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C+History
History · Longwood

Longwood’s post office opened in 1876, and 2 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 37% of U.S. towns · #129 of 638 in Florida. What drives it

Most of Longwood was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1983. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 37 buildings. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1962 on, and the census since 1890.

1876first post office
2on the National Register
0.0%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Longwood’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Longwood began

When was Longwood founded?

1876

The Longwood post office opened in 1876, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1878.

First census: 57 in 18902020 census: 15,087150 years

How historic is Longwood?

C+

More historic than 37% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Longwood post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1878.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Longwood’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Longwood is more historic than 37% of U.S. towns, #129 of 638 in Florida. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Longwood’s overall grade.
Founding era1876, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19400.0% of homes (±0.4) · typical FL town 0.6% · U.S. 8.4%D−National Register2 listings, 38 historic buildings, 23.3 per 10,000 residents · typical FL town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 37%
NewerOlder
Florida towns of 2,500+ (638)Ahead of 80%

Few Florida towns list much on the Register (a typical Florida town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Longwood’s 23.3 sits above most of its state (89% of Florida towns have fewer) while its 38 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1878 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.

Founding year: the first post office (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Longwood’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe Longwood Historic District takes in 37 historic buildings.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Longwood’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Longwood’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBird's eye view of Longwood, Florida, O…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

2 listings protect 38 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
38
each building in a district counts
first listed
1984
Longwood Hotel
Longwood HotelLongwood Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Italianate1
Wood Frame Vernacular1
Bungalow1
Eastern Stick1
Longwood HotelItalianate
Longwood Historic DistrictWood Frame Vernacular

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story

How Longwood came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Longwood.

Read it all →

With the advent of World War II, growth began to affect Longwood as military personnel flowed into the new Naval Air Station Sanford to the north and Orlando Army Air Base to the south. By the 1950s, NAS Sanford was being converted into a Master Jet Base for carrier-based heavy attack aircraft and, along with the re-designated Orlando Air Force Base and nearby Pinecastle AFB (later renamed McCoy AFB), saw even more military families renting or purchasing homes in and around Longwood. In 1959, the city had slightly over 1,000 residents and a city limit boundary that measured approximately 1-by-1-mile (1.6 by 1.6 km) square. In 1960, Longwood Elementary School was constructed and opened inside the city limits.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Longwood, 1876 to 1997

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1876Post officeThe Longwood post office opens
  3. 1885In the archiveBird's eye view of Longwood, Florida, Orange County 1885
  4. 20th century
  5. 1940In the archiveFlorida [Sarasota County (part) - Washington County] -- Georgia [Appling County - Effingh…
  6. 1962On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1983Born hereTim Russell is born here
  8. 1986Born hereGraham Zusi is born here
  9. 1997Born hereJared Bernhardt is born here
By decade

Longwood, decade by decade

2 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1940s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s2 items
Bird's eye view of Longwood, Florida, Orange County 18851885Bird's eye view of Longwood, Florida, Orange County 1…Bird's eye view of Longwood, Florida, Orange County 18851885Bird's eye view of Longwood, Florida, Orange County 1…
1890s–1930snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
1940s1 item
Florida [Sarasota County (part) - Washington County] -- Georgia [Appling County - Effingham County (part)]1940Florida [Sarasota County (part) - Washington County] …
1950s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today9 recent
Longwood Senator Park Lady022007Longwood Senator Park Lady02Longwood Senator Park Lady012007Longwood Senator Park Lady01Longwood Florida RR tracks032007Longwood Florida RR tracks03Longwood Florida RR tracks022007Longwood Florida RR tracks02Longwood Florida RR tracks012007Longwood Florida RR tracks01Longwood Florida Antirrhinum majus22007Longwood Florida Antirrhinum majus2Longwood Florida Antirrhinum majus12007Longwood Florida Antirrhinum majus1Longwoodfla2005LongwoodflaFLMap-doton-Longwood2004FLMap-doton-Longwood
On the map

Longwood on the map, 1962 to 1994

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Longwood. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Longwood on the 1962 USGS mapLongwood on the 1970 USGS mapLongwood on the 1980 USGS mapLongwood on the 1994 USGS map1962Casselberry sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Longwood.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Bird's eye view of Longwood, Florida, Orange County 1885
Retake this viewBird's eye view of Longwood, Florida, Orange County 1885, 1885

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Longwood’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Longwood, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00010,00012,00014,00016,000190019201940196019802000202015,087

Grew from 57 people in 1890 to 15,087 in 2020, more than tenfold.

12 censuses, 1890–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Longwood’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Longwood

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Graham ZusiAmerican soccer player · b. 1986
Jared BernhardtAmerican football quarterback · b. 1997
T
Tim RussellAmerican racing driver · b. 1983
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Longwood’s post office has been open since 1876.

Hamlets and corners on the map
LongdaleWhispering Oaks Mobile Home Village
1cemetery inside Longwood
Longwood Memorial Gardens

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

CasselberryIts storyDWinter SpringsIts storyD−

Questions about Longwood’s history

What year was Longwood founded?

The Longwood post office opened in 1876, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1878.

How does Longwood rank for history?

Longwood is more historic than 37% of U.S. towns, #129 of 638 in Florida. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Longwood?

Two places: the Longwood Hotel (listed 1984) and the Longwood Historic District (1990).

How old are the homes in Longwood?

0.0% of Longwood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 0.6% for a Florida town; the median home was built in 1983.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (12), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.