| Official Name: | Elmira |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Motto: | "A Great Place to Live" |
| Pushpin Map: | New York |
| Pushpin Label: | Elmira (town) |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location within the state of New York |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | New York |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Chemung |
| Government Type: | Town Council |
| Leader Title: | Town Supervisor |
| Leader Name: | David P. Sullivan |
| Leader Title1: | Town Council |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 58.37 |
| Area Land Km2: | 57.52 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.85 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 22.54 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 22.21 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.33 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Total: | 6872 |
| Population Density Km2: | 116.32 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 301.27 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation M: | 359 |
| Elevation Ft: | 1178 |
| Coordinates: | 42.0917°N -76.8339°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP codes |
| Postal Code: | 14900-14999 |
| Area Code: | 607 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 36-24240 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 0978939 |
| Pop Est As Of: | 2021 |
| Population Est: | 6740 |
Elmira is a town in Chemung County, New York, United States. It surrounds the city of Elmira on three sides. The town's population was 6,872 at the 2020 census.[2] The town is in the south-central part of the county, in the Southern Tier of New York. It is part of the Elmira Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The Sullivan Expedition of 1779 passed through the area and fought the British at the Battle of Newtown in the southern part of the current town.
The town of Elmira was formed from the town of Chemung in 1792 as the town of Newtown. In 1808, the town changed its name to Elmira.
In 1798, the town of Catharine was formed from Elmira. (It is now in Schuyler County.) Other towns formed from the town of Elmira are Big Flats (1822), Southport (1822), and Catlin (1823).
The main settlement of Elmira set itself off from the town in 1828, becoming the Village of Elmira. The village, absorbing more of the town over the years, became the City of Elmira in 1864.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 58.4sqkm, of which 57.5sqkm is land and 0.9sqkm, or 1.46%, is water.[3] The Chemung River, a tributary of the Susquehanna River, forms part of the southern town line, and Newtown Creek partly divides the town from the city of Elmira.
The Southern Tier Expressway (Interstate 86 and NY Route 17) passes through the town in a northwest-southeast direction. New York State Route 352 passes through the south part of the town and into the city of Elmira.
As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 7,199 people, 3,019 households, and 2,049 families residing in the town. The population density was 323sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 3,183 housing units at an average density of 142.8sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the town was 96.31% White, 1.49% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 1.22% Asian, 0.15% from other races, and 0.72% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.43% of the population.
There were 3,019 households, out of which 28.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.4% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.1% were non-families. 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.90.
In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.4% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 27.0% from 45 to 64, and 19.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.0 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $46,641, and the median income for a family was $56,772. Males had a median income of $37,676 versus $29,473 for females. The per capita income for the town was $26,335. About 3.1% of families and 5.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.1% of those under age 18 and 0.7% of those age 65 or over.
Elmira is the birthplace of film director Hal Roach (1892-1992).