Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1800.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Bath’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bath is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns, #136 of 758 in New York. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Bath’s overall grade.
New York towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical New York town has 12.3 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Bath’s 227 sits above most of its state (84% of New York towns have fewer) while its 126 historic buildings outnumber those of 91% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1793.
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 (±5.6 points).
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Bath’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
18
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
126
each building in a district counts
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Every building
Bath, building by building, 1888–1915
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 year, then a sheet.
The town was founded in 1793 and was part of a land investment by the wealthy British politician William Pulteney, and named after Bath, Somerset, in England, where he owned extensive estates. It was created along with Steuben County in 1796 and became a mother town of the county, eventually yielding land to seven later towns. The Lackawanna Railroad opened its mainline through Bath, and opened a station, in 1882.
The first jailhouse was built in 1796 which was constructed out of logs at a location just west of Pulteney Square. It was eventually replaced by a more durable structure made of stone.
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.
In 1793, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Bath’s post office opened in 1800, and the census of 1820 counted 2,578 people here.
How does Bath rank for history?
Bath is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns, #136 of 758 in New York. 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.
How old are the homes in Bath?
35% of Bath’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.6 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1957.
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 (10), the Library of Congress (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1873
1878
1891
1907
2010
2010
2010
2009
2007