PITTSFORD (TOWN), NEW YORK

'Pittsford' is a town in Monroe County, New York, United States. The population was 27,219 at the 2000 census.
The 'Town of Pittsford' (formerly part of the town of Northfield) was incorporated in 1827. It was named by Colonel Caleb Hopkins, Pittsford's first town supervisor and War of 1812 hero, for the town of his birth, Pittsford, Vermont.
The Erie Canal passes through the town.

Contents

Geography

Demographics

Education

Industry and commerce

Notable residents

Communities and locations in the Town of Pittsford

References

External links

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 60.6 km² (23.4 mi²). 60.1 km² (23.2 mi²) of it is land and 0.5 km² (0.2 mi²) of it (0.81%) is water.
The Town of Pittsford is located in the southeastern portion of Monroe County approximately eight miles from the city of Rochester, New York. The Town of Mendon lies to the south, the Town of Perinton to the east, the Towns of Henrietta and Brighton to the west, and the Towns of Brighton and Penfield to the north.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 27,219 people, 9,448 households, and 7,341 families residing in the town. The population density was 453.2/km² (1,173.7/mi²). There were 9,709 housing units at an average density of 161.7/km² (418.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 92.61% White, 1.60% Black or African American, 0.08% Native American, 4.57% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.34% from other races, and 0.77% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.30% of the population.
There were 9,448 households out of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 70.4% were married couples living together, 5.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 22.3% were non-families. 19.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.05.
In the town the population was spread out with 25.4% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 22.1% from 25 to 44, 27.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 87.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.0 males.
Pittsford is known for being Rochester's wealthiest suburb. The median income for a household in the town was $88,232, and the median income for a family was $102,215. Males had a median income of $70,780 versus $39,336 for females. The per capita income for the town was $42,723. About 1.5% of families and 2.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.8% of those under age 18 and 6.2% of those age 65 or over.
'Pittsford' is a suburb of Rochester, situated along the Erie Canal in New York.

Education

Public schools are administered by the Pittsford Central School District. The vision statement for Pittsford Central Schools is

★ "As an educational leader with uncompromising commitment and passion for excellence, Pittsford Central Schools will deliver quality programs and services that maximize each child's academic performance and personal development, and provide for their future success".
The district web site [1] boasts that it is one of the top notch school districts in the country. It has received the New York State Governor's Excelsior Award for quality. It costs $11,900 per year to educate a Pittsford student. Barker Road Middle School has also received the award of "National School to Watch". a title that has only been given to around 90 schools in the country.
According to a ratio devised by Newsweek in which "the number of Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate tests taken by all students at a school" is "divided by the number of graduating seniors," Pittsford Mendon High School was ranked 39th among public high schools in the nation, and Pittsford Sutherland High School was ranked 77th.
While the two high schools have several varsity sports teams, their most popular sports are soccer, basketball and football. Sutherland plays basketball as the Knights while Mendon is the Vikings. The two schools however have a combined football team whose mascot is the Panther. The Mendon Vikings have an enthusiastic fan following known as "Mendon Madness," while the Sutherland Knights have "The Superfans." These loyal fan groups regularly attend Basketball and Soccer games clad in Maroon & Gold shirts with "Mendon Madness" across the front and "The Last True Fans" on the back for Mendon, and Blue & Gold shirts with a modified Superman logo for the Knights. The two schools have a long-standing rivalry in basketball, culminating with the annual Rainbow Classic game held at the University of Rochester. Adding to the many successful sports teams in Pittsford, NY, the Pittsford Mendon Vikings soccer team is known to have a tradition of soccer, holding the New York State record of 7 state championships . Both the Pittsford men's and womens swim teams have been consistently ranked number one in the State, the mens for the past 5 years straight and the womens 4 out of the past 5.
Currently the Pittsford School District is renovating many of its schools as well as building entirely new facilities. Calkins Road Middle School has been finished, and the students who are going to Sutherland High School ave been moved from Barker Road to Calkins.

Industry and commerce

Pittsford is well known for its access to the Erie Canal. The canal was the main driver of commerce back in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Most of the old buildings and barns on the canal have been converted into restaurants, cafes and shops. Concerts, Boat tours and other events highlight this "Dickens" Village in the warmer months. Many local, independent business give Pittsford it's unique flair and entrepreneurial spirit.
Two large malls, Eastview Mall in Victor, and The Marketplace Mall in Henrietta, are popular for Pittsford residents of all ages. There is also the large shopping center Pittsford Plaza, located on Monroe Ave. on the west side of the town. Pittsford is also the home of one of the largest Wegmans stores in the state. It seems this Wegmans is the major test center for the company, as they use it to test out various ideas, such as mini-restaurants and small pet stores attached to the main building.
Pittsford is home to Oak Hill Country Club, which hosted the 1995 Ryder Cup, the 1989, 1968 and 1956 United States Opens, and the 1980 and 2003 PGA Championships.
Pittsford also has two colleges within five miles of its town center. Saint John Fisher College and Nazareth College are both located nearby and are exceptional learning institutions. The NFL Buffalo Bills have their summer training camp at St. John Fisher.
Once the home of many family-owned farms, much of Pittsford's farms have turned into suburban housing developments. A notable exception is the Knickerbocker family farm, aptly located on Knickerbocker Road in the southeast part of town. The farm has been growing corn, wheat and other crops for 150 years. Pittsford is one of the only communities to have a Town-wide Green plan which attempts to conserve farm and park land for the future.

Notable residents

★ Steve Gadd - Award-winning Jazz drummer^[1] attended high school in Pittsford and still lives there today.

★ Teddy Geiger - Singer-songwriter lives in Pittsford.

★ Tom Golisano - New York billionaire resides now in nearby Mendon.

★ Wang Lee Hom - C-pop singer-songwriter previously lived in Pittsford and still has family residing in the town.

★ Abby Wambach - Women's soccer player grew up in Pittsford and still has family residing in the town.

★ Chuck Mangione - Well-known jazz musician.

Communities and locations in the Town of Pittsford

★ Pittsford -- The Village of Pittsford.

References

1. The Official Steve Gadd website

External links

★ Pittsford Central Schools

★ Pittsford Chamber of Commerce

★ Town of Pittsford website

★ Historic Pittsford website

★ Pittsford Village website