Chili ( ) is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

Monroe County, New York Monroe County is a county in the U.S. state of New York, located along Lake Ontario's southern shore. As of 2022, the population was 752,035, according to Census Bureau estimates. Its county seat and largest city is Rochester. The county is ...

, United States. The population was 29,123 at the 2020 census. It is a suburb of the city of Rochester, established in 1822 from part of the town of

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

. North Chili was a stop on the

Underground Railroad The Underground Railroad was an organized network of secret routes and safe houses used by freedom seekers to escape to the abolitionist Northern United States and Eastern Canada. Enslaved Africans and African Americans escaped from slavery ...

Black Creek Park Black Creek Park is a park in Monroe County, New York, about southwest of the city of Rochester, New York, Rochester. It is a relatively undeveloped park operated by Monroe County, including soccer and baseball fields, as well as a number of tr ...

is one of many parks in Chili where visitors can make use of nature trails that run along the creek.

History

The Chili area was once the hunting ground of the

Seneca people The Seneca ( ; ) are a group of Indigenous Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthest to the west within the Six Nations or Iroquois Leag ...

. The first white settler was Captain Joseph Morgan, who purchased land from Peter Sheffer of neighboring Wheatland. The area of Chili became part of the newly formed town of Northampton. With the formation of Monroe County the area became part of the town of

before splitting off into its own Town of Chili on February 22, 1822. Chili's etymology is disputed. Two popular theories are that it was named after the country of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

, which was striving for independence at the time, or after the Chiliast faith embraced by some of the early settlers of South Chili. The Chili Mills Conservation Area was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1975.

Geography

Chili is in southwestern Monroe County and is bordered at its northeastern corner by the city of Rochester. The town is bordered to the north by the towns of

Gates Gates is the plural of gate, a point of entry to a space which is enclosed by walls. It may also refer to: People * Gates (surname), various people with the last name * Gates Brown (1939-2013), American Major League Baseball player * Gates McFadd ...

and Ogden, to the west by the town of

, to the east by the town of

Henrietta Henrietta may refer to: * Henrietta (given name), a feminine given name, derived from the male name Henry Places * Henrietta Island in the Arctic Ocean * Henrietta, Mauritius * Henrietta, Tasmania, a locality in Australia United States * Hen ...

, and to the south by the town of Wheatland. Downtown Rochester is northeast of the hamlet of Chili Center. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the town of Chili has a total area of , of which are land and , or 0.89%, are water. Both Interstate 490 and the

New York State Thruway The New York State Thruway (officially the Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway and colloquially "the Thruway") is a system of controlled-access toll roads spanning within the U.S. state of New York. It is operated by the New York State Thruway ...

(Interstate 90) pass through Chili.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 27,638 people, 10,159 households, and 7,558 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 10,466 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 91.14%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 5.71%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.24% Native American, 1.12% Asian, 0.02%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.52% from other races, and 1.25% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.65% of the population. There were 10,159 households, out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.7% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 9.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.6% were non-families. 20.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.09. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.6% under the age of 18, 8.6% from 18 to 24, 29.4% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $55,097, and the median income for a family was $61,481. Males had a median income of $45,156 versus $29,903 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $23,887. About 2.0% of families and 3.6% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 3.7% of those under age 18 and 2.5% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Chili is served by the Churchville-Chili Central School District, Gates Chili Central School District, and Wheatland–Chili Central School District.

Government

The town is governed by a town board consisting of a supervisor and four board members, all elected by registered town voters. The local government includes

town supervisor The administrative divisions of New York are the various units of government that provide local services in the American state of New York. The state is divided into boroughs, counties, cities, towns, and villages. (The only boroughs, the f ...

David Dunning (R) and

town council A town council, city council or municipal council is a form of local government for small municipalities. Usage of the term varies under different jurisdictions. Republic of Ireland In 2002, 49 urban district councils and 26 town commissi ...

lors Mark Decory (R); James Valerio (R); Michael S. Slattery (R); and Mary C. Sperr (R). The appointed deputy town supervisor is Michael S. Slattery.

Communities and locations

*Chili Center – The centre of town government and the most urbanized portion of the town. *

Genesee River The Genesee River ( ) is a tributary of Lake Ontario flowing northward through the Twin Tiers of Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. The river contains several waterfalls in New York at Letchworth State Park and Roch ...

– Part of the east border of the town. *North Chili – A

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

in the northwest part of the town and home to

Roberts Wesleyan College Roberts Wesleyan University is a private Christian university in suburban Rochester, New York, United States. Anchored in the liberal arts, it was the first educational institution established for Free Methodists in North America. Roberts is ac ...

. *South Chili – A rural area in Chili running along the

. The first business was located here called the Checker Tavern *West Chili – A small community located just north of Black Creek Park. Originally called Buckbee's Corners. *East Chili - A small community in the eastern part of the town. This does not exist in present day. *Clifton- A small rural hamlet in the southern part of the town. Originally called Hardscrabble, it produced a world award winning type of flour.

Places of local interest

Roberts Wesleyan University Roberts Wesleyan University is a private Christian university in suburban Rochester, New York, United States. Anchored in the liberal arts, it was the first educational institution established for Free Methodists in North America. Roberts is ac ...

is a private, Christian, liberal arts university in North Chili. The school enrolls approximately 2,000 students. The school hosts various community events on its facilities, including soccer games, swimming lessons, dance recitals, fireworks, concerts, drama productions and many other events.

Notable people

* Homer G. Balcom, structural engineer of the

Empire State Building The Empire State Building is a 102-story, Art Deco-style supertall skyscraper in the Midtown South neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, United States. The building was designed by Shreve, Lamb & Harmon and built from 1930 to 1931. Its n ...

; born in Chili in 1870

Sister cities

Agropoli Agropoli is a town and ''comune'' located in the Cilento area of the province of Salerno, Campania, Italy. It is situated at the start of the Cilentan Coast, on the Tyrrhenian Sea. History Pre-medieval period The promontory on which Agropoli ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

References

External links

official site
{{authority control New York (state) populated places on the Genesee River Rochester metropolitan area, New York Towns in Monroe County, New York Towns in New York (state) 1822 establishments in New York (state) Populated places established in 1822