Randolph 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 ...

Cattaraugus County Cattaraugus County (locally known as Catt County) is a county in Western New York, with one side bordering Pennsylvania. As of the United States 2020 census, the population was 77,042. The county seat is Little Valley. The county was created ...

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 2,470 at the 2020 census. The town was named after

Randolph Randolph may refer to: Places In the United States * Randolph, Alabama, an unincorporated community * Randolph, Arizona, a populated place * Randolph, California, a village merged into the city of Brea * Randolph, Illinois, an unincorporated com ...

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

. The town of Randolph contains a former village called

. The town also contains most of the former village of East Randolph, the rest of which is located in the town of Conewango. Randolph is on the west border of the county, roughly halfway between the cities of

Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...

and Jamestown.

History

The town of Randolph sits on the vast tracts of land which were originally owned by the

Holland Land Company The Holland Land Company was an unincorporated syndicate of thirteen Dutch investors from Amsterdam,Kirby, C.D. (1976). ''The Early History of Gowanda and The Beautiful Land of the Cattaraugus''. Gowanda, NY: Niagara Frontier Publishing Company ...

. The region was first settled around 1820. The first settler was Edmund Fuller, who arrived from Oneida County in 1820 and built a log cabin. The town of Randolph was formed in 1826 from part of the town of Conewango. On March 7, 1826, citizens assembled for their first annual meeting to select the town supervisor and other officials. In 1847, the town was divided to form the town of South Valley. In 1867, the village of Randolph was incorporated. The village of East Randolph was incorporated in 1881. In 2010, the citizens of both villages voted to dissolve the incorporation, and they reverted to being hamlets within the town, with part of East Randolph becoming once again part of the town of Conewango, effective 2011.

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 0.61%, is water. Randolph is located on the west border of the county, next to Chautauqua County. The

Southern Tier Expressway New York State Route 17 (NY 17) is a major state highway that extends for through the Southern Tier and Downstate regions of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in Mina and runs east as a limite ...

( Interstate 86 and

New York State Route 17 New York State Route 17 (NY 17) is a major state highway that extends for through the Southern Tier and Downstate New York, Downstate regions of New York (state), New York in the United States. It begins at the New York–Pennsylvani ...

) crosses the town, with access from Exits 15 and 16.

New York State Route 241 New York State Route 241 (NY 241) is a north–south state highway in Cattaraugus County, New York, in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with New York State Route 394, NY 394 in the Randol ...

is a highway in the northeast part of the town, and

New York State Route 394 New York State Route 394 (NY 394) is a state highway located within Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties in southwestern New York in the United States. Its western terminus is located on the shore of Lake Erie at an intersection with ...

is an east-west highway in the northern part of the town. Randolph was on the mainline of the

Erie Railroad The Erie Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Northeastern United States, originally connecting Pavonia Terminal in Jersey City, New Jersey, with Lake Erie at Dunkirk, New York. The railroad expanded west to Chicago following its 1865 ...

, which later became the

Erie Lackawanna Railway The Erie Lackawanna Railway , known as the Erie Lackawanna Railroad until 1968, was formed from the 1960 merger of the Erie Railroad and the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad. The official motto of the line was "The Friendly Service Route ...

and

Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busine ...

. The

train station A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing suc ...

was located between Main Street and Washington Street and serviced both passengers and freight.

Adjacent towns and areas

The west border of the town is next to the town of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

in Chautauqua County. To the south is the town of South Valley. The town of Conewango is to the north, and the town of Coldspring is to the east.

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 2,681 people, 1,007 households, and 702 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,122 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.24%

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 ...

, 0.90%

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 ...

, 0.48% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.04%

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 ...

, 0.15% from other races, and 0.93% 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 0.60% of the population. There were 1,007 households, out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.6% 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, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% were non-families. 25.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.04. In the town, the population was spread out, with 28.3% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.7 males. The median income for a household in the town was $34,485, and the median income for a family was $39,570. Males had a median income of $30,888 versus $20,586 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 $15,860. About 4.2% of families and 6.6% 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 6.8% of those under age 18 and 4.7% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in the Town of Randolph

*Battle Creek – A stream flowing through the center of the town. *Bowen – 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 ...

on County Road 8 in the central part of the town. *Carr Corners – A hamlet in the southeast corner of the town. * East Randolph – The hamlet of East Randolph is partly in the town. *Little Conewango Creek – A stream in the northeast part of the town. *

– The hamlet of Randolph, the first place settled, is in the northeast corner of the town at a junction of NY Routes 394 and 241. *Vollentine – A hamlet in the southwest part of the town, south of Bowen.

References

External links

Town of Randolph official website

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