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The controversial Whitesboro village seal, which residents voted Monday night to keep.

(Provided photo)

Whitesboro residents voted Monday night to keep the village's controversial seal, rather than replace it with a new image.

Of 212 votes cast, 157 of them were in favor of retaining the current seal.

It was an informal vote, and village officials say they will discuss the results Tuesday night.

Whitesboro Mayor Patrick O'Connor said he wasn't entirely surprised by the vote results as numerous residents had been calling the village offices asking why the village was holding a vote in the first place.

The controversial village seal, which dates back to 1883, shows a white settler with his hands apparently choking a Native American man. Although village officials said the seal depicts a friendly wrestling match between Hugh White, the town's founder, and a member of the local Oneida tribe; it's caused controversy for years. Many called it racist and offensive.

Several of the seals which were being considered in Whitesboro to replace the controversial seal.

That controversy peaked during the summer of 2015 following national outcry over the Charleston church shooting. The shooter, Dylann Roof, was seen displaying the Confederate flag, and that called attention to other potentially racist symbols still used around the country.

The seal is displayed on town trucks, equipment and documents.

Last summer, a petition circulated calling for the removal of the seal, and village leaders decided to let the residents voice their opinions.

"It's been a controversy for decades, so we decided to get the input of our local village residents,'' O'Connor said Monday night. "We wanted to get a feeling from them on what image they want to represent their history."

Residents were asked to choose whether they wanted to replace the seal, and if so with which design, at an informal vote Monday night.

Several of the potential seals were designed by a New York City-based design group, and one was designed by a local woman, O'Connor said.