Richfield Springs was called "Big Medicine Waters" by the local natives. From the Gazetteer of the State of New York by J. H. French, Published by R. Pearsall Smith, Syracuse, N. Y. 1860:
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,423 people, 968 households, and 641 families residing in the town. The population density was 78.4 people per square mile. There were 1,296 housing units at an average density of 41.9 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 97.48% White, 0.37% African American, 0.41% Native American, 0.45% Asian, 0.33% Pacific Islander, 0.04% from other races, and 0.91% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.37% of the population. There were 968 households out of which 26.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.6% were married couplesliving together, 8.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.7% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.02. In the town, the population was spread out with 23.1% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 23.9% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 20.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $32,784, and the median income for a family was $41,050. Males had a median income of $29,479 versus $21,518 for females. The per capita income for the town was $16,723. About 9.3% of families and 13.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.0% of those under age 18 and 9.6% of those age 65 or over.
Communities and locations in Richfield
Brighton - A hamlet in the northern part of the town, located on US-20, west of Richfield Springs.
Canadarago Hill - An elevation located in the Village of Richfield. Also referred to as The Round Top.
Dogtown - A hamlet near the south town line of Richfield on County Route 24, located on Hyder Creek.
Federal Corners - A location east of Richfield Springs at the corner of Butternut Road and Cemetery Road.
Gunset Hill - An elevation located west of Richfield Springs.
Hawk Hill - An elevation near Dogtown.
Nine Hill - An elevation southwest of Richfield Springs.
Pray Hill - An elevation west of Brighton.
Richfield - A hamlet southwest of Richfield Springs on Country Route 25 at the intersection of County Road 24.
Richfield Hill - An elevation located by the northwest part of the town. Part of Richfield Hill is in the town of Columbia.
Richfield Springs - The Village of Richfield Springs is in the northeast section of the town at the junction of US-20 and NY-28, north of Canadarago Lake.
Round Top - An elevation on the western town line. Partly in Herkimer County.
Sunset Hill - An elevation north of the village of Richfield
