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History · Betterton

Betterton’s post office opened in 1885, and 37% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 157 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1900 on, and the census since 1910.

1885first post office
1on the National Register
37%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Betterton’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Betterton began

When was Betterton founded?

1885

The Betterton post office opened in 1885, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 308 in 19102020 census: 286141 years
Founding year: the first Betterton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Betterton’s past

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

A historic districtThe Betterton Historic District takes in 157 historic buildings.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 19004 editions of the USGS map, 1900 to 1986. Watch Betterton change.Old housesHalf of Betterton’s homes were built before 1950.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

1 listing protects 157 historic buildings

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

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
157
each building in a district counts
first listed
1984
Betterton Historic District
Betterton Historic District
Districts

Architectural styles listings

Vernacular Victorian1
Betterton Historic DistrictVernacular Victorian

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

Help out

Start Betterton’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Betterton’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 viewGreetings from Betterton, Maryland (722…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Betterton on the map, 1900 to 1986

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

Betterton on the 1900 USGS mapBetterton on the 1948 USGS mapBetterton on the 1951 USGS mapBetterton on the 1986 USGS map1900Betterton 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 Betterton.

The story

How Betterton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Betterton.

Read it all →

The recorded history of Betterton dates back to the 17th century. The Fishall Patent was granted in 1664, later becoming known as Fish Hall. The house located at 104 Ericsson Avenue contains foundation bricks dating back to 1698. In 1715, Edward Crew leased Fish Hall and the name was changed to Crews Landing.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Betterton, 1885 to 1930

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1885Post officeThe Betterton post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1900On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1930In the archiveGreetings from Betterton, Maryland (72219)
By decade

Betterton, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1930s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1930s1 item
Greetings from Betterton, Maryland (72219)c. 1930Greetings from Betterton, Maryland (72219)
1940s–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
Today6 recent
BETTERTON HISTORIC DISTRICT, KENT COUNTY MD2016BETTERTON HISTORIC DISTRICT, KENT COUNTY MDMaryland State Route 2922015Maryland State Route 292Greetings from Betterton, Maryland - Large Letter Postcard2011Greetings from Betterton, Maryland - Large Letter Pos…DocumentThe Big House2010The Big HouseStone Cottage2010Stone CottageMDMap-doton-Betterton2004MDMap-doton-Betterton
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.

Greetings from Betterton, Maryland (72219)
Retake this viewGreetings from Betterton, Maryland (72219), c. 1930

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Betterton, census by census

0100200300400192019401960198020002020Peak: 376

Between 221 and 376 people in every census since 1910.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

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

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Betterton’s post office has been open since 1885.

Gone or out of use
Fish Hall Farmlocale

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

Questions about Betterton’s history

What year was Betterton founded?

The Betterton post office opened in 1885, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

What is on the National Register in Betterton?

One place: the Betterton Historic District (listed 1984).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (7), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.