Montezuma, New York
| Montezuma, New York | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge
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| Motto: "Celebrating Our Erie Canal Heritage" | |
 Location within Cayuga County and New York |
|
 Montezuma
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| Coordinates: 43°0′50″N 76°41′50″W / 43.01389°N 76.69722°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | New York |
| County | Cayuga |
| Government | |
| • Type | Town Council |
| • Town Supervisor | John R. Malenick (R) |
| • Town Council |
Members' List
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| Area | |
| • Total | 18.7 sq mi (48.5 km2) |
| • Land | 18.2 sq mi (47.2 km2) |
| • Water | 0.5 sq mi (1.2 km2) |
| Elevation | 387 ft (118 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 1,277 |
| • Density | 70/sq mi (27.0/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 13117 |
| Area code(s) | 315 |
| FIPS code | 36-48131 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0979231 |
| Website | townofmontezuma |
Montezuma is a Town in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 1,277 at the 2010 census.
Located along the Seneca River, the Town is at the west border of Cayuga County and is northwest of Auburn. The Erie Canal was built through here, bringing new commerce, as did the railroad. National and state historic districts have been designated as related to the canal period, as well as national and state wildlife areas to preserve natural resources of the remaining areas of the Montezuma Swamp. Once one of the largest wetlands areas in the Northeast, it extended between the northern end of Cayuga Lake and almost reached the southern end of Lake Ontario.
This was part of the large territory occupied and controlled by the Five Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy as well established before any European colonization. Most Europeans during the colonial period did not penetrate this far west but had relations with the Mohawk nation to the East for trading.
During the American Revolutionary War, there was extensive warfare on the frontier; Joseph Brant, a Mohawk chief, led Iroquois and some Loyalist forces against patriot villages. In retaliation, General George Washington assigned the Sullivan Expedition to punish the Iroquois; they attacked the Seneca and Cayuga villages in the western part of New York, destroying more than 50, plus their winter stores and crops. Many of the Iroquois fled to Canada and fatalities were high that winter from starvation.
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