town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
in Cattaraugus County, New York, United States. The population was 1,515 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Commodore
Oliver Hazard Perry
Oliver Hazard Perry (August 23, 1785 – August 23, 1819) was an American naval commander, born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island. The best-known and most prominent member
of the Perry family naval dynasty, he was the son of Sarah Wallace A ...
and is located in the northwest corner of the county. The town contains the
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only.
CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...
also named Perrysburg, formerly an incorporated village.
History
The town of Perrysburg was formed in 1814 as the "town of Perry" from the towns of Hebe and Olean. It originally consisted of the entire western half of the county and was created because the county did not yet have a centralized government; Hebe and Olean were administered as part of Allegany County. Perry was governed as part of
Niagara County
Niagara County is in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 212,666. The county seat is Lockport. The county name is from the Iroquois word ''Onguiaahra''; meaning ''the strait'' or ''thunder of waters''.
Niaga ...
(which at the time also covered the entirety of what is now Erie County) until Cattaraugus County achieved self-government in 1817.
In 1818, the same year Little Valley and Great Valley were split off to govern the southwest part of the county, the town changed its name to "Perrysburgh". Eventually, likely at the behest of the United States Board on Geographic Names during the
Benjamin Harrison
Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...
administration in the 1890s, the spelling became "Perrysburg." Over the course of the 19th century, the town was divided to form what are now all of the towns in northwestern Cattaraugus County:
Dayton
Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...
,
Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
,
Otto
Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', '' Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity".
The name is recorded f ...
New Albion
New Albion, also known as ''Nova Albion'' (in reference to an archaic name for Britain), was the name of the continental area north of Mexico claimed by Sir Francis Drake for England when he landed on the North American west coast in 1579. Thi ...
, and
Leon
Leon, Léon (French) or León (Spanish) may refer to:
Places
Europe
* León, Spain, capital city of the Province of León
* Province of León, Spain
* Kingdom of León, an independent state in the Iberian Peninsula from 910 to 1230 and again f ...
.
Geography
According to the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), 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 Census Bureau is part of t ...
, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.44%, is water.
The northern border is
Cattaraugus Creek
Cattaraugus Creek is a stream, approximately long, in western New York in the United States.Erie County on the opposite bank. The western border is Chautauqua County.
The town's geographic location results in frequent and heavy lake-effect snow events during the fall and winter. It is often the site for maximum snowfall accumulations. A hill rising to over on the southern edge of the town contributes to orographic enhancement, intensifying snowfall. From December 10 through December 17, 2013 nearly () of snow fell on the town, with the majority of it being lake-effect snow. Some locals have named Perrysburg the snow capital of
Western New York
Western New York (WNY) is the westernmost region of the U.S. state of New York. The eastern boundary of the region is not consistently defined by state agencies or those who call themselves "Western New Yorkers". Almost all sources agree WNY i ...
Hanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
in Chautauqua County. The southern border is formed with the town of
Dayton
Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater Da ...
. The eastern border is the town of
Persia
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
of 2000, there were 1,771 people, 685 households, and 487 families residing in the town. The
population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
was 62.1 people per square mile (24.0/km2). There were 752 housing units at an average density of 26.4 per square mile (10.2/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 94.52%
White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 0.34%
Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...
or
African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.34% from
other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 1.36% from two or more races.
Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 0.62% of the population.
There were 685 households, out of which 28.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.1% were married couples living together, 11.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.8% were non-families. 24.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.87.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.3% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 28.0% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 16.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $37,212, and the median income for a family was $44,231. Males had a median income of $34,028 versus $23,828 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the town was $17,453. About 7.1% of families and 13.4% 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 t ...
, including 18.7% of those under age 18 and 14.1% of those age 65 or over.
Communities and locations in the Town of Perrysburg
*Balltown – A hamlet near the town's western border with the town of
Hanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
Cattaraugus Creek
Cattaraugus Creek is a stream, approximately long, in western New York in the United States.Collins
Collins may refer to:
People Surname
Given name
* Collins O. Bright (1917–?), Sierra Leonean diplomat
* Collins Chabane (1960–2015), South African Minister of Public Service and Administration
* Collins Cheboi (born 1987), Kenyan middle- ...
Cattaraugus Indian Reservation
Cattaraugus Reservation is an Indian reservation of the federally recognized Seneca Nation of Indians, formerly part of the Iroquois Confederacy located in New York. As of the 2000 census, the Indian reservation had a total population of 2,412. ...
– A reservation of the
Iroquois
The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian-speaking confederacy of First Nations peoples in northeast North America/ Turtle Island. They were known during the colonial years to ...
(more commonly known as the
Seneca Nation of Indians
The Seneca Nation of Indians is a federally recognized Seneca tribe based in western New York. They are one of three federally recognized Seneca entities in the United States, the others being the Tonawanda Band of Seneca (also in western New Y ...
), which is partially in the town. As a part of the Seneca Nation, the reservation is a semi-autonomous sovereign territory, and generally not within the jurisdiction of the town or the state of New York.
* Perrysburg – The census-designated place and former
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...
of Perrysburg in the south-central part of the town, located on NY Route 39.
*
Versailles
The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...
– This
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
, a former milling community, using the power of Cattaraugus Creek, is located in the northeast corner of the town. The community is east of the junction of County Roads 42 and 58.
*West Perrysburg – The hamlet is located by the Cattaraugus Reservation on County Road 78 in the western part of the town.
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...
recipient
*
Warren B. Hooker
Warren Brewster Hooker (November 24, 1856 – March 5, 1920) was a U.S. Representative from New York.
Born in Perrysburg, New York, Hooker attended the public schools and Forestville Free Academy, Forestville, New York. He studied law and was ...
, former US congressman
*
Martha McBride Knight
Martha McBride Knight Smith Kimball (March 17, 1805 – November 20, 1901) was a founding member of the Relief Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which was organized on her birthday in 1842. She was married to early ...
Vinson Knight
Vinson Knight (March 14, 1804 – July 31, 1842) was an early leader in the Latter Day Saint movement. He served as a counselor in the bishopric in Kirtland, Ohio, from 1835 to 1838, then as bishop in Adam-ondi-Ahman in Daviess County, Missouri, ...
, early leader in the
Latter Day Saint movement
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 by J ...
Reconstruction
Reconstruction may refer to:
Politics, history, and sociology
*Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company
*'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...
indentured servant
Indentured servitude is a form of labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract, called an "indenture", may be entered "voluntarily" for purported eventual compensation or debt repaymen ...
, serving as
first mate
A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the shi ...
on the
Dawn Treader
Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's horizo ...
Sonny Ochs
Sonia "Sonny" Ochs is a music producer and radio host. She is known for the "Phil Ochs Song Nights" she organizes, at which various musicians sing the songs of her brother, singer-songwriter Phil Ochs.
Ochs was born in Scotland on April 12, 1937, ...
, radio host
*
Burr Sprague
Burr Sprague (April 30, 1836 – April 17, 1917) was an American lawyer and politician.
Born in Perrysburg, New York, Sprague moved to Wisconsin in 1848 and lived in the town of Spring Valley, Rock County, Wisconsin and then Brodhead, Wisco ...