Most of Pine Valley was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1983. Below: maps from 1895 on and old-book passages.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pine Valley. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1895Elmira 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 Pine Valley.
The story so far
Pine Valley, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Pine Valley yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Pine Valley is a hamlet and census-designated place in the towns of Catlin and Veteran in Chemung County, New York, United States. The population was 813 at the 2010 census.
Its first post office opened in 1828. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 813 to 832 (+2%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Pine Valley in 1907
Passages that mention Pine Valley, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A brief history of Chemung county, New York1907 · page 31Read the page →
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1850. In Horseheads the Methodists depended on Elmira for their church privileges, and one was not organized there until 1839. John Vaughan held meetings at Pine Valley in Veteran Township; in 1825; but there was no society organized until 1858. Local preachers held meetings in the township of Erin earlier than 1828, but there was no organization until long after.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A brief history of Chemung county, New York1907 · page 74Read the page →
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In Pine Valley, in this township, a Methodist Church was built and dedicated in November, 1889. Also in Millport a Methodist Church, originally built in 1833, was rebuilt in 1867, and a Baptist Society organized in 1844, purchased their church from the Presbyterians and rededicated it on March 27, 1871, and St. Mark's Episcopal Church was consecrated here in January, 1888. In Erin a Baptist Church was built in 1874 and a Methodist Church in 187L The
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.
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.
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 U.S. Geological Survey historical maps 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.
