As a town, Rye is located in Westchester County in New York and is completely separate from the city of Rye.  It contains the village of Rye Brook, as well as the village of Port Chester, and it shares the village of Mamaroneck with the town of Mamaroneck.  Though not as affluent as many of the towns and villages in Westchester County, the town of Rye includes many middle class families, with a median household income estimated at over $65,000.  Several of the inhabitants of the town consider themselves to be of Hispanic or Latino descent, this being the most dominant racial definition for the town besides Caucasian.

The town began as a small settlement on Manursing Island, growing from there to develop Poningo Neck (which now belongs to the city of Rye and is its main business district), followed by the village of Port Chester.  At the time, the only access between the town and the rest of the world was by water transportation and stage coach, making it a fairly isolated community.  During this early settlement, the main occupations were fishing, trading, logging, and farming.  Homes were simple, and life was rough.

Now, with modern technology, including highways and railways, the town of Rye is accessible to the world, and its population is thriving.