Minerva is a town in Essex County, New York, United States. The population was 773 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom. The town has a highly irregular polygonal shape. It is located in the southwestern corner of the county. By road, it is 40 mi north-northwest of Queensbury, 85 mi southwest of Burlington, Vermont, 88 mi south of Plattsburgh, 93 mi north of Albany, and 147 mi south of Montreal, Quebec.

History

The town was first settled around 1804 in the southeast part of Minerva, which has remained the center of the town's population. The town was formed from part of the Town of Schroon in 1817. Part of Minerva was part of the Town of Newcomb until 1828. In 1870, Minerva was increased with territory taken from the Town of Schroon.

Notable people

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 415.1 km2, of which 406.0 km2 is land and 9.1 km2, or 2.2%, is water. The northern part of the Hudson River forms part of the southwestern boundary of the town. The western town line is the border of Hamilton County, and the southern town line is the border of Warren County. The Indian River and Boreas River flow into the Hudson in the southwestern part of Minerva. New York State Route 28N, the Roosevelt Marcy Memorial Highway, is a north–south highway which passes through Minerva and is the only road of significance in the town.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 796 people, 321 households, and 225 families residing in the town. The population density was 5.0 PD/sqmi. There were 648 housing units at an average density of 4.1 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 96.86% White, 0.25% African American, 0.25% Native American, 0.13% Asian, and 2.51% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.13% of the population. There were 321 households, out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.0% were married couples living together, 8.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.9% were non-families. 24.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.48 and the average family size was 2.95. In the town, the population was spread out, with 23.1% under the age of 18, 5.8% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 27.1% from 45 to 64, and 18.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 111.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $30,903, and the median income for a family was $37,500. Males had a median income of $28,523 versus $19,688 for females. The per capita income for the town was $15,531. About 11.3% of families and 13.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.4% of those under age 18 and 14.2% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Minerva