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B+History
History · Blooming Grove

Blooming Grove’s post office opened in 1813, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 67% of U.S. towns · #548 of 758 in New York. What drives it

Its Register listings are the Moffat Library, the Blooming Grove Church and the Brotherhood Winery. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1902 on, and the census since 1800.

1813first post office
3on the National Register
12%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Blooming Grove’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Blooming Grove began

When was Blooming Grove founded?

1813

The Blooming Grove post office opened in 1813, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Craigsville (1827) and Oxford Depot (1843), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 1,611 in 18002020 census: 18,811213 years

How historic is Blooming Grove?

B+

More historic than 67% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Blooming Grove post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Blooming Grove’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Blooming Grove is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #548 of 758 in New York. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its age ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.

B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Blooming Grove’s overall grade.
Founding era1813, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194012.1% of homes (±3.2) · typical NY town 26.6% · U.S. 8.4%B−National Register3 listings, 7 historic buildings, 3.8 per 10,000 residents · typical NY town 12.3 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 67%
NewerOlder
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 28%

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 Blooming Grove’s 3.8 sits below most of its state (31% of New York towns have fewer) while its 7 historic buildings outnumber those of 73% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.2 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

Founding year: the first post office (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 Blooming Grove’s past

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

Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Blooming Grove, and 15 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19024 editions of the USGS map, 1902 to 1981. Watch Blooming Grove change.Deep rootsA post office since 1813: 213 years of Blooming Grove.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Blooming Grove had its own post office from 1813 to 1875. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Blooming Grove
1813–1875
Salisbury Mills
1820–today
Craigsville
1827–1944
Oxford Depot
1843–1929
Washingtonville
1875–today
Blooming Grove
1889–today
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Brookview Acres Mobile Home ParkBull MineCraigvilleFarmingdaleMarycrestMountain HouseMountain Lodge ParkOxfordSalisbury MillsSmiths CloveSouth Blooming GroveTappan HillWashingtonvilleWoodfieldWorley Heights
Gone or out of use
Hudson SchoolschoolQuaker Hill SchoolschoolSchool Number 12school
9cemeteries and burying grounds inside Blooming Grove
BullColemanGreycourtHeardNortonSaint ColumbusSaint Mary'sSearsWoodhull

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

Help out

Start Blooming Grove’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBlooming Grove (Township): stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Blooming Grove on the map, 1902 to 1981

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

Blooming Grove on the 1902 USGS mapBlooming Grove on the 1930 USGS mapBlooming Grove on the 1957 USGS mapBlooming Grove on the 1981 USGS map1902Schunemunk 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 Blooming Grove.

The story

How Blooming Grove came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Blooming Grove.

Read it all →

Vincent Mathews was likely the earliest settler who purchased the Rip Van Dam patent in 1721, built a grist mill and named his settlement "Mathewsfield." He was the father of David Mathews, a Loyalist who was Mayor of New York.

The town of Blooming Grove was formed from the town of Cornwall in 1799. In 1830, the town of Hamptonburgh was established from part of Blooming Grove. Another part of Blooming Grove was taken to form the town of Chester in 1845.

The village of South Blooming Grove was incorporated in July 2006.

Andrew Jackson Davis, the "Poughkeepsie Seer", was born in Blooming Grove in 1826.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Blooming Grove, 1813 to 1964

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1813Post officeThe Blooming Grove post office opens
  3. 1820Post officeThe Salisbury Mills post office opens
  4. 1824BuiltBlooming Grove Church is built
  5. 1827Post officeThe Craigsville post office opens
  6. 1875In the archiveBlooming Grove (Township)
  7. 1875Post officeThe Blooming Grove post office closes
  8. 1887BuiltMoffat Library is built
  9. 20th century
  10. 1902On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1944Post officeThe Craigsville post office closes
  12. 1964In the archiveFrank D. Gilroy (cropped)
By decade

Blooming Grove, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1960s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s1 item
Blooming Grove (Township)1875Blooming Grove (Township)
1960s3 items
Frank D. Gilroy (cropped)1964Frank D. Gilroy (cropped)Frank and Ruth Gilroy (cropped)1964Frank and Ruth Gilroy (cropped)The Subject Was Roses1964The Subject Was Roses
1970s–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
Today14 recent
Pastoral landscape off NY 94 outside of Washingtonville2023Pastoral landscape off NY 94 outside of Washingtonvil…South Blooming Grove, NY, village hall2022South Blooming Grove, NY, village hallEastern Prickly Pear Cactus in2020Eastern Prickly Pear Cactus inIntersection of NY 208 and Captain Carpenter Road, South2015Intersection of NY 208 and Captain Carpenter Road, So…Mediacom building2013Mediacom buildingNY 94 E of Washingtonville2008NY 94 E of WashingtonvilleTomahawk Lake, NY2007Tomahawk Lake, NYSchunemunk summit2007Schunemunk summitNY 94 W of Washingtonville2007NY 94 W of WashingtonvilleMoodna Creek source2007Moodna Creek sourceBlooming Grove Church2007Blooming Grove ChurchBeaverdam Lake, Salisbury Mills NY2007Beaverdam Lake, Salisbury Mills NYRound Hill Elementary School2006Round Hill Elementary SchoolSalisbury Mills, NY2005Salisbury Mills, NY
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.

Blooming Grove (Township)
Retake this viewBlooming Grove (Township), 1875

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

3 historic places in Blooming Grove

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

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
7
each building in a district counts
first listed
1994
Moffat Library
Moffat Library, built 1887Blooming Grove Church, built 1824Brotherhood Winery
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Late Victorian1
Queen Anne1
Early Republic1
Federal1
Moffat LibraryLate Victorian · Built 1887
Blooming Grove ChurchEarly Republic · Built 1824
Brotherhood WineryBuilding

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

People over time

Blooming Grove, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,0001800185019001950200018,811

Grew from 1,611 people in 1800 to 18,811 in 2020, more than tenfold.

23 censuses, 1800–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Woodbury3 historic placesBWoodbury3 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMonroe3 historic placesA−Chester4 historic placesAMountain Lodge ParkIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townCornwall36 historic placesA+South Blooming GroveIts storyDNew Windsor8 historic placesB+Goshen10 historic placesAHamptonburgh3 historic placesA−

Questions about Blooming Grove’s history

What year was Blooming Grove founded?

The Blooming Grove post office opened in 1813, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Blooming Grove rank for history?

Blooming Grove is more historic than 67% of U.S. towns, #548 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.

What is on the National Register in Blooming Grove?

Three places: the Moffat Library (listed 1994), the Blooming Grove Church (1996) and the Brotherhood Winery (2000).

How old are the homes in Blooming Grove?

12% of Blooming Grove’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.2 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1976.

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 (18), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, 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.