Editing Southern Tier

{{Short description|Region in New York state}}
{{About|the region of New York|the region of the United States that is sometimes referred to by this term|Deep South}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2019}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name               = Southern Tier of New York
| native_name        = 
| other_name         = 
| settlement_type    = Region
<!-- images, nickname, motto -->| image_skyline      = Binghamton, New York skyline, June 2007.jpg
| image_caption      = Skyline of [[Binghamton, New York]]
| image_flag         = 
| image_shield       = 
| motto              = 
| nickname           = 
| etymology          = <!-- location -->
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_name   = [[United States]]
| subdivision_type1  = State
| subdivision_name1  = [[New York (state)|New York]]
| subdivision_type2  = Region
| subdivision_name2  = [[Upstate New York]]
| subdivision_type3  = Counties
| subdivision_name3  = [[Allegany County, New York|Allegany]], [[Broome County, New York|Broome]], [[Chenango County, New York|Chenango]], [[Chemung County, New York|Chemung]], [[Delaware County, New York|Delaware]], [[Steuben County, New York|Steuben]], [[Tioga County, New York|Tioga]], [[Tompkins County, New York|Tompkins]]
| subdivision_type4  = Cities
| subdivision_name4  = [[Binghamton, New York|Binghamton]], [[Corning (city), New York|Corning]], [[Elmira, New York|Elmira]], [[Hornell, New York|Hornell]], [[Olean, New York|Olean]], [[Salamanca, New York|Salamanca]], [[Dunkirk, New York|Dunkirk]], [[Jamestown, New York|Jamestown]], [[Vestal, New York|Vestal]]
<!-- maps and coordinates -->| image_map          = 
| map_caption        = {{Color box|green|border=darkgray}} Core Southern Tier counties<br />{{Color box|lightgreen|border=darkgray}} Peripheral counties
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| established_date   = <!-- area -->
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| area_water_sq_mi   = <!-- elevation -->
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| elevation_m        = 
| elevation_ft       = <!-- population -->
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| population_density_km2 = auto
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| population_demonym = <!-- time zone(s) -->
| timezone1          = [[Eastern Time Zone|EST]]
| utc_offset1        = -5
| timezone1_DST      = [[Eastern Daylight Time]]
| utc_offset1_DST    = -4
<!-- postal codes, area code -->| postal_code_type   = 
| postal_code        = 
| area_code_type     = 
| area_code          = 
| geocode            = 
| iso_code           = 
| blank_name         = Area code
| blank_info         = [[Area code 607|607]], [[Area code 585|585]] & [[Area code 716|716]]
<!-- website, footnotes -->| website            = http://www.steg.com/
| footnotes          = 
}}
{{Regions of New York}}

The '''Southern Tier''' is a geographic subregion of the broader [[Upstate New York|Upstate]] region of [[New York (state)|New York State]], geographically situated along or very near the state border with [[Pennsylvania]]. Definitions of the region vary widely, but generally encompass counties surrounding the [[Binghamton, New York|Binghamton]] and [[Elmira, New York|Elmira]]-[[Corning (city), New York|Corning]] [[metropolitan area]]s.  This region is adjacent to the [[Northern Tier (Pennsylvania)|Northern Tier]] of Pennsylvania, and both these regions together are known as the [[Twin Tiers]].

Geographically, most of the Southern Tier resides in the [[Allegheny Plateau]] of the [[Appalachian Mountains]], with the eastern areas of the region nestled in the western portion of the [[Catskill Mountains]]. A longtime home of the [[Iroquois Confederacy]], European settlers moved to the region after the [[American Revolutionary War]]. The fertile yet hilly land, combined with sweeping river valleys, led the region to support a combination of manufacturing industries (including large companies such as [[IBM]] and [[Corning Inc.]]) and farming, but with less development compared to neighboring subregions of Upstate. Since the 1950s, the area is often considered to be a part of the [[Rust Belt]], as manufacturing jobs have left the region.

==Constituent counties==
The Southern Tier is commonly considered to consist of 8 counties:
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! County !! Major communities !! Pop. 2020<ref>{{Cite web |title=New York State Population Topped 20 Million in 2020 |work= U.S. Census Bureau |url=https://www.census.gov/library/stories/state-by-state/new-york-population-change-between-census-decade.html |access-date=May 21, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| [[Allegany County, New York|Allegany County]] || [[Wellsville (village), New York|Wellsville]], [[Belmont, New York|Belmont]], [[Alfred (village), New York|Alfred]] || align=center|46,456
|-
| [[Broome County, New York|Broome County]] || [[Binghamton, New York|Binghamton]], [[Endicott, New York|Endicott]], [[Endwell, New York|Endwell]], [[Johnson City, New York|Johnson City]], [[Vestal, New York|Vestal]] || align=center|198,683
|-
| [[Chemung County, New York|Chemung County]]|| [[Elmira, New York|Elmira]], [[Horseheads (village), New York|Horseheads]]|| align=center |81,148
|-
|[[Chenango County, New York|Chenango County]]
|[[Greene, New York|Greene]], [[Norwich, New York|Norwich]]|| align="center" |47,220
|-
| [[Delaware County, New York|Delaware County]]|| [[Delhi (village), New York|Delhi]], [[Sidney (village), New York|Sidney]], [[Hancock (village), New York|Hancock]], [[Walton (village), New York|Walton]]|| align="center" |44,308
|-
| [[Steuben County, New York|Steuben County]]|| [[Corning (city), New York|Corning]], [[Bath (village), New York|Bath]], [[Hornell, New York|Hornell]]|| align="center" |93,584
|-
| [[Tioga County, New York|Tioga County]]|| [[Owego (village), New York|Owego]], [[Waverly, Tioga County, New York|Waverly]]|| align="center" |48,455
|-
|[[Tompkins County, New York|Tompkins County]]
|[[Ithaca, New York|Ithaca]]|| align="center" |105,740
|}

The Southern Tier is not a legally defined region. Due to this, various neighboring counties can be included in the region, while counties near other regions of New York State may be excluded. For example, some organizations consider [[Delaware County, New York|Delaware County]], [[Otsego County, New York|Otsego County]], [[Schoharie County, New York|Schoharie County]] and [[Cortland County, New York|Cortland County]] to reside in the Southern Tier.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Southern Tier |url=https://www.lookupstateny.com/moving-to-upstate-new-york/regioncounty/southern-tier |access-date=May 20, 2024 |website=Look Upstate NY}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Southern Tier of New York Regional and Economic Profile |url=https://southerntier8.org/regional-profile/ |access-date=May 21, 2024 |website=southerntier8.org |language=en}}</ref> 

The Encyclopedia of New York State<ref>
{{cite book
| title       = The Encyclopedia of New York State
| chapter     = S: Southern Tier
| pages       = 1437
| isbn        = 0-8156-0808-X
| year        = 2005
| publisher   = Syracuse University Press
| editor      = Eisenstadt, Peter}}</ref> lists only [[Chautauqua County, New York|Chautauqua County]], [[Cattaraugus County, New York|Cattaraugus County]], [[Allegany County, New York|Allegany County]], and [[Steuben County, New York|Steuben County]] as part of the Southern Tier, with anything east of that being considered [[Central New York]]. Other definitions define it as comprising the combined Corning-Elmira-Binghamton [[Metropolitan Statistical Area]]s, which includes Steuben, Chemung, Tioga and Broome Counties but not Chautauqua, Cattaraugus or Allegany, which are considered [[Western New York]]. 

The New York State Division of Local Government Services presently classifies the following fourteen counties as members of the Southern Tier: Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Otsego, Schoharie, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, and Tompkins.<ref>
{{cite web
| title       = Appalachian Regional Commission Overview
| url         = http://www.dos.state.ny.us/lgss/arcover.htm
| work        = State of New York
| publisher   = Division of Local Government Services
| access-date  = May 16, 2009
| quote       = The Appalachian portion of New York State ("Appalachian New York"), contains the following fourteen counties: Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Otsego, Schoharie, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga and Tompkins. This region is most commonly known as New York's "Southern Tier."}}</ref> This definition corresponds to the same 14 counties in New York State that are members of the [[Appalachian Regional Commission]] formed in 1963.

Much of the Southern Tier is in [[area code 607]], with the exception of Allegany, Cattaraugus, and Chautauqua Counties, which are in [[area code 716]] or [[area code 585]]. As of 2023, the westernmost portion of the Southern Tier is located in [[New York's 23rd congressional district]], and the easternmost portion is located in [[New York's 19th congressional district]]. The ZIP code prefixes 147 (Jamestown region), 148 – 149 (Elmira region), and 137 – 139 (Binghamton region) are set aside for the Southern Tier.

==Geography==
[[File:Allegany State Park Mt. Tuscarora 2007.jpg|right|thumb|Allegany State Park]]
The Southern Tier is generally hilly without being mountainous (with the exception of the Catskill mountains). This can range from low rolling hills to more steep and rugged cliffs and valleys. The highest point in western New York is [[Alma Hill]] in [[Allegany County, New York|Allegany County]] near the Steuben County line in the Southern Tier. Both the [[Delaware River|Delaware]] and [[Susquehanna River|Susquehanna]] rivers flow through the Southern Tier in their upper reaches, as does the [[Allegheny River]] in the western Southern Tier.

The Southern Tier makes up the northernmost portion of [[Appalachia]] and lies on the [[Allegheny Plateau]]. It is defined on its western boundary by the Chautauqua Ridge in Chautauqua County, and including this ridge and extending eastward across the northern bounds of the region, the continental divide between the [[Great Lakes]] and the [[Mississippi River]] watersheds exists. The [[Eastern Continental Divide]] runs directly through the region, in Steuben County.

The Southern Tier is more geographically linked with Pennsylvania and the Susquehanna River valley, at its confluence with the [[Chemung River]], than it is with the remainder of New York State. Historically, the population of the Southern Tier came primarily from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and [[downstate New York]] ("Yorkers"). In contrast, the inhabitants of upper New York State came from New England ("Yankees").<ref name=Sernett>{{cite book
|title=North star country : upstate New York and the crusade for African American freedom
|last=Sernett
|first=Milton C.
|authorlink=Milton Sernett
|date=2002
|location=Syracuse, New York
|publisher=[[Syracuse University Press]]
|url=https://archive.org/details/northstarcountry0000sern/page/51/mode/1up}}</ref>{{rp|11}}

==History==

The Southern Tier has long been home to the people of the [[Iroquois]] Confederacy. There were major settlements along the Allegheny River in Cattaraugus County (which the Senecas acquired by defeating the [[Wenrohronon]] during the [[Beaver Wars]] in 1638) and at [[Painted Post]] in Steuben County, at what is today the northeast side of Corning, New York. The [[Seneca Nation]] has a reservation today along the Allegheny River and a headquarters at [[Salamanca (city), New York|Salamanca]]. There are also Native lands (with no current Native residents) on [[Cuba Lake]] in Allegany County.

The colonies that eventually became the states of New York, [[Massachusetts]] and [[Pennsylvania]] all laid claim to the Southern Tier at various points in the 17th and 18th centuries, while not making any significant attempt to settle the territory.

The region was quickly settled by whites after the Revolutionary War, when settlers were again allowed west of the Appalachian divide. The Southern Tier shared in the economic growth of the early 19th century, but its hilly terrain made it less suitable to canal-building, and later, railroading, than the more-level corridor to the north between Albany and Buffalo. There was an attempt at a [[Genesee Valley Canal]] in the western half, and in the eastern half, the [[Chemung Canal|Chemung]] and [[Chenango Canal|Chenango]] Canals did connect the [[Erie Canal]] to Elmira and Binghamton respectively. Beset by financial and technical difficulties, the latter two canals nonetheless were important catalysts for economic growth, and indeed for the construction of the railroads that would supplant them. Plans to connect these canals to the [[Pennsylvania Canal]] system, thus making them much more than feeders to the Erie Canal, never came to fruition.

Railroads did arrive and the [[Erie Railroad]], which followed the water-level of the Allegheny, Susquehanna and Delaware watersheds, accelerated industrial progress in the region about the time of the [[American Civil War]]. The railroad and available fuel from the region's dense forests attracted Corning Glass Works to Steuben County in 1868.

The region became home to prosperous farms and small factory towns (with the exception of larger Binghamton) during the first half of the 20th century. But declines in U.S. manufacturing hit the region hard and it suffered even more than other parts of upstate [[New York (state)|New York]] and northern [[Pennsylvania]].

The region's addition to the [[Appalachian Regional Commission]], often credited to the influence of U.S. Sen. [[Robert F. Kennedy]], provided economic stimulus over the last 40 years. Government funds built the Southern Tier Expressway, highway links to the [[New York State Thruway]], encouraged the growth of state colleges at Wellsville, Alfred and Binghamton and sought with mixed success to attract business interests relocating from the [[New York Metropolitan Area]] and urban Western New York.

For two decades, the region has tried to remake itself as a tourist destination and relocation area for retirees from big Northeastern cities. Meanwhile, agriculture and manufacturing struggle to compete regionally and globally.

==Education==
[[Binghamton University]] (the State University of New York-Binghamton) is one of the [[SUNY]] system's four [[SUNY#University centers|University Centers]]. Other 4-year and graduate institutions within the core counties include [[St. Bonaventure University]], [[Alfred University]], [[Elmira College]], and [[Houghton College]]. Technical and community colleges include [[Alfred State College]], [[Broome Community College]], [[Corning Community College]], and the [[State University of New York at Delhi]].  The region is also home to E.B.I. Career College, a [[vocational school]].

Institutions of higher learning outside the core counties include [[Cornell University]], [[Hartwick College]], [[Ithaca College]], SUNY Colleges in [[State University of New York College at Cortland|Cortland]] and [[SUNY College at Oneonta|Oneonta]], [[Jamestown Community College]], [[State University of New York at Fredonia|Fredonia]], and [[Tompkins Cortland Community College]].

==Transportation==

[[File:Southern Tier Expressway.svg|125px|right|thumb|Southern Tier Expressway route marker]]
The [[Southern Tier Expressway]] – [[Interstate 86 (Pennsylvania–New York)|Interstate 86]] and [[New York State Route 17]] – serves the Southern Tier. The highway is the region's major corridor and connects to [[U.S. Route 219]] in Salamanca, [[Interstate 390 (New York)|Interstate 390]] in Bath, [[Interstate 99]] in Corning, [[U.S. Route 220]] in Waverly, and [[Interstate 81 in New York|Interstates 81]] and [[Interstate 88 (New York)|88]] in Binghamton.

The region is served by three [[regional airport]]s.  [[Elmira-Corning Regional Airport]] has routes to [[Atlanta International Airport|Atlanta]], [[Washington-Dulles International Airport|Washington D.C.]], [[Detroit International Airport|Detroit]], and several destinations in [[Florida]].  The [[Greater Binghamton Airport]] offers [[Delta Airlines]] flights to Detroit. [[Chautauqua County-Jamestown Airport]] connects to [[Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania|Pittsburgh]] via [[Essential Air Service]].

Bus service is provided along the entire I-86/NY 17 corridor by [[Coach USA]]'s [[Short Line (bus company)|Shortline]]/Erie services from Jamestown to New York City and [[Buffalo, New York|Buffalo]], and [[Trailways]] connects the Southern Tier with [[Buffalo, New York|Buffalo]], [[Dubois, Pennsylvania|Dubois]] (at the western end in Salamanca), [[Sunbury, Pennsylvania|Sunbury]]/[[Lock Haven, Pennsylvania|Lock Haven]] (at Elmira), and [[Syracuse, New York|Syracuse]], [[Albany, New York|Albany]] and [[Harrisburg, Pennsylvania|Harrisburg]] (at Binghamton). A somewhat-unorganized network of municipally-operated public transportation services operate local and limited intercity bus services between Salamanca and Elmira.

Until the demise of long-distance passenger rail service in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s, the [[Erie Railroad]] operated passenger trains in the region, with [[Chicago, Illinois]] as the western terminus and [[Jersey City, New Jersey]] as the eastern terminus, with [[ferry]] connections to [[New York City]]. The last Erie Lackawanna passenger train, the "Lake Cities", ran on January 6, 1970.

[[Amtrak]] currently does not serve the area. Proposals for [[high-speed rail in New York]] have included a route from Binghamton to New York City through [[Scranton, Pennsylvania]]: a route that could at least partially be upgraded for high-speed rail. As of 2011, the highest priority for high-speed rail projects in New York is in the [[Empire Corridor]], of which no part crosses the Southern Tier. The hilly terrain of the Southern Tier's I-86 corridor is not ideal for high-speed rail service, especially compared to the relatively flat and straight land in the Empire Corridor.

==Economy==

Government services are the largest employer in the area. Of second and declining importance is manufacturing. The region's manufacturing economy has suffered for decades, but factories are found in the region's larger communities. Fortune 500 materials maker [[Corning Inc.]] is headquartered in Steuben County.  Broome County has a large high-tech industry and is the birthplace of [[IBM]] and [[flight simulation]]. In addition, other factories in the region make military aircraft, televisions, furniture, metal forgings and machine tools.

The area includes the northern extent of the [[Marcellus Formation]] and natural gas. Crude oil and oil sands continue to be extracted from Southern Tier wells as they have for over a century.<ref>Ross, Kathryn. [http://www.wellsvilledaily.com/homepage/x346306984 There’s still oil in them thar hills]. Wellsville Daily Reporter. February 12, 2008.</ref><ref>Fanelli, Patrick. [http://www.post-journal.com/page/content.detail/id/504944.html?nav=5018 Untapped Resource: Boom Expected Around Region]. Jamestown Post-Journal. June 26, 2008.</ref> There is significant debate about allowing [[hydraulic fracturing]] of the Marcellus Shale in the Southern Tier, which is currently banned in New York.

Cummins engine company has a large production facility located in Jamestown, NY. The Jamestown Engine Plant, established in 1974, is one of the top five heavy-duty diesel engine producers worldwide with production in recent years typically exceeding 100,000 engines annually. The JEP also remains one of the company's largest manufacturing facilities, as it accounts for 12 percent of Cummins' total engine production in 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=112916&p=irol-newsArticle&id=1847927|title=News Article|last=Cummins.com|website=phx.corporate-ir.net}}</ref>

[[Agriculture]] is also a major part of the economy. Leading products are dairy, vegetables, orchard fruit and wine grapes (the last of which typically grows only on the fringes of the Southern Tier, as the inland areas tend to not have a long enough growing season to support it). In addition, two prominent [[microbrewery|microbreweries]], the [[Southern Tier Brewing Company]] in [[Lakewood, New York]] and the Ellicottville Brewing Company in [[Ellicottville (village), New York|Ellicottville]], operate in the western Southern Tier.

The western and northern edges of the Southern Tier are known as [[ski country]], and the hilly terrain (that forms a [[continental divide]] known as the Chautauqua Ridge) is notorious for frequent and heavy [[lake effect snow]]. As a result, [[Ellicottville (village), New York|Ellicottville]] has become a "ski town" with both the Holimont and [[Holiday Valley (ski resort)|Holiday Valley]] resorts in the vicinity; the two resorts draw numerous tourists, particularly from [[Canada]], for which [[U.S. Route 219]] provides easy access. At its peak in the 1960s, over a dozen ski resorts resided in the Southern Tier, many in Cattaraugus County, before most of them closed due to various assorted causes by the 1980s.

==Culture==

The Southern Tier is home to two professional symphony orchestras: the [[Binghamton Philharmonic]] in Binghamton and the [[Orchestra of the Southern Finger Lakes]] in Corning. Binghamton also has the Binghamton Youth Symphony and the Binghamton Community Orchestra.

The [[Tri-Cities Opera Company]] present full-scale operas in Binghamton.

==Media and entertainment==

Most of the Southern Tier is either served by the Elmira-Corning television market or the Binghamton television market. Cattaraugus and Allegany Counties are out of these stations' ranges, however, and are instead served by the Buffalo and Erie television markets. Two stations (more-or-less independent [[WVTT-CD]] and [[Retro Television Network]] owned-and-operated translator [[WBUO-LD]]) are licensed to Olean but serve Buffalo in practice.

The Olean, Elmira-Corning, and Binghamton radio markets directly serve the Southern Tier, and the Ithaca market indirectly serves some of the area. Seven Mountains Media is the dominant broadcaster in Olean and Elmira-Corning. [[iHeartMedia]] and [[Cumulus Media]] own station clusters only in Binghamton.

Notable newspapers include The Leader of Corning, the Elmira [[Star Gazette|Star-Gazette]], the Binghamton [[Press & Sun-Bulletin]], Hornell Evening Tribune, the Wellsville Daily Reporter, the [[Olean Times Herald]], the [[Salamanca Press]], [[The Post-Journal]] of Jamestown, and [[Observer (Dunkirk)|The Observer]] of Dunkirk. The Tribune, Reporter and Leader are all owned by [[GateHouse Media]]; [[Gannett Company]] owns the Star-Gazette and Press & Sun-Bulletin.

The Southern Tier has an eclectic history of sports. From 1979 to 2009 the [[LPGA Corning Classic]] was held at the Corning Country Club. Endicott's En-Joie Golf Course hosted a PGA Tour event, the [[B.C. Open]], from 1971 until 2006. It then became the  [[Dick's Sporting Goods Open]] which is a [[PGA Tour Champions]] event still played each summer.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dsgopen.com/ |title=Home |website=dsgopen.com}}</ref> Binghamton has a AA baseball team, the [[Binghamton Rumble Ponies]], and a [[Federal Prospects Hockey League]] franchise, the [[Binghamton Black Bears]]. Depending on the boundary definition, [[Watkins Glen International Speedway]], a [[NASCAR]] and [[Indy Racing League]] sanctioned [[road racing]] track, is located in the Southern Tier region.

From 2000 to 2017, Elmira had a professional ice hockey team in the [[Elmira Jackals]]. They played in the [[United Hockey League]] from 2000 to 2007 and the [[ECHL]] for the franchise's remaining years. The Jackals were replaced by a new [[Federal Hockey League]] franchise called the [[Elmira Enforcers]] from 2018 to 2021.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.elmiraenforcers.com/ |title=Home |website=elmiraenforcers.com}}</ref> The last [[minor league baseball]] team in the Southern Tier west of Binghamton, the [[Jamestown Jammers]], relocated out of the area in 2016, ending an era in which the [[New York–Penn League]] featured pro teams in Jamestown, Olean, Wellsville, Hornell, Corning, Elmira and Oneonta over the course of its history; [[collegiate summer baseball]] still thrives in the region in the form of the [[New York Collegiate Baseball League]] and [[Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League]], both with multiple teams in the region, and [[Town Team Baseball]] also operated in the form of the Southwestern New York Men's Baseball League from 2014 to 2016. Only one major league franchise has ever resided in the Southern Tier: the professional basketball team [[Elmira Colonels]], which played from 1952 to 1953.

==See also==
*[[Twin Tiers]]
*[[Northern Tier (Pennsylvania)]]
*[[Erie Triangle]]
*[[New York-Pennsylvania border]]

*[[New York's 23rd congressional district]]

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{wikivoyage inline|Southern Tier}}
*[https://www.SouthernTier.info Southern Tier Business Information]: Information on Southern Tier companies, industries and industry clusters.
*[https://dotst.sobriquetmagazine.com DotST]: A photographic project devoted to chronicling the decline of the Southern Tier.

{{New York}}

{{coord missing|New York (state)}}

[[Category:Regions of New York (state)]]
[[Category:Upstate New York]]