Dryden NY (13053): Overview, Housing, Essentials, Schools, Recreation & Entertainment, Transportation & Traffic, Real Estate Agents

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Welcome to Dryden, NY

Overview Dryden is a town in the eastern part of Tompkins County. The town contains two villages: one also named Dryden and one called Freeville. There are also two hamlets, Etna and Varna. It is the largest town in the county in terms of area. Students in Dryden attend Dryden Central Schools. History The town is named for the English poet, John Dryden. In the spring of 1797 a family consisting of two men, an old woman, a young woman with a small child and a young boy came down the hill from the east. Joseph Chaplin, who was contracted by the state, had carved a crude road out of the forest into the town from the east. Amos Sweet, the first settler, purchased the land from a Revolutionary War veteran who had received it from the government as his pay for being a soldier. (Much of the northern half of Tompkins County was part of the so-called “Military Tract.”) The first home at what is now 19 East Main Street in the village. The largest dairy farms in the county are in Dryden. There was once much manufacturing in the village, but there is none at all now. The town is now largely a bedroom community.

Community Facts		Community Website		Dryden School Info

Essentials Dryden is a rural town with much active farming, but the village of Dryden has an historic and walkable Main Street with some small businesses, including Dryden Community Center Café and the Dryden Hotel. A more car-oriented commercial landscape extends up Route 13 from the village. It includes a local grocery, several banks, gas stations, and fast food businesses. Two larger shopping areas, Cortland (10 minute drive to the northeast) and Ithaca (20 minute drive to the west), are near to where most Dryden residents would tend to work. Dryden is also the main campus of Tompkins Cortland Community College (TC3).

Essentials

Dryden is a rural town with much active farming, but the village of Dryden has an historic and walkable Main Street with some small businesses, including Dryden Community Center Café and the Dryden Hotel. A more car-oriented commercial landscape extends up Route 13 from the village.

Recreation & Entertainment The Dryden Hills traverse the southern part of the town. Here you will find Dryden Lake, with a town park providing access to the water, and Yellow Barn and Hammond Hill state forests, which have trails for hiking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, and biking. Largemouth bass are the main gamefish in Dryden Lake. Brown bullhead, black crappie, yellow perch, common carp and bluegill can also be found in the lake. Only electric motors only are allowed on the lake. Yellow Barn and Hammond Hill welcome hikers, hunters, cross country skiers, mountain bikers, and horseback riding. The Roy H. Park Preserve on Irish Settlement Road is owned by the Finger Lakes Land Trust. It is located near the headwaters of Six-Mile Creek, between the state forest and near a large natural area owned by Cornell University. The preserve is part of the Land Trust’s initiative to create a continuous crescent of 50,000 acres of protected lands around Ithaca. Montgomery Park is located on Elm Street in Dryden Village. It offers ice skating/hockey in the winter on a fenced in court and has a playground, slide, and swing set. There is an open pavilion with picnic tables. The fenced in court has a small skate ramp and basketball hoops. A baseball diamond is also available at the park.

Recreation & Entertainment

The Dryden Hills traverse the southern part of the town. Here you will find Dryden Lake, with a town park providing access to the water, and Yellow Barn and Hammond Hill state forests, which have trails for hiking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, and biking.

Transportation & Traffic For a rural town, Dryden does see it’s fair share of traffic, especially during rush hour at the intersection of Route 13 and Route 38, as commuters – and truckers – use those roads to get to and from Ithaca and Cortland. As for public transportation, Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit (TCAT) runs regularly from Ithaca to the town. There are small regional airports in Lansing, Corning, and Binghamton.

Transportation & Traffic

For a rural town, Dryden does see it’s fair share of traffic, especially during rush hour at the intersection of Route 13 and Route 38, as commuters – and truckers – use those roads to get to and from Ithaca and Cortland. As for public transportation, Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit (TCAT) runs regularly from Ithaca to the town. There are small regional airports in Lansing, Corning, and Binghamton.

Pros & Cons Dryden is a great place to live for those who want an ex-urban or suburban location with more urban environments right around the corner. Because of the amount of natural land put aside development in the southern part of town is limited. For cons, the village of Dryden has an ongoing issue with arsenic in its water – a situation still being resolved.

Pros & Cons

Dryden is a great place to live for those who want an ex-urban or suburban location with more urban environments right around the corner. Because of the amount of natural land put aside development in the southern part of town is limited. For cons, the village of Dryden has an ongoing issue with arsenic in its water – a situation still being resolved.

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