Shawangunk, New York
| Shawangunk | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
 Location in Ulster County and the state of New York. |
|
| Coordinates: 41°36′59″N 74°13′59″W / 41.61639°N 74.23306°WCoordinates: 41°36′59″N 74°13′59″W / 41.61639°N 74.23306°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| County | Ulster |
| Government | |
| • Supervisor | John Valk Jr. |
| Area | |
| • Total | 56.5 sq mi (146.4 km2) |
| • Land | 56.2 sq mi (145.6 km2) |
| • Water | 0.3 sq mi (0.8 km2) |
| Elevation | 335 ft (102 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 14,332 |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| FIPS code | 36-66674 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0979486 |
Shawangunk is a town in southwestern Ulster County, New York, USA. The population was 14,332 at the 2010 census. Like the neighboring mountain range, for which it is named, it is pronounced either as the Munsee Lenape, Shawangunk /ˈʃɑːwəŋɡʌŋk/, or as the colonial Shongum /ˈʃɑːn.ɡʌm/ SHAHN-gum by local residents. (See Shawangunk Ridge.)
Shawangunk was first settled by Europeans around 1670. The region was organized as a precinct in 1743, and became the Town of Shawangunk in 1788. The town's name comes from the Dutch translation of the Munsee Lenape. The Lenape pronunciation for the town was "Scha-WAN-gunk." In Lenape, "Schawan," means "it is smokey air." This was given as referring to the nearby Catskill Mountains which were known as the "Hidden Mountains." The mountain ridge that runs from southwest to northeast creates a heavy humidified atmosphere that would make the Lenape believe the area had smokey air. A Lenape linguist, Raymond Whritenour suggests that the name comes from the burning of a Munsee fort by the Dutch in the year 1663. This fort was nearby a creek later known as the Shawangunk Kill and also what is now known as Old Fort Road. The burning of the fort signaled the end of the Second Esopus War and helped spread the name to the nearby ridge by the early 1700s. Present day citizens of Shawangunk refer to themselves as living in Wallkill, Pine Bush, or other hamlets depending on which part they live in. This has been in part due to the large size and growing population of the town.
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