Its Register listings are the Bridgewater Railroad Station and the Brick Store Building. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1986 on, and the census since 1800.
The Bridgewater post office opened in 1807, the earliest record of the town by name. Two smaller post offices, Babcock Hill (1844) and North Bridgewater (1850), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,061 in 18002020 census: 1,507219 years
How historic is Bridgewater?
A−
More historic than 85% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Bridgewater post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Bridgewater’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Bridgewater is more historic than 85% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Bridgewater’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 Bridgewater’s 15.3 sits near the middle of its state (52% of New York towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±10.1 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 Bridgewater’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first settlement took place circa 1788. The Town of Bridgewater was formed from the Town of Sangerfield in 1797. Bridgewater was the first municipality in New York State to elect an African American mayor, Everett Holmes, in 1974.
Bridgewater hosts a BMX track in the town park, which has seen many champions throughout the years and in 2003 took home a BMX state champion. This track has existed for over 25 years working
Passages that mention Bridgewater, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Oneida County, New York1878 · page 160Read the page →
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" All that part of the town of Sangerfield lying easterly of the division line between the third and fourth quarters of the 20th township, so called, be and is hereby created into a separate town by the name of Bridgewater.'' The first town-meeting was held at the house of Thomas Converse, and the first town-meeting in the town of Sangerfield at the house of Ebenezer Hale.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Oneida County, New York, 1667-18781878 · page 160Read the page →
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“ All that part of the town of Sangerfield lying easterly of the division line between the third and fourth quarters of the 20th township, so called, be and is hereby created into a separate town by the name of Bridgewater.” The first town-meeting was held at the house of Thomas Converse, and the first town-meeting in the town of Sangerfield at the house of Ebenezer Hale.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Oneida County, New York, 1667-18781878 · page 524Read the page →
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Warren Chapter , No. 22, II. A. M., was organized at Leonardsville, the old settlement south of Bridgewater village, and chartered in 1808 in the town of Brookfield, Madison Co. It was moved to Bridgewater in 1812.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Oneida County, New York1878 · page 524Read the page →
Read the text
Warren Chapter, No. 22, R. A. M., was organized at Leonardsville, the old settlement south of Bridgewater village, and chartered in 1808 in the town of Biookfield, Madison Co. It was moved to Bridgewater in 1812.
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
Bridgewater, 1798 to 2000
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Bridgewater post office opened in 1807, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Bridgewater rank for history?
Bridgewater is more historic than 85% 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 Bridgewater?
Two places: the Bridgewater Railroad Station (listed 2006) and the Brick Store Building (1996).
How old are the homes in Bridgewater?
31% of Bridgewater’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±10.1 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1972.
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 (2), 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 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.
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