Ontario, New York Explained

Ontario, New York
Settlement Type:Town
Motto:A Community of Good Neighbors
Pushpin Map:New York
Pushpin Map Caption:Location within the state of New York
Mapsize:260px
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:New York
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Wayne
Government Type:Town Board
Leader Title:Supervisor
Leader Name:Frank Robusto
Leader Title1:Clerk
Leader Name1:Debra DeMinck
Leader Title2:Court
Leader Name2:Justice Dom Paz
Justice William Benedict II
Established Title:Settled
Established Date:1806
Established Title1:Established
Established Date1:March 27, 1807[1]
Unit Pref:Imperial
Area Footnotes:[2]
Area Total Km2:84.17
Area Land Km2:83.95
Area Water Km2:0.22
Area Total Sq Mi:32.50
Area Land Sq Mi:32.41
Area Water Sq Mi:0.09
Population As Of:2010
Population Total:10136
Population Density Km2:119.89
Population Density Sq Mi:310.50
Timezone:Eastern (EST)
Utc Offset:-5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Elevation M:115
Elevation Ft:377
Coordinates:43.2422°N -77.2981°W
Postal Code Type:ZIP code
Postal Code:14519
Area Code:315, 585 and 680
Blank Name:FIPS code
Blank Info:36-55013
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank1 Info:0979313
Website:http://www.ontariotown.org/
Pop Est As Of:2016
Population Est:10064

Ontario is a town in the northwest corner of Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 9,778 at the 2000 census, and 10,136 at the 2010 census. The town is named after the Great Lake on its northern border.

The town has a hamlet (and census-designated place), also called Ontario. Government offices for the town are located there.

History

The first settler was Freeman Hopkins, who arrived in 1806. He built a small log cabin that had to hold his nine children, wife and himself. Heavy timber and swamps made life difficult for the first settlers.

The town of Ontario was created in 1807 as the "Town of Freetown" from a part of the town of Williamson. Soon after, the name was changed to "Ontario". Part of Ontario was used to form the town of Walworth in 1829.

In 1811, iron ore was discovered and a thriving smelting operation arose that lasted until past the end of the century.

In 1874, the Lake Ontario Shore Railroad (now the R., W. & O.) was opened.

On June 1, 1970, the Robert E. Ginna Nuclear Power Plant started commercial operation on the shore of Lake Ontario within the town, just past the Monroe County line.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 32.3sqmi, of which 32.2sqmi is land and 0.1sqmi (0.37%) is water.

The northern town boundary is Lake Ontario, and the western town line is the border of Monroe County. The town is east of the City of Rochester.

New York State Route 104 is an east-west highway that intersects north-south highway New York State Route 350 at Ontario Center.

Demographics

As of the census[3] of 2010, there were 10,136 people, 3,960 households, and 2,898 families residing in the town. The population density was 303.5sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the town was 96.7% White, 1.2% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.5% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 0.4% from other races, and 1.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.6% of the population.

There were 3,960 households, out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.2% were married couples living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.8% were non-families. 20.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 2.96.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.0% under the age of 20, 4.7% from 20 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 32.5% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $65,472, and the median income for a family was $74,589. Males had a median income of $53,917 versus $34,732 for females. The per capita income for the town was $30,559. About 2.3% of families and 5.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 2.7% of those age 65 or over.

Housing

There were 4,145 housing units at an average density of 128.3sp=usNaNsp=us; a total of 4.5% of housing units were vacant.

There were 3,960 occupied housing units in the town, of which 3,329 were owner-occupied units (84.1%), while 631 were renter-occupied (15.9%). The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3% of total units. The rental unit vacancy rate was 7.3%.

Communities and locations in the Town of Ontario

Nearby towns

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://www.co.wayne.ny.us/departments/historian/HistOntario.htm Wayne County Office of County Historian - Town of Ontario History
  2. Web site: 2016 U.S. Gazetteer Files. United States Census Bureau. July 5, 2017.
  3. Web site: U.S. Census website. United States Census Bureau. January 19, 2015.