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Willink, New York facts for kids

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Willink, New York (sometimes spelled "Willinck") was once a town located in Western New York, United States. It was named after Willem Willink, who was one of the first investors in a big land company called the Holland Land Company.

Willink started out in Genesee County in 1804. It was formed from a part of the Town of Batavia. Later, in 1808, it became part of Niagara County. When Erie County was created from the southern part of Niagara County, Willink became the southern part of this new Erie County. Even before Erie County was fully formed, Willink had already been divided to create the towns of Cambria and Clarence in 1808. Clarence then became the northern part of what would become Erie County.

More towns continued to be formed from Willink until 1818. The last towns to be created from it were Holland and Wales. On the very same day Holland and Wales were formed, the people living in the remaining part of Willink voted to change its name to Aurora.

The village of Willink kept its name and officially became a village in 1849. However, it was later renamed East Aurora. In 1874, the village stopped being an official village, but a post office stayed at the west end of the new village of East Aurora until 1913. At that point, it joined with the main East Aurora Post Office.

How Did Willink Change Over Time?

Willink was like a parent town that gave birth to many smaller towns and villages. Over the years, its original land was divided many times to create new communities. This is a common way new areas were settled and organized in early American history.

Towns That Came From Willink

Many towns in Western New York were originally part of Willink, or were formed from towns that came from Willink. Here are some examples of towns that were created:

Some towns were even formed from parts of several different towns that had originally come from Willink. For example, Lockport was created from parts of Cambria and Royalton in 1824.

Villages That Grew From the Area

Several villages also developed within the areas that were once part of Willink or its "children" towns. These include:

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