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History · Nichols

Nichols’ post office opened in 1827, and 68% of its homes were built before 1940

2 places in town are on the National Register. Below: maps from 1903 on and the census since 1830.

1827first post office
2on the National Register
68%homes built before 1940
3famous people
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Quick answers

How Nichols began

When was Nichols founded?

1827

The Nichols post office opened in 1827, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 1,283 in 18302020 census: 457199 years
Founding year: the first Nichols post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Nichols’ past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Nichols are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Nichols’ homes were built before 1938.On the map since 19033 editions of the USGS map, 1903 to 1969. Watch Nichols change.Deep rootsA post office since 1827: 199 years of Nichols.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Nichols’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story

How Nichols came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Nichols.

Read it all →

The Sullivan Expedition of 1779 passed through the area, destroying the native settlements of those who sided with the British against America in the Revolutionary War. The first permanent settlers arrived before 1787, but they were regarded as squatters by the first official settler, who arrived circa 1791.

The town of Nichols was established in 1824 from part of the town of Tioga.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

On the map

Nichols on the map, 1903 to 1969

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

Nichols on the 1903 USGS mapNichols on the 1956 USGS mapNichols on the 1969 USGS map1903Owego 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 Nichols.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Nichols in 1900

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

as a separate division of the county. Of course the reader will understand that previous to the creation of Nichols, and after 1818, this territory formed a part of the older town of Tioga, and that the town of Owego preceded Tioga and included what is now Nichols from the organization of the count…
Our county and its people1900 · page 479Read the page →
Read the text

as a separate division of the county. Of course the reader will understand that previous to the creation of Nichols, and after 1818, this territory formed a part of the older town of Tioga, and that the town of Owego preceded Tioga and included what is now Nichols from the organization of the county in 1791 down to 1818, when for convenience the towns of Owego and Tioga changed names. Previous to 1791, whatever there was of the exercise of civil authority over the territory of Nichols was as a part of the

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Osborn is the name of a postoffice and station on the line of the D., L. & W. railroad, about seven miles west of Nichols village. The settlement is a recent creation and not far advanced in the history of the town. A store is kept here by Charles L. Van- Gorder.
Our county and its people1900 · page 482Read the page →
Read the text

Osborn is the name of a postoffice and station on the line of the D., L. & W. railroad, about seven miles west of Nichols village. The settlement is a recent creation and not far advanced in the history of the town. A store is kept here by Charles L. Van- Gorder.

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

Nichols, 1831 to 1903

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1831Born hereGeorge F. Hunt is born here
  3. 1848Born hereFrank Rosebrook Millspaugh is born here
  4. 1860Born hereHarriet Theresa Comstock is born here
  5. 20th century
  6. 1903On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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Every building

Nichols, building by building, 1914

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 sheet.

Nichols fire insurance map, 1914, sheet 11914Sheet 1 of 3
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

On the National Register

2 historic places in Nichols

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
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

Nichols, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5001850190019502000Peak: 2,584

Between 1,283 and 2,584 people in every census since 1830.

20 censuses, 1830–2020.

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

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Nichols

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

See all →
Harriet Theresa ComstockAmerican writer · b. 1860
Frank Rosebrook MillspaughAmerican bishop · b. 1848
George F. HuntPolitician · b. 1831

Questions about Nichols’ history

What year was Nichols founded?

The Nichols post office opened in 1827, 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 →
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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 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.