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U.S. Post Office East Otto NY Aug 10Photo: Pubdog · Public domain
–Not graded
History · East Otto

East Otto’s post office opened in 1830, and 38% of its homes were built before 1940

Its Register listing is the East Otto Union School. Below: maps from 1923 on and the census since 1860.

1830first post office
1on the National Register
38%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How East Otto began

When was East Otto founded?

1830

The East Otto post office opened in 1830, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1854. Another post office, Plato (1830), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 1,300 in 18602020 census: 974196 years
Founding year: the first East Otto post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1854.The full story ↓

What stands out about East Otto’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 East Otto are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s East Otto, and 3 old place names are still on the map.Deep rootsA post office since 1830: 196 years of East Otto.On the map since 19234 editions of the USGS map, 1923 to 1963. Watch East Otto change.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start East Otto’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how East Otto’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
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

East Otto’s post office has been open since 1830. Another post office, Plato, opened and closed inside today’s town.

East Otto
1830–today
Plato
1830–1907
18301930today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BrooklynPlatoWhiteford Hollow
Gone or out of use
Brooklyn SchoolschoolReed SchoolschoolSwamp SchoolschoolUtley Schoolschool
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside East Otto
BrooklynEast Otto

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Timeline

East Otto, 1828 to 1923

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1828Born hereBenjamin F. Rice is born here
  3. 1830Post officeThe East Otto post office opens
  4. 1830Post officeThe Plato post office opens
  5. 1839Born hereGilbert A. Pierce is born here
  6. 20th century
  7. 1907Post officeThe Plato post office closes
  8. 1920BuiltEast Otto Union School is built
  9. 1923On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story

How East Otto came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of East Otto.

Read it all →

The town of East Otto was founded in 1854. As its name implies, the town was formed from the eastern half of the town of Otto, which at the time covered most of the north-central portion of the county. East Otto was one of the last towns to be formed in Cattaraugus County.

The East Otto Union School, which was constructed in 1920 and now serves as a town hall, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

East Otto, decade by decade

Today4 recent
New York State Forest sign - East Otto State Forest2016New York State Forest sign - East Otto State ForestWinter Scene in East Otto, New York, January 19982014Winter Scene in East Otto, New York, January 1998U.S. Post Office East Otto NY Aug 102010U.S. Post Office East Otto NY Aug 10East Otto Union School Aug 102010East Otto Union School Aug 10
On the map

East Otto on the map, 1923 to 1963

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

East Otto on the 1923 USGS mapEast Otto on the 1938 USGS mapEast Otto on the 1941 USGS mapEast Otto on the 1963 USGS map1923Cattaraugus 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 East Otto.

On the National Register

1 historic place in East Otto

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2004
East Otto Union School
East Otto Union School, built 1920
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Colonial Revival1
East Otto Union SchoolColonial Revival · Built 1920

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

People over time

East Otto, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,400190019502000Peak: 1,300

Between 701 and 1,300 people in every census since 1860.

17 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in East Otto

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Gilbert A. PierceAmerican politician · b. 1839
Benjamin F. RiceAmerican politician · b. 1828
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

AshfordIts storyBConcord9 historic placesACollinsIts storyB+Otto1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMansfieldIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townEllicottville5 historic placesA

Questions about East Otto’s history

What year was East Otto founded?

The East Otto post office opened in 1830, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1854.

What is on the National Register in East Otto?

One place: the East Otto Union School (listed 2004).

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 (4), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.