The town is within the former Central New York Military Tract, but was partly in an area reserved for members of the Onondaga tribe. The first settler arrived around 1797. Land was purchased from the Onondagas in 1817 and resold to settlers. The Town of LaFayette was formed in 1825 from parts of the Towns of Pompey and Onondaga after the Marquis de Lafayette famously toured the United States in 1824/1825 Every year, the town holds an Apple Festival over the Saturday and Sunday before Columbus day. This is in part because most of the agricultural land west of the town has historically held appleorchards. There are a total of four apple orchards in Lafayette.
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,833 people, 1,826 households, and 1,338 families residing in the town. The population density was 123.1 people per square mile. There were 1,925 housing units at an average density of 49.0 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 95.28% White, 0.37% African American, 2.32% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 0.12% from other races, and 1.22% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.43% of the population. There were 1,826 households, out of which 35.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.0% were married couplesliving together, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.7% were non-families. 21.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.09. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.9% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 26.8% from 25 to 44, 28.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 99.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.4 males. The median income for a household in the town was $50,179, and the median income for a family was $60,523. Males had a median income of $40,341 versus $30,435 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,591. About 3.3% of families and 5.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.6% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over.
Attractions
In LaFayette, there is an M&t bank, post office, gas station, Dollar General, and a Byrne Dairy. The Byrne Dairy was built in 2015 and is the largest one in New York state. To eat, there is a taco place, called Boss Tacos, opened in 2019. They are only open on Saturday nights and you order for takeout. There is also the LaFayette Inn, a bar, where the locals will go afterwork to grab a drink and chicken wings. Along with the LaFayette Inn, the locals also like, Thor. A bar known for air guitar performances. While watching this, you can feast upon pickled pig tongue and a cold beverage. It’s a very smoker friendly establishment.
Communities and other locations in LaFayette
Baileys Settlement - A hamlet west of Lafayette hamlet.
Big Bend - A hamlet southeast of LaFayette hamlet on US-20.
Cardiff - A hamlet west of LaFayette hamlet on US-20.
Collingwood - A hamlet southwest of Big Bend.
LaFayette - The town's largest hamlet, located at the intersection of US-11 and US-20. Sometimes referred to as "the village", though it never was incorporated as such.
Jamesville Reservoir - A lake located by the Jamesville Beach Park.
Onativia - A hamlet east of LaFayette hamlet.
Tully Valley - A location on NY-11A in the southwest part of LaFayette.
Webb Hollow - A location on Webb Road, around the intersection with Shute Road, northwest of the LaFayette hamlet. It is so named for the hollow in the creek that runs alongside Webb Road, the true name of which is actually Webb Hollow Road.
Notable person
Gerrit T. Thorn, Wisconsin legislator and lawyer, was born in Lafayette.
