The Town of Hastings is presently defined by New York State law as a second class town (population under 10,000). It was established on April 20, 1825, being formerly a part of the Town of Constantia. The Town is named after Hastings Curtis, one of its most distinguished citizens. The Town was originally called "Breda" by George Scriba, one of the original owners of the patent from which the town came.

The Town is located in south central Oswego County, in Central New York State. It is 10 miles southeast of Lake Ontario, 12 miles north of the City of Syracuse, and 55 miles west of the Adirondack Mountains. The Town is approximately 46 square miles in area or 29,440 acres. Hastings is bordered on the north by the Towns of Mexico and Parish; on the east by the Town of West Monroe; on the west by the Towns of Palermo and Schroeppel; and on the south by the towns of Cicero and Clay in Onondaga County, and by the Oneida River and the south shore of Oneida Lake.

The Village of Central Square, incorporated in 1889, is in the southeastern part of the Town. The Village has annexed portions of the Town between it and the eastern border of the Town
The economic base along with the transportation systems contributed to the early settlement patterns of the area. When the area was originally settled, it was heavily forested. A principal industry of early settlers was converting trees to ashes, which were then manufactured into blacksalts, potash and pearl ash. Barrel making was another important industry. The barrels were transported by wagon to Syracuse to the salt works, and the return wagons carried hides to be tanned in the local tannery The development patterns of the Town were heavily influenced by water and transportation systems. The Town was first settled in the Brewerton area at the site of old Fort Brewerton due to the Oneida River. Here, a tavern was constructed to serve boatmen on the lake and river in 1789. While the original crossing of the Oneida River was by ferry, a bridge built in 1824 at Brewerton further increased the importance of this hamlet’s location. The Erie Canal, finished in 1825, also greatly increased the importance he Oneida River and locations along it.