Founding year: the first Middleport post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Middleport’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Middleport is more historic than 89% 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 Middleport’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 Middleport’s 10.1 sits near the middle of its state (46% of New York towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% 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 (±7.6 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Middleport’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Middleport. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1897Medina 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 Middleport.
Every building
Middleport, building by building, 1884–1920
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.
1884Sheet 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.
Settlers began moving into the area circa 1808. The first store opened in the future village in 1822, before the canal reached the community.
The Erie Canal was opened along its entire length in 1825, and the community became an important location on the canal.
The village was formerly known as Tea-Pot Hollow before it was renamed Middleport.
The Village of Middleport was incorporated in 1872. The first election was held on March 22, 1859. The first meeting of the Board of Trustees was held on March 28, 1859.
The William Taylor House and U.S. Post Office are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Passages that mention Middleport, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Niagara county, N. Y., with illustrations descriptive of its scenery, private residences, public buildings, fine blocks, and important manufactories, and portraits of old pioneers and prominent residents1878 · page 353Read the page →
Read the text
Middleport, the only incorporated village, is located on the Erie Canal, and in the northeast corner of the town, the corporation extending over into the town of Hartland, which joins this town on the north. Previous to the construction of the Erie Canal, this was known only as a wilderness, all the business being done at what is now Freeman's Corners, half a mile south of this place.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Niagara county, N. Y., with illustrations descriptive of its scenery, private residences, public buildings, fine blocks, and important manufactories, and portraits of old pioneers and prominent residents1878 · page 357Read the page →
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The services of the Protestant Episcopal church were first introduced into the village of Middleport in 1864, by Rev. W. A. Matson, D.D., and Rev. J. Abercrombie, D.D.,both of Lockport, and Rev. R. D. Stearns, of Medina, who officiated in rotation on Sunday evenings during the summer and autumn of that year. These occasional services developed so much interest that a few of the leading citizens determined if possible to secure the ser-
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Souvenir history of Niagara County, New York1902 · page 101Read the page →
Read the text
Labar, was born in Paris and came to this country with La JOHN w. LABAR, JOHN W occupies a fine farm just south of the Village of Middleport. William Ewings settled, in 1814, three miles south of Middleport, and, in 1815, sold out the article he took from the Holland Purchase Company to Joseph Odell. He then moved half a mile south of the village, where he lived and died. He left two sons, William and Isaac, and a daugh-
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
Middleport, 1875 to 1897
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
2
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
Middleport, census by census
Between 731 and 2,132 people in every census since 1870.
16 censuses, 1870–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Middleport’s Wikipedia page.
Questions about Middleport’s history
What year was Middleport founded?
The Middleport post office opened in 1824, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Middleport rank for history?
Middleport is more historic than 89% 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.
How old are the homes in Middleport?
63% of Middleport’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.6 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 (6), 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.
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