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Port Chester is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population is 27,867, according to the 2000 census, however, a July 1, 2002 Census estimate puts the village's population at 27,949. As a village, it is located in the Town of Rye.

Port Chester has a Metro North railroad station. The current mayor is Dennis Pilla.

Geography
Port Chester is located at 41°0′18″N, 73°40′8″W (41.005099, -73.668822)GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 6.4 km² (2.5 sq mi). 6.1 km² (2.4 sq mi) of it is land and 0.3 km² (0.1 sq mi) of it (5.22%) is water.

History
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See Also:The History of the Town of Rye

Sawpit
In 1660, three settlers from "Greenwidge:" (later known as Greenwich, Connecticut) Thomas Stedwell, John Coe, and Peter Disbrow arranged to buy Manursing Island and the land near the Byram River from the Mohegan Indians. The land near the Byram River is now Port Chester. The Village was originally known as Saw Pit for the saw pits which were in use during the time. Logs were cut in holes in the ground for wood to be used for shipbuilding. The name of Sawpit was used for the first time in 1732. It eventually outgrew this name and became Port Chester by incorporating as a village in 1868. When Port Chester was first incorporated as a Village, it was considered a major seaport.

In 1665, Sawpit was claimed by both New York and Connecticut. However, the land was given back to the New York Colony by Connecticut in 1683. This struggle over the ownership of Sawpit continued for almost 105 years. In 1788, the Legislature of New York ruled that Sawpit was a part of the Town of Rye in New York.

Early Transportation in the Village
Travel was considered very dangerous in the early years of Sawpit as good roads were hard to find. The Boston Post Road, King Street, and Grace Church Streets are some of the early migration paths in the Sawpit/Town of Rye settlement. Most roads, however, only consisted of rough dirt, which made transportation via water very important. The local waterways, the Byram River and the Long Island Sound were very important to the growth and development of Sawpit/Port Chester. Because of the closeness to these waterways, early residents took part in boat building, farming, and shell fishing.

Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 27,867 people, 9,531 households, and 6,376 families residing in the village. The population density was 4,559.1/km² (11,824.7/sq mi). There were 9,772 housing units at an average density of 1,598.7/km² (4,146.5/sq mi). The racial makeup of the village was 60.70% White, 6.99% African American, 0.40% Native American, 2.06% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 22.98% from other races, and 6.83% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 46.23% of the population.

There were 9,531 households out of which 31.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples living together, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.1% were non-families. 26.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.89 and the average family size was 3.44.

In the village the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 10.8% from 18 to 24, 35.2% from 25 to 44, 18.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 102.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.6 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $45,381, and the median income for a family was $51,025. Males had a median income of $32,848 versus $32,461 for females. The per capita income for the village was $21,131. About 10.1% of families and 13.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.3% of those under age 18 and 12.6% of those age 65 or over.

Economy
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Port Chester has many Latino immigrants, in contrast to surrounding towns, such as Rye, Harrison, Mamaroneck, and especially Greenwich, Connecticut which are known for high-income Caucasian populations. Greenwich, which directly borders Port Chester to the east, is one of the wealthiest municipalities in the United States. Mostly thanks to blue-collar business, Port Chester has become a significant commercial center in recent years. Business grew considerably with the opening of a Costco branch and "The Waterfront", a large shopping center and movie theater on Main Street and Westchester Avenue. The Waterfront Complex has been in the works since 1982, when the Industrial Development Agency (IDA) began planning for the redevelopment of this area. The IDA was formed in the early 1970's by then Mayor, Joseph Dzaluk. Unfortunately for Port Chester's economy, the development of the downtown area would not take place for almost another 20 years.

Education
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Within the Village's boarders, there is one public school district, the Port Chester-Rye Union Free School District.

Enrollment:

Port Chester Senior High School 1,069
Port Chester Middle School School 789
Thomas Edison Elementary School 490
Park Avenue Elementary School 477
John F. Kennedy Elementary School 450
King Street Elementary School 420
Spring Street Elementary School 330