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History · Milton

Milton’s post office opened in 1822, and 22% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1893 on, and the census since 2000.

1822first post office
1on the National Register
22%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answers

How Milton began

When was Milton founded?

1822

The Milton post office opened in 1822, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 1,251 in 20002020 census: 1,650204 years
Founding year: the first Milton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Milton’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18936 editions of the USGS map, 1893 to 1995. Watch Milton change.Deep rootsA post office since 1822: 204 years of Milton.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Milton’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Milton’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Milton on the map, 1893 to 1995

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

Milton on the 1893 USGS mapMilton on the 1903 USGS mapMilton on the 1943 USGS mapMilton on the 1957 USGS mapMilton on the 1982 USGS mapMilton on the 1995 USGS map1893Poughkeepsie 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 Milton.

Timeline

Milton, 1844 to 1893

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1844Born hereWarren White is born here
  3. 1847Born hereMary Hallock Foote is born here
  4. 1875In the archiveBeers Ulster County Atlas Page129
  5. 1893Born hereGrace Hallock is born here
  6. 1893On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story

How Milton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Milton.

Read it all →

Captain William Bond was the first settler of record in the area of Milton, having obtained a patent from Queen Anne on June 12, 1712, which patent reserved the right to any trees fit for masts, planks, or otherwise suitable for her majesty's navy. Although Bond followed the sea, he served as deputy surveyor in Marlborough in 1717. Edward Hallock was a seafaring man who owned several vessels, all but one being destroyed by French cruisers. He and his family relocated from Long Island to Milton in late December 1760, and subsequently purchased land from Captain Bond's daughter Sukie. Hallock was a preacher in the Society of Friends.

ChaptersChurches

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Milton in 1875

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

The reader has by this time had enough perhaps of Milton speaking about himself. By way of variation he may like now to have a specimen of what other people were saying and publishing about Milton. Here, accordingly, is the opening or preface of a pamphlet, written wholly and specially against Milt…
The life of John Milton1875 · page 389Read the page →
Read the text

The reader has by this time had enough perhaps of Milton speaking about himself. By way of variation he may like now to have a specimen of what other people were saying and publishing about Milton. Here, accordingly, is the opening or preface of a pamphlet, written wholly and specially against Milton, which was out in London only a week or two after that of Milton from which we have been quoting. The

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
There is, of course, plenty of reiterated abuse of Milton in the style of the opening Address to the Eeader. " Such carping poetasters as you," says the Confuter in one place, showing that he knew of Milton's pretensions to poetry.
The life of John Milton1875 · page 395Read the page →
Read the text

There is, of course, plenty of reiterated abuse of Milton in the style of the opening Address to the Eeader. " Such carping poetasters as you," says the Confuter in one place, showing that he knew of Milton's pretensions to poetry.

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

Milton, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1870s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s1 item
Beers Ulster County Atlas Page1291875Beers Ulster County Atlas Page129Map
Today3 recent
River Subdivision near2013River Subdivision nearUS Post Office in Hamlet of Milton, Marlborough, NY2011US Post Office in Hamlet of Milton, Marlborough, NYDowntown2008Downtown
On the National Register

1 historic place in Milton

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.

People over time

Milton, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,80020002020Peak: 1,650

Between 1,251 and 1,650 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Milton

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

See all →
Mary Hallock FooteAmerican novelist, short story writer, illustra… · b. 1847
G
Grace HallockAmerican children's writer and author of books … · b. 1893
W
Warren WhiteMajor League Baseball player · b. 1844
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Marlboro5 historic placesnot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMarlborough7 historic placesALloyd3 historic placesA−

Questions about Milton’s history

What year was Milton founded?

The Milton post office opened in 1822, 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), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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.