Norway 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 ...

Herkimer County, New York Herkimer County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 60,139. Its county seat is Herkimer (village), New York, Herkimer. The co ...

, United States. The population was 762 at the 2010 census. The town is located in the central part of the county and is northeast of Utica. The town borders the

Adirondack Park The Adirondack Park is a park in northeastern New York (state), New York protecting the Adirondack Mountains. The park was established in 1892 for "the free use of all the people for their health and pleasure", and for watershed protection. At , ...

History

The town was permanently settled around 1787 after an abandoned effort in 1786. Norway was formed in 1792 from the town of

Herkimer Herkimer may refer to: People: * Johan Jost Herkimer (1732–1795), United Empire Loyalist, brother of Nicholas Herkimer * John Herkimer (1773–1848), American lawyer and politician from New York * Lawrence Herkimer (1925–2015), American innov ...

immediately after the creation of Herkimer County. Norway was originally a very large town, and it was subsequently broken up, directly or indirectly, into about 36 new towns in several bordering counties. In Herkimer County, the towns of Fairfield (1796),

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

(1806),

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

(1823), Wilmurt (now defunct), and

Webb Webb may refer to: Places Antarctica *Webb Glacier (South Georgia) *Webb Glacier (Victoria Land) * Webb Névé, Victoria Land, the névé at the head of Seafarer Glacier * Webb Nunataks, a group of nunataks in the Neptune Range * Webb Peak (disa ...

(1836) were made by dividing Norway. Part of Newport was taken from Norway in 1806. The creation of Oneida County, Lewis County,

Clinton County Clinton County may refer to: *Counties named for George Clinton, first and third Governor of New York, and later the fourth Vice President of the United States: **Clinton County, New York ** Clinton County, Ohio *Counties named for DeWitt Clinton, ...

, Hamilton County, and St. Lawrence County from Herkimer County accounts for the remaining towns derived from Norway. In 1825, the town's population was 1,168. Because of poor soil conditions, early farmers eventually turned to raising dairy herds. By 1887, there were six cheese factories in Norway. The former Baptist Church was added to 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.

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 0.76%, are water.

New York State Route 8 New York State Route 8 (NY 8) is a north-south state highway in the central part of New York (state), New York in the United States. It runs in a southwest-to-northeast direction from the Southern Tier to the northern part of Lake ...

crosses the northwestern part of Norway.

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 711 people, 247 households, and 185 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 311 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 99.02%

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 ...

, 0.14% Asian, and 0.84% 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 0.42% of the population. There were 247 households, out of which 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.5% 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, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.1% were non-families. 19.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.88 and the average family size was 3.21. In the town, the population was spread out, with 27.6% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 27.7% from 45 to 64, and 7.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 116.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 116.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $36,719, and the median income for a family was $41,250. Males had a median income of $29,375 versus $23,846 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 $15,396. About 6.3% of families and 10.1% 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 17.3% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* David Legge Brainard, United States Army officer and explorer * Charles S. Millington, politician * Archibald Nichols, politician * George R. Vincent, politician

Communities and locations in Norway

*Black Creek Reservoir – A

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

in the northern part of the town. * Dairy Hill – An elevation in the southeastern part of the town. *Gray – 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 County Road 48. *Hurricane – A hamlet in the northwestern part of the town on NY-8. * Norway (hamlet) – The hamlet of Norway is near the center of the town.

References

External links

Town of Norway official website

Herkimer County Historical Society
{{authority control Utica–Rome metropolitan area Norwegian-American culture in New York (state) Towns in Herkimer County, New York Towns in New York (state) Populated places established in 1787 1787 establishments in New York (state)