Newfane’s post office opened in 1826, and 30% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 81% of U.S. towns · #409 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Its Register listings are the Van Horn Mansion and the First Baptist Church. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1897 on, and the census since 1830.
The Newfane post office opened in 1826, the earliest record of the town by name. Seven smaller post offices, Kempsville (1820), Wrights Corners (1839) and Hess Road (1847), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 1,448 in 18302020 census: 9,304200 years
How historic is Newfane?
A−
More historic than 81% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Newfane post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Newfane’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Newfane is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #409 of 758 in New York. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Newfane’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 Newfane’s 3.2 sits below most of its state (30% of New York towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% 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 (±6.3 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 Newfane’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds
Newfane’s post office has been open since 1826. Seven other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.
Kempsville
1820–1837
Newfane
1826–today
Olcott
1837–today
Wrights Corners
1839–1901
Hess Road
1847–1877
Coomer
1853–1901
Ridge Road
1861–1901
Coomer Station
1876–1902
Hess Road Station
1877–1895
Appleton
1895–today
18201920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
AppletonBurtCoomerCorwinCountryside Homes Mobile Home ParkHess RoadNiagara Mobile Home ParkOlcottRidgeview Homes Mobile Home ParkRidgewoodWrights Corners
Gone or out of use
Advent SchoolschoolSchool Number 1schoolSchool Number 1schoolSchool Number 10schoolSchool Number 13schoolSchool Number 18schoolSchool Number 3schoolSchool Number 4schoolSchool Number 5schoolSchool Number 6schoolSchool Number 8school
7cemeteries and burying grounds inside Newfane
CorwinHessLakeviewSaint BridgetsSaint Charles BorromeoWest Lake RoadWright's Corners
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Help out
Start Newfane’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Newfane’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
The Town of Newfane was established in 1824 by Wesley R. Rupert and others. The Newfane name was selected by early settlers who had roots in Newfane, Vermont. The town was created from portions of the Towns of Hartland, Somerset, and Wilson. The first town meeting was held at the Van Horn Mansion in 1824. The Newfane township consists of six hamlets; Appleton, Burt, the Newfane village, Olcott, Ridgewood and the northern portion of Wright's Corners. The Newfane village was once named "Charlotteville," but renamed Newfane, and Olcott was named Kempville in early times.
Its school district includes an early childhood center, an elementary school, a middle school, and one high school. The school's mascot is a panther.
Passages that mention Newfane, cut from the printed page as they were published.
Centennial proceedings and other historical facts and incidents relating to Newfane, the county seat of Windham County, Vermont1877Read the page →
Read the text
was liberal and generous to the poor, entered heartily and zealously into all the public enterprises of the day, gave to the County of Windham the land for a common on Newfane hill, at the time of the removal of the shire from Westminster to Newfane, and contributed largely towards the erection of the first Court House and Jail in Newfane.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Souvenir history of Niagara County, New York1902 · page 125Read the page →
Read the text
The town was formed February 8, 1823, from a portion of the Town of Hartland, on the south, and in the year 1824 a portion of the Town of Newfane was added on the west, to complete its present size. It would be interesting to know who gave the name to the town, but we have not been able to ascertain that fact.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Souvenir history of Niagara County, New York1902 · page 228Read the page →
Read the text
Warren, Charles A. — Born in Town of Newfane, 1857. Moved to Lockport in 1868, resided there ten years and then purchased the Seneca Foote farm on Chestnut Ridge, where he has since resided. Supervisor from Town of Lockport for two years and Collector one year. For three years President of Niagara County Agricultural Society. In 1897 he was appointed Inspector of the State Department of Agriculture, ninth division, and continues to hold that office.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Centennial proceedings and other historical facts and incidents relating to Newfane, the county seat of Windham County, Vermont1877 · page 92Read the page →
Read the text
New Testament — beloved by all his brethren and friends, and respected by all his acquaintances. His standing may be known from the fact that for four years he represented the town of Newfane in the Legislature of Vermont, and was twenty-nine consecutive years elected Town Clerk, and held the office at the time of his death. A great concourse of
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
Newfane, 1820 to 1933
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.
The Newfane post office opened in 1826, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Newfane rank for history?
Newfane is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #409 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 Newfane?
Two places: the Van Horn Mansion (listed 1991) and the First Baptist Church (2004).
How old are the homes in Newfane?
30% of Newfane’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.3 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1967.
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), 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), 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.
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