On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Brighton is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. All 2 inputs put Brighton near the top nationally; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Brighton’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 Brighton’s 422 sits above most of its state (90% of New York towns have fewer) while its 57 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.0 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Brighton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The Town of Brighton was set aside from the town of Duane in 1858 when settlers living in southern Duane complained loudly enough about being left out of town business discussions due to the long distance and time involved. James M. Wardner was elected its first supervisor. Apollos "Paul" Smith arrived in 1859 and gradually built up a hotel in the community that bears his name. Paul Smith's Hotel grew into one of the largest and most well-known, attracting U.S. presidents, governors and other prominent guests.
Jonathan Hastings lived in various towns until October, 1822, when he settled in Brighton. Soon after Mr. Hastings came to Brighton he purchased of (apt. John Learni'd the house on Washington Street in which he lived the remainder of his life. It passed into the possession of James Dana, his nephew
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Daniel Atherton, brother of Caleb, came to Brighton about 1833 and lived in the "Davis" house o:i Faneuil Street and afterwards in the Hartwell house on Cambridge Street. Later he lived in the Sparhawk house on Market Sti'eet, next to the old burial ground. There he died.
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
Brighton, 1818 to 1934
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
Brighton 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 Brighton?
6 listings: 6 buildings, among them the Camp Topridge (listed 1986, the first). 57 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Brighton?
50% of Brighton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.0 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1938.
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 (2), the Library of Congress (2), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (6), 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.
Date?
2008
2008
