Allegany

Formed April 7, 1806 (36^th county)

Allegany County (46,446), Belmont (855), Wellsville (4,643)

The red brick courthouse was built in 1938 at Court and North streets.  New York State Highway 19 is one block south of the location.  Carl A. Ade designed this Georgian courthouse.  An Annex has been added to the courthouse.  The county was created on April 7, 1806 from Genesee County as the 36^th county.  An 1859 version preceded the current facility.  Allegany County is named for the Allegany River.  Belmont became the county seat in 1859 after Angelica.  The county seat is French for “beautiful hill.”  Allegany County was the birthplace for 1 New York Governor, Frank W. Higgins. 

Allegany County government consists of an administrator, a sheriff, a comptroller, an attorney, an assessor, and a clerk (executive).  It has 15 Legislators (legislative.)  One County Court Judge and One Family Court Judge serve Allegany County (judicial.) Allegany County is in southwest New York on the border with Pennsylvania.  Buffalo, New York is northwest and Albany, New York is northeast of the county.  The county center is 7.1 miles North of Belmont nearer Angelica.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Livingston and Steuben counties and Pennsylvania and Cattaraugus and Wyoming counties.  The county is a rectangle with the northeast corner cut away.  Belmont is located in the southern third of the county.  Wellsville is in the southeast quarter of the county.  Belmont is the county seat and Wellsville is the largest city.  Belmont is 1.8% of the county population while Wellsville is 10.0% of the county population. 

The area of the county is 1034 square miles.  It is 21 out of 62 in the state.  It ranks 52 out of 62 in population in the state.  It has a density of 44.9 persons per square mile making it 55 out of 62 in the state.  Allegany County has 32.2% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 86 travels east to west through the county from Steuben County to Cattaraugus County.  The county is pronounced AL-LE-GAE-NEE.