Founding year: the first Springville post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1834.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Springville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Springville is more historic than 97% of U.S. towns, #86 of 758 in New York. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its age lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Springville’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 Springville’s 348 sits above most of its state (88% of New York towns have fewer) while its 146 historic buildings outnumber those of 91% 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 (±7.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1834 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 Springville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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 year, then a sheet.
In 1808, Samuel Cochran became the first permanent settler in the town; it had been a tract of land once known as Holland Purchase. The Springville Academy, opening in 1830, became the first high school in Erie County. It was given its current name, Springville Griffith Institute, in 1867 to honor Archibald Griffith, a donor. The village of Springville was incorporated in 1834 from part of the town of Concord. The Dygert Farm on Elk Street was the site of the 1866 and 1867 Erie County Fair, and also served as training grounds for Jim Thorpe.
Passages that mention Springville, cut from the printed page as they were published.
History of the original town of Concord1883 · page 914Read the page →
Read the text
their business being that of dealer in staves. In 1866 the}' retired from active busines, since which time Henry and his family have spent more or less of the Summer seasons in the Town of North Collins and the village of Springville, their Winter residence being in New York. James, for some years past, has been proprietor of the Mansion House, at Mauch Chunk, Pa.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
History of the original town of Concord1883 · page 338Read the page →
Read the text
father's family and attended the Alfred University. Then, in the years 1863 and 1864, went to New Hampshire and attended Phillips Academy at Exeter, during the years 1865 and 1866, then came to Springville and engaged in mercantile business. Subsequently read law and was admitted as an attorney and counselor-at-law in 1877, leaving since practiced his profession at Springville, N. Y. His children are: Caroline J. Cummings, born April 29, 1878.
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
Springville, 1866 to 1947
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 Springville post office opened in 1820, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1834.
How does Springville rank for history?
Springville is more historic than 97% of U.S. towns, #86 of 758 in New York. 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 Springville?
39% of Springville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.3 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1954.
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, 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.
1880
1880
1880
