Lockport (town), New York


Lockport is a town in Niagara County, New York, United States. The population was 20,529 at the 2010 census. The name is derived from the series of canal locks on the Erie Canal. The locks lift boats from the lowland of Lake Ontario past the Niagara Escarpment.
The Town of Lockport is in the south-central part of the county and surrounds the City of Lockport.

History

Many early settlers were Quakers and helped make the area a bastion of anti-slavery. The Town of Lockport was established in 1824, the same year the canal was completed up to the City of Lockport.
Cold Springs Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 44.7 square miles, of which, 44.6 square miles of it is land and 0.1 square miles of it is water.
The south border of the town is formed by Tonawanda Creek. The Erie Canal passes through the north part of the town and the City of Lockport. New York State Route 78 marks the west town line of Lockport.

Adjacent cities and towns

As of the census of 2010, there were 20,529 people, 8,293 households, and 5,482 families residing in the town. There were 8,680 housing units. The racial makeup of the town was 91.1% White, 4.8% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 1.0% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.6% from other races, and 2.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.6% of the population.
There were 7,537 households out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.4% were married couples living together, 10.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.3% were non-families. 25.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.52 and the average family size was 3.03.
In the town, the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 30.4% from 25 to 44, 24.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.6 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $45,977, and the median income for a family was $55,414. Males had a median income of $41,166 versus $25,810 for females. The per capita income for the town was $22,194. About 6.5% of families and 7.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.8% of those under age 18 and 2.8% of those age 65 or over.

Notable natives

Communities and locations in the Town of Lockport