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History · Port Henry

Port Henry dates to 1785, and 50% of its homes were built before 1940

7 places in town are on the National Register. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1945 on, and the census since 1880.

1785founded
7on the National Register
50%homes built before 1940
6old photos & papers
6famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Port Henry’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Port Henry began

When was Port Henry founded?

1785

Port Henry dates its founding to 1785 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 2,494 in 18802020 census: 1,150241 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1829.The full story ↓

What stands out about Port Henry’s past

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

Old housesHalf of Port Henry’s homes were built before 1938.Landmarks on the Register7 places on the National Register.Deep rootsEstablished in 1785: 241 years of Port Henry.
★ What stands out · The story

How Port Henry came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Port Henry.

Read it all →

Port Henry is in a tract of land set aside by the British Crown for veterans of the Seven Years' War (also known as the French and Indian War). Although a mill was built in 1765, no other European-American settlers arrived until 1785, after the American Revolutionary War.

The Iroquoian-speaking Mohawk and Oswegatchie, members of the Seven Nations of Canada, were still living in the town until after 1800.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

On the National Register

7 historic places in Port Henry

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

places listed
7
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
12
each building in a district counts

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Timeline

Port Henry, 1785 to 1945

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1785
    FoundingPort Henry is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1860In the archivePort Henry, from the ruins, showing furnace.Alternate Title: Lake Champlain
  5. 1860Born hereMarty Barrett is born here
  6. 1864Born hereWallace T. Foote, Jr. is born here
  7. 1865Born hereSun Daly is born here
  8. 1874In the archivePort Henry, Lake Champlain
  9. 1889In the archivePort Henry, N.Y
  10. 1898In the archivePort Henry from Fort Frederick, Lake Champlain, N. Y
  11. 20th century
  12. 1927Born hereElihu Abrahams is born here
  13. 1945On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Port Henry, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1860s to the 1890s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s–1880s5 items
Port Henry, from the ruins, showing furnace.Alternate Title: Lake Champlainc. 1860Port Henry, from the ruins, showing furnace.Alternate…The Iron Mine1862The Iron MinePort Henry, Lake Champlainc. 1874Port Henry, Lake ChamplainPort Henry, Lake Champlainc. 1874Port Henry, Lake ChamplainPort Henry, N.Y1889Port Henry, N.Y
1890s1 item
Port Henry from Fort Frederick, Lake Champlain, N. Y1898Port Henry from Fort Frederick, Lake Champlain, N. Y
1900s–1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
On the map

Port Henry on the map, 1945 to 1986

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

Port Henry on the 1945 USGS mapPort Henry on the 1986 USGS map1945Port Henry 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 Port Henry.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Port Henry, from the ruins, showing furnace.Alternate Title: Lake Champlain
Retake this viewPort Henry, from the ruins, showing furnace.Alternate Title: Lake Champlain, c. 1860

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Port Henry’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Port Henry, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,50018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 2,494

Between 1,150 and 2,494 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

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

Famous people

6 famous people were born in Port Henry

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

See all →
E
Elihu AbrahamsAmerican physicist · b. 1927
Wallace T. Foote, Jr.American politician · b. 1864
M
Marty BarrettAmerican baseball player · b. 1860
Sun DalyAmerican baseball player · b. 1865
W
William John McCartCanadian politician · b. 1872
M
Michael LuceAmerican bobsledder · b. 1941
Help out

Finish Port Henry’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPort Henry, from the ruins, showing fur…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Moriah9 historic placesACrown Point4 historic placesA

Questions about Port Henry’s history

What year was Port Henry founded?

In 1785, according to Wikidata. Port Henry’s post office opened in 1829, and the census of 1880 counted 2,494 people here.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
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 Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.