Lowville (town), New York

Lowville is a town in Lewis County, New York, United States. The population was 4,548 at the 2000 census. The Town of Lowville is named after Nicholas Low, an early landowner. Low was of Dutch descent, and had emigrated with his wife and three small children from a rural village outside of Amsterdam in 1778.

The Town of Lowville contains a village named Lowville, which is the county seat. The town is near the center of the county and is southeast of the City of Watertown.

History

Settlement began around 1797.

The town was formed in 1800 from the Town of Mexico (in Oswego County). In 1803, part of Lowville was used to contribute to the newer Town of Harrisburg.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 38.1 square miles (98.7 km²), of which, 37.8 square miles (97.9 km²) of it is land and 0.3 square miles (0.8 km²) of it (0.84%) is water.

New York State Route 177 ends at New York State Route 12 in West Lowville. North-south highways, New York State Route 26 and New York State Route 812 also pass through the town.

The Black River flows along the east side of the town.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 4,548 people, 1,796 households, and 1,172 families residing in the town. The population density was 120.3 people per square mile (46.5/km²). There were 2,033 housing units at an average density of 53.8/sq mi (20.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.23% White, 0.59% Black or African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.68% Asian, 0.57% from other races, and 0.59% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.01% of the population.

There were 1,796 households out of which 32.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.3% were married couples living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.7% were non-families. 31.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 17.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the town the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 25.5% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 20.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.3 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $32,396, and the median income for a family was $42,358. Males had a median income of $32,375 versus $21,181 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,659. About 13.3% of families and 13.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.9% of those under age 18 and 14.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in the Town of Lowville

*Dadsville -- A hamlet northeast of Lowville village on NY-812 and the Black River.
*Lowville -- The Village of Lowville is in the eastern part of the town.
*Mill Creek -- A stream flowing eastward through Lowville village to the Black River.
*Smiths Landing -- A former community on the shore of the Black River.
*Stows Square -- A former community, once located north of Lowville village.
*West Lowville -- A hamlet in the southwest part of the town at the junction of Routes NY-12 and NY-177.

References