Scio 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 Allegany County, New York, United States. The population was 1,625 at the 2020 census. The town is in the southern half of the county and north of the village of Wellsville.

History

The town was first settled in 1805 by Joseph Knight, a minuteman in the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

, from Oneida County. Knights Creek, which flows into the

Genesee River The Genesee River ( ) is a tributary of Lake Ontario flowing northward through the Twin Tiers of Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. The river contains several waterfalls in New York at Letchworth State Park and Roch ...

near Scio, is named for him. The town of Scio was created in 1823 from the town of

Angelica ''Angelica'' is a genus of about 90 species of tall Biennial plant, biennial and Perennial plant, perennial herbaceous, herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as ...

. Some of its territory was later lost during the formation of the towns of Amity (1830), Wellsville (1855), and Willing (1851).

Notable people

*Marine

Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

Jason Dunham, the second recipient of 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 ...

Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...

, was born in Scio. * Burton Millard, member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican ...

, was born in Scio.

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 0.11%, is water. The

flows northward through the town. Knights Creek and Vandermark Creek flow into the river by Scio village. New York State Route 19 is a major north-south highway passing through the town. Scio is located on the mainline of the Western New York and Pennsylvania Railroad.

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 1,914 people, 729 households, and 532 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 894 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 97.39%

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 ...

, .26%

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 ...

, .42% Native American, .26% Asian, .05%

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 ...

, .47% from other races, and 1.15% 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 .37% of the population. There were 729 households, out of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.7% 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, 7.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.9% were non-families. 19.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 2.98. In the town, the population was spread out, with 25.9% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 27.3% from 25 to 44, 23.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $32,679, and the median income for a family was $38,250. Males had a median income of $30,242 versus $20,595 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 $14,472. About 11.5% of families and 14.6% 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 21% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in the Town of Scio

*Knights Creek – 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 9 near the south town line and the name of the stream by which it is located. It is named after early settlers of the town. *Norton Summit – A location north of Petrolia on County Route 18. *Petrolia – A hamlet on County Road 18 near the south town line. *Scio – A hamlet (and census-designated place) at the junction of County Roads 9 (River Street) and 10 (Vandermark Road) and NY Route 19 near the north town line. The Genesee River passes by the hamlet.

References

External links

Town of Scio official website

{{authority control New York (state) populated places on the Genesee River Towns in Allegany County, New York Towns in New York (state) Populated places established in 1823 1823 establishments in New York (state)