Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 45% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1905 on, and the census since 1870.
The Central Square post office opened in 1822, the earliest record of the town by name.
More historic than 45% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Central Square is more historic than 45% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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 Central Square’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (10% of New York towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Central Square’s history is told.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Central Square. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Central Square.
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
From Wikipedia’s history of Central Square.
The site was the crossing of Native American trails that became crossroads of the early settlers. Central Square was first called "Loomis Corners" after Chester Loomis, who built a hotel there. Later, the community also became a railroad junction.
The central part of the village was devastated by a fire in 1929.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Passages that mention Central Square, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The very latest journalistic adventure in our county is the Central Square News, which was established at the pleasant little village of Central Square, in the town of Hastings, in January, 1877. Willis G. Bohannan was the founder, and is the editor and proprietor, with John W.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
turnpiking or macadamizing them), the expense to be repaid by tolls. In 1845 a charter was granted for a company to build such a road from Salina, Onondaga county, to Central Square, in the town of Hastings, Oswego County. In 1846 the road was completed, being the first " plankroad" built in the United States. This example was soon followed in other localities, and for a few years there was a mania for building plank-roads all over the country.
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.
One decade in the archive so far: the 1860s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Central Square’s page.
Retake this view · +15Grew from 359 people in 1870 to 1,862 in 2020, 5 times over.
15 censuses, 1870–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Central Square’s Wikipedia page.
The Central Square post office opened in 1822, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
Central Square is more historic than 45% 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.
10% of Central Square’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.2 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1979.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.
