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Wawarsing is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 13,157 at the 2010 census. The name Wawarsing was once believed to mean "a place where the streams wind" in the Lenape language, referring to the geography in the hamlet of Wawarsing. Specifically, the joining of the Ver Nooy Kill and the Rondout Creek at Port Ben. The name Wawarsing was used by the Lenape to designate the current hamlet and the fields to the north and south of it for at least six miles in both directions. It is the only Lenape name known to refer to an exact location in Ulster County. The town is in the western part of the county. The southern and easternmost portions are on the Shawangunk Ridge. Most of the hilly town is in the Appalachian foothills, while the northernmost part is in the Catskills. It has three state forests (Shawangunk Ridge, VerNooykill, and Witches Hole), as well as most of Minnewaska State Park and Sam's Point Preserve, and portions of the Catskill Preserve and Sundown State Park. US 209 crosses the town, passing through many principal communities: Spring Glen, Laurenkill, Ellenville, Napanoch, the hamlet of Wawarsing, Soccanissing, and Kerhonkson. US 44 begins at a junction with 209 near the east town line. N.Y. Route 52 runs east–west near the southern border. All three roads are part of the Shawangunk Ridge National Scenic Byway. [edit] History
The Lenape settlement "at Wawarasinke" was burned by English militiamen, led by Marten Crieger, after the Natives attacked Wiltwyck and took captives in 1663. In 1685, Warnaar Hoornbeek leased land there and was accepted as its first European pioneer. In 1703 the areas of Mombacus and Wawarasink, Ulster County, were made The Town of Rochester. During The Revolutionary War, Wawarsing, Napanoch and Pinebush (Kerhonkson area) were attacked by British raiders, who massacred many women and children and burned the farms. In 1906, Wawarsing, Napanoch, Laurenkil, Lackawack and Grenfield joined together to form The Town of Wawarsing out of Southern Rochester and parts of unincorporated Ulster County. The O & W Railroad Station at Port Ben was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. [edit] Research Tips
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