Ontario County is a county located in the U.S. State of New York. The county seat is Canandaigua. The name is a corruption of the Iroquois word meaning "beautiful lake." The population of Ontario County in the 2000 U. S census was 100,224, up from 95,101 in 1990.
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2 Geography 3 Demographics 4 Cities and Towns 5 External Links |
History
When counties were established in New York State in 1683, the present Montgomery County was part of Albany County. This was an enormous county, including the northern part of New York State as well as all of the present State of Vermont and, in theory, extending westward to the Pacific Ocean. This county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766 by the creation of Cumberland County, and further on March 16, 1770 by the creation of Gloucester County, both containing territory now in Vermont.
On March 12, 1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. One of the other pieces, Tryon County, contained the western portion (and thus, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically still extended west to the Pacific). The eastern boundary of Tryon County was approximately five miles west of the present city of Schenectady, and the county included the western part of the Adirondack Mountains and the area west of the West Branch of the Delaware River. The area then designated as Tryon County now includes 37 counties of New York State. The county was named for William Tryon, colonial governor of New York.
In the years prior to 1776, most of the Loyalists in Tryon County fled to Canada. In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended the American Revolutionary War, the name of Tryon County was changed to honor the general, Richard Montgomery, who had captured several places in Canada and died attempting to capture the city of Quebec, replacing the name of the hated British governor.
In 1789, Ontario County was split off from Montgomery. The actual area split off from Montgomery County was much larger than the present county, also including the present Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Orleans, Steuben, Wyoming, and Yates Counties, and part of Schuyler and Wayne Counties.
In 1796, Ontario County was reduced in size by the splitting off of Steuben County.
In 1802, Ontario County was reduced in size by the splitting off of Genesee County. The actual area split off from Ontario County was much larger than the present county, also including the present Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, Niagara, Orleans and Wyoming Counties and parts of Livingston and Monroe Counties.
In 1821, portions of Genesee County were combined with portions of Ontario County to create Livingston and Monroe Counties.
In 1823, a portion of Seneca County was combined with a portion of Ontario County to create Wayne County. The same year, a portion of Steuben County was combined with a portion of Ontario County to create Yates County.
Geography
Ontario County is in western New York State, east of Buffalo, southeast of Rochester, and west of Ithaca.
The county has a total area of 1,716 km² (662 mi²). 1,669 km² (644 mi²) of it is land and 47 km² (18 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 2.72% water.
Demographics
As of 2000, there are 100,224 people, 38,370 households, and 26,360 families residing in the county. The population density is 60/km² (156/mi²). There are 42,647 housing units at an average density of 26 persons/km² (66 persons/mi²). The racial makeup of the county is 95.04% White, 2.06% African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.70% from other races, and 1.26% from two or more races. 2.14% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 38,370 households out of which 32.80% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.00% are married couples living together, 9.90% have a woman whose husband does not live with her, and 31.30% are non-families. 24.70% of all households are made up of individuals and 10.10% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.53 and the average family size is 3.03.
In the county the population is spread out with 25.40% under the age of 18, 8.30% from 18 to 24, 28.40% from 25 to 44, 24.80% from 45 to 64, and 13.20% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 38 years. For every 100 females there are 95.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 92.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county is $44,579, and the median income for a family is $52,698. Males have a median income of $36,732 versus $26,139 for females. The per capita income for the county is $21,533. 7.30% of the population and 4.90% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 9.10% are under the age of 18 and 6.40% are 65 or older.
Cities and Towns
External Links