Ira, New York
Encyclopedia
Ira is a town
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...

 in Cayuga County
Cayuga County, New York
Cayuga County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It was named for one of the tribes of Indians in the Iroquois Confederation. Its county seat is Auburn.- History :...

, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The population was 2,206 at the 2010 census.

The Town of Ira is in the northern part of the county and is northwest of Syracuse
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...

, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

.

History

Ira was part of the Central New York Military Tract
Central New York Military Tract
The Military Tract of Central New York, also called the New Military Tract, consisted of nearly two million acres of bounty land set aside to compensate New York’s soldiers after their participation in the Revolutionary War....

.

The first settlers arrived around 1800.
The town was founded in 1821 from part of the Town of Cato
Cato (town), New York
Cato is a town in Cayuga County, New York, USA. The population was 2,537 at the 2010 census. The name was assigned by the surveyors of the Military Tract, and is one of many towns and villages bearing classical place names....

. Part of Ira was returned to Cato in 1824.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...

, the town has a total area of 34.9 square miles (90.4 km²), of which, 34.8 square miles (90.1 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (0.26%) is water.

Many relics of the Ice Age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...

, drumlin
Drumlin
A drumlin, from the Irish word droimnín , first recorded in 1833, is an elongated whale-shaped hill formed by glacial ice acting on underlying unconsolidated till or ground moraine.-Drumlin formation:...

s, are scattered about the town.

The north town line and part of the east town line are the border of Oswego County
Oswego County, New York
Oswego County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 Census, the estimated population was 122,109. The City of Oswego and the Village of Pulaski serve as the dual county seats in a two shire system of government...

 and the remainder of the east town line is the border of Onondaga County
Onondaga County, New York
Onondaga County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 467,026. The county seat is Syracuse.Onondaga County is part of the Syracuse, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area....

.

New York State Route 34
New York State Route 34
New York State Route 34 is a north–south New York state route located in Central New York. Its southern terminus is at the Pennsylvania state line in the village of Waverly, where it connects to Pennsylvania Route 199 and meets NY 17...

 and New York State Route 176
New York State Route 176
New York State Route 176 is a north–south state highway located in the central part of New York, United States, that connects Cayuga County with Oswego County. The southern terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 370 in the northeast part of the town of Cato, east of...

 are north-south highways in Ira.
New York State Route 370
New York State Route 370
New York State Route 370 is an east–west state highway in central New York in the United States. It extends for from an intersection with NY 104 and NY 104A south of the Wayne County village of Red Creek to a junction with U.S. Route 11 in the Onondaga County city of Syracuse...

 is an east-west highway along the south town line.

Demographics

As of the census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

of 2000, there were 2,426 people, 822 households, and 669 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 was 69.6 people per square mile (26.9/km²). There were 867 housing units at an average density of 24.9 per square mile (9.6/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.03% White, 0.41% African American, 0.70% Native American, 0.04% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, and 1.77% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.03% of the population.

There were 822 households out of which 41.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.5% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...

 living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.5% were non-families. 14.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.95 and the average family size was 3.20.

In the town the population was spread out with 30.6% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 31.7% from 25 to 44, 22.0% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 100.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $46,027, and the median income for a family was $48,750. Males had a median income of $35,472 versus $25,134 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...

 for the town was $16,954. About 3.4% of families and 7.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.0% of those under age 18 and 5.3% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Ira

  • Beaver Meadows – A swampy area south of Benton Corners.
  • Benton Corners – A location east of Ira village on NY-176.
  • Bethel Corners (also called "Bethel") – A Hamlet
    Hamlet (place)
    A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...

     near the north town line on NY-34.
  • Cato
    Cato (village), New York
    Cato is a village in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 601 at the 2000 census. The name was assigned by the surveyors of the Military Tract, and is one of many towns and villages bearing classical place names....

     – The Village of Cato is on the south town line, partly in the Town of Cato
    Cato (town), New York
    Cato is a town in Cayuga County, New York, USA. The population was 2,537 at the 2010 census. The name was assigned by the surveyors of the Military Tract, and is one of many towns and villages bearing classical place names....

    .
  • Floridaville – A hamlet at the east town line.
  • Fox's Corners – A former location west of Ira village.
  • Ira (formerly "Ira Center") – The hamlet of Ira is near the center of the town. It was settled around 1805.
  • Ira Corners (formerly "Ira Station") – a location on the west town line, west of Ira.
  • Meridian
    Meridian, New York
    Meridian is a village in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 350 at the 2000 census.The Village of Meridian is near the north town line of the Town of Cato and is west of Syracuse, New York.-History:...

    – The Village of Meridian is by the south town line in the Town of Cato.
  • Mud Pond – A small lake in the southwest part of Ira.

External links

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