Settlement and Development

 

Southport was officially incorporated as a town on April 16, 1822, but settlers were in the area as early as 1786. The first homes were built along Seeley Creek and in Southport Corners. The settlers built the first school in 1799 and the first church on Maple Avenue in 1819. People began settling in Pine City in the 1830s, Hendy Creek in the 1840s, and Dutch Hill in the 1860s. In 1867, the City of Elmira absorbed the northern part of the town. Land was also taken from Southport to form the Town of Ashland the same year.