Morris (town), New York

"Morris, New York" redirects here. For the village, see Morris (village), New York.

Morris is a town located in Otsego County, New York, USA. As of the 2010 census, the town had a population of 1,878. The town is named after General Jacob Morris.

Town of Morris is located on the western border of the county. The Village of Morris is located within the town. It is northwest of the City of Oneonta.

History

The town was settled around 1770.

Morris was formed from the Town of Butternuts April, 1849. The town was named after General Jacob Morris, the son of Lewis Morris a signer of the Declaration of Independence, who was granted land due to property lost during the revolution. In 1859, a part of Town of Pittsfield was transferred to Morris.

Some historical data shows population for 1850 of 2155, in 1855 there were 2038, in 1860 pop 2320, in 1865 a total of 2191, in 1870 pop 2253, and in 1875 there were 2303. After this local population declined the textile mills closed, numbers of sheep plummeted, hops began to give way to dairying, and the local bank failed after speculating in silver mines in New Mexico. There were several projected railroad lines through the vicinity since the mid-19th century. The most promising was a Sidney to Utica trolley line sponsored by Silas Kelsey of Burlington. At the same time Dr. Lewis Morris, who owned the Unadilla Valley Railroad, was sponsoring his own railroad extension from New Berlin through Morris to Oneonta where he intended to have an interchange yard with Delaware & Hudson and Ulster & Delaware railroad lines, land which he donated to Oneonta in 1914, as Neahwa Park. Surveys for both routes were completed and staked but not all of the right of ways given, and the trolley line was built over in the Otego Valley instead.

The Morris-Lull Farm, All Saints Chapel and Morris Family Burial Ground, and Zion Episcopal Church Complex and Harmony Cemetery are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1]

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 39.1 square miles (101 km2), of which, 39.0 square miles (101 km2) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.26 km2) of it (0.23%) is water. According to the 1878 history Morris contained 24,035 acres (97.27 km2), assessed valuation $834,276, equalized $502,331. In 1864, Morris had improved 18,481 acres (74.79 km2), 3,081 acres (12.47 km2) plowed land, 7,772 acres (31.45 km2) pasture, 5,727 acres (23.18 km2) in meadow, by 1875 this had increased to 9,368 acres (37.91 km2) plowed, 8,519 acres (34.48 km2) pastured and 6,680 acres (27.0 km2) mowed. Today the few remaining dairy farms are at least one hundred cow dairies.

New York State Route 23 and New York State Route 51 intersect at Morris village.

The west town line is defined by the Unadilla River. Butternut Creek, flowing southward through Morris is a tributary of the Unadilla River.

Residents of note

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop. %±
18502,155—
18602,3207.7%
18702,253−2.9%
18802,4046.7%
18901,920−20.1%
19001,689−12.0%
19101,434−15.1%
19201,207−15.8%
19301,35512.3%
19401,3761.5%
19501,4404.7%
19601,5255.9%
19701,6306.9%
19801,7809.2%
19901,7870.4%
20001,8674.5%
20101,8780.6%
Est. 20141,836[2]−2.2%
U.S. Decennial Census[3]

As of the census[4] of 2000, there were 1,867 people, 737 households, and 529 families residing in the town. The population density was 47.8 people per square mile (18.5/km²). There were 859 housing units at an average density of 22.0 per square mile (8.5/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 96.84% White, 0.64% Black or African American, 0.11% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 0.86% from other races, and 1.23% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.66% of the population.

There were 737 households out of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.1% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.1% were non-families. 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 2.92.

In the town the population was spread out with 27.0% under the age of 18, 5.7% from 18 to 24, 27.4% from 25 to 44, 26.3% from 45 to 64, and 13.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 92.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $34,176, and the median income for a family was $38,750. Males had a median income of $28,824 versus $22,083 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,427. About 9.5% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.7% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations

Notable businesses

References

  1. ↑ Staff (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  4. ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  5. ↑ "Hannah Cooper Monument - Morris, New York". Employees.oneonta.edu. Retrieved 2014-02-09.
  6. ↑ "Topical Medications for Animal Health - Dr. Naylor - Home". Dr. Naylor. Retrieved 2014-02-09.

External links

Coordinates: 42°32′53″N 75°14′42″W / 42.54806°N 75.24500°W / 42.54806; -75.24500

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