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History · Canaseraga

Canaseraga’s post office opened in 1857, and 57% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register. Below: maps from 1888 on and the census since 1880.

1857first post office
1on the National Register
57%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: DanielPenfield · CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answers

How Canaseraga began

When was Canaseraga founded?

1857

The Canaseraga post office opened in 1857, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 791 in 18802020 census: 460169 years
Founding year: the first Canaseraga post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Canaseraga’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 Canaseraga are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Mapped building by building6 fire insurance maps, 1888 to 1913, drew every building in Canaseraga.Old housesHalf of Canaseraga’s homes were built before 1938.On the map since 19163 editions of the USGS map, 1916 to 1964. Watch Canaseraga change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Canaseraga’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Canaseraga’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
Every building

Canaseraga, building by building, 1888–1913

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.

Canaseraga fire insurance map, 1888, sheet 11888Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Canaseraga came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Canaseraga.

Read it all →

The community was one of the original settlements in the town, but was subordinate to the community of Burns until circa 1840. The village of Canaseraga was incorporated in 1892. It was originally called "Whitney Valley".

As a result of a fire the town is now much smaller than it once was. Many residents travel to nearby communities to shop and attend movies, as Canaseraga is very limited. There is one school, for pre-kindergarten through grade 12. The school offers sports such as soccer, basketball, skiing, track (as of them merging sports with Arkport), and baseball/softball, but lacks other sports such as football. Canaseraga has a Fall Harvest Festival which offers several activities for families.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Canaseraga, decade by decade

Today2 recent
CANASERAGA FOUR CORNERS HISTORIC DISTRICT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY ,NEW YORK2026CANASERAGA FOUR CORNERS HISTORIC DISTRICT, ALLEGHENY …CanaseragaCentralSchool2019CanaseragaCentralSchool
On the map

Canaseraga on the map, 1916 to 1964

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

Canaseraga on the 1916 USGS mapCanaseraga on the 1940 USGS mapCanaseraga on the 1964 USGS map1916Canaseraga 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 Canaseraga.

On the National Register

1 listing protects 16 historic buildings

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
16
each building in a district counts

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

People over time

Canaseraga, census by census

020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 791

Between 460 and 791 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Questions about Canaseraga’s history

What year was Canaseraga founded?

The Canaseraga post office opened in 1857, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (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.