Centerville 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 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 822 at the 2010 census. The town is in the northwest corner of Allegany County and is named after its principal settlement.

History

Centerville was first settled in April 1808 by Joseph Maxson. Minard describes this first settler in his ''History of Centerville'': "He was only 18, and came from Otsego Co. Two cents and a few articles of provisions and clothing constituted his wealth. At Pike he took from his feet a pair of new shoes, bartered them for an axe, and pushed on into the wilderness, and in the center of the township near a small stream erected the rudest kind of a hut. For a bed he peeled basswood bark, used some pieces as a floor and others for covering. Not long after he came snow fell six inches deep. He persevered in his labors and passed eight months alone."² James Ward settled there in the fall of 1808, and a half dozen more families moved there in the following year. Centerville (then spelled "Centreville") was established on January 15, 1819, from part of the town of

Pike Pike, Pikes or The Pike may refer to: Fish * Blue pike or blue walleye, an extinct color morph of the yellow walleye ''Sander vitreus'' * Ctenoluciidae, the "pike characins", some species of which are commonly known as pikes * ''Esox'', genus of ...

(a town in Wyoming County).¹ In recent years many

Amish The Amish (, also or ; ; ), formally the Old Order Amish, are a group of traditionalist Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, church fellowships with Swiss people, Swiss and Alsace, Alsatian origins. As they ...

farmers have bought land in the town. The

Centerville Town Hall Centerville Town Hall is a historic town hall located at Centerville in Allegany County, New York. It was completed in 1859 and is a 2-story, three-by-three-bay Greek Revival style former Presbyterian church building. It has a large, 1-story h ...

was 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 2009.

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 0.13%, is water. The west town line is the border of

Cattaraugus County Cattaraugus County (locally known as Catt County) is a county in Western New York, with one side bordering Pennsylvania. As of the United States 2020 census, the population was 77,042. The county seat is Little Valley. The county was created ...

, and the north town line is the border of Wyoming County. Sixtown Creek is an important stream in the town.

New York State Route 243 New York State Route 243 (NY 243) is a east–west state highway in the Southern Tier of New York (state), New York in the United States. It begins at an intersection with New York State Route 98, NY 98 in the town of Freedom ...

passes through the community of Fairview.

Adjacent towns and areas

Centerville is west of the town of Hume and north of the town of Rushford. The west town line is shared with the town of

Freedom Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws". In one definition, something is "free" i ...

in Cattaraugus County, and the north town line is shared with the town of

Eagle Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

in Wyoming County.

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 762 people, 253 households, and 195 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 402 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 95.80%

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 ...

, 0.13%

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 ...

, 0.52% Native American, 1.05% Asian, 2.10% from other races, and 0.39% 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 2.49% of the population. There were 253 households, out of which 40.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.9% 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, 13.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.9% were non-families. 18.2% 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 3.01 and the average family size was 3.38. In the town, the population was spread out, with 34.6% under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 26.9% from 25 to 44, 22.7% from 45 to 64, and 8.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $28,487, and the median income for a family was $31,058. Males had a median income of $25,208 versus $20,750 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 $11,674. About 22.4% of families and 32.8% 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 46.4% of those under age 18 and 31.7% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Centerville

Centerville Town Hall 2012-09-24 18-08-31

*Centerville – The

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 ...

of Centerville is near the town center at the junction of Buffalo, Pike and Hill Roads. *Fairview – A hamlet on the town line in the southwest corner of the town on Route 243. *Higgins – The hamlet is southeast of Centerville. *Welsh Settlement – A former designation for the southwest part of the town, settled in the 1840s by many natives of

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

Notable people

* Ellen Palmer Allerton (1835–1893), poet *

Ezra Kendall Ezra Freemont Kendall (February 15, 1861 – January 23, 1910) was an American actor-comedian, humorist, playwright and author who was known for his depiction of typical New England Yankees. During his time in vaudeville Kendall was said to have ...

(1861–1910), actor-comedian, humorist, playwright and authorEzra Kendall Dead. New York Times, January 24, 1910, p. 9 * Clifford Goldsmith, playwright best known for creating ''

The Aldrich Family ''The Aldrich Family'', a popular radio teenage situation comedy (July 2, 1939 – April 19, 1953), was also presented in films, television and comic books. In the radio series' opening exchange, awkward teen Henry's mother called, "Hen-''ry-y-y ...

'', which was set in a larger, fictionalized version of Centerville

References

1. French, J. H., ''Gazetteer of the State of New York, Embracing a Comprehensive View of the Geography, Geology, and General History of the State...'', Syracuse: R. Pearsall Smith, 1860, view online at: https://books.google.com/books?id=R_zHwh4xByQC&dq=allegany+county+new+york+history&pg=PA1 2. Minard, John S., ''History of Centerville, New York'', Alfred, NY, J. A. Fergusson, 1896

External links

Town of Centerville official website
{{authority control Towns in Allegany County, New York Towns in New York (state) 1808 establishments in New York (state)