Ellington is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than city, cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares ...

in Chautauqua County,

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

, United States. The population was 1,493 at the 2020 census.

History

The first settler arrived ''circa'' 1814. The town of Ellington was formed on April 1, 1824 from the town of

Gerry Gerry is both a surname and a masculine or feminine given name. As a given name, it is often a short form (hypocorism) of Gerard, Gerald or Geraldine. Notable people with the name include: Surname * Elbridge Gerry (1744–1814), fifth US vice pre ...

, and Cherry Creek was taken off on May 4, 1829. On September 8, 1865, a 4 hour rainstorm produced a flood that damaged much of the town. It carried away nearly all the bridges, and threatened destruction of the village. The hotel and Baptist Church were reportedly swept into the street. The first religious services were held at the house of James Bates in 1817 by Rev. Daniel Hadley.

Geography

Ellington is located on the eastern edge of Chautauqua County, bordered by

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 i ...

to the east. It is northeast of Jamestown, the largest city in Chautauqua County. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy An economy is an area of th ...

, Ellington has a total area of , of which , or 0.04%, is water.

U.S. Route 62 U.S. Route 62 or U.S. Highway 62 (US 62) runs from the Mexico–United States border, Mexican border at El Paso, Texas, to Niagara Falls, New York, near the Canada–United States border, Canadian border. It is the only east-west ...

passes east-to-south through the town, and

New York State Route 83 New York State Route 83 (NY 83) is a state route located entirely in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. It extends from an intersection with U.S. Route 62 (US 62) in the hamlet of Conewango Valley (at the Ca ...

passes through the northeast of the town parallel to

Conewango Creek Conewango Creek is a tributary of the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania and western New York in the United States. The creek's drainage covers much of southeastern Chautauqua County, New York, and western Cattaraugus County, New York. The creek's ...

, a tributary of the

Allegheny River The Allegheny River ( ) is a long headwater stream of the Ohio River in western Pennsylvania and New York. The Allegheny River runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border northwesterly into New York then i ...

Adjacent towns and areas

Ellington is south of the town of Cherry Creek and north of the town of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

. To the west is the town of

. On the east is the town of Conewango in Cattaraugus County.

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 1,639 people, 568 households, and 440 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 44.8 people per square mile (17.3/km²). There were 636 housing units at an average density of 17.4 per square mile (6.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.35%

White White is the lightness, lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

, 0.18%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

, 0.67% Native American, 0.12% Asian, 0.06% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 0.61% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race were 0.61% of the population. There were 568 households, out of which 36.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 66.9% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.5% were non-families. 16.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.88 and the average family size was 3.25. In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.4% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 10.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 102.9 males. The median income for a household in the town was $36,300, and the median income for a family was $41,058. Males had a median income of $28,000 versus $21,842 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the town was $15,790. About 9.3% of families and 12.2% 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 17.1% of those under age 18 and 12.7% of those age 65 or over.

Ellington Town Picnic

Every year on the first Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of August, the town hosts it famous "Ellington Town Picnic". The picnic has activities such as a woodcutting contest, cake contest and auction, pet show contest, baby contest, horseshoe throwing contest, BBQ, square dance and music, and on Saturday at 10:00 PM the town has a brilliant fireworks show near the north east side of the town park on Saturday night of the picnic at 10:00 PM. This picnic has been going year after year except during the World Wars since 1912 to present day making it the oldest small town picnic in America.

Notable people

William Parment William L. Parment (born March 5, 1942) is an American politician from New York (state), New York. Parment was born on March 5, 1942, in Jamestown, New York, and raised in Ellington, New York, Ellington. He is a "sixth generation Chautauqua Coun ...

, former New York State Assemblyman *

Bill Rexford William J. "Bill" Rexford (March 14, 1927 – April 18, 1994) was a stock car driver in the early 1950s. He is best remembered for winning the 1950 NASCAR Grand National Series championship at only 23 years old. Rexford currently holds the distin ...

, 1950

Nascar The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and h ...

Grand National Series The name NASCAR Grand National Series refers to former names of the following NASCAR series: *National-level stock car series: **NASCAR Cup Series (known as NASCAR Grand National Series between 1950 to 1970, then the NASCAR Winston Cup Grand Nation ...

Champion

Communities and locations in Ellington

*Bates – A hamlet in the northwest corner of the town on County Routes 64 and 66. *Clear Creek – A

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depi ...

on the eastern town line, south of Conewango Valley on NY Route 83. *Clear Creek – A

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainag ...

that flows eastward past the community of Clear Creek. It is part of the

watershed. *Conewango Valley – A hamlet on the eastern town line on Route 83 at its junction with

. The post office bearing the "Conewango Valley" name is actually in the town of

Conewango, New York Conewango is a town in Cattaraugus County, New York, United States. The population was 1,794 at the 2020 census. The town is named after a creek which flows through the town. The town is on the west border of the county and is northeast of Jam ...

on the other side of the

line; the Conewango and Conewango Valley post offices had merged in 1964, located in Conewango but keeping the Conewango Valley name. *Ellington – The hamlet of Ellington in the town's center at the junction of County Roads 50 (West Main Street) and 66 (Thornton Road) and US Route 62. *Gates Corners – A location on the north town line. *Kings School Corner – A location by the north town line on Route 83. * Waterboro – A hamlet by the southeast part of the town.

References

External links

Town of Ellington official website
{{authority control Towns in Chautauqua County, New York