Counties of New York
Location	State of New York
Number	62
Populations	5,118 (Hamilton) – 2,590,516 (Kings)
Areas	33.77 square miles (87.5 km2) (New York) – 2,821 square miles (7,310 km2) (St. Lawrence)
Government	County government
Subdivisions	Cities, Towns, Indian Reservations

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Upstate New York Hudson Valley (Middle and Upper) Capital District North Country Southern Tier Mohawk Valley Central New York Finger Lakes Western New York
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Timelines of town creation Downstate New York Hudson Valley Capital District North Country Central New York Southern Tier Western New York

There are 62 counties in the U.S. state of New York.

The first 12 were created immediately after the British took over the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam; two of these counties were later abolished, their land going to Massachusetts.^[1] The newest is Bronx County, created in 1914 from the portions of New York City that had been annexed from Westchester County in the late 19th century and added to New York County.^[2] New York's counties are named for various Native American words; British provinces, counties, cities, and royalty; early American statesmen and military personnel; and New York State politicians.^[3]

The county boundaries in New York state were last changed in 1964, when the Bronx gained South Brother Island from Queens.^[4]

Authority

Excepting the five boroughs of New York City, New York counties are governed by New York County Law and have governments run by either a Board of Supervisors or a County Legislature, and either an elected County Executive or appointed county manager. Counties without charters are run by a Board of Supervisors, in which Town Supervisors from towns within the county also sit on the county Board of Supervisors. For counties with a charter, the executives generally have powers to veto acts of the county legislature. The legislatures have powers of setting policies, levying taxes and distributing funds.

Five boroughs of New York City

Five of New York's counties are each coextensive with New York City's five boroughs. They are New York County (Manhattan), Kings County (Brooklyn), Bronx County (The Bronx), Richmond County (Staten Island), and Queens County (Queens).

In contrast to other counties of New York, the powers of the five boroughs of New York City are very limited and in nearly all respects are governed by the city government.^[5] Only a few officials are elected on a borough-wide basis, such as the five borough presidents, district attorneys, and all county and state supreme court judges. There are no official county seats, but the locations of borough halls and courthouses bestow certain neighborhoods an informal designation as county seats within their boroughs:

• The Bronx County Courthouse and the borough's main post office are located in the Concourse section of the Bronx. The separate Bronx Borough Hall burned down in 1969.
• Brooklyn Borough Hall, the Federal Building and Post Office, and county Supreme Court are in Downtown Brooklyn.
• The Municipal Building, where the Manhattan Borough President's office is located, and most courthouses are in the downtown Civic Center. The General Post Office is in Midtown Manhattan.
• Queens Borough Hall and a courthouse are in Kew Gardens. Another major courthouse, post office, and the Long Island Railroad hub are in Jamaica. Queens also has general post offices in Flushing, Long Island City and Far Rockaway.
• Staten Island Borough Hall, three courthouses, and the St. George Terminal transportation hub are in the St. George neighborhood.

List of counties

County	FIPS Code [6]	County seat [7]	Est. [7][8]	Formed from [2]	Named for [3]	Density (Pop./mi2)	Pop. (2022) [9]	Area [7]	Map
Albany County	001	Albany	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	James II of England (James VII of Scotland) (1633–1701), who was Duke of York (English title) and Duke of Albany (Scottish title) before becoming King of England, Ireland, and Scotland.	592.52	315,811	533 sq mi (1,380 km2)
Allegany County	003	Belmont	April 7, 1806	Genesee County	A variant spelling of the Allegheny River	45.16	46,694	1,034 sq mi (2,678 km2)
Bronx County	005	none (sui generis)	January 1, 1914[10]	New York County	Jonas Bronck (1600?–1643), an early settler of the Dutch colony of New Netherland	24,028.31	1,379,946	57.43 sq mi (149 km2)
Broome County	007	Binghamton	March 28, 1806	Tioga County	John Broome (1738–1810), fourth Lieutenant Governor of New York	275.69	197,117	715 sq mi (1,852 km2)
Cattaraugus County	009	Little Valley	March 11, 1808	Genesee County	A word from an uncertain Iroquoian language meaning "bad smelling banks", referring to the odor of natural gas which leaked from Cattaraugus Creek	58.35	76,439	1,310 sq mi (3,393 km2)
Cayuga County	011	Auburn	March 8, 1799	Onondaga County	The Cayuga tribe of Native Americans	86.80	74,998	864 sq mi (2,238 km2)
Chautauqua County	013	Mayville	March 11, 1808	Genesee County	Loanword from the Erie language describing Chautauqua Lake; language now lost and cannot be translated	84.02	126,027	1,500 sq mi (3,885 km2)
Chemung County	015	Elmira	March 20, 1836	Tioga County	A Lenape word meaning "big horn", which was the name of a local Native American village	198.21	81,426	410.81 sq mi (1,064 km2)
Chenango County	017	Norwich	March 15, 1798	Tioga County and Herkimer County	An Onondaga word meaning "large bull-thistle"	51.69	46,458	898.85 sq mi (2,328 km2)
Clinton County	019	Plattsburgh	March 4, 1788	Washington County	George Clinton (1739–1812), fourth Vice President of the United States and first and third Governor of New York	70.44	78,753	1,118 sq mi (2,896 km2)
Columbia County	021	Hudson	April 1, 1786	Albany County	Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), the European explorer	94.58	61,286	648 sq mi (1,678 km2)
Cortland County	023	Cortland	April 8, 1808	Onondaga County	Pierre Van Cortlandt (1721–1814), first Lieutenant Governor of New York	91.88	46,126	502 sq mi (1,300 km2)
Delaware County	025	Delhi	March 10, 1797	Otsego County and Ulster County	Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr (1577–1618), an early colonial leader in Virginia. Name applied to the bay, river, and Lenape Native Americans	30.48	44,740	1,468 sq mi (3,802 km2)
Dutchess County	027	Poughkeepsie	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	Mary of Modena (1658–1718), Duchess of York and wife of King James II of England	360.66	297,545	825 sq mi (2,137 km2)
Erie County	029	Buffalo	April 2, 1821	Niagara County	The Erie tribe of Native Americans	774.50	950,312	1,227 sq mi (3,178 km2)
Essex County	031	Elizabethtown	March 1, 1799	Clinton County	The county of Essex in England	19.26	36,910	1,916 sq mi (4,962 km2)
Franklin County	033	Malone	March 11, 1808	Clinton County	Benjamin Franklin (1706–1790), the early American printer, scientist, and statesman	27.33	46,373	1,697 sq mi (4,395 km2)
Fulton County	035	Johnstown	April 18, 1838	Montgomery County	Robert Fulton (1765–1815), inventor of the steamship	98.82	52,669	533 sq mi (1,380 km2)
Genesee County	037	Batavia	March 30, 1802	Ontario County and land acquired in the Holland Purchase	A Seneca phrase meaning "good valley"	116.23	57,535	495 sq mi (1,282 km2)
Greene County	039	Catskill	March 25, 1800	Albany County and Ulster County	Nathanael Greene (1742–1786), the American Revolutionary War general	73.04	48,061	658 sq mi (1,704 km2)
Hamilton County	041	Lake Pleasant	April 12, 1816	Montgomery County	Alexander Hamilton (1755–1804), the early American political theorist and first Secretary of the Treasury	2.83	5,118	1,808 sq mi (4,683 km2)
Herkimer County	043	Herkimer	February 16, 1791	Montgomery County	Nicholas Herkimer (1728–1777), the American Revolutionary War general	41.03	59,822	1,458 sq mi (3,776 km2)
Jefferson County	045	Watertown	March 28, 1805	Oneida County	Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), the early American statesman, author of the Declaration of Independence, and third President of the United States	62.81	116,637	1,857 sq mi (4,810 km2)
Kings County	047	none (sui generis)	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	King Charles II of England (1630–1685)	26,733.91	2,590,516	96.9 sq mi (251 km2)
Lewis County	049	Lowville	March 28, 1805	Oneida County	Morgan Lewis (1754–1844), the fourth Governor of New York	20.70	26,699	1,290 sq mi (3,341 km2)
Livingston County	051	Geneseo	February 23, 1821	Genesee County and Ontario County	Robert Livingston (1746–1813), the early American statesman and New York delegate to the Continental Congress	96.12	61,516	640 sq mi (1,658 km2)
Madison County	053	Wampsville	March 21, 1806	Chenango County	James Madison (1751–1836), the early American statesman, principal author of the Constitution of the United States, and fourth President of the United States	101.35	67,097	662 sq mi (1,715 km2)
Monroe County	055	Rochester	February 23, 1821	Genesee County and Ontario County	James Monroe (1758–1831), the early American statesman and fifth President of the United States	550.54	752,035	1,366 sq mi (3,538 km2)
Montgomery County	057	Fonda	March 12, 1772	Albany County	Originally Tryon County after colonial governor William Tryon (1729–1788), renamed after the American Revolutionary War general Richard Montgomery (1738–1775) in 1784	121.03	49,623	410 sq mi (1,062 km2)
Nassau County	059	Mineola	January 1, 1899	Queens County	The Princes of Orange-Nassau ruled the Netherlands when Long Island was a Dutch colony	3,054.58	1,383,726	453 sq mi (1,173 km2)
New York County	061	none (sui generis)	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	King James II of England (1633–1701), who was Duke of York and Albany before he ascended the throne of England, Duke of York being his English title	47,268.97	1,596,273	33.77 sq mi (87 km2)
Niagara County	063	Lockport	March 11, 1808	Genesee County	The Iroquoian name of a tribe within the Neutral Nation, the exact translation of which remains disputed	184.98	210,880	1,140 sq mi (2,953 km2)
Oneida County	065	Utica	March 15, 1798	Herkimer County	The Oneida tribe of Native Americans	188.66	228,846	1,213 sq mi (3,142 km2)
Onondaga County	067	Syracuse	March 5, 1794	Herkimer County	The Onondaga tribe of Native Americans	580.95	468,249	806 sq mi (2,088 km2)
Ontario County	069	Canandaigua	January 27, 1789	Land acquired in the Phelps and Gorham Purchase	An Iroquoian word meaning "beautiful lake"	170.25	112,707	662 sq mi (1,715 km2)
Orange County	071	Goshen	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	William of Orange-Nassau (1650–1702), who became King William III of England	483.84	405,941	839 sq mi (2,173 km2)
Orleans County	073	Albion	November 12, 1824	Genesee County	The French Royal House of Orléans	48.12	39,318	817 sq mi (2,116 km2)
Oswego County	075	Oswego	March 1, 1816	Oneida County and Onondaga County	The Oswego River, from an Iroquoian word meaning "the outpouring", referring to the mouth of the river	90.16	118,287	1,312 sq mi (3,398 km2)
Otsego County	077	Cooperstown	February 16, 1791	Montgomery County	A Native American word meaning "place of the rock"	60.45	60,636	1,003 sq mi (2,598 km2)
Putnam County	079	Carmel Hamlet	June 12, 1812	Dutchess County	Israel Putnam (1718–1790), an American Revolutionary War general	398.56	98,045	246 sq mi (637 km2)
Queens County	081	none (sui generis)	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	Catherine of Braganza (1638–1705), Queen of England and wife of King Charles II of England	12,777.82	2,278,029	178.28 sq mi (462 km2)
Rensselaer County	083	Troy	February 7, 1791	Albany County	In honor of the family of Kiliaen van Rensselaer (before 1596 – after 1643), the early landholder in the Dutch New Netherland colony	240.38	159,853	665 sq mi (1,722 km2)
Richmond County	085	none (sui generis)	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	Charles Lennox, 1st Duke of Richmond (1672–1723), the illegitimate son of King Charles II of England	4,791.54	491,133	102.5 sq mi (265 km2)
Rockland County	087	New City	February 23, 1798	Orange County	Early settlers' description of terrain as "rocky land"	1,703.63	339,022	199 sq mi (515 km2)
St. Lawrence County	089	Canton	March 3, 1802	Clinton County, Herkimer County, and Montgomery County	The St Lawrence River, which forms the northern border of the county and New York State	38.19	107,733	2,821 sq mi (7,306 km2)
Saratoga County	091	Ballston Spa	February 7, 1791	Albany County	A corruption of a Native American word meaning "the hill beside the river"	282.93	238,797	844 sq mi (2,186 km2)
Schenectady County	093	Schenectady	March 27, 1809	Albany County	A Mohawk word meaning "on the other side of the pine lands"	762.35	160,093	210 sq mi (544 km2)
Schoharie County	095	Schoharie	April 6, 1795	Albany County and Otsego County	A Mohawk word meaning "floating driftwood"	48.02	30,063	626 sq mi (1,621 km2)
Schuyler County	097	Watkins Glen	April 17, 1854	Chemung County, Steuben County, and Tompkins County	Philip Schuyler (1733–1804), the American Revolutionary War general and Senator from New York	51.61	17,650	342 sq mi (886 km2)
Seneca County	099	Waterloo	March 24, 1804	Cayuga County	The Seneca tribe of Native Americans	101.18	32,882	325 sq mi (842 km2)
Steuben County	101	Bath	March 18, 1796	Ontario County	Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben (1730–1794), the Prussian general who assisted the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War	65.95	92,599	1,404 sq mi (3,636 km2)
Suffolk County	103	Riverhead	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	The county of Suffolk in England	642.84	1,525,465	2,373 sq mi (6,146 km2)
Sullivan County	105	Monticello	March 27, 1809	Ulster County	John Sullivan (1740–1795), an American Revolutionary War general	79.90	79,658	997 sq mi (2,582 km2)
Tioga County	107	Owego	February 16, 1791	Montgomery County	A Native American word meaning "at the forks", describing a meeting place	91.34	47,772	523 sq mi (1,355 km2)
Tompkins County	109	Ithaca	April 7, 1817	Cayuga County and Seneca County	Daniel D. Tompkins (1774–1825), the 6th Vice President of the United States	220.12	104,777	476 sq mi (1,233 km2)
Ulster County	111	Kingston	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	The Irish province of Ulster, then an earldom of the Duke of York, later King James II of England	157.04	182,319	1,161 sq mi (3,007 km2)
Warren County	113	Queensbury	March 12, 1813	Washington County	Joseph Warren (1741–1775), the early American patriot and American Revolutionary War general	75.40	65,599	870 sq mi (2,253 km2)
Washington County	115	Fort Edward	March 12, 1772	Albany County	Originally Charlotte County, renamed in 1784 after George Washington (1732–1799), the American Revolutionary War general and first President of the United States	71.92	60,841	846 sq mi (2,191 km2)
Wayne County	117	Lyons	April 11, 1823	Ontario County and Seneca County	General Anthony Wayne (1745–1796), the American Revolutionary War general	65.84	91,125	1,384 sq mi (3,585 km2)
Westchester County	119	White Plains	November 1, 1683	One of 12 original counties created in the New York colony	The city of Chester in England	1,980.854	990,427	500 sq mi (1,295 km2)
Wyoming County	121	Warsaw	May 14, 1841	Genesee County	A modification of a word from the Lenape language meaning "broad bottom lands"	66.55	39,666	596 sq mi (1,544 km2)
Yates County	123	Penn Yan	February 5, 1823	Ontario County and Steuben County	Joseph C. Yates (1768–1837), eighth Governor of New York	65.03	24,451	376 sq mi (974 km2)

Defunct counties

Proposed new counties

Clickable map

Columbia

Rensselaer

Chautauqua

Cattaraugus

Allegany

Steuben

Chemung

Tioga

Broome

Delaware

Sullivan

Ulster

Dutchess

Putnam

Westchester

Rockland

Suffolk

Nassau

Queens

Kings

Richmond

New York

Bronx

Orange

Erie

Wyoming

Livingston

Ontario

Yates

Seneca

Schuyler

Tompkins

Cortland

Chenango

Otsego

Schoharie

Albany

Greene

Schenectady

Saratoga

Washington

Warren

Niagara

Genesee

Orleans

Monroe

Wayne

Cayuga

Onondaga

Madison

Montgomery

Fulton

Oneida

Oswego

Lewis

Jefferson

Herkimer

Hamilton

Essex

St. Lawrence

Franklin

Clinton

See also

• List of United States counties and county equivalents
• List of former United States counties
• New York State City/County Management Association

References

External links

• "Counties" at NY.gov