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Huntington Country Store, Huntington MAPhoto: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0
A+History
History · Huntington

Huntington dates to 1769, and 33% of its homes were built before 1940

Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. What drives it

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 110 buildings. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1887 on, and the census since 1790.

1769founded
1on the National Register
33%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Huntington’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Huntington began

When was Huntington founded?

1769

Huntington dates its founding to 1769 (Wikidata). It appears in the first U.S. census, 1790.

First census: 742 in 17902020 census: 2,094257 years

How historic is Huntington?

A+

Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1812.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Huntington’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Huntington is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs put Huntington near the top nationally; its age ranks highest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Huntington’s overall grade.
Founding era1769, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 194032.5% of homes (±10.4) · typical MA town 21.1% · U.S. 8.4%ANational Register1 listing, 110 historic buildings, 495 per 10,000 residents · typical MA town 46.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Among the top 1%
NewerOlder

Massachusetts towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Massachusetts town has 46.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Huntington’s 495 sits above most of its state (91% of Massachusetts towns have fewer) while its 110 historic buildings outnumber those of 90% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1769.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.4 points).

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Huntington’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A historic districtThe Huntington Village Historic District takes in 110 historic buildings.On the map since 18874 editions of the USGS map, 1887 to 1998. Watch Huntington change.Lost villages3 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Huntington, and 4 old place names are still on the map.Older than the countryEstablished in 1769, 7 years before the Declaration of Independence.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

1 listing protects 110 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
110
each building in a district counts
first listed
1999
Huntington Village Historic District
Huntington Village Historic District
Districts

Architectural styles listings

Greek Revival1
Italianate1
Federal1
Huntington Village Historic DistrictGreek Revival

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

On the map

Huntington on the map, 1887 to 1998

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Huntington. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Huntington on the 1887 USGS mapHuntington on the 1893 USGS mapHuntington on the 1987 USGS mapHuntington on the 1998 USGS map1887Granville sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Huntington.

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Huntington’s post office has been open since 1855. Three other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Falleys Cross Roads
1812–1845
Norwich
1822–1909
Chester Village
1845–1855
Huntington
1855–today
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Goss HeightsKnightvilleNorwichNorwich Bridge
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Huntington
Norwich BridgeSaint Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story

How Huntington came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Huntington.

Read it all →

What is now Huntington was first settled by Europeans in 1760, mostly migrants from Norwich, Connecticut who logged the land's valuable timber. Settlers were mainly subsistence farmers, who also raised animals, caught fish, tapped maple trees, and manufactured their own domestic goods. Most of what is now the towns of Huntington and Chester were sold at auction (along with other parcels) on June 2, 1762, as Plantation Number 9, to Greg William Williams for £1,500. It was resold, and the three new proprietors allowed the 19 existing settlers to remain on the condition they build houses, clear land, and hire a Protestant minister.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Huntington in 1911

Passages that mention Huntington, cut from the printed page as they were published.

Lloyd's Neck guards the entrance to Huntington Bay on the west, and separates it from Oyster Bay. Huntington had possession of Lloyd's Neck for eleven years, under the Indian grants, but by adverse decision of the courts it was for 221 years barred out of Huntington, thus shutting out one third of …
A genealogical and biographical record of the pioneer Thomas Skidmore of the Massachusetts and Connecticut colonies in New England and of Huntington, Long Island, and of his descendants through the branches herein set forth1911 · page 38Read the page →
Read the text

Lloyd's Neck guards the entrance to Huntington Bay on the west, and separates it from Oyster Bay. Huntington had possession of Lloyd's Neck for eleven years, under the Indian grants, but by adverse decision of the courts it was for 221 years barred out of Huntington, thus shutting out one third of its seashore front. Finally by an act of the legislature of New York in 1886, it was annexed to the town of Huntington, L. I. Lloyd's Neck, or "Horse Neck" as it was formerly called, was an important spot during the Revolutionary War.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The Huntington town records show that for thirteen years the first settlers occupied *his territory and conveyed land to others on the Indian title ; but on November 30, 1666, they received a "Patent to Huntington" from Governor Richard Nichols [Nicolls], who was made governor of the Colony of New …
A genealogical and biographical record of the pioneer Thomas Skidmore of the Massachusetts and Connecticut colonies in New England and of Huntington, Long Island, and of his descendants through the branches herein set forth1911 · page 37Read the page →
Read the text

The Huntington town records show that for thirteen years the first settlers occupied *his territory and conveyed land to others on the Indian title ; but on November 30, 1666, they received a "Patent to Huntington" from Governor Richard Nichols [Nicolls], who was made governor of the Colony of New York when England overthrew the Dutch power in New Netherlands. This patent vested in the town of Huntington the full title held by the sovereignty of England, subject to the condition that the consent of the Indians be obtained.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Huntington, 1769 to 1909

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 18th century
  2. 1769
    FoundingHuntington is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1812Post officeThe Falleys Cross Roads post office opens
  5. 1822Post officeThe Norwich post office opens
  6. 1845Post officeThe Falleys Cross Roads post office closes
  7. 1845Post officeThe Chester Village post office opens
  8. 1855Post officeThe Chester Village post office closes
  9. 1866Born hereMichael J. Dowling is born here
  10. 1874Born hereLouis B. Allyn is born here
  11. 1887On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  12. 1898In the archiveBerkshire Hills at
  13. 20th century
  14. 1901In the archiveWestern Massachusetts streetcar in Huntington - postcard
  15. 1909Post officeThe Norwich post office closes
By decade

Huntington, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1900s3 items
Berkshire Hills at1898Berkshire Hills atHuntington, Berkshire Hills, Mass1898Huntington, Berkshire Hills, MassWestern Massachusetts streetcar in Huntington - postcard1901–1907Western Massachusetts streetcar in Huntington - postc…Postcard
1910s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Date unknown3 to date
A history of the town of Murrayfield - earlier known as Township No. 9, and comprising the present towns of Chester and…Date?A history of the town of Murrayfield - earlier known …BookHuntington, Mass in the Berkshires (NBY 5170)Date?Huntington, Mass in the Berkshires (NBY 5170)In the Berkshire Hills (NBY 185)Date?In the Berkshire Hills (NBY 185)
Today10 recent
Side view of pedestrian bridge across the West Branch Westfield River2024Side view of pedestrian bridge across the West Branch…Pedestrian bridge across the West Branch Westfield River2024Pedestrian bridge across the West Branch Westfield Ri…North Hall2024North HallLittleville Dam spillway2024Littleville Dam spillwayGoss Hill Road2024Goss Hill RoadStanton Hall2012Stanton HallMain Street2012Main StreetHuntington, Route 112 Bridge Repair, August 11, 20102010Huntington, Route 112 Bridge Repair, August 11, 2010Westfield River2009Westfield RiverHuntington Town Hall, MA2009Huntington Town Hall, MA
Every building

Huntington, building by building, 1912

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a sheet.

Huntington fire insurance map, 1912, sheet 11912Sheet 1 of 3
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Berkshire Hills at
Retake this viewBerkshire Hills at, 1898

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Huntington’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Huntington, census by census

05001,0001,5002,00018001850190019502000Peak: 2,180

Between 742 and 2,180 people in every census since 1790.

18 censuses, 1790–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Huntington’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Huntington

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Louis B. AllynChemist · b. 1874
Michael J. DowlingAmerican politician · b. 1866
Help out

Start Huntington’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Huntington’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo3 archive items have no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewBerkshire Hills at: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Chesterfield5 historic placesA+MontgomeryIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townChester3 historic placesA+Blandford1 historic placeASouthampton3 historic placesARussell1 historic placeAWorthington4 historic placesA+

Questions about Huntington’s history

What year was Huntington founded?

In 1769, according to Wikidata. Huntington’s post office opened in 1812, and the first U.S. census counted 742 people here in 1790.

How does Huntington rank for history?

Huntington is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Huntington?

One place: the Huntington Village Historic District (listed 1999).

How old are the homes in Huntington?

33% of Huntington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.4 points), against a typical 21% for a Massachusetts town; the median home was built in 1963.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (16), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.