New York Mills

History

James S. Pula and Eugene E. Dziedzic provide a detailed history on the village in their book New York Mills (Images of America):New York Mills, named for the textile factories that were once the backbone of the surrounding villages economy, ranked among the foremost producers of quality fabrics in the country. Originally a wilderness area just south of the Mohawk River, the community began with a few scattered homes after the establishment of a small textile mill in 1808. Nourished by a growing economy, the village attracted a mosaic of Welsh and French-Canadian workers in the 19th century, followed by Poles, Syro-Lebanese, and Italians in the early 20th century. A hotbed of abolitionism in the antebellum years, it sent high percentages of its residents off to the Civil War, World War I, and World War II. In 1912 and 1916, its Polish residents founded a union and led textile strikes that were considered the most successful in the nation at that time. With the eventual closing of the mills in the 1950s, residents found employment in the surrounding area as the village evolved into a stable and prosperous suburban community. The first mill was established in 1808 by Benjamin Stuart Walcott. In 1847, Samuel Campbell became a member of what was by then called the New York Mills corporation. The Campbell and Walcott families would co-own the corporation for the rest of the 19th century. An 1896 account of New York Mills described it as a "factory village". In 1909, the mills of the New York Mills Corporation went into foreclosure and were purchased by the Augustus D. Juilliard Company. The Juilliard Company sold the mills again in 1953. As early as 1878, a high percentage of immigrants became an integral part of the village's population. On April 5, 1912, martial law…

Geography

New York Mills is located at . According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of , all land. The village is south of the Mohawk River. Some of the surrounding towns and cities near New York Mills include Whitesboro, Utica, Yorkville, and New Hartford.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  6,100
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  5,830
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  5,615
• American Goldfinch

  Spinus tristis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  4,842
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  4,701
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  4,607
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  4,319
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  4,046

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2026-04-26
  6 km SE of Lowville, New York
• M 2.66 — 2008-02-27
  2 km SW of Central Bridge, New York