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History · Hunter

Hunter’s post office opened in 1818, and 18% of its homes were built before 1940

4 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 9 old photos and papers, maps from 1887 on, and the census since 1820.

1818first post office
4on the National Register
18%homes built before 1940
9old photos & papers
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Hunter’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Hunter began

When was Hunter founded?

1818

The Hunter post office opened in 1818, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 1,025 in 18202020 census: 429208 years
Founding year: the first Hunter post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Hunter’s past

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

On the map since 18925 editions of the USGS map, 1892 to 1997. Watch Hunter change.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1887 to 1912, drew every building in Hunter.Deep rootsA post office since 1818: 208 years of Hunter.Landmarks on the Register4 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · On the map

Hunter on the map, 1892 to 1997

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

Hunter on the 1892 USGS mapHunter on the 1903 USGS mapHunter on the 1945 USGS mapHunter on the 1980 USGS mapHunter on the 1997 USGS map1892Kaaterskill 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 Hunter.

Every building

Hunter, building by building, 1887–1912

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.

Hunter fire insurance map, 1887, sheet 11887Sheet 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.

Timeline

Hunter, 1868 to 1976

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1868Born hereJohn Francis Hylan is born here
  3. 1890In the archiveHunter, N.Y
  4. 1892On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 20th century
  6. 1905In the archiveCatskill Mountains: The notch
  7. 1976In the archiveGreat Escape Ranch 76 23A Hunter House in 77
The story

How Hunter came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Hunter.

Read it all →

The town was formed on January 27, 1813, from the town of Windham, but was then called "Edwardsville". The name of "Hunter" was assumed in 1814, named after John Hunter. Afterwards, the town lost some territory to Saugerties in 1814 and to Jewett in 1849.

The area became a popular tourism destination in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was served by the Ulster and Delaware Railroad, which brought tourists to resort towns throughout the Catskill Mountains.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Hunter in 1914

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

Hunter, Louisa, New York, 1850. Hunter, Nathaniel W., U. S. Army, 1864. Hunter, Eobert or Hugh, Philadelphia, Pa., 1880.
Hunter family records1914Read the page →
Read the text

Hunter, Louisa, New York, 1850. Hunter, Nathaniel W., U. S. Army, 1864. Hunter, Eobert or Hugh, Philadelphia, Pa., 1880.

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.

By decade

Hunter, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1890s to the 1970s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1890s–1900s8 items
Hunter, N.Y1890Hunter, N.YHunter Village, N.Y1898Hunter Village, N.YHunter Village, Catskill Mtns., N.Y1898Hunter Village, Catskill Mtns., N.YCatskill Mountains: The notch1905Catskill Mountains: The notchCatskill Mountains: Schoharie Creek1905Catskill Mountains: Schoharie CreekCatskill Mountains: Maple Grove Cottage1905Catskill Mountains: Maple Grove CottageCatskill Mountains: scene on the Schoharie Creek1905Catskill Mountains: scene on the Schoharie CreekCatskill Mountains: The Lake in the notch1905Catskill Mountains: The Lake in the notch
1910s–1960snothing 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
1970s1 item
Great Escape Ranch 76 23A Hunter House in 771976Great Escape Ranch 76 23A Hunter House in 77
1980s–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
Today2 recent
Hunter, New York2006Hunter, New YorkBlackhead Range2006Blackhead Range
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.

Hunter, N.Y
Retake this viewHunter, N.Y, 1890

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

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

4 historic places in Hunter

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

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
5
each building in a district counts

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

People over time

Hunter, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,00018501900195020003,035

Grew from 1,025 people in 1820 to 3,035 in 2020.

21 censuses, 1820–2020.

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

Help out

Finish Hunter’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 viewHunter, N.Y: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Hunter’s history

What year was Hunter founded?

The Hunter post office opened in 1818, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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 Library of Congress (7), 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.