Wellsburg, New York facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Wellsburg, New York
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Village
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The First Baptist Church in Wellsburg, built by settlers in the 1790s
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 Wellsburg, New York
Location in New York
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| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| County | Chemung |
| Town | Ashland |
| Area | |
| • Total | 0.58 sq mi (1.49 km2) |
| • Land | 0.57 sq mi (1.47 km2) |
| • Water | 0.01 sq mi (0.02 km2) |
| Elevation | 827 ft (252 m) |
| Population
(2020)
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| • Total | 490 |
| • Density | 862.68/sq mi (333.02/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| ZIP code |
14894
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| Area code(s) | 607 |
| FIPS code | 36-79081 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0969051 |
Wellsburg is a small village located in Chemung County, New York, United States. In 2010, about 580 people lived there. The village got its name from the Wells family, who were early settlers. Abner Wells (1737–1797) and his family came from Southold on Long Island.
Wellsburg is in the southeastern part of the town of Ashland. It is also southeast of the city of Elmira and is part of the Elmira metropolitan area.
Contents
History of Wellsburg
The area where Wellsburg is now was first settled around 1788. The village officially became a village in 1872.
Important Buildings and Life in the 1930s
Christ Episcopal Church in Wellsburg was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2000. This means it's an important historical building.
In the 1930s, Wellsburg had a few churches, including a Methodist and a Baptist church. People who were Catholic would go to church about 18 miles away in Pennsylvania.
The village also had:
- Two bars
- Two grocery stores (called Aber and Stanton)
- Dalton's meat market
- Two gas stations
- A "creamery" (where dairy products were made)
- An Erie Railroad depot (a train station)
- Dalton's coal yard
- A post office
- Schuyler's Feed, Grain & Lumber Yard
There was a four-story school that taught students from first grade all the way to twelfth grade. It had a small playground and a ballfield. Some students from nearby areas would take a bus to this school. In 1939, a special type of aircraft called an "autogyro" even landed on the ballfield for a short time!
Wellsburg had a mayor who led the village and a constable, who was like a police officer. The constable was known for being good at catching people who played pranks, like tipping over outhouses on Halloween.
Nature and Community Life
The Chemung River sometimes overflowed its banks. This usually flooded the short road between Wellsburg and Lowman. One time, the flood was so big that people could use rowboats to go inside the Methodist church!
Local farmers would hire kids to help with farm chores. They usually paid about 50 cents a day. It was common to see young people driving tractors into town to get gas. During World War II, students aged 14 and older were allowed to take days off from school to help farmers harvest their crops. There was also a small "airplane spotter's shack" on a hillside during the war. Teenagers often helped by watching for airplanes there.
Geography of Wellsburg
Wellsburg is located in the southern part of Chemung County. Its exact location is 42°0′40″N 76°43′40″W / 42.01111°N 76.72778°W.
The village covers about 1.5 square kilometers (0.58 square miles). A very small part of this area, about 0.02 square kilometers (0.01 square miles), is water.
Wellsburg is on the south side of the Chemung River. This river flows into the Susquehanna River. The village is also very close to the border with Pennsylvania. Bentley Creek flows north through Wellsburg and into the Chemung River. This creek was an important source of power for the first settlers.
Two main roads meet in the village: NY-367 (which is also Main Street) and NY-427. County Road 8 also enters the village from the north.
Population of Wellsburg
| Historical population | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1870 | 542 | — | |
| 1880 | 634 | 17.0% | |
| 1900 | 536 | — | |
| 1910 | 432 | −19.4% | |
| 1920 | 465 | 7.6% | |
| 1930 | 581 | 24.9% | |
| 1940 | 560 | −3.6% | |
| 1950 | 638 | 13.9% | |
| 1960 | 643 | 0.8% | |
| 1970 | 779 | 21.2% | |
| 1980 | 647 | −16.9% | |
| 1990 | 617 | −4.6% | |
| 2000 | 631 | 2.3% | |
| 2010 | 580 | −8.1% | |
| 2020 | 490 | −15.5% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
In 2000, there were 631 people living in Wellsburg. These people lived in 243 households, and 164 of these were families. The population density was about 1,107 people per square mile.
Most of the people living in Wellsburg in 2000 were White (98.73%). A small number were African American (0.32%) or from two or more races (0.95%). About 0.48% of the population was Hispanic or Latino.
The average household had about 2.56 people, and the average family had about 3.10 people. About 32.5% of households had children under 18 living with them.
The median age in the village was 38 years old. This means half the people were younger than 38 and half were older. About 27.6% of the population was under 18 years old.
Education in Wellsburg
Students in Wellsburg attend schools in the Elmira City School District.
As of 2004, the elementary school for Wellsburg students was Pine City School. For middle school and high school, students attend Ernie Davis Academy (middle school) and Elmira High School. Before 2014, the school district had different middle and high schools. Students living south of the Chemung River, like those in Wellsburg, used to go to Broadway Middle School and Southside High School.
Images for kids
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The First Baptist Church in Wellsburg, built by settlers in the 1790s
See also
In Spanish: Wellsburg (Nueva York) para niños
