The territory · Columbia County
Ghent
Ghent was cut from Chatham, Claverack and Kinderhook in 1818 and named for the treaty that closed the War of 1812; its hamlet is a crossroads on Route 66, two and a half miles short of Chatham village, with the Kline Kill running along its northern edge. Art Omi's 120-acre sculpture and architecture park lies a few miles west on County Route 22, and Hawthorne Valley's biodynamic farm and Waldorf school carry a Ghent address on County Route 21C.
1 hour to be on site for property care clients. Answered in 45, wherever you are.
The practical facts
Living here.
- School district
- Chatham Central School District · about 3 miles
Primary district for the Ghent hamlet and most of the town. District office 50 Woodbridge Ave, Chatham, NY 12037, (518) 392-1501; schools are Mary E. Dardess Elementary (PreK-5), Chatham Middle (6-8) and Chatham High (9-12). The town is split: the district's own About page says it is made up of "most or part of" Chatham, Ghent, Austerlitz, Canaan, Kinderhook and New Lebanon, and Taconic Hills CSD (Craryville) serves part of southern Ghent. A western sliver is commonly reported to fall in Hudson City SD, but Hudson CSD's site does not state its coverage, so that portion is unverified. Check the district for any specific parcel.
- Library
- Chatham Public Library · about 3 miles
11 Woodbridge Ave, Chatham, NY 12037, (518) 392-3666. Chartered 1902; operated by the Chatham Central School District, one of two public libraries in NYS run by a school district. Listed on the Town of Ghent's Libraries page alongside the Philmont Public Library (101 Main St, Philmont, NY 12565), which serves the southern end of town.
- Hospital
- Columbia Memorial Health (Albany Med Health System) · about 10 miles
71 Prospect Ave, Hudson, NY 12534, (518) 828-7601. Emergency Department open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. About 10-11 miles southwest via Route 66.
- Groceries
- Price Chopper, Chatham · about 3 miles
2614 Route 66, Chatham, NY 12037, (518) 392-9007. Full supermarket with pharmacy, open daily 6am-11pm, on Route 66 at the edge of Chatham village.
Hannaford, Valatie (Kinderhook store) · about 8 miles2967 US Highway 9, Suite 400, Valatie, NY 12184, (518) 758-8800. Open daily 6am-11pm. Roughly 8 miles northwest; distance is approximate (routed to Valatie village centre).
Hannaford, Livingston (Bells Pond) · about 15 miles32 Route 82, Hudson, NY 12534 (Route 9 and Route 82 junction, Town of Livingston), (518) 851-2098. Supermarket and pharmacy, open daily 7am-10pm. The Fairview Avenue supermarkets in Greenport (ShopRite, Price Chopper) are closer at roughly 10-11 miles, but their official store pages could not be fetched for verification.
- Skiing
- Catamount Mountain Resort · about 22 miles
Hillsdale, NY 12529 (street address 78 Catamount Road per Columbia County Tourism; the resort's own contact page lists only Hillsdale, NY 12529 and S. Egremont, MA 01258), 413-528-1262. Ski area on the New York-Massachusetts line; about 22 driving miles southeast.
Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort · about 29 miles37 Corey Rd, Hancock, MA 01237, (413) 738-5500. About 29 driving miles northeast in the Berkshires.
- Town
- Town of Ghent
Town Hall, 2306 Route 66, PO Box 98, Ghent, NY 12075, (518) 392-4644. In July 2026 the town announced a move to townofghent.gov; as of 2026-09-08 that domain 301-redirects to townofghent.org, so the .org URL is the one that resolves. Town founded 1818; 2020 census population 5,303; the hamlet (CDP) had 477 residents in 2022.
Own a house in Ghent?
Start with what it is worth. A property-specific valuation, not a number generated from public records.