Tompkins

Formed April 17, 1817 (50^th county)

Tompkins County (105,744), Ithaca (32,109)                

The red brick Georgian courthouse sits at Tioga and Court streets.  It was built in 1932 using the designs of J. Larkin Baldridge.  New York State Highway 79 is two blocks south of the courthouse.  The county was organized on April 17, 1817 from Seneca and Cayuga counties as the 50^th county.  There was a classic 1854 courthouse earlier in Ithaca, the only county seat.  Tompkins County is named for Governor Daniel D. Tompkins.  The county seat is named for the Greek island.  Tompkins County was the birthplace for 1 New York Governor, Alonzo B. Cornell. 

Tompkins County government consists of a sheriff and 14 Legislators.  One County Court Judge and One Family Court Judge serve Tompkins County.  Tompkins County is located in southern New York.  Albany, New York is northeast and Buffalo, New York is northwest of the county.  The county center is in Ithaca 2.7 miles Northeast of the city center.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Cayuga, Cortland, Tioga, Chemung, Schuyler, and Seneca counties. 

The area of the county is 476 square miles.  It is 48 out of 62 in the state.  It ranks 28 out of 62 in population in the state.  It has a density of 222.2 persons per square mile making it 21 out of 62 in the state.  Tompkins County has 43.8% of its population in its incorporated areas.  There are no Interstates or United States Highways in the county.  The county is an overall rectangle with some notches on the southeast and northwest corners.  Ithaca is located near the center of the county.  Ithaca is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 30.4% of the county population.  The county seat is pronounced ITH-A-KA.  This county is in the Ithaca Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Trumansburg