Manchester is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

in Ontario County, New York, United States. The population was 9,406 at the 2020 census. The town was named after one of its villages, which in turn was named after the original

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

in England. It was formed in 1822 from the town of

Farmington Farmington may refer to: Places Canada *Farmington, British Columbia * Farmington, Nova Scotia (disambiguation) United States *Farmington, Arkansas *Farmington, California *Farmington, Connecticut *Farmington, Delaware * Farmington, Georgia * ...

. The Town of Manchester includes a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

also named

. The town is northeast of the city of

Canandaigua Canandaigua (; ''Utaʼnaráhkhwaʼ'' in Tuscarora) is a city in Ontario County, New York, United States. Its population was 10,545 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Ontario County; some administrative offices are at the county compl ...

Lehigh Valley Railroad

Manchester was an important division point and car

classification yard A classification yard (American and Canadian English (Canadian National Railway use)), marshalling yard ( British, Hong Kong, Indian, Australian, and Canadian English (Canadian Pacific Railway use)) or shunting yard (Central Europe) is a railway ...

for the

Lehigh Valley Railroad The Lehigh Valley Railroad was a railroad built in the Northeastern United States to haul anthracite coal from the Coal Region in Pennsylvania. The railroad was authorized on April 21, 1846 for freight and transportation of passengers, goods, ...

and was, at one time, the largest such facility in the world. As a division point, crews and locomotives were exchanged. Freight cars were switched from track to track, organizing them for delivery to their destinations. Support services included the 30-stall roundhouse, the

coaling tower A coaling tower, coal stage, coaling plant or coaling station is a facility used to load coal as fuel into railway steam locomotives. Coaling towers were often sited at motive power depots or locomotive maintenance shops. In the early years of ...

, facilities for ash removal, track maintenance, car repair, a control tower, the yard office, an ice house, and the bunkhouse-restaurant. With the failure of the Pennsylvania Railroad (which had taken over operations of the Lehigh Valley Railroad in 1962) in the mid-60s, the division yard's purpose was largely unneeded. By the next decade, all that remained in use at the yard was the mainline travelling through the town. The yard closed on October 30, 1972. Today only a few crumbling structures, some old track, and a couple of rusted boxcars remain.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the town has a total area of 37.8 square miles (97.9 km²), of which 37.8 square miles is land and (0.08%) is water. The

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east-west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, vastly reducing t ...

, a part called the Wide Waters, briefly passes through the northeastern corner of the town, and the New York State Thruway ( Interstate 90) passes through the center.

New York State Route 96 New York State Route 96 (NY 96) is a northwest–southeast state highway in the Finger Lakes region of New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an interchange with NY 17 (Future I-86) in the Southe ...

is a major highway that parallels the Thruway and intersects

New York State Route 21 New York State Route 21 (NY 21) is a state highway extending for about through the western part of New York in the United States. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 417 in the village of Andover, ...

in Manchester village. The northern town line is the border of Wayne County (Palmyra).

Cumorah Cumorah (; also known as Mormon Hill,A. P. Kesler"Mormon Hill" ''Young Woman's Journal'', 9:73 (February 1898)."Thomas Cook History, 1930", in Dan Vogel ed. (2000). ''Early Mormon Documents'', vol. 3 (Salt Lake City: Signature Books ) pp. 243– ...

, a hill in Manchester, is the location where

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, ...

is said to have found a set of golden plates which he translated into English and published as the

Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, which, according to Latter Day Saint theology, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from 600 BC to AD 421 and during an interlude d ...

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 9,258 people, 3,589 households, and 2,447 families residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 245.0 people per square mile (94.6/km²). There were 3,815 housing units at an average density of 39.0 persons/km² (101.0 persons/sq mi). The racial makeup of the town was 97.69% White, 0.53%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.37% Native American, 0.21%

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

n, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.14% from other races, and 1.07% from two or more races. 1.14% of the population were

Hispanic or Latino ''Hispanic'' and '' Latino'' are ethnonyms used to refer collectively to the inhabitants of the United States who are of Spanish or Latin American ancestry (). While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, for example, by the United States ...

of any race. There were 3,589 households, out of which 32.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.2% were married couples living together, 10.4% have a woman whose husband does not live with her, and 31.8% were non-families. 25.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.01. In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.8% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 23.7% from 45 to 64, and 15.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.6 males. The median income for a household in the town was $39,154, and the median income for a family was $47,117. Males had a median income of $32,444 versus $25,041 for females. The per capita income for the town was $19,285. About 6.3% of families and 8.4% 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 t ...

, including 13.0% under the age of 18 and 3.5% age 65 or older.

Communities and locations in town

*Bunker Hill – A location in the northeast part of the town west of Gypsum. * Clifton Springs – The western part of the Village of Clifton Springs is in the town. *Gypsum – A hamlet at the east town line on County Road 27. It has previously been called "Dutch Settlement" and "Plainville." *Littleville – A hamlet by the south town line on County Road 19. It was first called Parkers Mills after Mill owner Edward Parker. The name changed when Norman Little purchased the mill. *

– The village of Manchester on NY-21. *Manchester Center – A hamlet in the east part of the town, on the north side of the Thruway on County Road 7. * Port Gibson – A hamlet (and census-designated place) on the north town line on County Road 7. It is the only community in the county on the Erie Canal. The Port Gibson United Methodist Church was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1996. * Shortsville – The village of Shortsville is south of Manchester village on NY-21.

References

External links

Town Website

{{authority control Rochester metropolitan area, New York Populated places established in 1793 Towns in Ontario County, New York 1793 establishments in New York (state)