Marcellus 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 6,066. The town was probably named after

Marcus Claudius Marcellus Marcus Claudius Marcellus (; 270 – 208 BC) was a Roman general and politician during the 3rd century BC. Five times elected as Roman consul, consul of the Roman Republic (222, 215, 214, 210, and 208 BC). Marcellus gained the most prestigious a ...

, a Roman general, by a clerk interested in the

Classics Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

. The

Marcellus Formation The Marcellus Formation or the Marcellus Shale is a Middle Devonian age unit of sedimentary rock found in eastern North America. Named for a distinctive outcrop near the village of Marcellus, New York, it extends throughout much of the Appalac ...

is a vast geological layer of shale spanning Pennsylvania, West Virginia and parts of other states and Ontario, which is named for an outcropping in or near Marcellus. The Town of Marcellus 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 Marcellus. The town and village are southwest 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 ...

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 32.7 square miles (84.6 km²), of which 32.5 square miles (84.3 km²) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.3 km²) (0.40%) is water.

US Route 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway that stretches from the Pacific Northwest east to New England. The "0" in its route number indicates that US 20 is a major coast-to-coast route. ...

is an east–west highway through the southern part of the town. New York State Route 175 is an east–west highway and intersects

New York State Route 174 New York State Route 174 (NY 174) is a state highway in Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, located in Central New York, in the United States. The highway is long and passes through mostly rural regions. Route 174 begins ...

at Marcellus village. Marcellus is at the eastern end of 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 and is at the northern end of Otisco Lake. High hills, deep valleys, lake and streams, make the town remarkably scenic. Nine Mile Creek is a noted trout stream where New York State provides several access areas
Marcellus Park
which was once an Onondaga County Park, was taken over by the Town of Marcellus in 1993. The village o
Marcellus
is one of 15 villages in Onondaga County. Baltimore Woods Nature Cente

is nearby.

History

The territory was part of the lands of the Onondaga tribe. Marcellus was a named township in the former

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 ...

. It was first settled by outsiders ''circa'' 1794. The town was formed in 1794; the Town of Geddes was removed in 1798. The township of Camillus was taken off in 1799. Otisco was removed in 1806. In 1830, the western part of the town was used for the new Town of Skaneateles. Marcellus regained territory in 1840 from Spafford and Otisco. The Tefft-Steadman House 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 2007.

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 6,319 people, 2,378 households, and 1,773 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 2,488 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 98.31%

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%

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 ...

, 0.30% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.02%

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 ...

, 0.06% from other races, and 0.68% 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 0.84% of the population. There were 2,378 households, out of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.3% 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, 8.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.4% were non-families. 22.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.14. In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.2% under the age of 18, 6.0% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 13.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.7 males. The median income for a household in the town was $51,881, and the median income for a family was $58,188. Males had a median income of $40,541 versus $32,234 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 $25,628. About 2.5% of families and 3.2% 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 3.9% of those under age 18 and 0.5% of those age 65 or over.

Communities in the Town of Marcellus

* Clintonville – A hamlet in the southwestern part of the town on US-20. * Marcellus – The Village of Marcellus is at the junction of NY-174 and NY-175. * Marcellus Falls – 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 ...

north of Marcellus village on NY-174, located at the northern town line. * Marietta – A hamlet north of Otisco Lake on NY-174. * Pumpkin Hollow – A valley at the eastern town line. * Rose Hill – A hamlet west of Marietta. * Shamrock A hamlet near the western town line, west of Marietta. * Thorn Hill – A hamlet southwest of Marietta by the southern town line. * Sage Meadows- A hamlet near the northeastern town line.

References

External links

Weekly Newspaper

Marcellus Town & Village Web Site

USGenWeb Page: ''Marcellus, Onondaga County, New York''
{{authority control Syracuse metropolitan area Towns in Onondaga County, New York Towns in New York (state)