Cato is 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 ...

in Cayuga 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 532 at the 2010 census. The name was assigned by the surveyors of the Military Tract, and is one of many towns and villages bearing classical place names. The village of Cato is half within the town of Cato and half within the town of Ira. It is west of Syracuse.

History

The village was part of the Central New York Military Tract, land set aside in 1782 for veterans of the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

. Prior native occupants were compelled to live on reservations established at that time. The first permanent settler arrived around 1805, and the new community was called "Jakway's Corners". Railroad service came to the village in 1869, aiding its prosperity, but rail service ended in 1953. Cato is home to the 1993 Section 3 Class D state football champions. Modern Cato is partly a

bedroom community A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...

, with many residents commuting to surrounding cities.

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 village has a total area of , of which , or 2.44%, is water. The village is located in a

drumlin field A drumlin, from the Irish word ("little ridge"), first recorded in 1833, in the classical sense is an elongated hill in the shape of an inverted spoon or half-buried egg formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated till or groun ...

. Parker Pond, formerly known as "Forest Lake", is a small lake at the southeast edge of the village. Muskrat Creek drains from the lake and flows southward to the Seneca River (and

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east–west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigability, navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, ...

). The village is at the junction of NY-34 and NY-370. Locating places within the village is extremely simple, since virtually all locations which may be visited by a non-resident are located on these two highways.

Water tower

The Cato water tower stands over the village of Cato, to the northeast of the village center. The light blue structure had been a landmark for 75 years or more but was to be torn down as of June 2012. The new water tower was to be dark blue on top and still say "Cato" on both sides. It will sit on of concrete. It will also be bigger, holding 25,000 extra gallons of water, in anticipation of future town growth. Cato Water Tower

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 601 people, 238 households, and 154 families residing in the village. The population density was . There were 253 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the village was 97.50%

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 ...

, 0.33%

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, 0.33% from other races, and 1.33% 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 0.50% of the population. There were 238 households, out of which 35.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% 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, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.9% were non-families. 31.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.15. In the village, the population was spread out, with 29.5% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.4 males. The median income for a household in the village was $35,938, and the median income for a family was $49,219. Males had a median income of $37,303 versus $26,250 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 village was $17,511. About 2.9% of families and 6.9% 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 5.5% of those under age 18 and 21.0% of those age 65 or over.

References

External links

Village of Cato official website
{{authority control Villages in New York (state) Populated places established in 1805 Villages in Cayuga County, New York 1805 establishments in New York (state)