Trenton dates to 1793, and 39% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 90% of U.S. towns · #262 of 758 in New York. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 4 buildings. Below: 8 old photos and papers, maps from 1887 on, and the census since 1800.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1803.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Trenton’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Trenton is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns, #262 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 National Register listings lowest.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Trenton’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 Trenton’s 16.4 sits near the middle of its state (53% of New York towns have fewer) while its 7 historic buildings outnumber those of 73% 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 (±7.4 points). Two sources give 1793.
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 Trenton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
On the map
Trenton on the map, 1897 to 1979
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Trenton. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1897Remsen 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 Trenton.
Every building
Trenton, building by building, 1887–1904
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.
1887Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
The first settlement was developed in 1793 by Gerrit Boon in Barneveldt, as an agent of the Holland Land Company. Boon went back to Holland after a few years. His successor was Adam Gerard Mappa, a Dutch typesetter. At the end of his life, Mappa's friend Francis Adrian Vanderkemp moved to Barneveld.
The town was formed in 1797 from the Town of Schuyler (in Herkimer County, New York). The name may have been selected because some local soldiers fought at the Battle of Trenton. The town includes areas from the Holland and Servis Patents.
The Wethersfield Stone Schoolhouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.
side Traction Company, down in the Burlington-Camden end of the State. The lines of the Riverside Traction Company connect with those of Public Service Railway Company at Riverton and run thence to the heart of the city of Trenton, having a total trackage of about thirty-three miles. Public Service Corporation also acquired the capital stock of the Trenton Terminal Railroad Company, which is the lessee of the Elizabeth and Trenton Railroad Company. These
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A narrative history of Remsen, New York, including parts of the adjoining townships of Steuben and Trenton, 1789-18981914Read the page →
Read the text
been unable to learn. He settled upon the place now owned by John Humphreys, just over the line in Trenton township, possibly before or shortly after Gerrit Boon came to Trenton, which was in 1793; at least he was here when Shubael Cross and family, in 1794, followed a line of marked trees through the present village of Remsen on their way to settle at Crosstown, now Bardwell. When he sold his farm to William
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A narrative history of Remsen, New York, including parts of the adjoining townships of Steuben and Trenton, 1789-18981914Read the page →
Read the text
Respecting the naming of this stream, on the occasion of a centennial celebration in Trenton village, in 1876, we find in some historical notes furnished by Mr. Warren Rowley, of South Trenton, the following: "Thomas Hicks built and kept a hotel in Trenton about where Dr.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
An historical narrative of the Ely, Revell and Stacye families who were among the founders of Trenton and Burlington in the province of West Jersey 1678-1683, with the genealogy of the Ely descendants in America1910 · page 184Read the page →
Read the text
Trenton in 1725, when he purchased 100 acres covering the site of the present village of Ringoes, in Amwell Township, Hunterdon County, on the Old York Road, and on August 6, 1736, conveyed five acres to Philip Ringoe on which the latter erected the first tavern, the nucleus of the town, though an Episcopal church is said to have been erected there of logs by Dagworthy in 1725.
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
Trenton, 1793 to 1932
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 1793, according to Wikidata. Trenton’s post office opened in 1803, and the census of 1800 counted 624 people here.
How does Trenton rank for history?
Trenton is more historic than 90% of U.S. towns, #262 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 Trenton?
4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Mappa Hall (listed 1982, the first), and 1 historic district, the Holland Patent Stone Churches Historic District, with 4 contributing buildings. 7 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Trenton?
39% of Trenton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.4 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1961.
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 Library of Congress (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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System, 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.
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