Lima (, the name is a

shibboleth A shibboleth ( ; ) is any custom or tradition—usually a choice of phrasing or single word—that distinguishes one group of people from another. Historically, shibboleths have been used as passwords, ways of self-identification, signals of l ...

) 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 Livingston County, New York, United States. The population was 4,154 at the 2020 census. The town is in the northeast part of the county, south of Rochester. The village of Lima is located within the town.

History

The town of Lima was organized in 1789 (before Livingston County was established) as the "Town of Charleston", but was renamed "Lima" in 1808 to reflect that many residents had come from

Old Lyme, Connecticut Old Lyme is a coastal town in New London County, Connecticut, United States, bounded on the west by the Connecticut River, on the south by the Long Island Sound, on the east by the town of East Lyme, and on the north by the town of Lyme. The town ...

, and to avoid confusion with the town of Charleston in

Montgomery County, New York Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 49,532. The county seat is Fonda. The county was named in honor of Richard Montgomery, an American Revolutionary War general killed in 1 ...

. The Genesee Wesleyan Seminary (1830) / Genesee College (1849) in Lima village was one of the first

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

schools in the country when it first opened in 1822. Eventually, determined by a Methodist-Episcopal convention in 1870, the college was shut in favor of the newly developed

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

(1871), over the protests of the residents of Lima. The population of Lima was 1,890 in 1920. The Ganoung Cobblestone Farmhouse, Godfrey House and Barn Complex, Leech-Lloyd Farmhouse and Barn Complex, Leech-Parker Farmhouse, Markham Cobblestone Farmhouse and Barn Complex, Martin Farm Complex, Ogilvie Moses Farmhouse, Zebulon Moses Farm Complex, and Thomas Peck Farmhouse are 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 ...

Geography

Lima is in northeastern Livingston County. The northern town line is the border of Monroe County, and the eastern town boundary is the border of Ontario County. 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 , or 0.17%, are water.

Honeoye Creek Honeoye Creek ( )Honeoye Lake Area Chamber of Commerce
''honeoyelakechamber.org'', accessed March 16, 201 ...

, a north-flowing tributary of the

Genesee River The Genesee River ( ) is a tributary of Lake Ontario flowing northward through the Twin Tiers of Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. The river contains several waterfalls in New York at Letchworth State Park and Roch ...

, defines the eastern town line.

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 ...

(in part, Avon-Lima Road and East Main Street) conjoined with U.S. Route 20 is a major east-west highway. New York State Route 15A, a north-south highway, intersects NY-5/US-20 in Lima village.

Education

Public schools in Lima are in the Honeoye Falls-Lima Central School District and include Honeoye Falls-Lima Senior High School, Honeoye Falls-Lima Middle School, and Manor Intermediate School. The Lima Primary School is in the district. The school mascot is the cougar. As of June 2009, Genesee Community College had started construction for one of its satellite campuses. The campus was expected to be finished and open for the fall 2009 semester. Elim Bible Institute and College is located in Lima village. It is a Christian college that offers a two-year degree and certifications in religious study. Lima Christian School (est. 1974) is a private school representing 15 local districts, grades K-12.

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 4,541 people, 1,553 households, and 1,102 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,610 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.87%

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 ...

, 1.04%

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 ...

, 0.29% Native American, 0.44% Asian, 0.07%

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 ...

, 0.33% from other races, and 0.97% 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 1.26% of the population. There were 1,553 households, out of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.8% 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, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.0% were non-families. 24.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.10. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.8% under the age of 18, 13.2% from 18 to 24, 28.8% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $48,774, and the median income for a family was $57,127. Males had a median income of $40,607 versus $26,316 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 $18,972. About 2.7% of families and 4.5% 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 4.0% of those under age 18 and 6.0% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in the Town of Lima

*Commins Corners – A location in the northeast part of the town. *Idaho – A location in the southeast corner of the town. *

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

– A village on NY-5/US-20. *North Bloomfield – 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 ...

at the east town line in the North-Eastern corner of the town. The North Bloomfield School was added to the

in 1981. * South Lima – A hamlet 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 ...

at the southwest corner of the town.

Notable people

* Emily M. J. Cooley, religious and temperance leader * Kenneth Keating, U.S. senator * Ken O'Dea, Major League Baseball player * James Edward Quigley, former archbishop of Chicago * Henry Jarvis Raymond,

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

, politician, and founder of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. * Andrew Jackson Thayer, U.S. congressman * Joel Dorman Steele, educator and author

References

External links

*
Brief history of Lima
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lima, New York Rochester metropolitan area, New York Towns in Livingston County, New York Towns in New York (state)