Photo: Webb_Herkimer_NY.png: Schzmo *derivative work: Liesel · Public domain
Quick answers
How Columbia began
When was Columbia founded?
1820
The Columbia post office opened in 1820, the earliest record of the town by name. Four smaller post offices, Cedarville (1826), South Columbia (1833) and Millers Mills (1870), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,051 in 18202020 census: 1,569206 years
How historic is Columbia?
B+
More historic than 69% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Columbia post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Columbia’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Columbia is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Columbia’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 Columbia’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.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.8 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 Columbia’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area was called "Coonradstown" during the early settlement period. The original settlers, mainly of German extraction, abandoned their holdings during the American Revolution, and the next settlement period took place circa 1791. The first school, opened in 1795, was taught in the German language.
The town was organized in 1812 from part of the town of Warren, which was itself created by a partition of the town of German Flatts. Since its establishment the Town of Columbia has thrived on agriculture. In 1824 there was a reported a population of 2,051 and more than 5,000 sheep, nearly 2,000 cattle, and four grist mills. The population of Columbia in 1865 was 1,732.
Passages that mention Columbia, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Columbia County, New York. With illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers1878 · page 130Read the page →
Read the text
Through the summer and fall of 1827 the "railroad agitation," as it was termed, continued to increase, until, in Columbia county at least, opposition to the enterprise was nearly extinct; and at a railroad meeting held at Canaan, Jan. 25, 1828, the attendance was so large, and the enthusiasm so boundless, that it was said that if an authorized corporation had then and there asked subscriptions for the construction of a road from Hudson to West Stockbridge,
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Columbia County, New York. With illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers1878 · page 98Read the page →
Read the text
He commenced the practice of his profession in 1808, at Kinderhook, where he remained until 1832. He was elected to terms in the Assembly in 1810, 1816, and 1820, and was appointed surrogate of Columbia in 1812. He was appointed judge of the common pleas of Columbia in 1825, and circuit judge of the third circuit, by Governor Throop, in 1831. In the following year he removed to Albany, where he acquired a high reputation as a lawyer
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.
The Columbia post office opened in 1820, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Columbia rank for history?
Columbia is more historic than 69% 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.
How old are the homes in Columbia?
36% of Columbia’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.8 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 (1), Wikipedia, 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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