Mount Washington dates to 1822, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 37% of U.S. towns · #99 of 142 in Kentucky. What drives it
Most of Mount Washington was built recently: 0.3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2002. Its Register listings are the James M. Lloyd House and the Henry J. Barnes House. Below: maps from 1907 on and the census since 1830.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1828.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Mount Washington’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Mount Washington is more historic than 37% of U.S. towns, #99 of 142 in Kentucky. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Mount Washington’s overall grade.
Kentucky towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Kentucky town has 29.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Mount Washington’s 1.1 sits below most of its state (25% of Kentucky towns have fewer) while its 2 listings outnumber those of 60% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B. The pre-1940 share (±0.4 points) is firm at this size. Two sources give 1822.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Mount Washington’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Lost a third of its people between 1860 and 1890, then grew more than tenfold.
13 censuses, 1830–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Mount Washington’s Wikipedia page.
On the map
Mount Washington on the map, 1907 to 1994
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Mount Washington. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1907Louisville 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 Mount Washington.
Mount Washington is located at what was once the crossroads of two stagecoach routes and was originally known as The Cross Roads. It was formally established in 1822 as Mount Vernon, after President George Washington's Virginia home, but it was unable to continue using the name because another town's post office had priority. At the time, the settlement housed c. 700 people and boasted three churches, two schools, six stores and groceries, five doctors, two taverns, and twelve mechanical trades. At the time of its (first) formal incorporation as a city in 1833, the town's name was changed to "Mount Washington", again in honor of the first United States president.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Places that used to be
Old burying grounds
Mount Washington’s post office has been open since 1828.
6cemeteries and burying grounds inside Mount Washington
HellHighland Memorial GardensMount WashingtonPerkinsSaint FrancisShowalter
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Mount Washington’s history
What year was Mount Washington founded?
In 1822, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Mount Washington’s post office opened in 1828, and the census of 1830 counted 227 people here.
How does Mount Washington rank for history?
Mount Washington is more historic than 37% of U.S. towns, #99 of 142 in Kentucky. 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 Mount Washington?
Two places: the James M. Lloyd House (listed 1993) and the Henry J. Barnes House (1993).
How old are the homes in Mount Washington?
0.3% of Mount Washington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 5.9% for a Kentucky town; the median home was built in 2002.
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 (4), Wikidata (1), 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.
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