Croton

Croton, Italy: see Crotona.

croton, any of several species of Codiaeum that are widely cultivated as ornamentals and houseplants. The most popular species is C. variegatum, which has many cultivated forms of highly colored variegated leaves. Croton is also used as the common name for all species of the genus Croton, some of which are used as medicinals. These include C. tiglium, the source of croton oil, a purgative, and "sangre de grado," C. lechleri, an important folk medicine in western Amazonia. Both Croton and Codiaeum are classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Euphorbiales, family Euphorbiaceae.

Colourful-leaved plant (Codiaeum variegatum) of the spurge family. Native to Malaysia and Pacific islands, it is popular as a houseplant. Its numerous varieties grow as shrubs or small trees with brilliant, glossy, leathery leaves that can be solid in colour or occur in combinations of green, yellow, white, orange, pink, red, crimson, and purple. Another plant of the same family but of a different genus is purging croton (Croton tiglium), a small tree native to Southeast Asia with seeds that yield croton oil.

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Croton-on-Hudson is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 7,606 at the 2000 census. As a village, it is located in the Town of Cortlandt, in New York City's Northern suburbs. The village was incorporated in 1898.

Croton-on-Hudson is the original home of the Hudson Institute. Nearby is IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center and General Electric's John F. Welch Leadership Center, which trains GE executives.

The village is home to one of at least three operating "dummy-lights" in the United States, located downtown at the intersection of Old Post Road South and Grand Street. It is a traffic signal on a pedestal which sits in the middle of an intersection, dating back to the 1920s. The other two are also located in New York State, in Beacon and Canajoharie.

Local parks

Notable parks and sites of interest in the community include,

• Croton Dam (although known as the Croton Dam because it dams the Croton River, it is outside the village limits and is actually in the Town of Cortlandt)
• Croton Point, site of a former county and regional landfill for well over seven decades, was closed and capped thanks to grassroots activists, Riverkeeper, state, county and local officials
• Van Cortlandt Manor, a National Historic Landmark
• Teatown Lake Reservation
• Senasqua with extending walkways to Croton Point
• Black Rock is located on the Croton River, near Route 129, within a mile or so of the New Croton Dam. It is used mostly for fly fishing and picnics. It also is within 100 yards of a historic bridge which dates from the 1800s on Quaker Hill Road
• Silver Lake has trails to Carrie East Tompkins elementary school (CET) and beyond
• Jane E. Lytle Memorial Arboretum
• Brinton Brook Sanctuary

Culture

Croton Point Park hosts Clearwater's Great Hudson River Revival, a yearly folk music, art and environmental festival.

Croton-on-Hudson has an annual event called the Summerfest. Every year the central business district (with corners at the Municipal Building, Grand Street Fire House and Croton-Harmon High School) is closed to automobile traffic for music, American food, local fund raisers, traveling and local artists.

Croton-on-Hudson is the home of the annual Harry Chapin Run Against Hunger, a 10k race and Fun Run.

Religion

Temple Israel of Northern Westchester is the local Reform Judaism temple.

Croton Jewish Center is the local Conservative Judaism temple.

Holy Name of Mary is a local Catholic church.

St. Augustine's is a local Catholic church in Ossining.

St. Augustine's is also a local Episcopal church, in Croton.

Community Bible Church is a local Non-Denominational church located near the Teatown area.

Our Savior Lutheran is the local Lutheran church.

Asbury Methodist Church is the local Methodist church.

Croton-on-Hudson is the North East American base of the Emin Society.

Economy

Croton-on-Hudson's economy has historically thrived on the Metro North train station that up until 1968 served as the point at which northbound trains would exchange their electric engines for other modes of conveyance. During those days, the train station and its super-adjacent area was known as Harmon. At that time, because the maintenance of diesel and steam engines was very labor-intensive, there were many workers whose needs were served by abundant service businesses, such as restaurants and bars. Because of the separate development of both the Harmon and the Mt. Airy communities, there are two commercial districts, one based around Grand Street, and one based around Harmon that in recent years have connected into one sprawling commercial district. There is also the North Riverside commercial district that serves the communities based around Riverside Drive, Brook Street, Grand Street, and Bank Street.

After the New York Central Railroad folded, Croton-on-Hudson's economy slowly stagnated. Although Croton-Harmon station still served as the main transfer point northbound between local and express trains, the laborers who had earlier fueled a bustling service economy were no longer present in Harmon. The exodus of labor during the early 1970s was compounded by the stagflation that was a result of higher oil prices and sky-rocketing interest rates.

There has been an ongoing effort since the early 1990s to develop the riverfront for recreational use. Among the accomplishments are: a pedestrian bridge spanning Route 9/9A between the lower village and Senasqua Park, the Crossining pedestrian footbridge across the Croton River, the bicycle trail extensions around Half Moon Bay Condominiums, rehabilitation of the 'Picture Tunnel' (repaving and closing it to cars) and acquisition and clearing of the Croton Landing property.

Government and politics

• Mayor: Dr. Gregory J. Schmidt
• Trustees: Thomas P. Brennan (Deputy Mayor); Ann Gallelli; Richard Olver; Susan B. Konig

Geography

Croton-on-Hudson is located at (41.204228, -73.886177) on the shores of the Hudson River. The zip code is 10520.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 10.8 square miles (28.0 km²), of which, 4.8 square miles (12.3 km²) of it is land and 6.1 square miles (15.7 km²) of it (56.06%) is water.

Transportation

The town is a stop for Amtrak's Empire Service and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's Metro North Hudson Line service, both at the Croton-Harmon station. Metro North's main shops and yards are also located here.

Croton-on-Hudson is served by US 9 and NY 9A.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 7,606 people, 2,798 households, and 2,050 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,601.7 people per square mile (618.3/km²). There were 2,859 housing units at an average density of 602.1/sq mi (232.4/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 91.52% White, 1.87% African American, 0.26% Native American, 2.06% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 2.58% from other races, and 1.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.93% of the population.

There were 2,798 households out of which 38.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.5% were married couples living together, 8.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.7% were non-families. 22.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the village the population was spread out with 25.7% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 13.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.7 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $84,744, and the median income for a family was $100,182. Males had a median income of $65,938 versus $46,029 for females. The per capita income for the village was $39,441. About 1.8% of families and 3.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.2% of those under age 18 and 1.2% of those age 65 or over.

Famous natives, residents and former residents

• Howard Major Buckley
• Isadora Duncan
• Max Eastman
• Joseph Heller
• Robb Hanrahan
• Lee Elhardt Hays
• Herman Kahn
• Roger Kahn
• Herbert Keppler
• Edna St. Vincent Millay
• Ward Morehouse
• Jessye Norman
• Robert J. "Shad" Northshield, TV news producer, creator of "CBS News Sunday Morning
• Sylvester Pennoyer
• John Silas Reed
• Edward Rondthaler
• Upton Sinclair
• Gloria Swanson
• Gordon Sheer

Use as location for feature films

Films shot in Croton-on-Hudson include:

• Daylight: In the opening sequence, the trucks that end up destroying the tunnel drive through Croton-on-Hudson (the steps of the New Croton Dam are visible) and several other towns in Westchester County, New York
• Reds: The main characters were supposed to be in Croton-on-Hudson, but their cottage there was actually filmed in England.
• Shriek of the Mutilated (1974) (alternate titles: Mutilated, Scream of the Snowbeast)
• Tenderness
• The Toxic Avenger Part II
• War of the Worlds (2005 film): Shot at Croton Point.
• The Weavers: Wasn't that the Time: Documentary about the blacklisted folk group, "The Weavers," and the events leading up to their triumphant return to Carnegie Hall.

See Also

Mt. Airy, New York

References

• City of Beacon. Canajoharie, New York: Credits Retrieved Sep. 30, 2008.
• Croton-on-Hudson Historical Society. Canajoharie, New York: Credits Retrieved Sep. 30, 2008.
• Villages of Canajoharie & Palatine Bridge. Canajoharie, New York: Credits Retrieved Sep. 30, 2008.

External links

Official Village Site

• Village of Croton-on-Hudson Web Site

Local Information

• Crotonblog
• Crotonspace
• Croton-on-Hudson Business Directory

Politics

• Croton Republicans
• Croton Democrats
• League of Women Voters (Briarcliff, Ossining, Croton, and Cortlandt)

Maps