Ira 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 ...

Cayuga County Cayuga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 76,248. Its county seat and largest city is Auburn. The county was named for the Cayuga people, one of the Native American tribes in the Iroq ...

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 2,145 at the 2020 census. The town is in the northern part of the county and is northwest 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 ...

History

Ira was part of the

Central New York Military Tract The Military Tract of Central New York, also called the New Military Tract, consisted of nearly of bounty land set aside in Central New York to compensate New York's soldiers after their participation in the Revolutionary War. Establishment ...

. The first settlers arrived ''circa'' 1800. The town was founded in 1821 from part of the town of Cato. Part of Ira was returned to Cato in 1824.

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 , or 0.30%, is water. Many

drumlin A drumlin, from the Irish word ("little ridge"), first recorded in 1833, in the classical sense is an elongated hill in the shape of an inverted spoon or half-buried egg formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated till or groun ...

s, relics of the

Ice Age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...

, are scattered about the town. The northern town line and part of the eastern town boundary are the border of

Oswego County Oswego County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 117,525. The county seat is Oswego. The county name is from a Mohawk-language word meaning "the pouring out place", referring t ...

, and the remainder of the east town line is the border of

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 State Route 34 New York State Route 34 (NY 34) is a north–south List of State Routes in New York, New York state route located in Central New York. Its southern terminus is at the New York–Pennsylvania border, Pennsylvania state line in th ...

and

New York State Route 176 New York State Route 176 (NY 176) is a north–south state highway located in the central part of New York (state), New York, in the United States, that connects Cayuga County, New York, Cayuga County with Oswego County, New York, ...

are north–south highways in Ira.

New York State Route 370 New York State Route 370 (NY 370) is an east–west state highway in Central New York in the United States. It extends for about from an intersection with NY 104 and NY 104A south of the Wayne County village of Red Creek ...

is an east–west highway along the south town line.

Demographics

File:Ira, NY, USA - panoramio (2).jpg File:Ira, NY, USA - panoramio (4).jpg File:Ira, NY, USA - panoramio (5).jpg 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 2,426 people, 822 households, and 669 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 867 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.03%

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 ...

, 0.41%

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 ...

, 0.70% Native American, 0.04% Asian, 0.04%

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 ...

, and 1.77% 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 1.03% of the population. There were 822 households, out of which 41.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.5% 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, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.5% were non-families. 14.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.20. In the town, the population was spread out, with 30.6% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 100.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $46,027, and the median income for a family was $48,750. Males had a median income of $35,472 versus $25,134 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 $16,954. About 3.4% of families and 7.0% 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 9.0% of those under age 18 and 5.3% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Ira

*Beaver Meadows – A swampy area south of Benton Corners. *Benton Corners – A location east of Ira village on NY-176. *Bethel Corners (also called "Bethel") – 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 ...

near the northern town line on NY-34. * Cato – The village of Cato is on the southern town boundary, partly in the town of Cato. *Floridaville – A hamlet at the eastern town line. *Fox's Corners – A former location west of Ira village. *Ira (formerly "Ira Center") – The hamlet of Ira is near the center of the town. It was settled ''circa'' 1805. *Ira Corners (formerly "Ira Station") – a location on the western town line, west of Ira. *

Meridian Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to Science * Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon * ...

– The village of Meridian is by the southern town line in the town of Cato. *Mud Pond – A small lake in the southwestern part of Ira.

References

External links

*
History of Ira, New York
{{authority control Towns in Cayuga County, New York Towns in New York (state)