Saratoga is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 5,141 at the 2000 census. It is also the commonly used, but not official, name for the neighboring and much larger city, Saratoga Springs. The major village in the Town of Saratoga is Schuylerville which is often, but not officially, called Old Saratoga.
Saratoga is a corruption of an Indian word from the Mohawk language. It was the name of Indian hunting grounds located along both sides of the Hudson River where in the Indian Tongue 'Se-rach-ta-gue' meant 'the hillside country of the quiet river.'

The Town of Saratoga is located on the eastern border of the county and is located east of Saratoga Springs, and is bordered by Saratoga Lake and the Hudson River.

History

The location was first settled at the end of the 17th Century as "Fort Saratoga.". It soon became contested land between British and French colonial forces.

Saratoga was originally a district of Albany County stretching from north of the Mohawk River to Northumberland, including lands for six miles on both sides of the Hudson River. In 1775, there were three district – Ballstown, Halfmoon and Saratoga.

It is best known as the location that British General John Burgoyne surrendered to American General Horatio Gates at the end of the Battles of Saratoga on October 17, 1777, often citied as the turning point for the United States during the American Revolutionary War. Much of the fighting took place in the Town of Stillwater to the south however the final seven days of the Battles and the actual sword surrender took place in Saratoga.

In 1788, an act was passed organizing towns in place of districts and Stillwater was created from the Saratoga District, making four towns in what would become Saratoga County. These four mother towns were subdivided into the present nineteen towns. The original Town of Saratoga included the modern day Towns of Easton, Northumberland, Moreau, Wilton, portions of Greenfield and Corinth, and the City of Saratoga Springs. The first loss of territory was in 1789 to the town of Easton (now in Washington County). In 1798, the towns of Corinth, Greenfield, Northumberland, Moreau, and Wilton split from the town of Saratoga. In 1819, the town of Saratoga Springs was formed from the western part of the town of Saratoga, later this would become the city of Saratoga Springs.

The Saratoga Race Course in the adjoining city of Saratoga Springs is the oldest operating sports venue in the country, but is often mistakenly associated to the town of Saratoga.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 42.9 square miles (111.1 km²), of which, 40.7 square miles (105.3 km²) of it is land and 2.2 square miles (5.8 km²) of it (5.22%) is water.

The town line is formed by the Hudson River and is the border of Washington County. Fish Creek, a tributary of the Hudson River, is the outflow of Saratoga Lake.
US Route 4 (Turning Point Trail) follows the Hudson River along the eastern part of the town. New York State Route 29 (General Philip Schuyler Commemorative Highway) is an east-west highway, intersecting US-4 at Schuylerville. New York State Route 32 is a north-south highway partly conjoined with US-4 near Schuylerville.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 5,141 people, 2,026 households, and 1,387 families residing in the town. The population density was 126.4 people per square mile (48.8/km²). There were 2,286 housing units at an average density of 56.2/sq mi (21.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.80% White, 0.97% African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.23% from other races, and 0.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.17% of the population.

There were 2,026 households out of which 31.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.9% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.5% were non-families. 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the town the population was spread out with 24.6% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 99.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $42,727, and the median income for a family was $48,482. Males had a median income of $33,178 versus $27,654 for females. The per capita income for the town was $21,716. About 6.1% of families and 7.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.8% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Saratoga

• Burgoyne – A hamlet in the north part of the town. It is named after the commander of the British forces at the Battles of Saratoga.

• Cedar Bluffs – A hamlet on the east shore of Saratoga Lake.

• Coveville – A hamlet along the Hudson River, located by The Cove on US-4.

• The Cove – An arm of the Hudson River.

• Deans Corners – A hamlet in the northwest quarter of the town located at the junction of County Roads 67 and 70.

• Gates – A hamlet in the north part of the town. It is named after the commander of the American forces at the Battles of Saratoga.

• Grangerville – A hamlet near the north town line, west of Schuylerville on NY-29.

• Maple Shade – A hamlet on the east shore of Saratoga Lake, south of Cedar Bluffs.

• Meyer Corners – A location in the southwest part of Saratoga at the intersection of County Roads 70 and 71.

• Quaker Springs – A hamlet in the south part of the town on NY-32.

• Saratoga Lake – (1) A hamlet at the north end of (2) a lake named Saratoga Lake.

• Saratoga National Historic Site – An national historical park by the south town line.

• Schuylerville – A village in the northeast part of the town, located on US-4, NY-29&32, Champlain Canal, and Hudson River.

• Victory – A village in the northeast part of the town, located on NY-32.

• Victory Mills – A post office name and the name of the last major mill in the Village of Victory.