Erie County (New York)

Erie County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 919,040. The county seat is Buffalo. The county's name comes from Lake Erie, which in turn comes from the Erie tribe of Native Americans who lived south and east of the lake before 1654.Erie County is part of the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The county's southern part is known as the Southtowns.HistoryWhen counties were established in New York State in 1683, present-day Erie County was Indian territory and not part of New York. Significant European settlement began ca. 1800 after the Holland Land Company extinguished Indian claims to the land, acquired the title to eight western-most counties of Western New York, surveyed their holdings, established towns, and began selling lots. At this time, all of Western New York was part of Ontario County. In 1802, Genesee County was created out of Ontario County. In 1808, Niagara County was created out of Genesee County. In 1821, Erie County was created out of Niagara County, encompassing all the land between Tonawanda Creek and Cattaraugus Creek.