Le Ray 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 ...

Jefferson County, New York Jefferson County is a county on the northern border of the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,721. Its county seat is Watertown. The county is named after Thomas Jefferson, third President of the United S ...

, United States. The population was 25,574 at the 2020 census, up from 21,782 in 2010. The town is named for Jacques-Donatien Le Ray, known as a French "father of the American Revolution". The town is in the central part of the county and is northeast of Watertown.

History

Archaeological remains show the presence of aboriginal natives in the town. The region was part of

Macomb's Purchase Macomb's Purchase is a large historical area of northern New York in the United States purchased from the state in 1791 by Alexander Macomb, a merchant who had become wealthy during the American Revolutionary War. He acted as a land speculator, sel ...

and was acquired by

Gouverneur Morris Gouverneur Morris ( ; January 31, 1752 – November 6, 1816) was an American statesman, a Founding Father of the United States, and a signatory to the Articles of Confederation and the United States Constitution. He wrote the Preamble to the ...

and James Le Ray in 1800. Settlement began around 1802. The town was formed in 1806 from the town of Brownville and included a large portion of northern Jefferson County. Parts of the town were used to create the towns of

Wilna Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

Theresa Teresa (also Theresa, Therese; ) is a feminine given name. It originates in the Iberian Peninsula in late antiquity. Its derivation is uncertain, it may be derived from Classical Greek, Greek θερίζω (''therízō'') "to harvest or rea ...

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

, and

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. Many of the historic settlements of the town were abandoned due to the formation of

Fort Drum Fort Drum is a U.S. Army military reservation and a census-designated place (CDP) in Jefferson County, near the western border of northern New York, United States. The population of the CDP portion of the base was 12,955 at the 2010 census. ...

, which occupies the eastern half of the town. The LeRaysville Archeological District 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 1995.

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 are land and , or 0.49%, are water. The Black River marks the south town border.

U.S. Route 11 U.S. Route 11 or U.S. Highway 11 (US 11) is a major north–south United States Numbered Highway extending across the eastern U.S. The southern terminus of the route is at US 90 in Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refu ...

is a northeast–southwest highway through Le Ray.

New York State Route 3 New York State Route 3 (NY 3) is a major east–west state highway in New York, in the United States, that connects central New York to the North Country region near the Canada–US border via Adirondack Park. The route extends for ...

passes across the southeastern part of Le Ray.

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 ...

is a north–south highway.

New York State Route 37 New York State Route 37 (NY 37) is a state highway in the North Country of New York in the United States, extending for on a west–east axis. The western terminus of the route is at an intersection with U.S. Route 11 (US&nb ...

is a north–south highway in the western part of Le Ray. New York State Route 342 crosses the southern part of the town.

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 19,836 people, 4,998 households, and 4,303 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

was . There were 5,245 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 70.48%

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 ...

, 16.36%

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 ...

, 0.79% Native American, 2.06% Asian, 0.49%

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 ...

, 6.09% from other races, and 3.73% 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 10.94% of the population. There were 4,998 households, out of which 58.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 76.0% 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, 7.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 13.9% were non-families. 10.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.04 and the average family size was 3.28. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.8% under the age of 18, 27.9% from 18 to 24, 34.7% from 25 to 44, 6.8% from 45 to 64, and 2.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females, there were 145.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 167.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $33,359, and the median income for a family was $33,806. Males had a median income of $21,541 versus $21,074 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 $14,140. About 7.8% 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 10.1% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Le Ray

* Black River – A village on the southern town line along the Black River. *

Calcium Calcium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to it ...

– 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 ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

west of Fort Drum. *Doolins Crossing – A location by the eastern corner of the town. *Dutch Settlement – A hamlet in the northern part of the town on County Road 18. * Evans Mills – A village in the center of the town on the western side of Fort Drum, north of US-11. *Five Corners – A location in the southwestern part of Le Ray. *

– Part of the military reservation occupies the eastern half of the town. *Gould Corners – A location southeast of Evans Mills, located on US-11. *Gracey Corners – A location in the southwest of Le Ray. *Hall Corners – A location near the northeastern town line. *Pine Plains – A location near the eastern corner of the town. *Westwood Corners – A location on US-11 near the northeastern town line.

References

External links

Town of Le Ray official website
{{authority control Towns in Jefferson County, New York Towns in New York (state) 1806 establishments in New York (state)