Nelson 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 1,890 at the 2020 census. The town was named after

Horatio Nelson Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte ( – 21 October 1805) was a Royal Navy officer whose leadership, grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics brought about a number of decisive British naval victories during the French ...

, the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

naval hero.

History

The town was formed in 1807 from the town of Cazenovia, the year after Madison County was established. The Nelson Welsh Congregational Church 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 1993.

Geography

Nelson is southwest of the geographic center of 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 town, leading east to Morrisville and west to Cazenovia. 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 is land and , or 2.26%, is water. Tuscarora Lake is in the south-central part of the town, draining northwest toward

Chittenango Creek Chittenango Creek is a small river in central New York, United States. The creek partially forms the boundary between Onondaga County and Madison County. The Chittenango Creek watershed comprises about of drainage in Onondaga and Madison cou ...

, a north-flowing stream that leads to

Oneida Lake Oneida Lake is the largest lake entirely within New York state, with a surface area of . The lake is located northeast of Syracuse and near the Great Lakes. It feeds the Oneida River, a tributary of the Oswego River (New York), Oswego River, which ...

, part of the

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 ...

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 ...

watershed.

Eaton Reservoir Eaton Reservoir also called Eaton Brook Reservoir is a man-made lake located by Erieville, New York. Fish species present in the lake include pumpkinseed sunfish, walleye, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, bluegill, pickerel, rock bass, rainbow trou ...

is in the eastern part of the town, draining into Eaton Creek, a tributary of 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 ...

that leads to 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 ...

and ultimately to

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...

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 1,964 people, 731 households, and 549 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,020 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.27%

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 ...

, 0.20%

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 ...

, 0.10% Native American, 0.56% from other races, and 0.87% 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 1.22% of the population. There were 731 households, out of which 38.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 64.6% 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, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.8% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.07. In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.3% under the age of 18, 5.6% from 18 to 24, 29.0% from 25 to 44, 27.5% from 45 to 64, and 9.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 103.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $49,022, and the median income for a family was $55,458. Males had a median income of $37,083 versus $24,653 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 $21,378. About 2.8% of families and 5.1% 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 4.9% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Nelson

*Bucks Corner – A location in the northeastern part of the town. *

– Most of the

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 ...

is in the town of Nelson by the eastern town line. *Erieville – 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 ...

in the southern part of the town, south of Tuscarora Lake. *Hughs Corner – A location in the northeastern corner of the town. *Nelson – The hamlet of Nelson is on Route 20 in the northwestern part of the town. It was formerly called "Nelson Flats" and "Skunk Hollow." *Pughs Corner – A location east of Nelson village. * Stoney Pond – A pond located north of Eaton Reservoir. * Tuscarora Lake – A

lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

in the southern part of the town.

Notable people

* Henry Dexter, sculptor; born in Nelson * Beezie Madden, Olympic equestrian

References

External links

*
Erieville-Nelson Heritage Society's collection on New York Heritage Digital Collections

Erieville Community
{{authority control Syracuse metropolitan area Towns in Madison County, New York Towns in New York (state)