Moravia’s post office opened in 1834, and 43% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 98% of U.S. towns · #58 of 758 in New York. What drives it
17 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 166 buildings between them. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1887 on, and the census since 1840.
Founding year: the first Moravia post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Moravia’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Moravia is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns, #58 of 758 in New York. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Moravia’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 Moravia’s 598 sits above most of its state (93% of New York towns have fewer) while its 186 historic buildings outnumber those of 93% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.0 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 Moravia’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Moravia was part of the Central New York Military Tract. The first settlers arrived around 1789, while the natives still lived in the area. The town was formed in 1833 from the town of Sempronius. Moravia was long known as the last bastion of the Whigs, the defunct political party of native ex-U.S. president Millard Fillmore. A few Whigs survived as late as the early 1980s according to voter registration records.
Passages that mention Moravia, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Historical sketches of the town of Moravia, from 1791 to 18731874 · page 59Read the page →
Read the text
Moravia Village was first incorporated by tile following act of the Legislature, passed May 1, 1837: "The district of country in the Town of Moravia, in the County of Cayuga, contained in the following bounds, to wit : Beginning at the forks of the road running through the village of Moravia on the north, and running from thence east one hundred and forty rods, thence south two hundred and sixty rods,
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Historical sketches of the town of Moravia, from 1791 to 18731874 · page 161Read the page →
Read the text
Sect. 3. The first election of Directors of the Association shall be held at the house of Wm. C. Pressey, in Moravia, on the first Monday of January, 1864, and the same day in January in each year thereafter, at such hour and place in the village of Moravia as the Board of Directors shall appoint ; notice thereof shall be published in one or more public newspapers printed in the County of Cayuga, for at
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
Moravia, 1826 to 1941
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
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.
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.
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.
Indian CoveMontvilleOwasco HillSoutheast OwascoToll Gate CornersWilson Corners
Gone or out of use
First Methodist Episcopal ChurchchurchMoravia High SchoolschoolSchool Number 2schoolSchool Number 3schoolSchool Number 4schoolSchool Number 6schoolSchool Number 7schoolVans Airportairport
The Moravia post office opened in 1834, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Moravia rank for history?
Moravia is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns, #58 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.
What is on the National Register in Moravia?
17 listings: 14 buildings, 2 historic districts, the North Main Street Historic District and the Church Street-Congress Street Historic District, with 166 contributing buildings, and 1 site. 186 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Moravia?
43% of Moravia’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.0 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1949.
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 (9), the Library of Congress (3), the National Register of Historic Places (17), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, 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.
1904
1904
1941
2022
2022
2022
2022
2022
2008
