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AHistory
History · Monterey

Monterey dates to 1739, and 29% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 94% of U.S. towns. What drives it

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 2 buildings. Below: maps from 1888 on and the census since 1850.

1739founded
3on the National Register
29%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Monterey began

When was Monterey founded?

1739

Monterey dates its founding to 1739 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1850.

First census: 761 in 18502020 census: 1,095287 years

How historic is Monterey?

A

More historic than 94% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1825.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Monterey’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Monterey is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.

A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Monterey’s overall grade.
Founding era1739, from Wikidata: founded before 1776, an older era than 96% of U.S. townsA+Homes built before 194028.9% of homes (±9.8) · typical MA town 21.1% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register3 listings, 8 historic buildings, 83.9 per 10,000 residents · typical MA town 46.0 · U.S. 2.4B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 94%
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 Monterey’s 83.9 sits near the middle of its state (60% of Massachusetts towns have fewer) while its 8 historic buildings outnumber those of 74% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1739.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±9.8 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 Monterey’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Monterey are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Shrank, then grewLost two-thirds of its people between 1850 and 1920, then grew 3-fold.On the map since 18887 editions of the USGS map, 1888 to 1997. Watch Monterey change.Older than the countryEstablished in 1739, 37 years before the Declaration of Independence.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Monterey’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Monterey, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001850190019502000761 in 1850Low: 282

Lost two-thirds of its people between 1850 and 1920, then grew 3-fold.

18 censuses, 1850–2020.

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

On the map

Monterey on the map, 1888 to 1997

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

Monterey on the 1888 USGS mapMonterey on the 1897 USGS mapMonterey on the 1946 USGS mapMonterey on the 1958 USGS mapMonterey on the 1973 USGS mapMonterey on the 1987 USGS mapMonterey on the 1997 USGS map1888Sandisfield 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 Monterey.

The story

How Monterey came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Monterey.

Read it all →

Prior to settlement by European-American colonists, the area of Monterey was inhabited by Mahicans, the local Native American tribe. Monterey was first settled by colonists in 1739 as a part of Housatonic Township Number One. The township had two villages, one along Hop Brook to the north (modern Tyringham) and one on the Konkapot River in the south (modern Monterey). The township was officially incorporated as Tyringham in 1767. In the earliest days of 1776, General Henry Knox passed through with cannons from Fort Ticonderoga in New York to aid in ending the Siege of Boston. Today, the path he took is known as the Henry Knox Trail.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Monterey, 1739 to 2020

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1739
    FoundingMonterey is established
  3. 1750BuiltRev. Adonijah Bidwell House is built
  4. 1763Born hereBarnabas Bidwell is born here
  5. 19th century
  6. 1825Post officeThe South Tyringham post office opens
  7. 1847Post officeThe South Tyringham post office closes
  8. 1847Post officeThe Monterey post office opens
  9. 1888On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 21st century
  11. 2020CensusPopulation peaks at 1,095
By decade

Monterey, decade by decade

Today5 recent
Monterey School, MA2009Monterey School, MAMA Route 23 eastbound2009MA Route 23 eastboundMA Route 23 eastbound, Monterey MA (cropped)2009MA Route 23 eastbound, Monterey MA (cropped)Monterey-Lake Garfield2004Monterey-Lake GarfieldMonterey Town Center2004Monterey Town Center
On the National Register

3 historic places in Monterey

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

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
8
each building in a district counts
first listed
1982
Rev. Adonijah Bidwell House
Rev. Adonijah Bidwell House, built 1750Rock RidgeCapt. John Brewer House
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Georgian2
Greek Revival1
Saltbox style1
Shingle style1
Rev. Adonijah Bidwell HouseGeorgian · Built 1750
Rock RidgeShingle style
Capt. John Brewer HouseGeorgian

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

Monterey’s post office has been open since 1847. Another post office, South Tyringham, opened and closed inside today’s town.

South Tyringham
1825–1847
Monterey
1847–today
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Camp JaysonHephzibah Heights
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Monterey
CorashireOld CenterWoods

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

New Marlborough3 historic placesA+Sandisfield4 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townTyringham4 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townGreat Barrington14 historic placesA+Otis2 historic placesA

Questions about Monterey’s history

What year was Monterey founded?

In 1739, according to Wikidata. Monterey’s post office opened in 1825, and the census of 1850 counted 761 people here.

How does Monterey rank for history?

Monterey is more historic than 94% 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 Monterey?

Three places: the Rev. Adonijah Bidwell House (listed 1982), the Rock Ridge (1983) and the Capt. John Brewer House (1984).

How old are the homes in Monterey?

29% of Monterey’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.8 points), against a typical 21% for a Massachusetts town; the median home was built in 1973.

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 (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.