On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cornwall-on-Hudson is more historic than 97% of U.S. towns, #91 of 758 in New York. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Cornwall-on-Hudson’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 Cornwall-on-Hudson’s 65.9 sits above most of its state (71% of New York towns have fewer) while its 20 historic buildings outnumber those of 79% 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 (±9.3 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 Cornwall-on-Hudson’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Cornwall-on-Hudson. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1902Schunemunk 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 Cornwall-on-Hudson.
On the National Register
10 historic places in Cornwall-on-Hudson
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
10
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
20
each building in a district counts
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
The village was part of the Governor Dongan tract of 1685. Willisville was an early name for Cornwall-on-Hudson. Settlement in the area occurred at Cornwall Landing, a hamlet on the Hudson River below Butter Hill. It was the only river landing in the town. In the early 1800s, Daniel Tobias sailed a sloop from Cornwall Landing. As there was no direct communication between the river and the table-land above, in 1807, his brother, Isaac S. Tobias, built a road, at his own expense, as far as the first bridge on the road to Willisville. The Mead and Taft Company lumberyard once employed 500 people at the Landing. Cornwall Landing became a commercial hub with its own post office. The Landing began to decline after World War II when passenger train service ended, and Conrail demolished the buildings. Cornwall-on-Hudson incorporated as a village in December 1884, within the Town of Cornwall.
Cornwall-on-Hudson is more historic than 97% of U.S. towns, #91 of 758 in New York. 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 Cornwall-on-Hudson?
46% of Cornwall-on-Hudson’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±9.3 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1952.
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 Wikidata (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
