Fairfield 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 ...

Herkimer County, New York Herkimer County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 60,139. Its county seat is Herkimer (village), New York, Herkimer. The co ...

, United States. The population was 1,627 at the 2010 census. The town is named after

Fairfield, Connecticut Fairfield is a New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It borders the city of Bridgeport, Connecticut, Bridgeport and towns of Trumbull, Connecticut, Trumbull, Easton, Connecticut, Easton, Weston, Connecticut, W ...

. The town is north of the village of

Herkimer Herkimer may refer to: People: * Johan Jost Herkimer (1732–1795), United Empire Loyalist, brother of Nicholas Herkimer * John Herkimer (1773–1848), American lawyer and politician from New York * Lawrence Herkimer (1925–2015), American innov ...

and east of Utica. The hamlet of Fairfield is in the central part of the town.

History

A few settlers, actually tenants, made the future town their home before the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

, but the major influx took place after 1785, mainly from

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

. The town was established from part of the town of

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

in 1796. From 1802 to 1901, the

Fairfield Academy Fairfield Academy was an academy that existed for nearly one hundred years in the Town of Fairfield, New York, Fairfield, Herkimer County, New York. Founding It was organized as an academy for men in 1802, when the community was an active local ...

offered secondary and higher education at its campus in the hamlet of Fairfield. From 1812 until 1841, the Fairfield Medical College, a division of the academy, trained medical practitioners, including

Marcus Whitman Marcus Whitman (September 4, 1802 – November 29, 1847) was an American physician and missionary. He is most well known for leading American settlers across the Oregon Trail, unsuccessfully attempting to Christianize the Cayuse Indians, and wa ...

Geography

According to the

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

, the town has a total area of , of which are land and , or 0.39%, are water. The western town line is marked by

West Canada Creek The West Canada Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 river in upstate New York (state), New York, United States. West Canada Creek is an important w ...

. Fairfield is north of the

Mohawk River The Mohawk River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 river in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson R ...

, but does not border it.

New York State Route 29 New York State Route 29 (NY 29) is a state highway extending for across the eastern portion of the U.S. state of New York. The western terminus of the route is at NY 28 and NY 169 in Middleville, Herkimer County. The ea ...

, an east–west highway, crosses Fairfield. New York State Route 169 is a north–south highway in the western part of the town. New York State Route 170 is another north–south highway, but in the eastern part of Fairfield.

New York State Route 170A New York State Route 170 (NY 170) is a north–south state highway in Herkimer County, New York, in the United States. It runs from New York State Route 169, NY 169 in the Little Falls (city), New York, city of Little Falls to Ne ...

is at the eastern town line.

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 1,607 people, 561 households, and 430 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 611 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.44%

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 ...

, 0.37%

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 ...

, 0.19% Native American, and 1.00% 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 0.25% of the population. There were 561 households, out of which 35.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.2% 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, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.2% were non-families. 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.78 and the average family size was 3.17. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.3% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 27.1% from 25 to 44, 25.8% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $40,104, and the median income for a family was $45,069. Males had a median income of $31,992 versus $21,944 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 $15,603. About 9.0% of families and 11.6% 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 13.7% of those under age 18 and 13.0% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Fairfield

* Barto Hill – An elevation located east of Fairfield. *Countryman – A location near the western town line, southwest of Fairfield village. *Dillenbeck Corners – A location in the southeastern part of the town on County Road 70. *Eatonville – A hamlet at the southern town line on NY-169. *Fairfield – The hamlet of Fairfield is near the center of the town on NY-29 at the junction of County Roads 103 and 142. The Trinity Episcopal Church-Fairfield was added to 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 1993. *Goodell Corners – A location in the southeastern part of the town near the town line, located on NY-170 at NY-170A. * Middleville – Part of the village of Middleville is within the western town line at the intersection of NY-29 and NY-169. *Old City – A hamlet at the northwestern corner of the town on County Road 7. * Top Notch – An elevation located south of Goodell Corners. Partially in the Town of Little Falls. *Welch Corners – A location in the northwestern corner of the town, south of Old City and located on NY-29. The Old City Road Stone Arch Bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.

Notable people

* George Kretsinger (1835–1901), Medal of Honor recipient in the American Civil War * Richard P. Marvin (1803–1892), former US congressman *

Alonzo C. Mather Alonzo Clark Mather (April 12, 1848 – January 25, 1941) was founder and president of the Mather Stock Car Company, a U.S. firm that built and leased railroad freight cars, especially stock cars. Birth and education Alonzo Mather was born ...

(1848–1941), founder and president of Mather Stock Car Company * Polly Anne Reed (1818–1881), Shaker artist * Richard Sherwood Satterlee (1796-1880), brigadier general in the Union Army (1822 - 1869) * Robert W. Waterman (1826-1891), 17th

governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constit ...

(1887-1891) *

Lyman Wight Lyman Wight (May 9, 1796 – March 31, 1858) was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. He was the leader of the Latter Day Saints in Daviess County, Missouri, in 1838. In 1841, he was ordained a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apo ...

(1796–1858), early leader in

Latter Day Saint The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded b ...

movement * Mary Bannister Willard (1841–1912), editor, temperance worker, and educator

In Popular Culture

In ''

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ''Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'' is a 1989 American action adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by Jeffrey Boam, based on a story by George Lucas and Menno Meyjes. It is the third installment in the Indiana Jone ...

'', Barnett College, the fictional college where

Indiana Jones ''Indiana Jones'' is an American media franchise consisting of five films and a prequel television series, along with games, comics, and tie-in novels, that depicts the adventures of Indiana Jones (character), Dr. Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, ...

teaches

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

, is revealed to be located in Fairfield, New York.

References

External links

History information about Fairfield, NY

Herkimer County Historical Society website
{{authority control Utica–Rome metropolitan area Towns in Herkimer County, New York Towns in New York (state)