By the 1820s, Freemasonry was prevalent in Genesee County. From 1821 to 1827, half of all county officials were Freemasons.[8] In September 1826, William Morgan, a resident of Batavia, New York, disappeared after having been briefly imprisoned for failure to repay a debt. Morgan had been rejected from the Masonic lodge in Batavia, and, as a result, threatened to publish a book which exposed the secret rituals of Freemasonry. His disappearance and presumed murder ignited a campaign against Freemasonry. The investigation into Morgan's disappearance confronted major obstacles from government officials and the judiciary- positions that were largely occupied by Freemasons.[9] The Morgan affair combined with existing suspicions and distrust of the secrecy of Freemasonry initiated mass meetings throughout the county to decide how the issue of Freemasonry should be handled. The Antimasonry crusade's original goal was to oust Masons from political offices. Through the political guidance of party organizers, such as Thurlow Weed and William H. Seward, the crusade developed into a political party that enjoyed a political stronghold in Genesee County and the rest of the "burned-over district."
The Antimasonic Party found strong support within Genesee County from 1827 to 1833. The party averaged 69 percent of the vote and won every county office.[9] After continuous domination of Masonic politicians, citizens saw Antimasonry as a solution and an opportunity to restore justice and republicanism. The Baptist and Presbyterian churches favored Antimasonry and encouraged their members to renounce ties with the fraternity. The party was originally associated with populist rhetoric, however, strong Antimasonic sentiment throughout the county correlated with positive economic developments and high population densities. Larger towns, such as Batavia, the county seat and Le Roy, harbored the strongest support for the party.[10] The timing of the creation of the Antimasonic Party coincided with a time in New York politics that encouraged the expansion of political participation. The party leaders made the Antimasonic Party, and later the Whig Party, a great success in Genesee County and other neighboring counties.
New York State
It was not until the Holland Purchase of 1793 that Western New York was enforced as the territory of New York State. Land in the region was sold through the Holland Land Company's office in Batavia, starting in 1801. All the land in Western New York was in the newly created Genesee County, and all of that was in the single town of Batavia.Genesee County was created by a partition of 7,100 square miles (18,000 km2) of land from Ontario County. The County was not fully organized so it remained under the supervision of Ontario County until it achieved full organization and separation during March 1803.[11]
On April 7, 1806, Genesee’s area was reduced to 5,550 square miles (14,400 km2) due to a partition that created Allegany County.[12] On March 8, 1808, Genesee’s area was again reduced, this time to 1,650 square miles (4,300 km2) due to a partition that created Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, and Niagara Counties.[13] On February 23, 1821, Genesee’s area was again reduced, this time to 1,450 square miles (3,800 km2) due a complex partition that produced Livingston[14] and Monroe Counties.[15] On April 15, 1825, another partition reduced Genesee’s area to 1,030 square miles (2,700 km2) in the creation of Orleans County.[16][17] On May 1, 1826, the Orleans partition was again surveyed, with 10 square miles (26 km2) of land along the western half of the Orleans/Genesee border returned to Genesee.[18] On March 19, 1841, Genesee’s area was again reduced, this time to the 500 square miles (1,300 km2) it remains to this day due to the partitioning to create Wyoming County.[19]
In 2009, the City and Town of Batavia began exploring ways to merge or consolidate governmental systems.
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