Founding year: the first Philmont post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1892.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Philmont’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Philmont is more historic than 91% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Philmont’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 Philmont’s 2,384 sits above most of its state (99% of New York towns have fewer) while its 343 historic buildings outnumber those of 96% 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 (±15.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1892 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Philmont’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The community was once known as "Factory Hill" because of the number of wool factories. The village was incorporated in 1891. It derives its name from George P. Philip, who built a 36-acre (15 ha) reservoir to provide water for his mill. This in turn led to the construction of a 56-acre (23 ha) reservoir up the "mountain" in the Taconic Mountains to guarantee water to the mills, thus creating the factory hill.
Passages that mention Philmont, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of Columbia County, New York. With illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers1878Read the page →
Read the text
frame meeting-house was erected in the village of Mellenville, which was used for worship until 1872, when it was demolished, and a part of the material used in the construction of a very fine chapel in the village of Philmont. The house is thirty-six by sixty-eight feet, and is surmounted by a shapely tower. There are four hundred sittings.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of Columbia County, New York. With illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers1878Read the page →
Read the text
Philmont is well supplied with stores, and has a postoffice, which was established in 1858, with Cornelius M. Horton postmaster. His successors in office were John T.
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
Philmont, 1873 to 1999
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 country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
343
each building in a district counts
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Questions about Philmont’s history
What year was Philmont founded?
The Philmont post office opened in 1853, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1892.
How does Philmont rank for history?
Philmont is more historic than 91% of U.S. towns. 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 Philmont?
59% of Philmont’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±15.8 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1938.
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), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people 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.
1999
2009
2008