Berlin’s post office opened in 1820, and 11% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 81% of U.S. towns · #31 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 43 buildings. Below: 6 old photos and papers, maps from 1897 on, and the census since 1860.
Founding year: the first Berlin post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1868.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Berlin’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Berlin is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #31 of 261 in Maryland. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Berlin’s overall grade.
Few Maryland towns list much on the Register (a typical Maryland town has 0.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Berlin’s 87.9 sits above most of its state (84% of Maryland towns have fewer) while its 46 historic buildings outnumber those of 84% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.0 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata gives 1868.
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 Berlin’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
On the map
Berlin on the map, 1901 to 1981
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Berlin. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1901Ocean City 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 Berlin.
Every building
Berlin, building by building, 1897–1923
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
The town of Berlin lies over land that was originally the 300-acre (120 ha) Burley Plantation, patented by William Tomkins in 1677. With the development of ancient Native American migratory and hunting trails into colonial highways, the Burley Plantation became a crossroads of a post road leading to Philadelphia (today's Main Street) and the Sinepuxent Road. Berlin developed in the early-19th century at this crossroads, where a tavern, blacksmith shop, and livery were among the first established businesses in the new town. Regional tradition asserts that the pronunciation of the town's name, "Burl'in" with emphasis on the first syllable, stems from the "Burley Inn", the early tavern that stood at the crossroads of the Philadelphia Post and Sinepuxent Roads.
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.
The Berlin post office opened in 1820, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1868.
How does Berlin rank for history?
Berlin is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns, #31 of 261 in Maryland. 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 Berlin?
4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Burley Manor (listed 1974, the first), and 1 historic district, the Berlin Commercial District, with 43 contributing buildings. 46 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Berlin?
11% of Berlin’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.0 points), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1989.
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 (2), the Library of Congress (4), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1862
1863