Geddes 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 ...

Onondaga County Onondaga County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 476,516. The county seat is Syracuse. The county is part of the Central New York region of the state. Onondaga County is the core of the ...

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. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 17,088. The Town of Geddes is west of the neighborhood of Far Westside of

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

. The town is a western

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area. They are oftentimes where most of a metropolitan areas jobs are located with some being predominantly residential. They can either be denser or less densely populated ...

of Syracuse.

History

The town was formed from the Town of Salina in 1848. It is named after James Geddes, a prominent early settler who settled at the head of Onondaga Lake in 1794 and developed the salt industry. There also was an Old Geddes Village which included part of the west side of

and Tipperary Hill, the village square being located near St. Mark's Circle. The village of Geddes (incorporated in 1832 and 1837) was annexed to the City of Syracuse on May 20, 1886, with a population of nearly 7,000. Today the town of Geddes still includes the Village of Solvay, which operates independently, and the hamlets of Westvale and Lakeland. Geddes is the youngest town in

Background

Geddes was formed from Salina on March 18, 1848. It lies upon the western bank of

Onondaga Lake Onondaga Lake is located in Central New York, immediately northwest of and adjacent to Syracuse, New York. The southeastern end of the lake and the southwestern shore are industrial areas and expressways; the northeastern shore and northwestern ...

with level surface in the north and rolling hills in the south. In the southwest of the town, are several isolated, rounded drift hills (or knolls). The Seneca River forms the north border and

Onondaga Creek Onondaga Creek is a major tributary of Onondaga Lake which is located in Onondaga County, New York Onondaga County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, ...

formed part of the eastern boundary. Nine Mile Creek flows east through the center of town. The soil is

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impuriti ...

and

sandy loam Loam (in geology and soil science) is soil composed mostly of sand (particle size > ), silt (particle size > ), and a smaller amount of clay (particle size < ). By weight, its mineral composition is about 40–40–20% concentration of sand–si ...

. In 1859, the town contained two churches, both

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

, an

Episcopalian Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protes ...

and

Methodist Episcopal The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself nationally. In 1939, th ...

ian.

Early industry

By 1859, several salt wells were located near the southwest extremity of the lake. The S.B.& N.Y.R.R. coal depot was situated on the

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, ...

. In the southeast section of town, there were extensive stone quarries. There was also a brewery and distillery, and a large number of salt works within the town limits. The population was 950. In 1841, W. H. Farrar, who had recently arrived from

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

, started a small pottery business in the town of Geddes, New York called Farrar Pottery. During 1868, Farrer sold the business to what later became the Empire Crockery Manufacturing Company. On July 20, 1871, several local businessmen purchased the struggling local pottery, capitalized the company for $50,000, and expanded its lines to produce ceramic material for table and toilet use. At that time, the name changed to Onondaga Pottery Company (O.P.Co.). The company name was officially changed to Syracuse China in 1966. They specialized in the manufacture of fine china and commercial ware. During 1874, Ashton Salt Mill was operating in the town of Geddes, on the western edge of the city and Saginaw Salt Works was located southwest of the city in the

town of Onondaga 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 ...

. That same year, several other salt producers were operating within the city limits including; G. A. Porter & Company, Haskin's Salt Mill and J. W. Barker & Company. In 1878, Geddes was the home of Western Coarse Salt Company, Turk's Island Coarse Salt Company, Geddes Coarse Salt Company, Union Coarse Salt Company, Cape Cod Coarse Salt Company, W. & D. Kirkpatrick of No. 7 Wieting Block, Draper & Porter, W. B. Boyd, Mrs. S. O. Ely and J. F. Paige. The Onondaga Coarse Salt Association were manufacturers of coarse or solar salt including; dairy, table, common, fine and fertilizing salts. Thomas K. Gale was president, W. H. H. Gere was vice-president and Lewis A. Hawley was recording secretary. By 1879, there were several manufacturers in the town including Onondaga Iron Works and Sterling Iron Ore Company both operated by J. J. Belden, president. W. H. H. Gere and A. J. Belden were secretary and treasurer of the companies.

Institutions

The New York State Asylum for Idiots was located in the eastern section of town, near the original border with

on Geddes Street. The facility was located on Wilbur Avenue on the southeast border of Tipperary Hill. The site selected was about a mile southwest of Syracuse, in the town of Geddes, and was "one of the finest that could have been found in the

State of New York New York, also called New York State, is a state in the northeastern United States. Bordered by New England to the east, Canada to the north, and Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the south, its territory extends into both the Atlantic Ocean and ...

." The building was constructed of brick, "plain but substantial, and admirably fitted for the purpose for which it is designed." The institution was located upon the eastern slope of the range of hills in the western part of the city and about miles south of the head of

. The asylum grounds covered an area of about sixty-five acres, immediately adjacent to Burnet Park, the most of which was high land, overlooking the city and lake. The principal group of buildings, which were clustered around the original structure, facing the western extremity of Seymour Street, accommodated about 450 individuals.

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 (24.28%) is water. Geddes is on the western shore of

. Interstate 690 intersects both New York State Route 695 and

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain states, Mountain West, Great Pla ...

(

New York State Thruway The New York State Thruway (officially the Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway and colloquially "the Thruway") is a system of controlled-access toll roads spanning within the U.S. state of New York. It is operated by the New York State Thruway ...

) in Geddes.

New York State Route 5 New York State Route 5 (NY 5) is a state highway that extends for across the state of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in the Chautauqua County town of Ripley and passes through Buffalo, Sy ...

, West Genesee Street, is an east–west highway in the town. New York State Route 297 is a short north–south highway.

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 17,740 people, 7,262 households, and 4,807 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 7,620 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.06%

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 ...

, 0.48%

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 ...

, 0.57% Native American, 0.55% Asian, 0.03%

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 ...

, 0.17% from other races, and 1.12% 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 1.51% of the population. There were 7,262 households, out of which 29.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.7% 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, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.8% were non-families. 29.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 2.97. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.3% under the age of 18, 6.4% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 23.1% from 45 to 64, and 21.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $41,852, and the median income for a family was $51,609. Males had a median income of $40,688 versus $26,575 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 $20,986. About 6.7% of families and 8.2% 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 12.9% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Geddes

* Lakeland – A hamlet in the northwestern part of Geddes. * Lakeside – A location north of Lakeland. * Lindbergh Lawns – A location in the northern part of the town. * Solvay – The Village of Solvay is in the southeastern part of Geddes. * Westvale – A hamlet south of Solvay.

Notable people

* Ellen Mitchell (1838–1920), philosopher

References

External links

Town of Geddes, NY

Geddes history/genalogy

Solvay-Geddes Historical Society
{{authority control Syracuse metropolitan area Towns in Onondaga County, New York Towns in New York (state)