Editing Brighton, Franklin County, New York

{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{For|other places with the same name|Brighton, New York (disambiguation){{!}}Brighton, New York}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Brighton, New York
|settlement_type          = [[Administrative divisions of New York#Town|Town]]
|nickname                 = 
|motto                    =

<!-- Images -->
|image_skyline            = Brighton Town Hall.jpg
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = Brighton Town Hall, [[Benjamin A. Muncil]], 1914
|image_flag               = 
|image_seal               =

<!-- Maps -->
|pushpin_map              = New York
|pushpin_label            = Brighton
|pushpin_label_position   = top <!-- the position of the pushpin label: left, right, top, bottom, none -->
|pushpin_map_caption      = Location within the state of New York
|pushpin_mapsize          = 
|image_map                = 
|mapsize                  = 
|map_caption              = 
|image_map1               = 
|mapsize1                 = 
|map_caption1             =

<!-- Location -->
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = [[New York (state)|New York]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in New York|County]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Franklin County, New York|Franklin]]
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = [[Town Council]]
|leader_title             = [[Town Supervisor]]
|leader_name              = Peter Shrope ([[United States Democratic Party|D]])
| leader_title1           = [[Town Council]]
| leader_name1            = {{Collapsible list
 |title       = Members' List
 |frame_style = border:none; padding: 0;
 |title_style = <!-- (optional) -->
 |list_style  = text-align:left;display:none;
 |1           = • Steven A. Tucker ([[United States Democratic Party|D]])
 |2           = • Jeffrey Leavitt ([[United States Republican Party|R]])
 |3           = • Lydia A. Wright ([[United States Democratic Party|D]])
 |4           = • Peter E. Shrope, Jr. ([[United States Democratic Party|D]])
}}
|established_title        = 
|established_date         =
|named_for                = [[Brighton]], England

<!-- Area -->
|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|accessdate=July 5, 2017}}</ref>
|area_magnitude           = 
|area_total_km2           = 214.96
|area_land_km2            = 201.75
|area_water_km2           = 13.21
|area_total_sq_mi         = 83.00
|area_land_sq_mi          = 77.90
|area_water_sq_mi         = 5.10

<!-- Population -->
|population_as_of         = [[2010 United States Census|2010]]
|population_footnotes     = 
|population_total         = 1435
|population_density_km2   = 7.07
|population_density_sq_mi = 18.31

<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[North American Eastern Time Zone|Eastern (EST)]]
|utc_offset               = -5
|timezone_DST             = EDT
|utc_offset_DST           = -4
|elevation_footnotes      = 
|elevation_m              = 573
|elevation_ft             = 1880
|coordinates              = {{coord|44|26|27|N|74|13|56|W|region:US-NY|display=inline,title}}
|postal_code_type         = 
|postal_code              = 
|area_code                = 
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 36-08213
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 0978752
|website                  = {{URL|townofbrighton.net}}
|footnotes                = 
|pop_est_as_of = 2016
|pop_est_footnotes = <ref name="USCensusEst2016"/>
|population_est = 1426
}}
'''Brighton''' is a [[Administrative divisions of New York#Town|town]] in [[Franklin County, New York|Franklin County]], [[New York (state)|New York]], United States. The population was 1,435 at the 2010 census.<ref name="Census 2010">{{cite web| url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/G001/0600000US3603308213| title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001), Brighton town, Franklin County, New York| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau| work=American FactFinder| accessdate=June 10, 2016| archive-url=https://archive.today/20200213153933/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_SF1/G001/0600000US3603308213| archive-date=February 13, 2020| url-status=dead}}</ref> It was named after [[Brighton]], England, by early surveyors in the region.

The town is in the southern part of the county and is inside the [[Adirondack Park]]. [[Paul Smith's College]] is in the community of [[Paul Smiths, New York|Paul Smiths]], a [[Administrative divisions of New York#Hamlet|hamlet]] of Brighton.

== History ==
The Town of Brighton was set aside from the town of [[Duane, New York|Duane]] in 1858 when settlers living in southern Duane complained loudly enough about being left out of town business discussions due to the long distance and time involved. James M. Wardner was elected its first [[town supervisor|supervisor]]. [[Apollos Smith|Apollos "Paul" Smith]] arrived in 1859 and gradually built up a hotel in the community that bears his name. [[Paul Smith's Hotel]] grew into one of the largest and most well-known, attracting U.S. presidents, governors and other prominent guests.

After Paul Smith's death in 1912, it was run by his son, Phelps Smith, until it burned down in 1930. Paul Smith's College was established in 1937 after the death of Phelps Smith; it matriculated its first class in 1946. The college now uses the land where the hotel once stood along [[Lower St. Regis Lake]]. Also around that time James Wardner had a small hotel on [[Rainbow Lake, New York|Rainbow Lake]].

The hamlet now called [[Gabriels, New York|Gabriels]] originated when Alfonzo Rand, William Ricketson, the Dustins, and the Otises cleared virgin forest land and began farming the sandy loam soils in the southern part of the town along the boundary with the [[Harrietstown, New York|Town of Harrietstown]] near Ricketson Brook and today's Split Rock Road.  It wasn't until the Adirondack & St. Lawrence Railway came in 1892 that Gabriels expanded northward with many settling near the railroad station. Following the arrival of the railroad, the [[Sisters of Mercy]] established a [[tuberculosis]] sanitorium on the small hill near the rail station in 1897. Around the same time, Muncil's sawmill was established on a siding north of the station. Paul Smith's Hotel immediately started a [[stage line]] to the railroad station. When the Sisters of Mercy closed The Gabriels Sanatorium and moved to Lake Placid, the San was sold to Paul Smith's College. Still later, it was sold to New York State which converted it into [[Camp Gabriels]], a minimum-security state prison, which closed in 2009.

The [[Brighton Town Hall (Brighton, New York)|Brighton Town Hall]] was designed and built by [[Benjamin A. Muncil]] in 1914. Muncil was a talented local builder who also designed and built [[Marjorie Merriweather Post]]'s [[Camp Topridge]], and [[White Pine Camp]], which was used as a [[summer White House]] of US President [[Calvin Coolidge]]. It was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 2003.<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref>

==Geography==
[[Image:St Regis Presbyterian Church.jpg|thumb|left|Saint Regis Presbyterian Church, [[Keese Mill, New York|Keese Mill]]]]
Brighton is located south of the center of Franklin County within the [[Blue Line (New York State)|limits]] of the [[Adirondack Forest Preserve]]. According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of {{convert|215.0|km2|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|201.7|km2|order=flip}} is land and {{convert|13.2|km2|order=flip}}, or 6.15%, is water.<ref name="Census 2010"/> The majority of the town consists of woodlands, lakes, streams and ponds (both publicly and privately owned), with a few areas of developed hamlets and farmland (privately owned). Major water bodies include [[Upper St. Regis Lake|Upper]] and [[Lower St. Regis Lake]] in the southwest corner of town.

[[New York State Route 30]] is a north-south highway in the town and intersects [[New York State Route 86]] at Paul Smiths. NY 30 leads north {{convert|32|mi}} to [[Malone, New York|Malone]], the Franklin County seat, and southwest {{convert|26|mi}} to [[Tupper Lake, New York|Tupper Lake]]. NY 86 leads southeast {{convert|12|mi}} to [[Saranac Lake, New York|Saranac Lake]].

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1860= 208
|1870= 204
|1880= 267
|1890= 480
|1900= 706
|1910= 741
|1920= 684
|1930= 993
|1940= 804
|1950= 962
|1960= 1092
|1970= 1473
|1980= 1625
|1990= 1511
|2000= 1682
|2010= 1435
|estyear=2016
|estimate=1426
|estref=<ref name="USCensusEst2016">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.2016.html|title=Population and Housing Unit Estimates|accessdate=June 9, 2017}}</ref>
|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|accessdate=June 4, 2015}}</ref>
}}
[[Image:PaulSmithsHotel-1892.jpg|thumb|right|Paul Smith's Hotel, circa 1892]]

As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web |url=https://www.census.gov |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |accessdate=January 31, 2008 |title=U.S. Census website }}</ref> of 2000, there were 1,682 people, 319 households, and 203 families residing in the town.  The population density was {{convert|21.6|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  There were 591 housing units at an average density of {{convert|7.6|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  The racial makeup of the town was 79.37% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 18.55% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.65% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 1.19% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], and 0.24% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 0.48% of the population.

There were 319 households, out of which 34.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.9% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 5.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.1% were non-families. 29.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 11.7% under the age of 18, 37.5% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 15.5% from 45 to 64, and 5.4% who were 65 years of age or older.  The median age was 26 years. For every 100 females, there were 215.0 males.  For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 246.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $42,679, and the median income for a family was $48,250. Males had a median income of $35,952 versus $26,250 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $11,995.  About 3.0% of families and 6.2% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 5.3% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

== Communities and locations in Brighton ==
[[Image:Upper St Regis Lake - Guide Boat.jpg|thumb|A [[Adirondack guideboat|guideboat]] on Upper St. Regis Lake, [[Saint Regis Mountain]] behind]]
[[Image:Topridge Boathouse.jpg|thumb|[[Camp Topridge|Topridge]], Upper St Regis Lake]]

*[[Gabriels, New York|Gabriels]] &ndash; A hamlet in the southeastern part of the town, located on NY-86 at the junction of County Road 30, the site of [[Camp Gabriels]], a former minimum security state prison, which closed in 2009.
*[[Lower St. Regis Lake]] &ndash; A lake south of Paul Smiths where [[Paul Smith's College]] is located.
*[[Meacham Lake]] &ndash; A lake partly in the town at the northern town line.
*[[Osgood Pond]] &ndash; A lake northeast of Paul Smiths.
*[[Paul Smiths, New York|Paul Smiths]] &ndash; A hamlet in the southern part of the town on NY-30.
*[[Rainbow Lake, New York|Rainbow Lake]] &ndash; (1) A hamlet near the eastern town line, north of Gabriels on County Road 60, and (2) A lake at the eastern town boundary,  near the community of Rainbow Lake.  Rainbow Lake flows into the North Branch of the Saranac River.
*[[Spitfire Lake]] &ndash; A lake south of Lower St. Regis Lake.
*[[Upper St. Regis Lake]] &ndash; A lake at the southern town line.

==References==
{{portal|New York (state)}}
<references />

==Further reading==
*Brighton Architectural Heritage Committee, 2002. ''Brighton 2000: Life in the Town of Brighton, Franklin County, New York in the year 2000'', Brighton Architectural Heritage Committee, Paul Smiths, NY, 153 pp.  (Available on CD).
*Collins, Geraldine, 1977. ''The Brighton Story'', North Country Books, Lakemont, NY, 202 pp., incl. bibliography.
*Kudish, Dr. Michael, 1975. ''A Preliminary Vascular Flora of the Paul Smiths-Saranac Lake Area, The Adirondacks, New York, With Notes on the Climate, Geology, and Soils, Paul Smith's College'', Paul Smiths, NY.
*Kudish, Dr. Michael, 1981. ''Paul Smiths Flora II:  Additional Vascular Plants, Bryophytes (Mosses and Liverworts), Soils and Vegetation, Local Forest History, Paul Smith's College'', Paul Smiths, NY.
*Kudish, Dr. Michael, 1992. ''Adirondack Upland Flora'', The Chauncy Press, Saranac Lake, N.Y., 316 pp. (In this work, Dr. Kudish, a forest ecologist, brings together all the factors leading to why it is certain plants, trees, bushes grow where they do, in a way understandable to the layman. While applicable to the whole Adirondack Park, Dr. Kudish made extensive use of the town of Brighton and the surrounding area.)
*Kudish, Dr. Michael, 2004. ''Historical Update: Paul Smith's College Lands, Forests, and Buildings 1981 to 2004, Paul Smith's College'', Paul Smiths, NY, 76 pp., incl. index. (Contains much information about the Town of Brighton)
*"Town of Brighton Smart Growth Plan", July 9, 2009, prepared by F.X. Browne, Inc., Saranac Lake, NY., 36 pp. (incl. biblio), six appendices provide supporting information.
*Wardner, Charles A., 2010. ''Footprints & Sunset on Adirondack Trails: The Memoirs of James Manchester Wardner 1831-1904'', privately published by Joan Wardner Allen, printed by Graphics North, Jay, NY.

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160815051428/http://townofbrighton.net/ Town of Brighton official website]
** [https://web.archive.org/web/20080511223018/http://www.townofbrighton.net/history.htm Town Historical Notes]
* [https://archive.today/20120710224100/http://history.rays-place.com/ny/brighton-ny.htm Early history of Brighton]

{{Franklin County, New York}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Adirondacks]]
[[Category:Towns in Franklin County, New York]]
[[Category:Towns in New York (state)]]