Hector is a town in the northeastern corner of Schuyler County, New York, United States. The population was 4,916 at the 2020 census. The town is named after Hector Ely, who at the time was the firstborn son of the town founders. Hector is west of Ithaca.

Schuyler County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 17,898, making it the second-least populous county in New York. The county seat is the village of Watkins Glen. The name is in honor of General Philip Schuyler, one of the four major generals in the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War. The county is part of the Southern Tier region of the state.