Dobbs Ferry, New York

Dobbs Ferry is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 10,622 at the 2000 census.

The Village of Dobbs Ferry is located in, and is a part of, the Town of Greenburgh. The village ZIP code is 10522.

History

Named after a ferry service that traversed the Hudson River at this location, Dobbs Ferry played a vital role in the American Revolutionary War. In July and August, 1781, during the seventh year of the Revolutionary War, Continental Army troops, commanded by General George Washington, were encamped in Dobbs Ferry and neighboring localities, alongside allied French forces under the command of the Comte de Rochambeau. Although historians have long debated whether this meeting took place at present day Dobbs Ferry or at the ferry terminus directly opposite on the Hudson River, a monument has long stood in Dobbs Ferry at Livingston Manor, the site of the claimed 1781 meeting.

A large British army controlled Manhattan at the time of the meeting, and Washington chose the Dobbs Ferry area for encampment because he hoped to probe for weaknesses in the British defenses, just 12 miles to the south. But on August 14, 1781, a communication was received from French Admiral Comte de Grasse in the West Indies, which caused Washington to change his strategy. De Grasse's communication, which advocated a joint land and sea attack against the British in Virginia, convinced Washington to risk a march of more than 400 miles to the Chesapeake region of Virginia. Washington's new strategy, adopted and designed in mid-August, 1781, at the encampment of the allied armies, would win the war. The allied armies were ordered to break camp on August 19, 1781: on that date the Americans took the first steps of their march to Virginia along present-day Ashford Avenue and Broadway, en route to victory over General Cornwallis at the Siege of Yorktown and to victory in the Revolutionary War.

Dobbs Ferry also played host to another significant event: In 1783, at the Philip Van Brugh Livingston house, Washington and New York Governor (and later U.S. Vice President) George Clinton met General Sir Guy Carleton, later known as Lord Dorchester, to negotiate the evacuation by the British troops of the posts they still held in the United States. The village was originally incorporated in 1873 as Greenburgh, but the name was changed to Dobbs Ferry in 1882.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 10,622 people, 3,792 households, and 2,570 families residing in the village. The population density was 4,350.0 people per square mile (1,680.8/km²). There were 3,941 housing units at an average density of 1,614.0/sq mi (623.6/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 80.70% White, 7.38% African American, 0.08% Native American, 7.56% Asian, 0.09% Pacific Islander, 1.93% from other races, and 2.26% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 7.00% of the population.

There were 3,792 households out of which 34.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples living together, 10.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.2% were non-families. 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.13.

In the village the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 7.3% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 24.1% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 95.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.5 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $70,333, and the median income for a family was $93,127. Males had a median income of $65,532 versus $50,091 for females. The per capita income for the village was $35,090. About 1.8% of families and 5.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.8% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.

Public schools include Springhurst Elementary, grades K-5, Dobbs Ferry Middle School, grades 6-8, and the Dobbs Ferry High School, grades 9-12. Our Lady of Victory, a local parochial school, offers grades 9-12 for girls. The Masters School, a private boarding school, offers grades 5-12 for boys and girls.

Geography

Dobbs Ferry is located at (41.012729, -73.866026).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 3.2 square miles (8.2 km²), of which, 2.4 square miles (6.3 km²) of it is land and 0.7 square miles (1.9 km²) of it (23.03%) is water.

Commuter service to New York City is available via the Dobbs Ferry train station, served by Metro-North Railroad. It is about 40 minutes from New York's Grand Central Station by train.

Dobbs Ferry Football

Dobbs Ferry High School is known for its highly successful high school football program. The Eagles were named New York State's Small School "Team of the Decade" for the 1980s. Since the program's revival in the late 1990s, Dobbs Ferry has won seven sectional titles, appeared in six state championship games, and won three titles (2002, 2004 and 2006), and achieved a 46-game regular season winning streak, and 61 consecutive wins against opponents from Section-1 and 65 consecutive in games played prior to the state tournament. With their win over Falconer in the 2006 Class-C state championship game, Dobbs Ferry moved into a tie with Edgemont for most state titles by a Section-1 school. Also since the year 2001 the Eagles have lost only 4 games while winning 81 games.

The Eagles play all their home games at Gould Park, just east of the high school.

Famous Residents

• Stone Phillips (Dateline NBC)
• Mark Zuckerberg (founder of Facebook)
• Becky and Jesse O'Donohue, (contestants on Fear Factor and American Idol, also played roles in the movie I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry)
• Alvin Dark (Major League baseball player)
• Bradley Bolke (American Voice Actor)
• Mark Blount (NBA basketball player)
• Earl Simmons, also known as DMX (Rapper, Grew up in Children's Village)
• Joel Higgins (Actor starring in Silver Spoons) [www.imdb.com]
• Rachel Sterne (Founder of GroundReport)

References

External links

• Dobbs Ferry Online
• Dobbs Ferry New in Town Meetup
• InTown Westchester Magazine
• The Journal News, the local newspaper
• Dobbs Ferry Conference 1781