98 |Sep record high F = 100 |Oct record high F = 90 |Nov record high F = 81 |Dec record high F = 68 |year record high F= 100 |Jan record low F = −25 |Feb record low F = −26 |Mar record low F = −13 |Apr record low F = 11 |May record low F = 23 |Jun record low F = 32 |Jul record low F = 39 |Aug record low F = 35 |Sep record low F = 27 |Oct record low F = 18 |Nov record low F = 2 |Dec record low F = −17 |year record low F= −26 | access-date = 2011-11-14 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140814031631/http://cdo.ncdc.noaa.gov/climatenormals/clim20/ny/301799.pdf | archive-date = 2014-08-14 | url-status = dead | access-date = 2011-11-14

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 18,740 people, 6,922 households, and 3,454 families residing in the city. The population density was 4,778.6 PD/sqmi. There were 7,550 housing units at an average density of 1,925.2 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the city was 95.72% White, 1.56% African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.57% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.56% from other races, and 1.33% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.72% of the population.

There were 6,922 households, out of which 24.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.7% were married couples living together, 11.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 50.1% were non-families. 36.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 18.3% under the age of 18, 28.4% from 18 to 24, 23.6% from 25 to 44, 16.8% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females, there were 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.5 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,478, and the median income for a family was $39,167. Males had a median income of $29,857 versus $21,614 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,267. About 13.9% of families and 24.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.8% of those under age 18 and 15.2% of those age 65 or over.

As of 2015 the largest self-reported ancestry groups in Cortland, New York were:

• English - 15.6%
• Irish - 10.8%
• Italian - 9.7%
• German - 8.4%
• "American" - 5.7%
• Dutch - 2.2%
• Scottish - 2.1%
• French (except Basque) - 1.8%
• Polish - 1.8%

Government

Cortland's government consists of a mayor, who is elected at large, and an eight-member city council. One member is elected from each of the eight voting wards. As of January 2022, the mayor was Mayor Scott Steve and the eight alderpersons that comprise the city's Common Council are:

• Brian Tobin, First Ward
• Kathryn Silliman, Second Ward
• Mary Clare Pennello, Third Ward
• Pat Lane, Fourth Ward
• Tom Conlon, Fifth Ward
• Bill Carpenter, Sixth Ward
• Troy Beckwith, Seventh Ward
• Thomas Michales, Eighth Ward The City Clerk is Andy Jewett. The City Corporation Counsel is Randall Lewis.

Sports

In 2009, the New York Jets' training camp was moved from Hofstra University in Hempstead to the SUNY Cortland campus. The camp drew in 34,000 visitors and brought nearly $4.26 million to the local economy. In 2010, the Jets signed a three-year contract with SUNY Cortland. In 2015, they moved back to their own facility in Florham Park, New Jersey.

References

References

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3. Company, Chicago and North Western Railway. (1908). "A History of the Origin of the Place Names Connected with the Chicago & North Western and Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railways".
4. [http://www.the1890house.org/ The 1890 House Museum], the1890house.org. Accessed October 29, 2022.
5. [http://www.cortland.edu/alumnihouse/ SUNY(State University of New York) Cortland Alumni House]. Accessed October 29, 2022.
6. [http://www.brockwaytrucks.org/ Brockway Truck Preservation Association], brockwaytrucks.org. Accessed October 29, 2022.
7. (22 July 1992). "Smith Corona Plant Mexico Bound". The New York Times.
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28. (2020-06-03). "Jets among unaffected with NFL teams to remain at their facilities for training camp".