Angelica 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 ...

in the middle of Allegany County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, United States. The population was 1,284 at the 2020 census. The town is named after

Angelica Schuyler Church Angelica Church (née Schuyler ; February 20, 1756 – March 6, 1814) was an American socialite. She was the eldest daughter of Continental Army General Philip Schuyler, and a sister of Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton and sister-in-law of Alexand ...

, the sister of Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, activist, scholar, devoted sister and mother, daughter of General Philip Schuyler, sister-in-law of

Founding Father The following is a list of national founders of sovereign states who were credited with establishing a state. National founders are typically those who played an influential role in setting up the systems of governance, (i.e., political system ...

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 dur ...

and wife of John Barker Church. The town was named by Philip Schuyler Church, who was one of the original European settlers of the area, and the son of Angelica and John Barker Church. The

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

Angelica ''Angelica'' is a genus of about 90 species of tall Biennial plant, biennial and Perennial plant, perennial herbaceous, herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as ...

is located within this town.

History

Prior to European settlement, the Seneca name for the area was Ga-ne-o'-weh-ga-yat or "head of the stream". The area was first settled around 1802 at Angelica village. The town of Angelica was formed in 1805 from the town of

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

in Livingston County, before Allegany County was formed. Angelica is the oldest town in Allegany County. The town hall is housed in the Old Allegany County Courthouse, 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 1972. Belvidere was also listed in 1972, and the Moses Van Campen House was listed in 2004. Drawing of Philip Church from the New York Times

was an American woman who encouraged other women to fight for their voices, and a witty, society-loving sister of Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, who, when young, was much less suited to society than Angelica, preferring to run wild and, when older, tend to the injured soldiers. As a young woman, Angelica eloped with John Church, who was using the pseudonym “Jack Carter”. In 1797, the young United States paid back its war debt to Church in the form of 100,000 acres of land in

Western New York Western New York (WNY) is the westernmost region of the U.S. state of New York (state), 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 so ...

. Angelica’s son Philip Schuyler Church traveled to what is now Allegheny and Genesee Counties to take possession of the land, with his surveyor Moses Van Campen. A planned village was laid out with the plots and design to be reminiscent of

Paris, France Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

(a circular drive in the center, streets coming to that drive to form a star, and five churches situated around the circle). In the center of the circular drive is the village park. Philip named his planned village ''Angelica'', after his mother. The historian John S. Minard wrote of the town's establishment in ''Allegany County and Its People'' (1896):

"The town was formed by an act of the Legislature, passed Feb. 25, 1805, and described as "being in width twelve miles," just that of the Morris Reserve, and in length "from south to north extending thirty-four miles from the Pennsylvania line," taking in about two-thirds of the towns of Granger and Grove. It was taken from Leicester, and when erected was a part of Genesee county. (The village had been founded three or four years before, and named by Capt. Philip Church for his mother, Angelica, the eldest daughter of Gen. Philip Schuyler.

Philip left to marry Anna Matilda Stewart, daughter of General Walter Stewart in Philadelphia. For their

honeymoon A honeymoon is a vacation taken by newlyweds after their wedding to celebrate their marriage. Today, honeymoons are often celebrated in destinations considered exotic or romantic. In a similar context, it may also refer to the phase in a couple ...

, they traveled first by boat, then by raft as far west as Bath, New York, then on horseback to the banks of the

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 ...

. They constructed a small house, soon to be

whitewash Whitewash, calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, asbestis or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk (calcium carbonate, CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes ...

ed and known as the "white house". In 1804, they had their

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word ''manse'' originally defined a property l ...

built (known as "Belvidere"). It still stands on the banks of the Genesee near Angelica, New York.

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 is land and , or 0.10%, is water. I-86

The Southern Tier Expressway ( Interstate 86 and

New York State Route 17 New York State Route 17 (NY 17) is a major state highway that extends for through the Southern Tier and Downstate New York, Downstate regions of New York (state), New York in the United States. It begins at the New York–Pennsylvani ...

) – passes through the town. Angelica is accessible from the highway at Exit 31, mile 109 *The

– flows northward through the southwest part of the town. *Angelica Creek – A tributary of the Genesee River flows through the town and village. *Bald Mountain – A prominent hill northeast of Angelica village.

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 1,411 people, 564 households, and 382 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 774 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.87%

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 ...

, 0.28%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

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 ...

, 0.50% Native American, 0.07% Asian, and 1.28% 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 0.35% of the population. There were 564 households, out of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.4% 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, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.1% were non-families. 27.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 3.03. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.4% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 26.3% from 25 to 44, 24.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $33,750, and the median income for a family was $37,891. Males had a median income of $28,958 versus $21,328 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 $16,348. About 8.1% of families and 11.8% 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 16.1% of those under age 18 and 9.3% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Genesee Valley Central School
located in nearby Belmont, was formed by a merger of the Angelica and Belmont school districts in 1996. The district serves ~600 students (PK-12). The district is also served by th
Cattaraugus-Allegany-Erie-Wyoming BOCES
system. The school is located on County Road 48, on the north side of the Village of Belmont.

Communities and locations in the Town of Angelica

– The village of Angelica is centrally located in the town. It was formerly the county seat for Allegany County prior to the relocation of the seat to Belmont NY. *Allegany County Fairgrounds – The fairgrounds are located on North Street in the village, and are the site of the annual Allegany County Fair which takes place at the end of July each year.

Notable people

* Philip Schuyler Church (1778–1861), founder of the village and son of Angelica Schuyler Church. *

Calvin Fairbank Calvin Fairbank (November 3, 1816 – October 12, 1898) was an American Abolitionism in the United States, abolitionist and Methodist minister from New York state who was twice convicted in Kentucky of aiding the escape of slaves, and served a t ...

(1816–1898), abolitionist minister, lived in Angelica and is buried in the Until the Day Dawn Cemetery. * Charles N. Flenagin (1839–1881), district attorney and member of the New York State Assembly * William B. Rochester (1789–1838), former US Congressman * William B. Rochester (1826–1909),

Paymaster-General of the United States Army The Paymaster-General of the United States Army was a general officer who was responsible for the Pay Department of the United States Army, U.S. Army. History The office of the Paymaster General was created through a resolution of the Continen ...

* Judson W. Sherman (1808–1881), former US Congressman *

Cornelius Mortimer Treat Cornelius Mortimer Treat (April 25, 1817 – July 28, 1916) was an American teacher, farmer, and politician. Born in Angelica, New York, Treat moved with his mother to Monroe County, New York in 1820. In 1836, Treat and his mother then moved ...

(1817–1916), Wisconsin farmer, teacher, and politician, was born in Angelica. *

Harvey Ellis Harvey Ellis (October 17, 1852, Rochester, New York – January 2, 1904, Syracuse, New York) was an American architect, perspective renderer, Painting, painter and Furniture, furniture designer. He worked in Rochester, New York; Utica, New York; ...

(1852–1904), Arts & Crafts movement architect

Climate

This

climatic Climate is the long-term weather pattern in a region, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorolog ...

region is typified by large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and cold (sometimes severely cold) winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Angelica has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

, abbreviated "Dfb" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Angelica, New York
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References

External links

Town and village of Angelica official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Angelica (Town), New York New York (state) populated places on the Genesee River Towns in Allegany County, New York Towns in New York (state) 1805 establishments in New York (state)