Wayland is a

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 Steuben County, New York, United States. The population was 3,733 at the 2020 census. The Town of Wayland contains a village called Wayland. The town is in the northern part of the county, northwest of Bath.

History

The region was first settled by European Americans around 1806, after the Revolutionary War. In historic times, for centuries it had been territory inhabited by the

Seneca Seneca may refer to: People and language * Seneca (name), a list of people with either the given name or surname * Seneca people, one of the six Iroquois tribes of North America ** Seneca language, the language of the Seneca people Places Extrat ...

Native Americans, one of the powerful five tribes of the Iroquois Confederacy. The town was formed in 1848 from the Towns of Cohocton and Dansville. Part of Wayland was used to form the Town of Fremont in 1854. The Rowe House is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. On August 30, 1943, the Lackawanna Limited wreck, occurred when the '' Lackawanna Limited'', flagship passenger train of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad sideswiped a local freight that had not cleared into a siding, killing 29 people near the Gunlocke chair factory.

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 39.5 square miles (102.4 km²), of which 39.0 square miles (101.1 km²) is land and 0.5 square mile (1.3 km²) (1.31%) is water. The northern and part of the western town lines form the border of Livingston County. New York State Route 21 is a north-south highway in the town and intersects

New York State Route 15 New York State Route 15 (NY 15) is a north–south state highway located in western New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is officially at Interstate 390 (I-390) exit 3 south of the village of Wayl ...

and

New York State Route 63 New York State Route 63 (NY 63) is a state highway in the western part of New York in the United States. It extends for in a generally southeast–northwest direction from an intersection with NY 15 and NY 21 in the village ...

in the village of Wayland.

Interstate 390 Interstate 390 (I-390) is a north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway located entirely within New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at the Southern Tier Expressway ( I-86 and New York State Route 17 Y ...

crosses the town from west to east. Wayland is the northern terminus of the B&H Rail Corp.'s Gang Mills–Wayland Line. Prior to 1956, it was linked to Rochester directly by rail and, prior to 1964, it was directly linked to Buffalo by rail. Both of these connections were removed by order of the ICC to promote highway transportation. Additionally, as the Erie Lackawanna Railway's former Lackawanna mainline from Buffalo had a steep grade eastbound from Groveland to Perkinsville that was easily bypassed by the former Erie mainline via Hornell, the former DL&W mainline trackage between Groveland and Wayland was abandoned and torn-up in late 1963.

Demographics

As of the

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 4,314 people, 1,665 households, and 1,168 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 110.5 people per square mile (42.7/km²). There were 1,960 housing units at an average density of 50.2 per square mile (19.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.47%

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 ...

, 0.86%

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 ...

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 ...

, 0.44% Native American, 0.42% Asian, 0.12% 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 0.70% 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 of any race were 0.86% of the population. There were 1,665 households, out of which 35.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.3% were married couples living together, 12.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.03. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.9% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $42,575, and the median income for a family was $46,806. Males had a median income of $33,623 versus $22,439 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 $18,038. About 8.9% of families and 11.0% 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 15.8% of those under age 18 and 6.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in the Town of Wayland

* Loon Lake – A

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

in the south part of the town. *Patchinsville – A hamlet south of Wayland village on NY-21 at the junction of County Road 90 (Patchinville-Perkinsville Road). * Perkinsville – A hamlet southwest of Wayland village and north of Interstate I-390, by the junction of County Roads 90 (Patchinville-Perkinsville Road) and 91 * Wayland – The Village of Wayland in the north part of the town.

References

External links

*
Town of Wayland, NY, information

{{authority control Towns in Steuben County, New York