Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1809.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Eaton’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Eaton is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns, #296 of 758 in New York. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Eaton’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 Eaton’s 9.7 sits near the middle of its state (45% of New York towns have fewer) while its 4 listings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.5 points). Two sources give 1807.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Eaton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area where Eaton is situated was the principal location of the Oneida people, a sub-group of the Iroquois who allied themselves with the colonial forces during the American Revolution. Euro-American settlement began around 1792. The town of Eaton was formed in 1807 from the town of Hamilton. Eaton is named for William Eaton, a Revolutionary officer and commander of the United States military forces in Tripoli.
Passages that mention Eaton, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History, genealogical and biographical, of the Eaton families1911 · page 615Read the page →
Read the text
year and built a little meeting-house on the spot where the present one now stands. In 1713 were added from the said Pennepek, John Eaton, Jane Eaton, Joseph Eaton, Gwenllian Eaton, George Eaton, Mary Eaton. 3 2 John Eaton, son of (John Eaton) b Historical in 1659; was of Llandewr Fach, Radnorshire, Miscellany Wales in 1686, and settled on the banks of ™^en^
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History, genealogical and biographical, of the Eaton families1911 · page 393Read the page →
Read the text
In the first parish meeting of the North Parish of Methuen held Jan. 15, 1736, "Thomas Eaton was chosen parish treasurer." His name frequently appears on committees. When the church was organized, Jan. 16, 1740, Thomas Eaton was chosen deacon.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Madison county, state of New York1900 · page 308Read the page →
Read the text
On the eastern outskirts of Eaton village, about half a m?le from the business center, is located the Eaton Depot of the Midland Railroad. It is conveniently reached by freight teams from Eaton, Pierceville and West Eaton villages, over smooth roads, and by hacks for passengers from each of these places at all train hours.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Madison county, state of New York1900 · page 631Read the page →
Read the text
Pond" being within the town of Eaton, a sketch of him is given in that town. The Hopkins also in the southeast part, are mentioned in the Eaton chapter, David WelHno-- ton settled on Lot 137, near the Eaton Brook Reservoir, in 1797. Thomas Ackley and Benjamin Hatch, from Plainfield, Otsego County, settled in the same locality. Aaron Lindsley, Moses and Solomon Clark, Jesse, Abner and Seth Bump, came previous to 1800, the three Bump broth-
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.
Timeline
Eaton, 1807 to 1979
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
In 1807, according to Wikidata. Eaton’s post office opened in 1809, and the census of 1820 counted 3,021 people here.
How does Eaton rank for history?
Eaton is more historic than 88% of U.S. towns, #296 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.
What is on the National Register in Eaton?
4 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Old Madison County Courthouse (listed 1978, the first).
How old are the homes in Eaton?
40% of Eaton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.5 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1953.
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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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), 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.
1979
2023
2023
2014
2014
