Carmel (pronounced /ˈkɑːrməl/) is a town in Putnam County, New York, United States.

[2] The Town of Carmel is on the southern border of Putnam County, abutting Westchester County, approximately 50 miles (80 km) north of New York City and 10 miles (16 km) west of Danbury, Connecticut.

The town of Carmel was originally inhabited by Indians of the Wappinger people, who, in 1691, sold the property to Dutch traders.

In 1697, a wealthy New York merchant, Adolphus Philipse, purchased their deed and was granted a patent from King William III of England for the entire tract of land which is now Putnam County.

[citation needed] On the night of April 26, 1777, after learning the news that the British had begun burning nearby Danbury, Connecticut, sixteen-year-old Sybil Ludington rode the entire night through the hamlets of Carmel, Mahopac, Kent Cliffs and Farmers Mills, warning those along the way that the British were coming before returning home at dawn.

A new Putnam County Courthouse was completed in early 2008, located nearby on Gleneida Avenue.

[11] Carmel Central School District encompasses 85 square miles and serves approximately 5000 students from six different towns.

The original building had four additions, including one built in 1936 with money from the New Deal, one in 1969, one in 1980, and one in 2007, which holds science classrooms and a library.

[citation needed] St. John the Evangelist was a Catholic elementary school in Mahopac from 1955 until its closing in 2011.