Fair Haven, New York

Fair Haven is a village in Cayuga County, New York, United States. The population was 745 at the 2010 census. Fair Haven is within the town of Sterling and is northwest of Syracuse. The village is on Little Sodus Bay, an arm of Lake Ontario.HistoryThe openings in the sand bars on Little Sodus Bay were widened and protected by jetties in the middle of the 19th century, thus improving the shipping capabilities of Fair Haven. The west pier was marked with outer and inner lighthouses. The Lehigh Valley Railroad served Fair Haven, and coal was brought up from Pennsylvania to a trestle in North Fair Haven to be shipped by sail freighter to Canada. Ice was harvested from the bay and shipped by rail to New York City. Summer tourists arrived by rail from Auburn and other inland towns to enjoy the parks on the waterfront. When its use as a port waned, the village became a resort area.Fishing and recreational boating are popular now, and the bay is ringed with cottages and year-round residences. There has been an active yacht club on the west shore for over a century, and many sailboats are seen during the summer. As of 2010 the village is served by several restaurants on Main Street and one on the bay, the Pleasant Beach Hotel.