Burke 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 Franklin 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 1,421 at the 2020 census, down from 1,465 at the 2010 census. The town is in the northeastern part of the county, northeast of Malone, the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

. The town contains a

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 ...

also named

Burke Burke (; ) is a Normans in Ireland, Norman-Irish surname, deriving from the ancient Anglo-Norman and Hiberno-Norman noble dynasty, the House of Burgh. In Ireland, the descendants of William de Burgh (''circa'' 1160–1206) had the surname'' de B ...

History

The town was first settled prior to 1800. The area was known as "West Chateaugay," and was proposed to be the town of "Birney," but the name "Burke" was selected instead, presumably for

Edmund Burke Edmund Burke (; 12 January ew Style, NS1729 – 9 July 1797) was an Anglo-Irish Politician, statesman, journalist, writer, literary critic, philosopher, and parliamentary orator who is regarded as the founder of the Social philosophy, soc ...

, the British statesman. The town of Burke was formed in 1844 from the town of Chateaugay. Almanzo Wilder, often thought to be a native of nearby Malone, actually grew up on a farm in Burke. He was the husband of ''

Little House on the Prairie The ''Little House on the Prairie'' books comprise a series of American children's novels written by Laura Ingalls Wilder (b. Laura Elizabeth Ingalls). The stories are based on her childhood and adulthood in the Midwestern United States, Americ ...

'' author

Laura Ingalls Wilder Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, teacher, and journalist. She is best known as the author of the children's book series ''Little House on the Prairie'', published between 1932 and 1 ...

, who told his story in the novel '' Farmer Boy.'' The son of James and Angeline Day Wilder, he was born on his family's farm on February 13, 1857. In 1875, the family left to settle in

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

Geography

Burke is located in northeastern Franklin County. The northern town line is

Canada–United States border The international border between Canada and the United States is the longest in the world by total length. The boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Canada' ...

, with the province of

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

to the north. Neighboring New York towns are

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. ''Constable'' is commonly the rank of an officer within a police service. Other peo ...

to the west, Malone to the southwest, Bellmont to the south, and Chateaugay to the east. 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 , all land. U.S. Route 11 is an important east-west highway across the central part of the town. The Little Trout River flows from southeast to northwest past several communities in the town. It is part of the Trout River watershed, which flows north to the Chateauguay River in Quebec and ultimately the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...

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 1,359 people, 483 households, and 364 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 542 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.20%

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 ...

, 0.52%

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 ...

, 1.03% Native American, 0.37% from other races, and 0.88% 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 0.81% of the population. There were 483 households, out of which 35.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.9% 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 24.6% were non-families. 17.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.5% 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 3.12. In the town, the population was spread out, with 29.0% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 29.6% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 12.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $34,318, and the median income for a family was $36,477. Males had a median income of $28,295 versus $22,679 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 $14,434. About 12.6% of families and 16.4% 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 ...

, including 20.4% of those under age 18 and 21.9% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Burke

*Brayton Hollow – A location near the northern town line, north of US-11. *

– The Village of Burke, south of US-11 at the junction of County Roads 23 and 36. *Burke Center – 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 ...

on US-11 and north of Burke village on County Road 34. *Chateaugay Chasm – A location at the eastern town line. *Cooks Mill – A hamlet by the eastern town boundary. *Coveytown Corners – A location west of Sun and north of Burke Center. *North Burke – A hamlet near the northern town line on County Road 29. It is a port of entry between the USA and Canada. *Sun – A hamlet north of Burke Center. *Thayer Corners – A hamlet east of Burke Center on US-11, near the eastern town line.

Notable Person

* Helena Smith Dayton (

animated film Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

pioneer), born in Burke.

References

External links

Early Burke history

Town of Burke
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burke (Town), New York Towns in Franklin County, New York Towns in New York (state)