Stony Point dates to 1865, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 46% of U.S. towns · #692 of 758 in New York. What drives it
8 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Stony Point Battlefield, a National Historic Landmark. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1938 on, and the census since 1870.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1834.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Stony Point’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Stony Point is more historic than 46% of U.S. towns, #692 of 758 in New York. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Stony Point’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 Stony Point’s 5.4 sits near the middle of its state (36% of New York towns have fewer) while its 8 listings outnumber those of 74% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B−. The pre-1940 share (±2.4 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1865.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Stony Point’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
During the American Revolution, the King's Ferry in Stony Point linked New York and the southern colonies with New England; it was used many times by General George Washington's Continental Army, and in 1781 Washington's French allies also used it on their way to the Battle of Yorktown.
The economy of the town improved upon the rediscovery of limestone deposits in the 19th century. The town of Stony Point was founded in 1865 from the northern part of the town of Haverstraw.
The town of Stony Point forms the northern part of Rockland county, having been set off from Haverstraw and incorporated as a separate town, in 1865, by act of Assembly, as follows: “ Chapter 152.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
That portion of the town of Stony Point which lies north of the “ Northwest Line,” is composed of comparatively small tracts, into which the great Evans Patent (see page 155) was divided, and a brief notice of each will be given. A full account of the Bradley and Jamison Patent, or Stony Point Tract, will be found in another place, and its subdivisions are fully described.
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
Stony Point, 1779 to 1951
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.
In 1865, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Stony Point’s post office opened in 1834, and the census of 1870 counted 3,205 people here.
How does Stony Point rank for history?
Stony Point is more historic than 46% of U.S. towns, #692 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.
What is on the National Register in Stony Point?
8 listings: 4 buildings, 1 site, and 3 structures.
How old are the homes in Stony Point?
11% of Stony Point’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.4 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1970.
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 (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (8), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System 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.
★ Landmark
1933
1933
1933
1933
1933
