Formed February 5, 1823 (54th county)
Yates County (24,768), Penn Yan (5,159)
The 2002 brick Modern courthouse replaced the 1835 facility. The structure is located on Liberty Street between Chapel and Court streets. New York State Highway 54 is one block east of the courthouse. MRB Group are the architects. A County Administration Building was also built in 2002. The county was established on February 5, 1823 from Steuben and Ontario counties as the 54th county with Penn Yan as the only county seat. The county is named for Governor Joseph C. Yates. Penn Yan is reportedly a derivative of settlers coming from Pennsylvania and New England (Yankees).
Yates County government consists of a sheriff and 13 Legislators. One County Court Judge and One Family Court Judge serve Yates County. The county is in western New York. Buffalo, New York is northwest and Albany, New York is northeast of the county. The county center is 5.6 miles West-Southwest of Penn Yan nearer Keuka Park. The county is surrounded clockwise by Seneca, Schuyler, Steuben, and Ontario counties.
The area of the county is 376 square miles. It is 52 out of 62 in the state. It ranks 60 out of 62 in population in the state. It has a density of 65.9 persons per square mile making it 47 out of 62 in the state. Yates County has 30.7% of its population in its incorporated areas. There are no Interstates or United States Highways in the county. The county is shaped like a fat number 7 with the leg shortened. Penn Yan is located in the northeast quarter of the county. Penn Yan is the county seat and the largest city. It is 20.8% of the county population.
Dresden
Dundee
Penn Yan
Rushville
