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is a city in Orange County, New York. The population was 8,860 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined Statistical Area.
The city of Port Jervis neighbors the point where the states of New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania adjoin. Port Jervis was a port on the former Delaware and Hudson Canal. It is also known as the "River City." The town is named in honor of John B. Jervis, the chief engineer on the canal.
The communities of Germantown (which is now actually Port Jervis' West End) and Huguenot are adjacent to Port Jervis. The towns of Montague, New Jersey and Matamoras, Pennsylvania face the city across the respective state borders. The Orange County town of Deerpark, to the north, is the home of the last stop on the 95-mile-long (151 km) Port Jervis Line, which is a commuter railroad line from Hoboken, New Jersey and New York City that is contracted to NJ Transit by the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company (the line itself continues on to Binghamton and Buffalo, but passenger service beyond Port Jervis was discontinued in 1966).
The first fully developed settlement in the area was established circa 1690, and a land grant of 1,200 acres (4.8 km
) was formalized on October 14 1697. The settlement was originally known as Mahackamack, and was still known as such when it was raided and burned before the Battle of Minisink in 1779. Over the next two decades, the town was rebuilt and more roadways were developed to better connect Mahackamack with the eastern parts of Orange County.
After the construction of the Delaware and Hudson Canal in 1826, trade brought more money and development to the area. A village was incorporated in 1853. The town was renamed Port Jervis in the mid-19th century and grew steadily into the 1900s. On July 26, 1907, it became a city.
On June 2, 1892, Port Jervis residents lynched Robert Jackson, a black man accused of assaulting a white woman.
reported that over 1,000 people witnessed the hanging. This is the only recorded lynching of a black man in New York state.
Being at the confluence of the Delaware and its largest tributary has sometimes led to flooding problems. Some residents remain displaced after the most recent occurrence in April 2005.
On July 14, 2007, a large parade was held in Port Jervis to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the city's founding. Fire departments and marching bands from the surrounding area marched in the parade.