Eaton 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 Madison 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 4,284 at the 2020 census, down from 5,255 in

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

History

The area where Eaton is situated was the principal location of the

Oneida people The Oneida people ( ; wikt:autonym, autonym: Onʌyoteˀa·ká·, Onyota'a:ka, ''the People of the Upright Stone, or standing stone'', ''Thwahrù·nęʼ'' in Tuscarora language, Tuscarora) are a Native Americans in the United States, Native Ameri ...

, a sub-group of 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 ...

who allied themselves with the colonial forces during 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 ...

. Euro-American settlement began around 1792. The town of Eaton was formed in 1807 from the town of

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

. Eaton is named for William Eaton, a Revolutionary officer and commander of the United States military forces in

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis (from , meaning "three cities") may refer to: Places Greece *Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in the Pelasgiotis district, Thessaly, near Larissa ...

Geography

Eaton is in the south-central part of the Madison County.

US Route 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. ...

passes across the northern part of the town, through Morrisville, the largest community in the town. Route 20 leads east to

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States * Madison (footballer), Brazilian footballer Places in the United States Populated places * Madi ...

and west to Cazenovia.

New York State Route 26 New York State Route 26 (NY 26) is a north–south state highway that runs for through Central New York in the United States. Its southern terminus is located at the New York–Pennsylvania border, Pennsylvania state line south ...

crosses the southern portion of the town, passing through the hamlets of Eaton and West Eaton. Route 26 leads east into Madison and southwest to Georgetown. Part of the village of

is in the southeast part of Eaton. Eaton is centered at 42.850 degrees north latitude, 75.612 degrees west longitude. The town contains the geographic center of the state (near Pratts Hollow). The

Chenango River The Chenango River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed August 8, 2011 tributary of the Susquehanna River in central New York in the United States. It drains a dissec ...

, a south-flowing tributary of the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River ( ; Unami language, Lenape: ) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, crossing three lower Northeastern United States, Northeast states (New York, Pennsylvani ...

, rises in the town. The northeast part of town is drained by Blue Creek, a north-flowing tributary of

Oneida Creek Oneida Creek is a small river in New York in the United States. The creek enters the southeastern corner of Oneida Lake at a location known as South Bay, a bay of the lake. The name is derived from the Oneida tribe of the Iroquois. Stockbridge ...

, part of the Oswego River watershed flowing to

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

. According to the

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, 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. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

, the town has a total area of , of which are land and , or 2.07%, are water.

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 4,826 people, 1,358 households, and 935 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,798 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 90.41%

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 ...

, 6.55%

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 ...

, 0.46% Native American, 1.06% Asian, 0.46% from other races, and 1.08% 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 1.99% of the population. There were 1,358 households, out of which 33.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.3% 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, 10.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.1% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.06. In the town, the population was spread out, with 20.0% under the age of 18, 30.7% from 18 to 24, 20.8% from 25 to 44, 17.0% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $36,229, and the median income for a family was $39,643. Males had a median income of $30,417 versus $23,107 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 $14,538. About 6.0% of families and 9.5% 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 12.6% of those under age 18 and 2.1% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and other locations in Eaton

*Davis Corners – A location by the northern town line. *Eagleville – 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 ...

south of Morrisville. *Eaton – The hamlet of Eaton in the southern part of the town on Route 26, south of Morrisville. *Eaton Reservoir – A

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

partly in the southwest part of the town. *Eaton Station – A location northeast of Eaton village. *Gills Corners – A location in the northeastern corner of the town. * Leland Pond – Two ponds separated by a short channel located south of the hamlet of Pine Woods. * Morrisville – Village of Morrisville is the location of Morrisville State College, the Morrisville Equine Center, and the Morrisville Fish Hatchery. Morrisville is in the northwestern part of the town. *Morrisville Station – A hamlet east of Morrisville on Route 20. *Pecksport – A location by the eastern town line. *Pierceville – A hamlet between Eaton village and West Eaton on Route 26. *Pine Woods – A hamlet, associated with the Oneida, located on Route 20. *Pratts – A hamlet in the northeastern part of the town. *Pratts Hollow – The geographic center of New York is in the northeastern part of the town. Pratts Hollow United Methodist Church marks this point. *West Eaton – A hamlet in the southwestern part of the town. *White Corners – A hamlet in the northeastern part of the town. *Williams Corners – A hamlet west of Morrisville.

References

External links