Granville | |
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Town | |
Granville Post Office
|
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Location in Washington County and the state of New York. |
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Coordinates: 43°25′20″N 73°18′20″W / 43.42222°N 73.30556°WCoordinates: 43°25′20″N 73°18′20″W / 43.42222°N 73.30556°W | |
Country | United States |
State | New York |
County | Washington |
Area | |
• Total | 56.1 sq mi (145.3 km2) |
• Land | 56.1 sq mi (145.3 km2) |
• Water | 0.0 sq mi (0.1 km2) |
Elevation | 653 ft (199 m) |
Population (2000) | |
• Total | 6,456 |
• Density | 115.1/sq mi (44.4/km2) |
Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
• Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
ZIP codes |
12832 (primary)
|
Area code(s) | 518 |
FIPS code | 36-30037 |
GNIS feature ID | 0979014 |
Granville is a town on the eastern border of Washington County, New York, United States. It is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town population was 6,456 at the 2000 census.
The town of Granville contains a village that also bears the name Granville. Granville is named for John Carteret, 2nd Earl Granville.
Granville has been called the "Colored Slate Capital of the World." Quarries in the town mine slate that comes in colors such as green, gray, gray black, purple, mottled green and purple, and red.
Granville Avenue and the associated CTA station in Chicago are named after the town, as was the former Town of Granville, Wisconsin.
From evidence discovered around 1850, the St. Francis Native Americans appear to have used the town for hunting and making tools in the past.
This border area between Vermont and New York was for a long time not clearly under control of either state. Arrivals from New England settled here hoping to gain the benefits of New England in areas such as land ownership and voting rights. Early settlers arrived before 1770, but the state line was not established until 1790, leaving settlers in this town within New York State.
The town was founded in 1780.
Early agricultural efforts included dairy herds and sheep raising.
Extensive slate deposits were located in 1846 in nearby Fair Haven, and in 1850 more slate deposits were found in Middle Granville. The first Granville slate quarries opened around 1853. The first slate deposits had been located in 1839 and were used for local construction.