New York State Soldiers' and Sailors' Home-Bath Veterans Administration Center Historic District

This campus at 76 Veterans Avenue in Bath, New York, began as the New York State Soldiers' and Sailors' Home. The Grand Army of the Republic, Department of New York, chose the former Rider farm beside the Cohocton River after a state act in 1872 failed to produce funding. Construction began in 1877, with three large barracks buildings planned by the Rochester firm of Warner and Cutler, and the first Civil War veterans arrived in late 1878. More barracks, a hospital, chapels, a mess hall and other buildings followed, mostly in the 1880s. In 1929 the state leased the home to the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, and in 1930 it became part of the Veterans Administration. The district covers about 144 acres and sixty-eight resources, including the Bath National Cemetery and a large parade ground. Forty-nine resources contribute to its character, which spans 1877 to 1959. Brick buildings in an eclectic late-Victorian manner dominate, along with 1930s Classical Revival buildings and a mid-century recreation building.