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History · Fort Ann

Fort Ann dates to 1757, and 26% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 1820.

1757founded
1on the National Register
26%homes built before 1940
5old photos & papers
8famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Fort Ann’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Fort Ann began

When was Fort Ann founded?

1757

Fort Ann dates its founding to 1757 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1820.

First census: 2,911 in 18202020 census: 460269 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1797.The full story ↓

What stands out about Fort Ann’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Shrank, then grewLost a third of its people between 1840 and 1910, then more than doubled.On the map since 18933 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1944. Watch Fort Ann change.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1895 to 1909, drew every building in Fort Ann.Older than the countryEstablished in 1757, 19 years before the Declaration of Independence.
★ What stands out · People over time

Fort Ann, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,0006,5007,00018501900195020003,559 in 1840Low: 2,236

Lost a third of its people between 1840 and 1910, then more than doubled.

21 censuses, 1820–2020.

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

On the map

Fort Ann on the map, 1893 to 1944

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

Fort Ann on the 1893 USGS mapFort Ann on the 1901 USGS mapFort Ann on the 1944 USGS map1893Fort Ann 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 Fort Ann.

Every building

Fort Ann, building by building, 1895–1909

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Fort Ann fire insurance map, 1895, sheet 11895Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Fort Ann came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Fort Ann.

Read it all →

Fort Ann is located on the historic route linking the French and English colonies.

The area was the site of several forts built by various nations, from a small French fort called "The Pickets" near the southern end of Lake Champlain in 1689, in the northwestern area of the town, to a series of forts (including "Fort Schuyler" and "Queen's Fort") closer to where the village of Fort Ann stands today. The first of these was likely the Stone Fort, built by Englishman Fitz John Winthrop in 1692.

ChaptersColonial periodThe early town19th century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Fort Ann in 1901

Passages that mention Fort Ann, cut from the printed page as they were published.

The village of Fort Ann has a depot on the Delaware & Hudson Railroad; the Champlain Canal passes through it, and a daily stage connects it with Glens Falls. The postoffice was established in 1800, and George Clark was the first postmaster. The business carried on is mostly commercial, but there is…
Washington county, New York1901Read the page →
Read the text

The village of Fort Ann has a depot on the Delaware & Hudson Railroad; the Champlain Canal passes through it, and a daily stage connects it with Glens Falls. The postoffice was established in 1800, and George Clark was the first postmaster. The business carried on is mostly commercial, but there is a knitting and woolen mill conducted by Edgar Wall.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Fort Ann was formed, as the town of Westfield, March 23, 1786, and at that time included Putnam, Dresden and Hartford, as well as its present territory. Hartford was set off in 1793, and Putnam and Dresden, as one town, in 1806. In 1808 the name of Westfield was changed to Fort Ann, in memory of th…
Washington county, New York1901Read the page →
Read the text

Fort Ann was formed, as the town of Westfield, March 23, 1786, and at that time included Putnam, Dresden and Hartford, as well as its present territory. Hartford was set off in 1793, and Putnam and Dresden, as one town, in 1806. In 1808 the name of Westfield was changed to Fort Ann, in memory of the old fort at the village.

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

Fort Ann, 1757 to 2000

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1757
    FoundingFort Ann is established
  3. 1789In the archiveA view of a saw mill and block house upon Fort Anne Creek ...which on Gen. Burgoyne's arm…
  4. 19th century
  5. 1816Born hereEdwin R. Reynolds is born here
  6. 1829Born hereMary Harris Thompson is born here
  7. 1835Born hereJohn Henry Dolph is born here
  8. 1838Born hereLester Archer is born here
  9. 1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  10. 1895In the archiveSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Fort Ann, Washington County, New York. LOC sanborn05924 0…
  11. 20th century
  12. 1919In the archiveFort Ann New York USGS topo map 1893
  13. 1930In the archiveRPPC Prison Comstock NY A
  14. 21st century
  15. 2000CensusPopulation peaks at 6,417
By decade

Fort Ann, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1780s to the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1780s1 item
A view of a saw mill and block house upon Fort Anne Creek ...which on Gen. Burgoyne's army advancing was set fire to by…1789A view of a saw mill and block house upon Fort Anne C…
1890s–1930s4 items
Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Fort Ann, Washington County, New York. LOC sanborn05924 0011895Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Fort Ann, Washington …MapSanborn Fire Insurance Map from Fort Ann, Washington County, New York. LOC sanborn05924 0011895Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Fort Ann, Washington …MapFort Ann New York USGS topo map 18931919Fort Ann New York USGS topo map 1893MapRPPC Prison Comstock NY Ac. 1930RPPC Prison Comstock NY A
1940s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today12 recent
2024-09-16 14 19 26 A cornfield with areas of spotty growth along New York State Route 149 in20242024-09-16 14 19 26 A cornfield with areas of spotty …2024-09-16 14 18 01 An ear of corn on an isolated cornstalk in a cornfield with areas of spotty growth along New York S…20242024-09-16 14 18 01 An ear of corn on an isolated cor…2024-09-16 14 17 47 An ear of corn on an isolated cornstalk in a cornfield with areas of spotty growth along New York S…20242024-09-16 14 17 47 An ear of corn on an isolated cor…2024-09-16 14 17 16 Spent corn tassels on top of an isolated cornstalk in a cornfield with areas of spotty growth along…20242024-09-16 14 17 16 Spent corn tassels on top of an i…2024-09-16 14 17 05 Isolated corn stalk in a cornfield with areas of spotty growth along New York State Route 149 in20242024-09-16 14 17 05 Isolated corn stalk in a cornfiel…2024-09-16 14 16 18 A cornfield with areas of spotty growth along New York State Route 149 in20242024-09-16 14 16 18 A cornfield with areas of spotty …2024-09-16 14 15 52 Isolated corn stalk in a cornfield with areas of spotty growth along New York State Route 149 in20242024-09-16 14 15 52 Isolated corn stalk in a cornfiel…2024-09-16 14 15 20 A cornfield with areas of spotty growth along New York State Route 149 in20242024-09-16 14 15 20 A cornfield with areas of spotty …2024-09-16 14 14 58 A cornfield with areas of spotty growth along New York State Route 149 in20242024-09-16 14 14 58 A cornfield with areas of spotty …Old Stone House Library Fort Ann NY Aug 112011Old Stone House Library Fort Ann NY Aug 11Route 149 turning off of Route 4 in Fort Ann at Clay Hill Road2009Route 149 turning off of Route 4 in Fort Ann at Clay …NY 149 turning in2008NY 149 turning in
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

A view of a saw mill and block house upon Fort Anne Creek ...which on Gen. Burgoyne's army advancing was set fire to by…
Retake this viewA view of a saw mill and block house upon Fort Anne Creek ...which on Gen. Burgoyne's army advancing was set fire to by…, 1789

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Fort Ann’s page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Fort Ann

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

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

Famous people

8 famous people were born in Fort Ann

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

See all →
John Henry DolphAmerican landscape and animal painter · b. 1835
Mary Harris ThompsonAmerican surgeon · b. 1829
Edwin R. ReynoldsAmerican politician · b. 1816
L
Lester ArcherAmerican Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1838
Samson MasonAmerican politician · b. 1793
Floyd Perry BakerAmerican lawyer · b. 1820
Help out

Finish Fort Ann’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
2 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewA view of a saw mill and block house up…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Fort Ann’s history

What year was Fort Ann founded?

In 1757, according to Wikidata. Fort Ann’s post office opened in 1797, and the census of 1820 counted 2,911 people here.

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 (16), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.