Hudson Valley
Watchtower, New York
Watchtower is a hamlet — a community without a village government of its own — in Ulster County, part of New York's Hudson Valley region, with about 1,700 residents at the 2020 census.
In New York the practical answer turns on the exact address — the school district, any village lines, and how the parcel is assessed all shape the tax bill. The snapshot and official links below are the place to start.
- Type
- Hamlet (CDP)
- County
- Ulster
- Region
- Hudson Valley
- Population (2020)
- 1,709
Local Almanac
Notes in and around Watchtower
Short, sourced notes tied to this place, its county, or nearby communities.
Nearby · History & Culture
Gardiner's Tuthilltown Mill Shows Why the Shawangunk Kill Mattered
Gardiner's early settlement story begins at Tuthilltown, where waterpower on the Shawangunk Kill helped anchor a mill community below the ridge.
Read this note ->Nearby · History & Culture
Crawford's Earliest Map Follows the Dwaar Kill and Mills
Crawford's town historian traces the town from wooded, rocky settlement to named kills, mills, and farm migration routes.
Read this note ->Nearby · History & Culture
Shawangunk Opens Into Grassland and Ridge Views
Shawangunk's refuge and rail trail give the town a landscape of ridge views, grassland birds, and farm-shipping memory.
Read this note ->Nearby · The Outdoors
Gardiner Carries the Shawangunk Ridge Through Minnewaska
Minnewaska State Park Preserve gives Gardiner Shawangunk cliffs, carriage roads, lakes, waterfalls, and public trail culture.
Read this note ->Ulster County · History & Culture
Rosendale's Cement Was Discovered by Canal Blasting
Rosendale's town history links D&H Canal lock construction, natural cement discovery, and the 1844 formation of the town around a booming industry.
Read this note ->Ulster County · History & Culture
Hurley Has a Stone-House Street and an Ashokan Reservoir Scar
Hurley's town history ties Old Hurley stone houses, a brief capital moment, bluestone hamlets, and Ashokan Reservoir displacement into one local identity.
Read this note ->Ulster County · History & Culture
Lloyd Turns an Old Rail Bridge Into Daily Landscape
Lloyd's Highland side of the Walkway links rail history, community reuse, river views, and a trail system that makes the bridge part of everyday life.
Read this note ->Ulster County · History & Culture
Marbletown's Stone Ridge and High Falls Story Starts in 1669
Marbletown's official history connects early settlement, hilly uplands, Esopus and Rondout waterways, Stone Ridge, High Falls, and Revolutionary-era government movement.
Read this note ->Ulster County · Rules & Licenses
Plattekill Short-Term Rentals Now Need Town and County Steps
Plattekill owners running short-term rentals should check the town operating permit and Ulster County tax certificate requirements before keeping listings active.
Read this note ->Property tax snapshot
About $11–$26 per $1,000 in Ulster County
Combined full-value rate — county + town/city + school district, per $1,000 of market value (FY2025). On a $300,000 home that's about $3,395–$7,930 a year before the STAR break. A hamlet has no government of its own — it's taxed at the rates of the town it sits in.
A planning estimate, not a bill. Your exact rate depends on your school district and any village. Confirm with the assessor.
Statewide links
Statewide starting points.
Good to know
- • Your assessed value usually isn't your market value — ask for the equalization rate.
- • Register for STAR; new applicants generally receive a credit instead of an automatic exemption on the bill.
- • Outside the cities, check the well, the septic, and the FEMA flood map before you buy.
Nearby
Nearby places
Tax rates: NYS Dept of Taxation & Finance (ORPTS), Real Property Tax Rates and Levy Data by Municipality, data.ny.gov dataset iq85-sdzs. (FY2025). Population: U.S. Census 2020. Reviewed June 2026. Source data ->
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