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Middletown, Orange County, New York

History and economy

Early history

John Green purchased land from the DeLancey patent and probably settled the area around 1744. Due to its location between other pre-existing locations, the name of "Middletown" was adopted, but later changed to "South Middletown" to avoid confusion with another nearby location. Eventually the word "south" was deleted, giving the current name when the community became a village in 1848. The village became a city in 1888.

The First Congregational Church of Middletown, established in 1785, has the highest spire downtown. It can be argued that the construction of the church marks the beginning of Middletown's existence as a village. The current building was constructed in 1872.

Growth of Middletown

thumb|left|250px|Erie Railroad, Middletown Station, James Street, July, 1971. The tracks have been removed, and the station is now Thrall Library.
Middletown grew up with the Erie Railroad and the New York, Ontario and Western Railway (among others) and attracted a number of employers, such as shoe, lawnmower blade, and furniture factories, but most of these businesses had closed by the 1960s. The closing of a large Ford Motor Company plant in Mahwah, New Jersey, and the downsizing of IBM operations in the area were a blow to the economy of Middletown and surrounding communities in the 1970s. However, quite a few New York City police officers, firefighters and other workers moved up to the area, especially beginning in the 1970s, to purchase houses that were much less expensive than those nearer the city. These long-distance commuters have helped bolster the economy of the area. The only railroad left in town is the Middletown and New Jersey Railway.

Modern Middletown

The "downtown" area of Middletown has suffered from the growth of a shopping strip and malls at the eastern edge of town, along Route 211, near Route 17 and Interstate 84. There are a number of abandoned and underutilized buildings downtown, although there has long been an active bar scene, and now there are signs of a growing restaurant scene downtown. The downtown area has a number of historic churches, and Highland Avenue has a number of large Victorian houses. Many of these are occupied by medical doctors and their families, with a section devoted to the doctor's office. Some of the largest Victorians are now used as nursing homes. There are some prosperous neighborhoods, such as Presidential Heights, but there are many less prosperous neighborhoods.

Middletown is the main business address for Mediacom Communications Corp and its related entities, a cable and other pay TV company. Their headquarters building is actually located outside the city in the Town of Wallkill.

Places of interest

There are two shopping malls (the largest is called Galleria at Crystal Run) and a long retail strip along Route 211 East. The city also has movie theaters, WALL and WOSR radio stations, Thrall Library, the historic Paramount Theatre, a local arts council, bowling alleys and good choices for hiking, biking, and country drives nearby. There is also active participation in Boy Scouts of America and Girl Scouts of the USA, Lions Club, Elks Club, Kiwanis, Rotary Club and other service clubs. The Rotary Club runs an annual Horse Show at Fancher Davidge Park (in the fall).
thumb|left|300px|[[Webb Horton House|Morrison Hall (SUNY Orange, Middletown campus)]]
Orange County Community College is located in Middletown (and includes the beautiful Webb Horton House, more commonly known as Morrison Hall), as is Horton Memorial Hospital and the Middletown Psychiatric Center (a major employer). The local award-winning newspaper is called the Times Herald-Record, the first cold press offset daily in the country. Middletown is also home to the Orange County Fair each summer. The Highland Lakes State Park is the nearest State Park.

Another historic place in Middletown is the Hillside Cemetery, which was designed by Calvert Vaux, who designed New York City's Central Park.

Although specific historic locations of the city are not referenced, general retail businesses in Middletown are often referenced in the phone calls of The Jerky Boys, including a Taco Bell ("Civil War Memorabilia (Part 2)", The Jerky Boys 3), the Middletown Motel and International Golf Discount ("What's Wrong With This World", The Jerky Tapes).

The surrounding countryside is devoted partly to small dairy farms.

Geography

Middletown is located at (41.445754, -74.422066) in eastern Orange County. The city is nearly surrounded by the Town of Wallkill, except for its southernmost section, which is in the Town of Wawayanda.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.3 km² (5.2 sq mi). 13.3 km² (5.1 sq mi) of it is land and 0.19% is water.

Transportation

Middletown can be reached from New York City by bus and is located near the intersection of Interstate 84 and NY 17 (the future Interstate 86). State routes 17M and 211 run right through the city, and US 6 parallels I-84 to the south.

The Middletown-Town of Wallkill station on Metro-North Railroad's Port Jervis line is located nearby in the Town of Wallkill, and provides rail service to Port Jervis, other communities in Orange and Rockland Counties and Bergen County, New Jersey, Hoboken and New York City via a transfer at Secaucus, New Jersey.

Randall Airport is about 4 miles from the center of Middletown. (ID: 06N)

Demographics

right|frame|1896 photo of Arthur Fanshon and E. P. Nickinson, about age 6, in a production of The Mikado in Middletown
As of the census of 2000, there were 25,388 people, 9,466 households, and 5,963 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,907.1/km² (4,939.5/sq mi). There were 10,124 housing units at an average density of 760.5/km² (1,969.7/sq mi). The racial makeup of the city was 68.68% White, 15.13% African American, 0.75% Native American, 1.69% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 9.33% from other races, and 4.40% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 25.11% of the population.

There were 9,466 households out of which 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.0% were married couples living together, 16.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.0% were non-families. 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.27.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 19.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $39,570, and the median income for a family was $47,760. Males had a median income of $35,990 versus $28,429 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,947. About 13.5% of families and 17.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.4% of those under age 18 and 10.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

thumb|left|300px|Twin Towers Middle SchoolIn the past 10 years the Middletown public school system has moved away from numerous neighborhood schools and combined more students into fewer Magnet schools. There are four elementary schools, each covering various grade levels from Kindergarten through fifth grade. Maple Hill Elementary is currently housing grades two through five. Truman Moon Elementary is currently Kindergarten and First Grade. Mechanicstown Elementary is grades two through five. Chorley Elementary houses Kindergarten through second grades. In 2005, the Middletown School District implemented a full day Kindergarten program at the request of the Middletown voters. There are two Middle schools in the District, Twin Towers Middle School and Monhagen Middle School. Middletown High School is the only building for High School and includes grades nine through twelve. There are also a number of Catholic schools.

Middletown High School offers many programs in addition to the basic educational classes found in most schools. The Middletown High School has a large and active sports program including Football, Baseball, Basketball, Tennis, Swimming, Track and Field, Soccer, Lacrosse, and various other athletic programs, as well as various other after school academic and social programs and activities. The High School also offers a Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps program.