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AHistory
History · Webb

25% of Webb’s homes were built before 1940

More historic than 92% of U.S. towns. What drives it

6 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 5 buildings. Below: maps from 1912 on and the census since 1900.

6on the National Register
25%homes built before 1940
Quick answers

About Webb’s history

How historic is Webb?

A

More historic than 92% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
History grade

What drives Webb’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Webb is more historic than 92% of U.S. towns. All 2 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 Webb’s overall grade.
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 92%
NewerOlder

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 Webb’s 170 sits above most of its state (81% of New York towns have fewer) while its 26 historic buildings outnumber those of 81% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.5 points).

Founding year: our sources. 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 Webb’s past

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

★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and burying grounds

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

Old Forge
1883–today
Big Moose
1893–1972
Woods Lake
1894–1926
McKeever
1895–1962
Eagle Bay
1900–today
Beaver River
1905–today
Brandeth
1912–1965
Thendara
1919–today
Brandreth
1965–1966
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Beaver RiverBig MooseBrandrethEagle BayKeepawaLittle RapidsMcKeeverMinnehahaMoshier FallsMountain LodgeOld ForgeStillwaterThendaraWolf Lake LandingWoods Lake
1cemetery inside Webb
Riverview

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

Help out

Start Webb’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
On the map

Webb on the map, 1912 to 1989

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

Webb on the 1912 USGS mapWebb on the 1957 USGS mapWebb on the 1989 USGS map1912Number Four 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 Webb.

The story

How Webb came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Webb.

Read it all →

Attempts were made to settle Webb circa 1800 and 1811, but both efforts failed due to extreme climate, harsh weather and poor land for farming. The first permanent settlers, Otis Arnold and family, arrived in approximately 1837 and began their try at the land. The Arnolds ultimately succeeded in cultivating and selling hay feed, vegetables, milk and fruit. Eventually, map makers and guidebooks made note of the settlement. The Arnolds opened their house as a hotel of sorts, and the area became known for its beautiful rivers, lakes and mountains.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Webb, 1883 to 1972

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1883Post officeThe Old Forge post office opens
  3. 1893Post officeThe Big Moose post office opens
  4. 1894Post officeThe Woods Lake post office opens
  5. 20th century
  6. 1912On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1919BuiltStillwater Mountain Fire Observation Station is built
  8. 1926Post officeThe Woods Lake post office closes
  9. 1931BuiltBig Moose Community Chapel is built
  10. 1972Post officeThe Big Moose post office closes
By decade

Webb, decade by decade

On the National Register

6 listings protect 26 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
26
each building in a district counts
first listed
2004
Covewood Lodge
BuildingsDistrictsStructures

Architectural styles listings

Rustic1
Vernacular Queen Anne1
Colonial Revival1
Queen Anne1
Late Gothic Revival1
Adirondack1
All 6 listings

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

People over time

Webb, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,912

Between 920 and 1,912 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Famous people

Famous people close to Webb

Nobody well known was born in Webb itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Questions about Webb’s history

How does Webb rank for history?

Webb is more historic than 92% 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 Webb?

6 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Covewood Lodge (listed 2004, the first), 1 historic district, the Thendara Historic District, with 5 contributing buildings, and 1 structure. 26 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Webb?

25% of Webb’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.5 points), against a typical 27% for a New York town; the median home was built in 1964.

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 (1), 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) 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.