Editing Tompkins County, New York (section)

== History ==
{{unreferenced section|date=July 2012}}
When counties were established in the British Province of New York in 1683, the present Tompkins County was part of [[Albany County, New York|Albany County]]. This was an enormous county, including the northern part of New York State as well as all of the present State of [[Vermont]] and, in theory, extending westward to the [[Pacific Ocean]]. This county was reduced in size on July 3, 1766, by the creation of [[Cumberland County, New York|Cumberland County]], and further on March 16, 1770, by the creation of [[Gloucester County, New York|Gloucester County]], both containing territory now in Vermont.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Long |first1=John |title=New York Atlas of Historical County Boundaries |url=https://digital.newberry.org/ahcb/documents/NY_Individual_County_Chronologies.htm#Individual_County_Chronologies |work=[[Atlas of Historical County Boundaries]] |publisher=The Newberry Library |access-date=January 15, 2024}}</ref>

On March 12, 1772, what was left of Albany County was split into three parts, one remaining under the name Albany County. One of the other pieces, [[Tryon County, New York|Tryon County]], contained the western portion (and thus, since no western boundary was specified, theoretically still extended west to the Pacific). The eastern boundary of Tryon County was approximately five miles west of the present city of [[Schenectady, New York|Schenectady]], and the county included the western part of the [[Adirondack Mountains]] and the area west of the West Branch of the [[Delaware River]]. The area then designated as Tryon County now includes 37 counties of New York State. The county was named for [[William Tryon]], colonial governor of New York.

In the years prior to 1776, most of the Loyalists in Tryon County fled to [[Canada]]. In 1784, following the peace treaty that ended the [[American Revolutionary War]], the name of Tryon County was changed to [[Montgomery County, New York|Montgomery County]] in honor of the general, [[Richard Montgomery]], who had captured several places in Canada and died attempting to capture the city of [[Quebec]], replacing the name of the hated British governor.
[[Image:Cornell Mcgraw USA.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[McGraw Tower]], Cornell University on East Hill above downtown Ithaca]]
In 1789, Montgomery County was reduced in size by the splitting off of [[Ontario County, New York|Ontario County]]. The actual area split off from Montgomery County was much larger than the present county, also including the present [[Allegany County, New York|Allegany]], [[Cattaraugus County, New York|Cattaraugus]], [[Chautauqua County, New York|Chautauqua]], [[Erie County, New York|Erie]], [[Genesee County, New York|Genesee]], [[Livingston County, New York|Livingston]], [[Monroe County, New York|Monroe]], [[Niagara County, New York|Niagara]], [[Orleans County, New York|Orleans]], [[Steuben County, New York|Steuben]], [[Wyoming County, New York|Wyoming]], [[Yates County, New York|Yates]], and part of [[Schuyler County, New York|Schuyler]] and [[Wayne County, New York|Wayne]] counties.

[[Herkimer County, New York|Herkimer County]] was one of three counties split off from Montgomery County (the others being [[Otsego County, New York|Otsego]] and [[Tioga County, New York|Tioga]] counties) in 1791.
[[Onondaga County, New York|Onondaga County]] was formed in 1794 by the splitting of Herkimer County.

[[Cayuga County, New York|Cayuga County]] was formed in 1799 by the splitting of Onondaga County. This county was, however, much larger than the present Cayuga County. It also included the territory of the present [[Seneca County, New York|Seneca]] and Tompkins counties.

In 1804, Seneca County was formed by the splitting of Cayuga County.

On April 7, 1817, Tompkins County was created by combining portions of Seneca and the remainder of Cayuga County. The county was named after then vice-president (to President [[James Monroe]]) and former New York Governor [[Daniel Tompkins]]. Tompkins almost certainly never visited the county named for him.

In 1854, the county lost the town of [[Hector, New York|Hector]] and the west line of lots in [[Newfield, New York|Newfield]] to the newly formed [[Schuyler County, New York|Schuyler County]], [[New York (state)|New York]].