Here in New York we have four basic units of local government – village, city, town, and county. (I’m leaving out things like school districts, water districts, boroughs within cities, etc.)
All of these are legal entities – they have governments, taxes, elections, specific boundaries. For instance, there is a Town of Urbana, and a Village of Hammondsport, each with its definite bounds.
But there is also, within Urbana and outside Hammondsport, a place known for over 200 years as Pleasant Valley. It has no legal existence or status, but it’s a place that’s known and loved. We often call this a hamlet, to describe a small unofficial place designation.
I myself once played a role in rescuing the name of Pleasant Valley. I got a call from A.A.A. saying that they were thinking of taking it off their New York map, since it was an unofficial name, and they wanted my advice and opinion.
I waxed enthusiastic about Pleasant Valley, extolling its history, its significance, and its beauties. They decided it should stay on the map, and there indeed it stayed.
Villages and Towns bear a close relationship with each other. A Village is a SUBSET of a Town. If you’re a resident of the Village of Hammondsport, you are ALSO a resident of the Town of Urbana. You vote for Town officials and pay Town taxes – you ALSO vote for Village officials and pay Village taxes.
Villages are often created so that a compact area with a good-sized population can provide itself with special services such as water, sewage, and police. Remember tha Village populatiions may go UP in the daytime, as non-residents come in for shopping, work, tourism, restaurants, libraries, school, government offices, and the like.
Painted Post is a Village within the Town of Erwin. Riverside and South Corning are Villages within the Town of Corning. Bath and Savona are Villages within the Town of Bath.
Kanona, on the other hand, is an unofficial hamlet. It lies within the Town of Bath, and it’s very similar to Savona in size and density. But Savona has an official and legal existence… and government… while Kanona does not.
All of this can lead to confusion, especially with the vagaries of shifting boundaries since the 1700s. The Town of Dansville, for instance, is in Steuben County, but the Village of Dansville is in Livingston County. The Village of Dansville is part of the Town of North Dansville (in Livingston), but the unofficial hamlet of South Dansville is within the Town of Dansville (in Steuben).
I always feel sorry for the bright and cheerful genealogist who calls for information on an ancestor who died/was born/got married/is buried “in Dansville,” knowing I’m about to ruin their day.
City government confuses people. We have two Cities in Steuben County – Corning and Hornell. Many people assume that they are like Villages – that the City of Corning is part of the Town of Corning, and the City of Hornell is part of the Town of Hornellsville.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Cities, unlike Villages, are independent. Cities are coordinate with the Towns rather than part of them.
It’s easy to see where the confusion comes from. First, at least in our case locally, there’s the similarity of the names. Then there’s the fact that if you go back far enough, what’s now a City WAS part of a Town – in fact, it likely went through a Village phase while growing. Finally, Cities and Villages each have mayors, while Towns have supervisors.
So, the Village of South Corning is part of the Town of Corning – but the City of Corning is NOT. The Village of North Hornell is part of the Town of Hornellsville – but the City of Hornell is NOT.
So, in Steuben, for instance… 32 towns and two cities, or 34 overall municipalities. There are also a number of Villages, each remaining part of one of those Towns, and often confusingly named like its parent.
In fact, here in New York it would be entirely possible to have a County, a City, a Town, a Village, and a hamlet all with the same name. Next week, we’ll talk about Counties!