Macedon, New York

{{for-multi|the hamlet located within this town|Macedon (hamlet), New York|other uses|Macedon (disambiguation)}} {{Use American English|date=June 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}} {{Infobox settlement | name = Macedon, New York | settlement_type = Town | nickname = "The Two Lock Town" | motto =  | image_skyline = Charles Bullis House, Macedon NY.JPG | image_caption = The Charles Bullis House | image_flag = | image_seal =  | image_map = Wayne County New York incorporated and unincorporated areas Macedon highlighted.svg | mapsize = 260px | map_caption = Location in Wayne County and the state of New York. | coordinates = {{coord|43|04|04|N|077|18|13|W|region:US-NY|display=inline,title}} | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = United States | subdivision_type1 = State | subdivision_name1 = New York | subdivision_type2 = County | subdivision_name2 = Wayne | government_footnotes = | government_type = Town Board | leader_title = Supervisor | leader_name = Kim Leonard | leader_title1 = Clerk | leader_name1 = Karrie Bowers | leader_title2 = Court | leader_name2 = Justice Tom L. Crowley<br>Justice Ron J. Reinstein | established_title = Settled | established_date = 1789 | established_title1 = Established | established_date1 = January 29, 1823<ref name="WCHISTORY">[http://www.co.wayne.ny.us/departments/historian/HistMacedon.htm Wayne County Office of County Historian - Town of Macedon History], Retrieved June 7, 2015.</ref>

| unit_pref = Imperial | area_footnotes = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2016">{{cite web|title=2016 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2016_Gazetteer/2016_gaz_place_36.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 5, 2017}}</ref> | area_total_sq_mi = 38.86 | area_land_sq_mi = 38.68 | area_water_sq_mi = 0.18 | area_total_km2 = 100.64 | area_land_km2 = 100.18 | area_water_km2 = 0.46  | elevation_footnotes = | elevation_ft = 489 | elevation_m = 149  | population_as_of = 2010 | population_footnotes = | population_total = 9148 | population_density_sq_mi = 232.80 | population_density_km2 = 89.88  | timezone = Eastern (EST) | utc_offset = -5 | timezone_DST = EDT | utc_offset_DST = -4 | postal_code_type = ZIP code | postal_code = 14502 | area_codes = 315, 585 and 680 | blank_name = FIPS code | blank_info = 36-44149 | blank1_name = GNIS feature ID | blank1_info = 0956224 | website ={{URL|https://macedontown.gov/}} | footnotes = | pop_est_as_of = 2016 | pop_est_footnotes = <ref name="USCensusEst2016"/> | population_est = 9005 }}

'''Macedon''' is a town in Wayne County, New York, United States. The population was 9,148 at the 2010 census.

The '''Town of Macedon''' is named after the birthplace of Alexander the Great, in Ancient Macedonia.<ref>{{cite book|last=Gannett|first=Henry|title=The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ|year=1905|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_9V1IAAAAMAAJ/page/n194 195]}}</ref> It is located in the southwest corner of Wayne County and contains a hamlet also named Macedon, formerly an incorporated village. The town is east of Rochester and west of Syracuse.

==Etymology== Macedon took its name from the ancient Greek Kingdom of Macedon. The toponym Macedon is derived itself from the ancient Greek adjective μακεδνός (''makednós''), meaning "tall", possibly descriptive of the inhabitants of Macedon.<ref name="Liddell and Scott 1940">Liddell and Scott 1940.</ref> It has the same root as the adjective μακρός (''makros''), meaning "long" or "tall" in Ancient Greek.<ref name="Liddell and Scott 1940"/> The name is originally believed to have meant either "highlanders", "the tall ones", or "high grown men".<ref name ="note">{{cite book|last=Engels|first=Johannes|chapter=Macedonians and Greeks|title=A Companion to Ancient Macedonia|location=Oxford|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|year=2010|isbn=978-1-4051-7936-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lkYFVJ3U-BIC| editor-given1 = Joseph | editor-surname1 = Roisman| editor-given2 = Ian | editor-surname2 = Worthington|page=89}}; {{cite book|last=Borza|first=Eugene N.|author-link=Eugene N. Borza|title=Makedonika|publisher=Regina Books|year=1995|isbn=0-941690-65-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PGNoAAAAMAAJ|page=114}}; Eugene N. Borza writes that the "highlanders" or "Makedones" of the mountainous regions of western Macedonia are derived from northwest Greek stock; they were akin both to those who at an earlier time may have migrated south to become the historical "Dorians".</ref>

==History== Prior to early settlement, the area in and around Macedon was home to the Seneca Nation, a tribe member in the Iroquois League.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia | title = Ganondagan | encyclopedia = Encyclopedia of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Confederacy) | last1 = Johansen | first1 = Bruce Elliott | last2 = Mann | first2 = Barbara Alice | page = 105 | publisher = Greenwood Publishing Group | year = 2000 | url =https://books.google.com/books?id=zibNDBchPkMC&pg=PA105 | isbn = 978-0-313-30880-2 | access-date = January 16, 2013}}</ref>

The town land was acquired for settlement in 1788 from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as part of the Phelps and Gorham Purchase. The first settlers, Webb and Hannah Harwood, arrived in 1789.<ref name="co.wayne.ny.us">[http://www.co.wayne.ny.us/Departments/historian/HistMacedon.htm] Brief History of Macedon - Office of the County Historian</ref>

The construction and completion of the Erie Canal from 1817 to 1825 brought many new settlers to the area. The town of Macedon was incorporated during the canal construction in 1823, from what had been the western half of the Town of Palmyra.<ref name="co.wayne.ny.us"/> The opening of the Erie Canal led to the forming of new port communities like Wayneport and the Village of Macedon, with the latter centered on Lock 30.

Remnants of the former Enlarged Erie Canal Lock 60 (also called the Lower Macedon Lock) are located along the canal trail off Quaker Road, just east of the Village of Macedon. It was built in 1841 as a single-chamber lock, but doubled in 1874. The lock had a lift of {{convert|10.02|ft|m}} to the west. It was abandoned in 1914. The site is currently maintained as a park.<ref name="ERIECANAL">[http://www.eriecanal.org/MacedonPalmyra.html#Lock60 The Erie Canal (Lock 60 - Lower Macedon Lock)], Retrieved January 21, 2015.</ref> Nearby are the remains of Erie Canal Change Bridge #39 (also called Gallup's Bridge), located just west of the intersection of O'Neil and Quaker roads. A change bridge allowed towpaths to switch from one side of the canal to the other. The bridge was constructed in 1881 and had an iron lattice truss with a wooden floor. Only the foundations are still in place.<ref name="GALLUP">[http://www.eriecanal.org/MacedonPalmyra.html#Gallup The Erie Canal (Change Bridge #39 - Gallup's Bridge)], Retrieved Jan. 21. 2015.</ref>

The Macedon Academy, open from 1841 to 1902, set a standard for education excellence of the era. The academy provided an intermediate level of education, between the district school level and college.

Part of Company B, 160th New York Volunteer Infantry, was raised in Macedon during the American Civil War. At the time, the town had a population of only a little over 2,500.<ref>[http://dmna.ny.gov/historic/reghist/civil/dornbusch/wayne.htm New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center, The Communities of New York and the Civil War: Wayne County]</ref>

The J. and E. Baker Cobblestone Farmstead and Charles Bullis House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2009a}}</ref>

The town is part of the Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor.<ref>[https://www.nps.gov/erie/planyourvisit/upload/ERCA_brochure_large_2007.pdf National Park Service - Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor Brochure, New York], Retrieved January 21, 2015.</ref>

==Geography== According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of {{convert|38.9|mi2|km2}}, of which {{convert|38.7|mi2|km2}} is land and {{convert|0.2|mi2|km2}} (0.44%) is water.

Macedon is bordered by the towns of Walworth to the north, Palmyra to the east, Farmington (Ontario County) to the south, and Perinton (Monroe County) to the west.

An East-West auxiliary branch of NY 31, New York State Route 31F and New York State Route 350 intersect east–west New York State Route 31 at Macedon hamlet.

==Demographics== {{US Census population |1830= 1990 |1840= 2396 |1850= 2384 |1860= 2523 |1870= 2636 |1880= 2871 |1890= 2564 |1900= 2488 |1910= 2355 |1920= 2202 |1930= 2330 |1940= 2277 |1950= 2560 |1960= 3617 |1970= 5488 |1980= 6508 |1990= 7375 |2000= 8688 |2010= 9148 |estyear=2016 |estimate=9005 |estref=<ref name="USCensusEst2016">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.2016.html|title=Population and Housing Unit Estimates|access-date=June 9, 2017}}</ref> {{decrease}} |footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=September 4, 2015}}</ref> }}

As of the census of 2010,<ref name="GR2">[https://archive.today/20190521214830/https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_DP_DPDP1&prodType=table Macedon 2010 Demographic Profile Data] - American FactFinder</ref> there were 9,148 people, 3,650 households, and 2,583 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|235.2|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. The racial makeup of the town was 95.9% White, 0.8% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 1.1% Asian, 0.4% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.44% of the population.

There were 3,650 households, out of which 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.8% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.2% were non-families. 23.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.5% under the age of 20, 4.7% from 20 to 24, 25.3% from 25 to 44, 30.6% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $76,146, and the median income for a family was $85,181. Males had a median income of $64,392 versus $41,594 for females. The per capita income for the town was $29,551. About 1.0% of families and 2.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.3% of those under age 18 and 0.8% of those age 65 or over.

===Housing=== There were 3,381 housing units at an average density of {{convert|86.9|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units |units|}}; a total of 6.0% of housing units were vacant.

There were 3,650 occupied housing units in the town, of which 2,831 were owner-occupied units (77.6%), while 819 were renter-occupied (22.4%). The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% of total units. The rental unit vacancy rate was 10.8%.<ref name="GR2" />

==Education== Palmyra-Macedon Intermediate School is located in Macedon and is part of the Palmyra-Macedon Central School District.<ref>{{cite web |title=Home |url=https://intermediate.palmaccsd.org/ |publisher=Palmyra-Macedon Intermediate School |access-date=2026-04-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=PALMYRA-MACEDON CSD |url=https://data.nysed.gov/profile.php?instid=800000035823 |publisher=New York State Education Department |access-date=2026-04-13}}</ref> Portions of Macedon are also within the Gananda Central School District.<ref>{{cite web |title=About Us |url=https://www.gananda.org/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=1035093&type=d&pREC_ID=1337736 |publisher=Gananda Central School District |access-date=2026-04-13}}</ref> The Macedon Public Library serves the town.<ref>{{cite web |title=MACEDON PUBLIC LIBRARY |url=https://macedonpubliclibrary.org/ |publisher=Macedon Public Library |access-date=2026-04-13}}</ref> The library also houses the Bullis Collection, also described as the Bullis Room, which includes books, personal papers, photographs, diaries, local history materials, and artefacts from the Bullis family.<ref>{{cite web |title=Curious about the Bullis Collection? |url=https://macedonpubliclibrary.org/2017/01/08/curious-about-the-bullis-collection/ |publisher=Macedon Public Library |date=2017-01-08 |access-date=2026-04-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Discover the Classics of the Bullis Room |url=https://macedonpubliclibrary.org/2019/05/14/discover-the-classics-of-the-bullis-room/ |publisher=Macedon Public Library |date=2019-05-14 |access-date=2026-04-13}}</ref>

==Communities and locations in the Town of Macedon== *Cator Corners — A location north of Macedon hamlet on NY-31F. *Huddle — A hamlet by the north town line on County Road 208. *Gananda — A "master planned community" and Title VII new town that is partially located in Macedon, along the north town line, between NY 350 and Hance Road *Macedon — The hamlet of Macedon, located in the south part of the town on NY-31 and the Erie Canal. It was formerly an incorporated village. *Macedon Center — A location northwest of Macedon hamlet, located on NY-31F. *North Macedon — A location north of Macedon hamlet on Route 31F. *Walworth Station — A location by the junction of County Roads 208 and 209 in the east part of the town. *Wayneport — A hamlet in the southeast part of the town is located on the Erie Canal and County Road 306. It was formerly called "West Macedon."<ref>[http://www.co.wayne.ny.us/departments/historian/HistMacedon.htm Brief History of Macedon - Office of the County Historian]</ref> *Yellow Mills — A hamlet in the southeast part of the town, west of Village of Palmyra on NY-31.

==Notable person==

*John L. Bullis — decorated American soldier and real estate entrepreneur

==References== <references />

==External links== * [https://macedontown.gov/ Town of Macedon, NY] * [https://web.co.wayne.ny.us/index.php/office-of-the-county-historian/brief-history-of-macedon-new-york/ Historical summary of the Town of Macedon, NY] * [http://wayne.nygenweb.net/townships/macedon.html Historical links for Macedon] * [http://www.macedonhistoricalsociety.org Macedon Historical Society]

Category:Rochester metropolitan area, New York Category:Towns in Wayne County, New York Category:Towns in New York (state) Category:1823 establishments in New York (state)