Glens Falls dates to 1908, and 51% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 69% of U.S. towns · #532 of 758 in New York. What drives it
41 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 9 buildings between them. Below: 5 old photos and papers, maps from 1884 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1807.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Glens Falls’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Glens Falls is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #532 of 758 in New York. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Glens Falls’ 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 Glens Falls’ 40.4 sits above most of its state (66% of New York towns have fewer) while its 59 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1908.
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 (±3.5 points).
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 Glens Falls’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
On the map
Glens Falls on the map, 1895 to 1966
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Glens Falls. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1895Glens Falls 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 Glens Falls.
Every building
Glens Falls, building by building, 1884–1911
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.
The area is originally called Chepontuc ("difficult place to get around") in the Iroquoian languages of the area's Indigenous inhabitants. It also referred to as the "Great Carrying Place." Later, European-American settlers named the area "The Corners" in English.
As a halfway point between Fort Edward and Fort William Henry, the falls was the site of several battles during the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. The then-hamlet was mostly destroyed by fire twice during the latter conflict, forcing the Quakers to abandon the settlement until the war ended in 1783. Fire also ravaged the village in 1864, 1884, and 1902.
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 1908, according to Wikidata. Glens Falls’ post office opened in 1807, and the census of 1850 counted 2,717 people here.
How does Glens Falls rank for history?
Glens Falls is more historic than 69% of U.S. towns, #532 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 Glens Falls?
41 listings: 38 buildings, among them the Sherman House (listed 1977, the first), 2 historic districts, the Fredella Avenue Historic District and the Three Squares Historic District, with 9 contributing buildings, and 1 site. 59 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Glens Falls?
51% of Glens Falls’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.5 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1938.
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 (3), the Library of Congress (2), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (41), 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 Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1889
