Monroe dates to 1799, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 77% of U.S. towns · #464 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Most of Monroe was built recently: 10% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1980. Its Register listings are . Below: maps from 1897 on and the census since 1820.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1809.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Monroe’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Monroe is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #464 of 758 in New York. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Monroe’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 Monroe’s 50.4 sits above most of its state (69% of New York towns have fewer) while its 48 historic buildings outnumber those of 85% 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 (±3.8 points). Two sources give 1799.
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 Monroe’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first settlers to this land were American Indians from the Leni-Lenape Indian nation. The Leni-Lenape nation consisted of three tribes: the Unulactus, the turkey tribe; Minsis, the wolf tribe; and the Unamis, the turtle tribe. As white settlers started to move north, the Leni-Lenape were forced to move west, out of New York and New Jersey into Pennsylvania and later into central North America, under the treaty of Easton, a colonial agreement signed in October 1758. The British colonial government of the province of Pennsylvania and the Native American tribes in the Ohio country signed this document stating they would be allies in the French and Indian War.
Passages that mention Monroe, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Rochester and Monroe county, New York, from the earliest historic times to the beginning of 19071908 · page 411Read the page →
Read the text
The village of Brockport, about eighteen miles west of Rochester, on the Niagara Falls branch of the New York Central railroad, is the largest village in Monroe county, with a population of about 6,000. The village was incorporated in 1829 ; in 1852 its charter • was revised, under which a board of five trustees constituted the village government, and in 1872 its present charter
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Rochester and Monroe county, New York, from the earliest historic times to the beginning of 19071908 · page 210Read the page →
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The Monroe fire insurance company with a capital of $250,000, incorporated March Olh, 1825, lasted but little over a year, the IMutual Protection, in 1844, was almost equally shortlived, and Ihe Farmers and Merchants insurance company of Western New York, incorporated in 1850, existed only four years. There was one, however, that was quite successful for nearly thirty years, the Monroe
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Biographical and genealogical history of Appanoose and Monroe counties, Iowa1903 · page 293Read the page →
Read the text
great activity both in pnlilic and private life, and during the time he held man\- offices of trust, which were administered with ability and unswerving integrity. He was the first clerk of the district court of Monroe county, having been appointed by Judge Charles Mason, in March, 1846. In April, 1857, he was elected judge of Monroe county, which necessitated his remo\-al to Albia, where he resided for several years in a hewed log house in West Benton street. While occupying the position of judge he built the court house at a cost of about ten
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
Monroe, 1799 to 2010
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
In 1799, according to Wikidata. Monroe’s post office opened in 1809, and the census of 1820 counted 2,969 people here.
How does Monroe rank for history?
Monroe is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #464 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.
How old are the homes in Monroe?
10% of Monroe’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.8 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1980.
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 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.
