4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 90 buildings between them. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1900 on, and the census since 1790.
From Rensselaerville’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers
How Rensselaerville began
When was Rensselaerville founded?
1812
The Rensselaerville post office opened in 1812, the earliest record of the town by name. Four smaller post offices, Potters Hollow (1825), Hall's Mills (1830) and Cooksburg (1841), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,777 in 17902020 census: 1,826214 years
How historic is Rensselaerville?
A
More historic than 93% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Rensselaerville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Rensselaerville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Rensselaerville is more historic than 93% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Rensselaerville’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 Rensselaerville’s 484 sits above most of its state (91% of New York towns have fewer) while its 92 historic buildings outnumber those of 89% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±8.3 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 Rensselaerville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Rensselaerville was once part of the Manor of Rensselaerswyck; as such, the people who farmed the land were technically leaseholders of the patroon under a feudal system, first as part of the Dutch colony of New Netherland, then under the English colony, and then U.S. state, of New York. Some of the earliest settlement in Rensselaerville was along the five Native American paths that crossed the town in the early 18th century. The southwestern corner along one of these, that connected the Hudson River to the Schoharie Valley, was the first section of the town to be settled, this would be circa 1712. This path was also the one used during wars between the Stockbridge Indians and those at Schoharie.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Rensselaerville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1900Berne 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 Rensselaerville.
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.
Retake this viewCooksburgh (Village); Cooksburgh Business Directory; Potters Hollow Business Directory; Rensselaerville (Village); Rens…, 1866
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Rensselaerville’s page.
The Rensselaerville post office opened in 1812, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Rensselaerville rank for history?
Rensselaerville is more historic than 93% 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.
What is on the National Register in Rensselaerville?
4 listings: 2 buildings and 2 historic districts, the Rensselaerville Historic District and the Conkling-Boardman-Eldridge Farm, with 90 contributing buildings. 92 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Rensselaerville?
24% of Rensselaerville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.3 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1972.
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 (4), 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) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1866
Date?
2022
2009
