Richmond Hill dates to 1734, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 58% of U.S. towns · #88 of 263 in Georgia. What drives it
Most of Richmond Hill was built recently: 0.4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2007. Its Register listings are the Richmond Hill Plantation, the Strathy Hall and the Community House. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1920 on, and the census since 1970.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1858.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Richmond Hill’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Richmond Hill is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns, #88 of 263 in Georgia. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
B
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Richmond Hill’s overall grade.
Georgia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Georgia town has 10.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Richmond Hill’s 4.4 sits near the middle of its state (44% of Georgia towns have fewer) while its 8 historic buildings outnumber those of 74% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1734.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to A−. The pre-1940 share (±0.5 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikidata (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 Richmond Hill’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Richmond Hill. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1920Limerick sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Richmond Hill.
Richmond Hill has a historical connection to industrialist Henry Ford. Ford used the town, formerly known as Ways Station, as a winter home and philanthropic social experiment, building the complex known as the Ford Farms along the Ogeechee River in the 1930s. After just one visit he chose this area as his winter home. Ford's dwelling was built on the site of Richmond Plantation, which was burned by elements of General William T. Sherman's army at the conclusion of the "March to the Sea". Ford's holdings eventually totaled 85,000 acres (340 km2) of agricultural and timber lands, most of which is now owned by the State of Georgia or ITT Rayonier, a timber company. Ford was also responsible for the construction of a number of public buildings, including a kindergarten, which now houses the museum of the Richmond Hill Historical Society, and a chapel which now houses St. Anne's Catholic Ch…
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
People over time
Richmond Hill, census by census
Grew from 826 people in 1970 to 16,633 in 2020, more than tenfold.
6 censuses, 1970–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Richmond Hill’s Wikipedia page.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices and burying grounds
Richmond Hill’s post office has been open since 1941. Another post office, Way's Station, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Way's Station
1858–1941
Richmond Hill
1941–today
18501940today
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Richmond Hill
BethlehemCherry HillRichmond Hill
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Richmond Hill’s history
What year was Richmond Hill founded?
In 1734, according to Wikidata. Richmond Hill’s post office opened in 1858, and the census of 1970 counted 826 people here.
How does Richmond Hill rank for history?
Richmond Hill is more historic than 58% of U.S. towns, #88 of 263 in Georgia. 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 Richmond Hill?
Three places: the Richmond Hill Plantation (listed 1978), the Strathy Hall (1979) and the Community House (2024).
How old are the homes in Richmond Hill?
0.4% of Richmond Hill’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.8% for a Georgia town; the median home was built in 2007.
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 (9), the Library of Congress (8), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, 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.
Date?
2021
2017
2017
2017
2017
2017
2017
2017
2017
2013
2013
2011
2011
2011
2011
2005
