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What is a ‘Hamlet’ and Why Does NY State Have So Many of Them?
So you are driving through these small-ish towns in New York State. Wait, is it a town, a village, a city or is it a hamlet? What is the difference? Merriam Webster dictionary defines a hamlet as, "A small village."
Does a hamlet in New York State need to have a church or a post office to be called a hamlet?
There is also some argument as to whether or not the town can be called a hamlet if it has a church in it, a central meeting place for residents. Most hamlets do not have any of that, nor do they have a post office. While having one of those items does not automatically make it village, the absence of all of them can make it a hamlet. Are you saying "huh" yet?
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What if there is a town and a hamlet with the same name? Does it get even more confusing?
To make things even more complicated is that there is actually a hamlet named "Hamlet" in New York State, which is located in Town of Villenova in Chautauqua County.
There are a few hundred hamlets that you can find throughout the state of New York. They are smaller towns that are too small to even be considered a hamlet, too big to be a village, too small to be a town, etc. So, what constitutes what?
- Hamlet, small, just a few dozen homes, no meeting place, no church, no post office
- Village, small to medium, more homes than a hamlet. There are more places to meet, i.e., businesses, a post office, churches.
- Town, larger than a village, but smaller than a city and more developed with homes, businesses and infrastructure.
- City is larger, densely populated, and contains many businesses, public transportation and potentially several post offices.
Which do you live in? A town or a hamlet?
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