Boston 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 ...

Erie County, New York Erie County is a county along the shore of Lake Erie in western New York (state), New York State. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the population was 954,236. However, in the 2023 census, the Erie County population was 946,147 ...

, United States. The population was 7,948 at the 2020 census. The town is named after

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. Boston is an interior town of the county and one of the county's "

Southtowns The Southtowns (also known as the Buffalo Southtowns, the South Towns, or Southtown) is a region of Western New York, United States, that lies within the snowbelt or ski country. It includes the southern suburbs of Buffalo, New York. This is t ...

". Boston is southeast of Buffalo.

History

The

Iroquois The Iroquois ( ), also known as the Five Nations, and later as the Six Nations from 1722 onwards; alternatively referred to by the Endonym and exonym, endonym Haudenosaunee ( ; ) are an Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Ind ...

, under various names, lived here until the European immigrants became predominant. In 1804, brothers Charles and Oliver Johnson and their families became the area's first settlers. The first Christian church was the Free Will Baptist Church, founded ''circa'' 1811. On April 5, 1817, the town of Boston was formed from a portion of the town of Eden. The first post office opened in 1832 on the north side of town. In 1843, the town suffered an epidemic (28 of the 43 residents were affected, 10 of whom died) believed to be

typhoid Typhoid fever, also known simply as typhoid, is a disease caused by ''Salmonella enterica'' serotype Typhi bacteria, also called ''Salmonella'' Typhi. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often ther ...

fever, possibly from a local well. This town has much history that can be found on the headstones in the Maplewood Cemetery across from the Boston Town Hall. There are many old gravestones that show some of the first settlers in the town and the infamous "Love" murder.

Murder of John Love

John Love, a seaman on the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

, came to Boston in October 1824 with the prospect of buying grain futures from local farmers. He rented a room from lumberman Nelson Thayer. The Thayer family, which included Nelson and his brothers Isaac and Israel, were infamous for their profanity and crude behavior. Despite owning large tracts of farmland in Boston, they found themselves indebted to neighbors, and eventually to Love, due to their spendthrift habits. Facing financial ruin, the Thayers decided that murder was the only option. On December 15, John Love was talking with Nelson Thayer when Isaac came up to the window from outside and shot Love in the head with a rifle. When this failed to kill him, Nelson struck him several times with a meat axe. He and Israel then dragged Love's body to a ravine behind Israel's house and hastily covered it with dirt. Neighbors grew suspicious after Love hadn't been seen in several weeks, and the Thayers, now having far more money to spend than usual, rode around on Love's horse attempting to collect debts owed to him by others. When questioned, they would say that Love had gone to Canada and had given the Thayers power of attorney to collect debt payments. Foul play was eventually suspected, and a $10 reward was offered to whoever found Love's body. On February 23, 1825, Love's body was discovered in the ravine behind the Thayer cabin, in a grave so shallow that his feet were sticking out. The three brothers were arrested, as was their father Israel Sr., and taken to jail in Buffalo. At trial, the Thayers were linked to the crime based on strong circumstantial evidence; neighbors testified to hearing a gunshot on December 15 and never seeing Love again after that date. The Thayer brothers were all found guilty of John Love's murder and sentenced to death. The charges against their father had been dropped. On June 17, 1825, all three were hanged from the same gallows in

Niagara Square Niagara Square is a public square located at the intersections of Delaware Avenue, Court Street, Genesee Street, and Niagara Street in Buffalo, New York. It is the central hub of Joseph Ellicott's original radial street pattern that he designe ...

, the only public hanging ever to take place in Erie County. It is said that a crowd of about 20,000 people witnessed the event, far greater than the population of Buffalo at that time.

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 . Geologically speaking, Boston is one of the more interesting places in the Greater Niagara region, for many glacial activities, over many years, caused sufficient pressure indentation to alter dramatically the landscape and even the water table. U.S. Route 219 crosses the town.

New York State Route 277 New York State Route 277 (NY 277) is a state highway in New York (state), New York in the United States. This highway is also called Union Road, along with other names. NY 277 is a major north–south road east of Buffalo, N ...

(Boston State Road/Herman Hill Road) intersects New York State Route 391 (Boston State Road) in the northwestern part of the town at North Boston.

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 7,897 people, 2,997 households, and 2,244 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 3,122 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.91%

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 ...

, 0.14%

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 ...

, 0.14% Native American, 0.20% Asian, 0.01%

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 ...

, 0.10% from other races, and 0.49% 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 0.72% of the population. There were 2,997 households, out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.6% 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, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.1% were non-families. 20.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.06. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.2% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 27.1% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.8 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 98.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $48,315, and the median income for a family was $57,714. Males had a median income of $42,101 versus $27,798 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 $21,303. About 3.6% of families and 5.9% 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 8.0% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Boston

– 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 southern part of the town on Boston State Road, NY-391. The community was once called "Boston Corners" and "Torrey Corners". *Boston Forest County Park – An undeveloped conservation area in the southwestern corner of the town, consisting of of woodland and meadows. * Creekside – A location by the northern town line, north of North Boston. *East Boston Hill – A location near the eastern town line. * Eighteen Mile Creek – A stream that flows northward through the town. * North Boston – A hamlet and CDP in the northwestern part of the town. * Patchin – A hamlet located near the town's center on the Boston State Road. The community was once known as "Boston Center". It was named after early resident Talcott Patchin, a tanner and postmaster. *Ski Tamarack – A former skiing location in the northeastern corner of the town.

Notable people

* Charles Miller, commander of the organization now known as the 28th Infantry Division and founder of the Galena-Signal Oil Company, which became part of the

Standard Oil Standard Oil Company was a Trust (business), corporate trust in the petroleum industry that existed from 1882 to 1911. The origins of the trust lay in the operations of the Standard Oil of Ohio, Standard Oil Company (Ohio), which had been founde ...

combine, and then part of the corporation now known as

Texaco Texaco, Inc. ("The Texas Company") is an American Petroleum, oil brand owned and operated by Chevron Corporation. Its flagship product is its Gasoline, fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owned the Havoline motor oil brand. Texaco was an Independ ...

.H. H. Miller, ''The World To-day: A Monthly Record of Human Progress''
"Soldier, Millionaire and Philanthropist"
Volume 16, 1909, page 440 * Joseph C. Sibley, U.S. representative from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

* A. Chapin Whiting, member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican ...

* Ellen Beach Yaw, coloratura soprano known for her exceptional vocal range.

References

External links

Town of Boston official website

Boston NY website

*
American State Trials: The Three Thayers
A transcript of the 1825 trial {{authority control Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area Towns in Erie County, New York Towns in New York (state)