| Lake Luzerne | |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Pushpin Map: | New York |
| Pushpin Label Position: | left |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location within the state of New York |
| Mapsize: | 250px |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | New York |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Warren |
| Leader Title: | Supervisor |
| Leader Name: | Eugene Merlino[1] |
| Established Title: | Established |
| Established Date: | 1792 |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [2] |
| Area Total Km2: | 140.01 |
| Area Land Km2: | 136.02 |
| Area Water Km2: | 3.99 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 54.06 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 52.52 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 1.54 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [3] |
| Population Total: | 3079 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | auto |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation M: | 363 |
| Elevation Ft: | 1191 |
| Coordinates: | 43.3192°N -73.825°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP code |
| Postal Code: | 12846 |
| Area Code: | 518 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 36-40662 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 0979128 |
| Website: | http://www.townoflakeluzerne.com/ |
Lake Luzerne, formerly the Town of Fairfield and then Luzerne, is a town in southern Warren County, New York, United States.[1] The town is located within the Adirondack Park.[4] The town is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area.[5] Lake Luzerne is west of the city of Glens Falls.[6] The town population was 3,079 at the 2020 census.[7]
The area received its first permanent European settlers around 1770. The town of Lake Luzerne was set off from the town of Queensbury in 1792 as the Town of Fairfield.[8] The town is named after Anne-César, Chevalier de la Luzerne, who guaranteed a personal loan to provide food to American revolutionary troops and who served as a French Minister to the new country.In 1808, the town changed its name to Luzerne and in 1963 to Lake Luzerne.[9]
The town is known for its Adirondack Folk School, with classes designed to keep the arts, crafts and culture of the Adirondacks alive http://www.adirondackfolkschool.org, and for the Lake Luzerne Chamber Music Festival where artists such as classical guitarist Joel Brown, the Imani Winds, violinist Raymond Gniewek, saxophonist Erk Rist, jazz greats Chris and Dave Brubeck, and the Philadelphia Orchestra perform during the summer months. Every year, children from across the world compete to participate in music camps at the Luzerne Music Center, where free concerts are offered to the public.
Woodward Hall was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014.[10]
Lake Luzerne is also the home of the Painted Pony Rodeo, the award winning Nettle Meadow Cheese Shop offering Kunik cheese, and the Double "H" Ranch, founded by Charles R. Wood and the actor, Paul Newman. The ranch provides specialized programs and year-round support for children and their families dealing with life-threatening illnesses. The Ranch's purpose is to enrich their lives and provide camp experiences that are memorable, exciting, fun, empowering, physically safe and medically sound.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 54.1sqmi, of which 52.6sqmi is land and 1.4sqmi (2.66%) is water.
The southern and western town lines are the border of Saratoga County and the Hudson River. The northern town boundary is the border with the town of Warrensburg. The eastern town line is the border with the towns of Queensbury and Lake George.[6]
Just north of the bridge across the Hudson, to Hadley, is the narrowest point of the entire Hudson River, Rockwell Falls. Just to the south is where the Sacandaga River meets the Hudson.
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,219 people, 1,264 households, and 883 families residing in the town. The population density was 61.2sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 1,949 housing units at an average density of 37sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the town was 97.79% White, 0.25% African American, 0.34% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.22% from other races, and 1.12% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.03% of the population.
There were 1,264 households, out of which 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.4% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.1% were non-families. 23.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.9% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 29.7% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 13.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.7 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $36,348, and the median income for a family was $40,104. Males had a median income of $30,152 versus $20,654 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,246. About 7.7% of families and 10.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.1% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over.