Galen 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 Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 4,290 at the 2010 census. The town is named after the classical physician

Galen Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus (; September 129 – AD), often Anglicization, anglicized as Galen () or Galen of Pergamon, was a Ancient Rome, Roman and Greeks, Greek physician, surgeon, and Philosophy, philosopher. Considered to be one o ...

. The Town of Galen is on the south border of the county and west of Syracuse, New York. The primary postal district covering the Town of Galen is ZIP Code 14433 for Clyde.United States Postal Service (Clyde, New York Post Office)
Retrieved June 7, 2015.

History

Before the French and Indian War, there was a French block house and trading post near Clyde. The town was first settled around 1800 near Marengo. The town was part of a tract set aside for physicians and surgeons of the Colonial Army as part of the Central New York Military Tract used to pay soldiers 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 ...

. Galen was formed from the Town of Junius in Seneca County in 1812 and became part of Wayne County in 1823, but lost part of its area to form the Town of Savannah in 1824. The glass industry was important during the early history of Galen. Remnants of the former Enlarged

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, ...

Lock 53 (also called the Clyde Lock) are located near the corner of N.Y. Route 31 and Old Route 31, just west of the Village of Clyde. It was built in 1841 as a single-chamber lock, but doubled in 1874. The lock had a lift of 4.63 feet (1.41 m) to the west. It currently sits on private property.The Erie Canal (Lock 53 - Clyde Lock)
Retrieved January 21, 2015.The Travels of Tug 44 (Erie Canal Lock 53)
Retrieved January 21, 2015. The town is part of the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor.National Park Service - Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Brochure, New York
Retrieved January 21, 2015. Erie Canal Lock 26 is located at the end of Lock Road, off Tyre Road (CR 372) southeast of Clyde. It was built around 1912, and has a lift of 6 feet (1.83 m) to the west.NY Canals (Index of Locks)
, Retrieved January 30, 2015.

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 (1.00%) is water. The

passes through the town, incorporating part of the Clyde River. During renovations of the canal, the route was altered, leaving behind remnants of the original Erie Canal. The southern border of the town also constitutes part of the border between Wayne County and Seneca County (Town of Junius).

New York State Route 31 New York State Route 31 (NY 31) is a state highway that extends for across western and central New York (state), New York in the United States. The western terminus of the route is at an intersection with New York State Route 104, NY ...

is an east–west highway near the Erie Canal, and it intersects New York State Route 414 in the village of Clyde.

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 2010, there were 4,290 people, 1,610 households, and 1,117 families residing in the town. The population density was . The racial makeup of the town was 92.8%

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 ...

, 3.2%

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 ...

, 0.2% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.0%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.5% from other races, and 3.1% 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 3.2% of the population. There were 1,610 households, out of which 29.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.7% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were non-families. 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.13. In the town, the population was spread out, with 29.3% under the age of 20, 5.5% from 20 to 24, 22.5% from 25 to 44, 29.0% from 45 to 64, and 13.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $49,028, and the median income for a family was $54,528. Males had a median income of $38,682 versus $33,984 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 $21,692. About 6.4% of families and 9.1% 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 13.5% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.

Housing

There were 1,811 housing units at an average density of ; a total of 11.1% of housing units were vacant. There were 1,610 occupied housing units in the town, of which 1,255 were owner-occupied units (78.0%), while 355 were renter-occupied (22.0%). The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% of total units. The rental unit vacancy rate was 10.8%.

Communities and locations in the Town of Galen

*Angells Corners — A hamlet in the south part of the town on NY-414. * Clyde — The Village of Clyde at the Erie Canal and NY-31. *Fergusons Corners — A location in the northwest part of the town on County Road 247. *Hunts Corners — A location in the northeast corner of the town on County Road 269. * Lock Berlin — A hamlet in the west part of the town on County Road 245 by the route of the Old Erie Canal. *Lockpit — A location in the southeast part of the town by the old route of the Erie Canal. It was originally known as "Meadville." * Marengo — A hamlet in the southwest part of the town, west of Angells Corners. *Noble Corner — A hamlet on the east town line. *Pangborn Corners — A location east of Hung Corner at the east town line. *Shephards Corner — A hamlet northeast of Clyde on County Road 269. *White Schoolhouse Corners — A location near Shephards Corner at the intersection of NY-414 and County Road 249.

References

External links

Historical links for the Town of Galen

{{authority control Rochester metropolitan area, New York Towns in Wayne County, New York Towns in New York (state) 1812 establishments in New York (state)