Harrison is a coterminus town/village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 24,154 at the 2000 census and estimated at 26,665 today. The municipality has a consolidated town/village government.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 17.4 square miles (45.0 km²), of which, 16.8 square miles (43.6 km²) of it is land and 0.6 square miles (1.5 km²) of it (3.22%) is water.

The distance from Harrison Station to Grand Central Station in Midtown Manhattan is about 27 miles.

Harrison is bordered by White Plains, Rye town, Rye city and Mamaroneck. The New England Thruway (I-95) runs through the town (without any interchanges) as well as the Cross Westchester Expressway (I-287) and the Hutchinson River Parkway. In addition, I-684 passes through Harrison and ends at the Cross Westchester Expressway and the Hutchinson River Parkway.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 24,154 people, 8,394 households, and 6,186 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,435.2 people per square mile (554.1/km²). There were 8,680 housing units at an average density of 515.8/sq mi (199.1/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 89.78% White, 1.43% Black or African American, 0.09% Native American, 5.44% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 1.59% from other races, and 1.67% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.70% of the population.

There were 8,394 households out of which 35.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.4% were married couples living together, 8.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.3% were non-families. 22.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.20.

In the village the population was spread out with 24.5% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.2 males.

According to a 2007 estimate, the median income for a household in the village was $100,681, and the median income for a family was $118,721. Males had a median income of $63,871 versus $41,581 for females. The per capita income for the village was $49,652. About 4.2% of families and 5.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.3% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over. Harrison is also known for its large Italian American population. Because of the reputation of its well-funded public schools and its proximity to Manhattan, Harrison has over the last several decades been host to numerous Japanese expatriots.
The first European inhabitants of Harrison were most likely Quakers who settled in Purchase. Since then various religious communities have come to call Harrison home. Catholics worship either at St. Gregory the Greater Church in Harrison or St. Anthony of Padua Church in West Harrison; Orthodox Christians at the Greek Orthodox Church of Our Savior; and Episcopalians at All Saints Church in Harrison. Presbyterians also have a church in Harrison; as well as Jews who gather at the Young Israel of Harrison or Harrison Jewish Community Center.

History

• According to a local legend, in 1695 John Harrison was given 24 hours to ride his horse around an area which would become his. Though this is up for debate, the town gets its name from him.

• The Horton Grist Mill was built, off today's Lake St. in West Harrison, sometime before the Revolutionary War.

• Merritt's Hill (on Lake St.) in West Harrison was the site of a battle during the Revolutionary War.

• On March 7, 1788, by an act of the New York State government, Harrison's Purchase became the Town of Harrison.

• During the 1830s, David Haviland settled in Harrison producing the Haviland China which he sold in his store in New York City, before returning to France.

• In 1848, the railroad began to carry passengers from Manhattan to Connecticut passing through what is downtown Harrison. Harrisonites had to flag down the train to get a ride. The station was built in 1870.

• In 1867 Benjamin Holladay purchased the land that is now Manhattanville College in Purchase. On the property is a Norman style Roman Catholic chapel built for his wife. There is also Reid castle, once called the Ophir House, before renamed for a later purchaser. The castle would host the King and Queen of Siam in the early 1930s.

• In 1929, the Hutchinson River Parkway was extended to Harrison.

• In 2008, Fordham University opened its "Westchester" campus in West Harrison on 32 landscaped acres with a stream and pond.

Passidomo as Mayor/Town Supervisor

John A. Passidomo (August 17, 1921 – March 2, 2005) was first elected Mayor in 1965 by only 67 votes. Re-elected eight times, he served until 1983 when he resigned to become Commissioner of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. (In his two and a half years at that job, he helped pass one of the nation's first seat-belt laws despite the law's unpopularity.)

Harrison's Platinum Mile, that is, a string of corporate office parks along I-287 in the Purchase section of Harrison developed under Passidomo. The mayor played an instrumental role in attracting large corporations such as PepsiCo, MasterCard and Texaco.

Purchase's attempt to secede from Harrison

In the early 1970s under Passidomo's supervisorship, a group in the Purchase section of town, concerned about the town's overdevelopment, attempted to incorporate as a village and thereby separate from the town of Harrison. Creatively, to avoid being served papers that would have begun the legal proceedings for Purchase to incorporate as a village, Passidomo entered his office through the fire escape. Passidomo then immediately saw to it that the town Harrison became a village while still remaining as a town putting an end to the possibility of Purchase's secession since a village cannot legally be formed in another village.

Areas within Harrison

• Purchase is a hamlet located in the northeastern portion of the town. Both the State University of New York at Purchase and Manhattanville College are located in Purchase.

• West Harrison is a neighborhood in the northwest corner of Harrison, bounded by Silver Lake, the Brae Burn Golf Course, and I-287. It contains the Passidomo Veterans Memorial Park and Pool and the Leo Mintzer Center. West Harrison also contains the battle ground from Battle of White Plains from the Revolutionary War. Silver Lake is also the home of the notorious haunted road Buckout Road, where it is said to have been a home of witches, albinos, and slaughters.

Corporate headquarters

Texaco's headquarters, a 750,000-square-foot building, was in Harrison.Brenner, Elsa. "." The New York Times. Sunday March 31, 2002. Retrieved on October 3, 2009. In 2002, after Chevron and Texaco merged, Chevron sold the former Texaco headquarters to Morgan Stanley. Morgan Stanley bought the building and the surrounding 107 acres for $42 million.

Notable natives and residents

• Lou Bender (1910-2009), pioneer player with the Columbia Lions and in early pro basketball, who was later a successful trial attorney.

List of Supervisors/Mayors

• John Passidomo 1965 - 1983

• Charles Balancia 1990-1994

• Philip A. Marraccini (R) 1994 - 1998

• Ronald Bianchi (D) 1998 - 2002

• Stephen Malfitano (R) 2002 - 2008

• Joan Walsh (D) 2008 - present