The area was first settled around 1789, mostly by people from New England. The town of Winfield was formed from parts of Richfield, Plainfield, and Litchfield in 1816.
Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of, of which, or 0.05%, are water. The south town line and part of the west town line are the border of Otsego County. The remainder of the west town line is the border of Oneida County. The East Branch of the Unadilla River flows from northeast to southwest through the town. Winfield Creek flows into the Unadilla River at West Winfield village. The Unadilla is part of the Susquehanna River watershed. The northeast corner of the town drains northeast via Steele Creek to the Mohawk River and is part of the Hudson River watershed. U.S. Route 20 passes across the south part of the town and is briefly conjoined with New York State Route 51.
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,202 people, 821 households, and 614 families residing in the town. The population density was 93.1 people per square mile. There were 871 housing units at an average density of 36.8 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 98.73% White, 0.14% African American, 0.14% Native American, 0.27% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, and 0.68% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.59% of the population. There were 821 households out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.2% were married couplesliving together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.1% were non-families. 22.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.68 and the average family size was 3.10. In the town, the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 25.1% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $35,588, and the median income for a family was $42,841. Males had a median income of $27,414 versus $21,667 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,809. About 6.4% of families and 8.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.1% of those under age 18 and 4.9% of those age 65 or over.
