Editing Mentz, New York (section)

== History ==
{{unreferenced section|date=July 2021}}

The town was formed in 1802 as the "Town of Jefferson" from the town of [[Aurelius, New York|Aurelius]] while still part of [[Onondaga County, New York|Onondaga County]]. On March 30, 1808, the town was renamed to Mentz, as too many towns, villages, and a county had taken the name of Jefferson to honor the past president. The town is part of the Military Tract, and much of the land was given to soldiers who had served in the Revolutionary War.<ref>{{cite web |title=History of Port Byron and Mentz |url=https://www.portbyronhistorical.org/port-byron-tour |website=The Lock 52 Historical Society}}</ref> The first settlers built their homes around the [[Owasco River|Owasco Outlet]], which is the outflow of [[Owasco Lake]], one of the smaller [[Finger Lakes]]. The Owasco Outlet flows to the Seneca River, which serves as the northern border of the town. The settlers used the Outlet for transportation and for milling.

The [[Erie Canal]] was built through the town in 1819 and was opened to traffic in 1820, with service between Montezuma and Utica. The new [[Erie Canal]] fostered rapid growth and the settlement that had built up around the Outlet was given the name of Bucksville. The post office was given the name of Port Byron to honor the late poet [[Lord Byron]], and soon Bucksville was renamed as Port Byron. On March 2, 1837, the community of Port Byron set itself apart from Mentz by incorporating as a village.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 17, 2015 |title=Town of Mentz- Village of Port Byron Comprehensive Master Plan |url=https://www.cayugacounty.us/DocumentCenter/View/3442/Mentz---Port-Byron-Joint-Comprehensive-Plan-PDF |access-date=April 19, 2023 |website=Town of Mentz, Cayuga County, New York}}</ref>

The town also had a number of smaller communities.

In 1859 the town of Mentz was divided into Mentz, [[Montezuma, New York|Montezuma]] and [[Throop, New York|Throop]].

Today, the town serves mostly as a bedroom community for the cities of Auburn, Syracuse and Rochester.