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A−History
History · Thompson

Thompson dates to 1803, and 16% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 84% of U.S. towns · #358 of 758 in New York. What drives it

6 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 74 buildings. Below: 2 old photos and papers, maps from 1909 on, and the census since 1820.

1803founded
6on the National Register
16%homes built before 1940
2old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Thompson’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Thompson began

When was Thompson founded?

1803

Thompson dates its founding to 1803 (Wikipedia’s history). The census first counted it in 1820.

First census: 1,897 in 18202020 census: 16,550223 years

How historic is Thompson?

A−

More historic than 84% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1811.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Thompson’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Thompson is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #358 of 758 in New York. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Thompson’s overall grade.
Founding era1803, from Wikipedia: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194016.4% of homes (±3.4) · typical NY town 26.6% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register6 listings, 80 historic buildings, 47.9 per 10,000 residents · typical NY town 12.3 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 84%
NewerOlder
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 53%

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 Thompson’s 47.9 sits above most of its state (68% of New York towns have fewer) while its 80 historic buildings outnumber those of 88% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1803.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.4 points).

Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Thompson’s past

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

Lost villages4 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Thompson, and 10 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 2 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Broadway Historic District takes in 74 historic buildings.On the map since 19095 editions of the USGS map, 1909 to 1982. Watch Thompson change.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Four other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Monticello
1811–today
Bridgeville
1819–1933
Thompson's
1820–1820
Thompsonville
1828–today
Glen Wild
1839–today
Mongaup Valley
1848–today
Maplewood
1884–1915
Rockhill
1885–today
Kiamesha
1899–1938
Harris
1907–today
18101920today
Hamlets and corners on the map
BridgevilleCoopers CornersHarrisKiamesha LakeKinnebrook Mobile Home ParkMaplewoodMelody LakeMonticelloRock HillThompsonville
Gone or out of use
Monticello AirportairportMonticello Amusement ParkparkMonticello Public Grammar SchoolschoolRock Hill Drive-Inlocale
6cemeteries and burying grounds inside Thompson
BrooksideJewish General AidMongaup ValleyRock RidgeSaint John StreetSaint Peters

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Thompson’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Thompson’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Retake an old viewBridgeville NY historic bridge marker: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

6 listings protect 80 historic buildings

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

places listed
6
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
80
each building in a district counts
first listed
1999
Anshei Glen Wild Synagogue
Anshei Glen Wild Synagogue, built 1923Rialto TheatreBennett Family HouseSt. John's Episcopal Church and Rectory, built 1879Chevro Ahavath Zion SynagogueBroadway Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals1
Late Victorian1
Gothic Revival1
Anshei Glen Wild SynagogueBuilt 1923
Rialto TheatreLate 19th and 20th Century Revivals
Bennett Family HouseLate Victorian
St. John's Episcopal Church and RectoryGothic Revival · Built 1879
All 6 listings
Chevro Ahavath Zion SynagogueBuilding · listed 1999Broadway Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2020

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

The story

How Thompson came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Thompson.

Read it all →

The area that became Thompson was initially inhabited by bands of the Munsee Lenape Native Americans. The first European settlers, two farmers, arrived in Thompson in 1749, where they created the beginnings of a settlement in the vicinity of Dutch pond. Thompson was established in 1803 from the town of Mamakating. Part of the town was taken from the town of Fallsburg in 1826.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Thompson in 1897

Passages that mention Thompson, cut from the printed page as they were published.

Thompson, John, 612, 760, compare Thomson, John Thompson, M., 612 Thompson, Mr., at Astoria or Fort George, unidentified, 760, 761, 762, 764, 851 Thompson's r., 783 Thompson sta., Mont., 674
New light on the early history of the greater Northwest. The manuscript journals of Alexander Henry ... and of David Thompson ... 1799-1814. Exploration and adventure among the Indians on the Red, Saskatchewan, Missouri and Columbia rivers1897 · page 1019Read the page →
Read the text

Thompson, John, 612, 760, compare Thomson, John Thompson, M., 612 Thompson, Mr., at Astoria or Fort George, unidentified, 760, 761, 762, 764, 851 Thompson's r., 783 Thompson sta., Mont., 674

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

Thompson, 1803 to 1933

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1803
    FoundingThompson is established
  3. 1811Post officeThe Monticello post office opens
  4. 1819Post officeThe Bridgeville post office opens
  5. 1820Post officeThe Thompson's post office opens
  6. 1820Post officeThe Thompson's post office closes
  7. 1875In the archiveCounty atlas of Sullivan, New York
  8. 1879BuiltSt. John's Episcopal Church and Rectory is built
  9. 20th century
  10. 1909On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1923BuiltAnshei Glen Wild Synagogue is built
  12. 1933Post officeThe Bridgeville post office closes
By decade

Thompson, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1870s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s1 item
County atlas of Sullivan, New York1875County atlas of Sullivan, New YorkMap
Date unknown1 to date
Bridgeville NY historic bridge markerDate?Bridgeville NY historic bridge marker
Today12 recent
NY 42 sb entering Thompson, June 20262026NY 42 sb entering Thompson, June 2026NY 17B wb entering Mongaup Valley, June 20262026NY 17B wb entering Mongaup Valley, June 2026Resorts World Catskills, Monticello, NY2020Resorts World Catskills, Monticello, NYUntitled photo2015Untitled photoNeversink river2014Neversink riverMullet Falls2014Mullet FallsThompson, NY, town hall2013Thompson, NY, town hallShallow Stream in Rock Hill, NY2013Shallow Stream in Rock Hill, NYShallow Pool in Rock Hill, NY2013Shallow Pool in Rock Hill, NYMethodist Church of Rock Hill, NY2013Methodist Church of Rock Hill, NYLiving room area of a hotel room at the Hy-Sa-Na Lodge in Ferndale, NY612012Living room area of a hotel room at the Hy-Sa-Na Lodg…Sullivan County, New York2011Sullivan County, New York
On the map

Thompson on the map, 1909 to 1982

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

Thompson on the 1909 USGS mapThompson on the 1911 USGS mapThompson on the 1943 USGS mapThompson on the 1966 USGS mapThompson on the 1982 USGS map1909Monticello 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 Thompson.

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.

Bridgeville NY historic bridge marker
Retake this viewBridgeville NY historic bridge marker

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Thompson, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,00018,000185019001950200016,550

Grew from 1,897 people in 1820 to 16,550 in 2020, 8 times over.

21 censuses, 1820–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Bethel2 historic placesB+Fallsburg11 historic placesA−Forestburgh1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMongaup ValleyIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townMamakating4 historic placesAKiamesha LakeIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Thompson’s history

What year was Thompson founded?

In 1803, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Thompson’s post office opened in 1811, and the census of 1820 counted 1,897 people here.

How does Thompson rank for history?

Thompson is more historic than 84% of U.S. towns, #358 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 Thompson?

6 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Anshei Glen Wild Synagogue (listed 1999, the first), and 1 historic district, the Broadway Historic District, with 74 contributing buildings. 80 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Thompson?

16% of Thompson’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.4 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1974.

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).

From Wikimedia Commons (14), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (6), Wikipedia, 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.