Gilboa, New York
| Gilboa, New York | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 Location in Schoharie County and the state of New York. |
|
| Coordinates: 42°25′45″N 74°28′3″W / 42.42917°N 74.46750°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| County | Schoharie |
| Area | |
| • Total | 59.3 sq mi (153.7 km2) |
| • Land | 57.8 sq mi (149.6 km2) |
| • Water | 1.6 sq mi (4.0 km2) |
| Elevation | 912 ft (278 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 1,215 |
| • Density | 21.0/sq mi (8.1/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 12076 |
| Area code(s) | 607 |
| FIPS code | 36-28981 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0979001 |
Gilboa is a town in Schoharie County, New York, United States. The population was 1,215 at the 2000 census.
The Town of Gilboa is in the south part of the county and is southwest of Albany.
The town was first settled around 1760.
The Town of Gilboa was formed in 1848 from regions taken from the Towns of Blenheim and Broome. The name "Gilboa" is from Mount Gilboa, a biblical site in Israel, where King Saul's sons were killed by the Philistines, and Saul took his own life (1 Samuel 31:4)
A cotton mill in the community of Gilboa was a major contributor to the early economy of the town, but it was destroyed by a flood in 1869.
In 1926, the Schoharie Creek was dammed to form the Schoharie Reservoir. The original settlement of Gilboa was razed and flooded as part of this project. A new settlement was established north of the reservoir.
In 1870, workers blasting a site for a stone quarry found fossilized remains of tree stumps. In 2004, the tops and fronds of the trees were discovered and, in 2007, the fern-like trees, named Wattieza, were pronounced the oldest known trees on earth.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 59.3 square miles (154 km2), of which, 57.8 square miles (150 km2) of it is land and 1.6 square miles (4.1 km2) of it (2.63%) is water.
The south town line forms a border with Delaware County and Greene County.
The Schoharie Creek flows northward through the town.
New York State Route 30 is a north-south highway in Gilboa. New York State Route 23 cuts through the southwest corner of the town. New York State Route 990V is a highway running eastward from NY-30 in the southeast part of Gilboa.
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Wikipedia