Lodi ( ) 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 Seneca County,

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 1,469 at the 2020 census. The Town of Lodi is in the southwest part of the county and is northwest of

Ithaca Ithaca most commonly refers to: *Homer's Ithaca, an island featured in Homer's ''Odyssey'' *Ithaca (island), an island in Greece, possibly Homer's Ithaca *Ithaca, New York, a city, and home of Cornell University and Ithaca College Ithaca, Ithaka ...

. The town contains a

village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...

also named Lodi. Both owe their names to the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

city of Lodi.

History

The area was occupied by members of the

Seneca tribe The Seneca ( ; ) are a group of indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous Iroquoian languages, Iroquoian-speaking people who historically lived south of Lake Ontario, one of the five Great Lakes in North America. Their nation was the farthe ...

until 1779 when the

Sullivan Expedition The 1779 Sullivan Expedition (also known as the Sullivan-Clinton Expedition, the Sullivan Campaign, and the Sullivan-Clinton Campaign) was a United States military campaign under the command of General John Sullivan (general), John Sullivan duri ...

destroyed their villages, including a Seneca orchard at Lodi Point. The town became 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 settler arrived around 1789. In 1799, in the area of Brokaw Road, a group of New Jersey Dutch farmers settled to form a Dutch Reformed community, eventually having two churches. Remnants of one of these churches is the McNeil Cemetery located in the area of Brokaw Road. The New Jersey Dutch settled into the area for several generations and eventually their churches combined with several other churches to form the United Presbyterian Church of Lodi. Descendants of these original Dutchmen reside in the town today. In 1826, Lodi was set apart from the Town of Covert. The town's post office was established in 1820 and originally used the town name "De Mott's Corners" (after the town's postmaster and shopkeeper) before officially changing to "Lodi" in 1829. It initially shared the "Lodi" name with a community in what is now

Collins, New York Collins is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The town is on the south border of the county and is considered to be one of the " Southtowns" of Erie County. The population at the 2010 census was 6,601. History The area was first s ...

(which was known as "West Lodi" to differentiate the two) before that community changed its name to Gowanda. Lodi Point was a popular stop for lake steamboats in the 19th century. The Queen's Castle 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 1999.

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 39.8 square miles (103.1 km²), of which 34.2 square miles (88.6 km²) is land and 5.6 square miles (14.5 km²) (13.76%) is water. The west town line, delineated by Seneca Lake is the border of

Yates County Yates County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 24,774, making it the third-least populous county in New York. The county seat is Penn Yan. The name is in honor of Joseph C. Yates, who as Gov ...

, and the south town line is the border of Schuyler County. The town is in the

Finger Lakes The Finger Lakes are a group of eleven long, narrow, roughly north–south lakes located directly south of Lake Ontario in an area called the ''Finger Lakes region'' in New York (state), New York, in the United States. This region straddles th ...

District of New York. Located on the Eastern shore of Seneca Lake, Lodi is home to award-winning

vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

s and accompanying

wineries A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the cultivation and production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feat ...

New York State Route 96A New York State Route 96A (NY 96A) is a state highway in Seneca County, New York, in the United States. It is a north–south road between Seneca Lake (New York), Seneca Lake and Cayuga Lake, two of the Finger Lakes. NY 96A is two ...

intersects

New York State Route 414 New York State Route 414 (NY 414) is a north–south state highway in the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions of New York (state), New York in the United States. It extends for from an intersection with New York State Route 352, N ...

at the Village of Lodi.

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 1,550 people, 633 households, and 421 families residing in the town. The population density was . The racial makeup of the town was 96.4%

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 ...

, 0.5%

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 ...

, 0.7% Native American, 0.5% 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 ...

, 0.4% from other races, and 1.5% 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 1.3% of the population. There were 633 households, out of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.8% 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, 8.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.5% were non-families. 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.94. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.0% under the age of 20, 4.8% from 20 to 24, 22.2% from 25 to 44, 32.9% from 45 to 64, and 14.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $53,036, and the median income for a family was $55,391. Males had a median income of $45,000 versus $26,492 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 $21,812. About 10.7% of families and 16.6% 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 14.3% of those under age 18 and 12.9% of those age 65 or over.

Housing

There were 981 housing units at an average density of . 35.5% of housing units were vacant. There were 633 occupied housing units in the town. 545 were owner-occupied units (86.1%), while 88 were renter-occupied (13.9%). The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.2% of total units. The rental unit vacancy rate was 9.2%. ''NOTE: It is common for resort communities to have higher than normal vacant house counts. Many are vacation homes which are seasonal and not regularly occupied.''

Communities and locations in the Town of Lodi

*Cat Elbow Corner – A location on the south town line. *Caywood – A hamlet in the southwest part of the town near Lamoreaux Landing. *

Finger Lakes National Forest The Finger Lakes National Forest is a United States National Forest that encompasses of Seneca and Schuyler counties, nestled between Seneca Lake and Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes Region of the State of New York. It has over 30 miles (50 ...

– Part of the Finger Lakes National Forest is located in southern Lodi. *Kelly Corners – A location at the east town line. *Lamoreaux Landing – A lakeside hamlet in the southwest part of the town. * Lodi – The Village of Lodi is in the north part of the town at the junction of NY-96A and NY-414. *Lodi Center – A hamlet south of Lodi village on County Road 137. *Lodi Point – A projection into Seneca Lake. * Lodi Point State Park – A

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "Federated state, state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on accou ...

in the western part of the town line at Lodi Point. *Lodi Station – A location near the north town line on County Road 131. *Mill Creek – An important stream in the town that flows west into Seneca Lake. *Townsendville – A hamlet in the southeast part of the town on County Road 146.

Notable people

Cornelius Cole Cornelius Cole (September 17, 1822 – November 3, 1924) was an American politician who served a single term in the United States House of Representatives as a Republican Party (United States), Republican representing California from 1863 to 1865 ...

, former US Congressman *

George W. Cole George W. Cole (March 26, 1827 – December 9, 1875) was an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War. His wartime commands included the 2nd United States Colored Cavalry Regiment, and he attained the rank of major general by br ...

, major general by brevet in Union Army during

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

John De Mott John De Mott (October 7, 1790 – July 31, 1870) was an American businessman and politician who served one term as a U.S. Representative from New York from 1845 to 1847. Biography Born in Readington Township, New Jersey, De Mott moved to Her ...

, former US Congressman * Thomas S. Flood, former US Congressman * Jehiel H. Halsey, former US Congressman * Nicoll Halsey, former US Congressman *

Silas Halsey Silas Halsey (October 17, 1743 N.S. – November 19, 1832) was a United States representative from New York. Born October 6, 1743 (Old Style) / October 17, 1743 (New Style) in Southampton, he attended the public schools and studied medici ...

, former US Congressman * Stanley Wagner (1927–2010), founder of Wagner Vineyards.Fox, Margalit
"Stanley Wagner, New York Winery Owner, Dies at 83"
''

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 ...

'', June 30, 2010. Accessed July 1, 2010.

References

External links

Town of LodiLodi Historical Society
{{authority control Populated places established in 1789 Towns in Seneca County, New York Towns in New York (state) 1789 establishments in New York (state)