Oswego 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 ...

Oswego County Oswego County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 117,525. The county seat is Oswego. The county name is from a Mohawk-language word meaning "the pouring out place", referring t ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

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 * ...

. The population was 7,984 at the 2010 census. The Town of Oswego is immediately west of the City of Oswego, with which it has a common border. The town is in the western part of Oswego County. The

State University of New York at Oswego State University of New York at Oswego (SUNY Oswego or Oswego State) is a public university in Oswego, New York. It has a total student population of 6,756 and the campus size is 700 acres. SUNY Oswego offers more than 120 undergraduate, graduate ...

is in the northeast part of the town, next to the City of Oswego. It’s the birthplace of Mary Edwards Walker, the only woman to win the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

History

The town was first settled ''circa'' 1797. The Town of Oswego was established in 1818 from the Town of Hannibal and is on the western border of the county. Part of the town was annexed by the Town of Granby in 1836. The incorporation of the "Village of Oswego" as the City of Oswego in 1848 removed a portion of the town. Later, the formation of the Town of Minetto reduced Oswego further.

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 is land and (6.54%) is water.

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

and the Oswego River help define the town's borders. The western town line is the border of

Cayuga County Cayuga County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 76,248. Its county seat and largest city is Auburn. The county was named for the Cayuga people, one of the Native American tribes in the Iroq ...

. The eastern junction of

New York State Route 104 New York State Route 104 (NY 104) is a east–west state highway in Upstate New York in the United States. It spans six counties and enters the vicinity of four cities—Niagara Falls, Lockport, Rochester, and Oswego—as it foll ...

and

New York State Route 104A New York State Route 104A (NY 104A) is a northeast–southwest (signed as north–south) state highway in the central portion of New York in the United States. It serves as a northerly alternate route of NY 104, to which it conn ...

are in the town at Southwest Oswego.

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 7,287 people, 1,734 households, and 1,255 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,904 housing units at an average density of 26.8 persons/km² (69.4 persons/sq mi). The racial makeup of the town was 94.00% White, 2.46%

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 ...

, 0.14% Native American, 1.25%

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

n, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.15% from other races, and 0.97% from two or more races. 2.00% of the population were

Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While many use the terms interchangeably, for example, the United States Census Bureau ...

of any race. There were 1,734 households, out of which 35.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.9% 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, 7.4% have a woman whose husband does not live with her, and 27.6% were non-families. 21.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.09. In the town, the population was spread out, with 16.4% under the age of 18, 41.9% from 18 to 24, 18.1% from 25 to 44, 16.8% from 45 to 64, and 6.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.3 males. The median income for a household in the town was $49,883, and the median income for a family was $61,648. Males had a median income of $47,051 versus $25,833 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 $14,835. 7.8% of the population and 4.9% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 6.6% are under the age of 18 and 10.6% are 65 or older.

Communities and locations in the town of Oswego

*Burts Point – A location west of Oswego Beach and a projection into Lake Ontario. *Camp Hollis – A location near Lake Ontario, north of Southwest Oswego. * Fruit Valley – A hamlet on Route 104, west of the City of Oswego. It is sometimes known as "Union Village." Fruit Valley is one of the oldest communities in the town. *Furniss – A hamlet south of Oswego Center. *Oswego Beach – A lakeside hamlet on the shore of Lake Ontario near the City of Oswego. *Oswego Center – A hamlet near the center of the town. *Southwest Oswego – A hamlet in the northwestern corner of the town on Route 104.

Education

Most of the town is in the Oswego City School District while portions of the town are in the Hannibal Central School District and the Fulton City School District. The majority of the

is in the town. The SUNY Oswego

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 ...

takes up much of that property.

References

External links

Town of Oswego, New York

SUNY Oswego
{{authority control Syracuse metropolitan area Towns in Oswego County, New York Towns in New York (state)