Portland 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 Chautauqua 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 4,366 according to the 2020 census. The town is on the shore of

Lake Erie Lake Erie ( ) is the fourth-largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and also has the shortest avera ...

southwest of

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

History

The area was first settled in 1804. The town of Portland was founded in 1813 from the town of

Chautauqua Chautauqua ( ) is an adult education and social movement in the United States that peaked in popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Chautauqua assemblies expanded and spread throughout rural America until the mid-1920s. The Cha ...

. Subsequently, the town was reduced in size to form two new towns: Ripley (1816) and Westfield (1829). Portland was the site of an 1872 fatal train wreck. A genealogical history of Portland was published in 1873 by Dr. H. C. Taylor, titled ''Historical Sketches of the Town of Portland, New York''. An all names index was created for this book by Agnes Lee Mitchell in 1989 and published by the Chautauqua County Genealogical Society.

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 , or 0.19%, is water. The

New York State Thruway The New York State Thruway (officially the Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway and colloquially "the Thruway") is a system of controlled-access toll roads spanning within the U.S. state of New York. It is operated by the New York State Thruway ...

(

Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain states, Mountain West, Great Pla ...

) and

US 20 U.S. Route 20 or U.S. Highway 20 (US 20) is an east–west United States Highway, 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 ...

cross the northern part of the town.

NY 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 ...

parallels the shore of

Communities and locations in Portland

* Brocton – The village of Brocton is located in the eastern part of the town. Nearby is Lakeview Shock Incarceration Correctional Facility. *Greencrest – A lakeside hamlet on the Lake Erie shore in the northeast part of the town. *Green Hills – A hamlet on the shore of Lake Erie. * Lake Erie State Park – A lakeside park in the northeast part of the town. *Portland – The town government is located in this hamlet, located on Route 20 west of Brocton. *Skinner Switch – A location west of Portland. *Van Buren Point – A hamlet on the Lake Erie shore in the northeast part of the town, east of Greencrest. *Vineyard – A hamlet northwest of Brocton. *West Portland – A hamlet on Route 20 near the west town line.

Demographics

The Lakeview Shock Incarceration Correctional Facility is within Portland, and their residents are therefore counted in the following 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 5,502 people, 1,655 households, and 1,161 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 2,096 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 82.93%

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 ...

, 12.05%

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 ...

, 0.49% Native American, 0.02% 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 ...

, 3.51% from other races, and 0.98% 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 8.62% of the population. There were 1,655 households, out of which 33.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% 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, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.8% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.57 and the average family size was 3.08. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.2% under the age of 18, 16.2% from 18 to 24, 32.3% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 140.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 148.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $30,909, and the median income for a family was $37,006. Males had a median income of $27,464 versus $21,636 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 $12,881. About 8.9% of families and 11.2% 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 15.9% of those under age 18 and 6.7% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* David B. Hulburt, Wisconsin state legislator, surveyor, and farmer, was born in Portland.'Wisconsin Blue Book 1905,' Biographical Sketch of David B. Hulburt, pg. 1117 * Darren Manzella, United States Army sergeant, Army medic, and gay activist, lived in Portland.

References

External links

Town of Portland official website

{{authority control Towns in Chautauqua County, New York Towns in New York (state)