Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1829.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Lodi’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Lodi is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns. 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 Lodi’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 Lodi’s 11.0 sits near the middle of its state (47% of New York towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1789.
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 (±4.8 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 Lodi’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area was occupied by members of the Seneca tribe until 1779 when the Sullivan Expedition destroyed their villages, including a Seneca orchard at Lodi Point. The town became part of the Central New York Military Tract. The first settler arrived around 1789.
Silas Halsey arrived at Cooley’s Point in 1792 with an enslaved person. He constructed a cabin. In 1794, Halsey built Seneca County’s first sawmill.
In 1789, according to Wikidata. Lodi’s post office opened in 1829, and the census of 1830 counted 1,786 people here.
How does Lodi rank for history?
Lodi is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns. 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 Lodi?
Two places: the Lodi Methodist Church (listed 1982) and the Queen's Castle (1999).
How old are the homes in Lodi?
26% of Lodi’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.8 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1979.
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 (7), the National Register of Historic Places (2), 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.
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