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A+History
History · Brunswick

Brunswick dates to 1787, and 27% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 95% of U.S. towns · #10 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 567 buildings. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1899 on, and the census since 1900.

1787founded
1on the National Register
27%homes built before 1940
12old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Brunswick’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Brunswick began

When was Brunswick founded?

1787

Brunswick dates its founding to 1787 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1900.

First census: 2,471 in 19002020 census: 7,762239 years

How historic is Brunswick?

A+

More historic than 95% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1811.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Brunswick’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Brunswick is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns, #10 of 261 in Maryland. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its age lowest.

A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Brunswick’s overall grade.
Founding era1787, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194027.1% of homes (±4.7) · typical MD town 3.3% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register1 listing, 567 historic buildings, 671 per 10,000 residents · typical MD town 0.9 · U.S. 2.4A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 95%
NewerOlder
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 97%

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 Brunswick’s 671 sits above most of its state (92% of Maryland towns have fewer) while its 567 historic buildings outnumber those of 98% of U.S. towns.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1787.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.7 points).

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 Brunswick’s past

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

A historic districtThe Brunswick Historic District takes in 567 historic buildings.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Brunswick.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1899 to 1920, drew every building in Brunswick.A town in old photos12 old photos, postcards and papers, 1862–1985.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

1 listing protects 567 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
567
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Brunswick Historic District
Brunswick Historic District
Districts

Architectural styles listings

Queen Anne1
Gothic-influenced Georgian1
Italianate Gothic1
Gothic Revival1
Victorian1
Brunswick Historic DistrictQueen Anne

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

Places that used to be

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Brunswick’s post office has been open since 1890. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Berlin
1811–1813
Barry
1832–1890
Brunswick
1890–today
18101920today
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Brunswick
Old LutheranPark Heights

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

Every building

Brunswick, building by building, 1899–1920

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.

Brunswick fire insurance map, 1899, sheet 11899Sheet 1 of 8
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

The story

How Brunswick came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Brunswick.

Read it all →

The area now known as Brunswick was originally home to the Susquehanna Native American tribe. In 1728 the first settlement was built, and the region became known as Eel Town, because the natives would fish for eel in the Potomac River. A grant to the land was then given to John Hawkins by George II of Great Britain on August 10, 1753. The grant had the name "Hawkins Merry-Peep-o-Day".

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Brunswick, 1787 to 1985

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1787
    FoundingBrunswick is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1811Post officeThe Berlin post office opens
  5. 1813Post officeThe Berlin post office closes
  6. 1832Post officeThe Barry post office opens
  7. 1862In the archiveMaryland, Berlin, Pontoon Bridge across the Potomac River
  8. 1890Post officeThe Barry post office closes
  9. 1890Post officeThe Brunswick post office opens
  10. 20th century
  11. 1917In the archiveMaryland
  12. 1930In the archiveMaryland
  13. 1930Born hereNield Gordon is born here
  14. 1942Born hereGalen R. Clagett is born here
  15. 1953On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  16. 1977In the archiveYmca brunswkMD 77 a clean
  17. 1985In the archiveMARC F Units in Brunswick, May 1985
By decade

Brunswick, decade by decade

5 decades in the archive, from the 1860s to the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s6 items
Maryland, Berlin, Pontoon Bridge across the Potomac River1862Maryland, Berlin, Pontoon Bridge across the Potomac R…Berlin, Md. [i.e. Brunswick, Maryland]1862Berlin, Md. [i.e. Brunswick, Maryland]Berlin (now Brunswick), Md. Pontoon bridge and ruins of the stone bridge1862Berlin (now Brunswick), Md. Pontoon bridge and ruins …Berlin (now Brunswick), Md. Pontoon bridge and ruins of the stone bridge across the Potomac (destroyed in 1861)1862Berlin (now Brunswick), Md. Pontoon bridge and ruins …Berlin (now Brunswick), Md. Pontoon bridge and ruins of the stone bridge; another view1862Berlin (now Brunswick), Md. Pontoon bridge and ruins …Brunswick, Meade's pursuit after Gettysburg1863Brunswick, Meade's pursuit after Gettysburg
1910s–1930s4 items
Maryland1917MarylandMaryland1917MarylandMaryland1917MarylandMaryland1930Maryland
1940s–1960snothing 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
1970s–1980s2 items
Ymca brunswkMD 77 a clean1977Ymca brunswkMD 77 a cleanMARC F Units in Brunswick, May 19851985MARC F Units in Brunswick, May 1985
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
On the map

Brunswick on the map, 1953 to 1969

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

Brunswick on the 1953 USGS mapBrunswick on the 1969 USGS map1953Harpers Ferry 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 Brunswick.

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.

Maryland, Berlin, Pontoon Bridge across the Potomac River
Retake this viewMaryland, Berlin, Pontoon Bridge across the Potomac River, 1862

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

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Brunswick, census by census

02,0004,0006,0008,00019001920194019601980200020207,762

Grew from 2,471 people in 1900 to 7,762 in 2020, 3 times over.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Brunswick

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

See all →
Galen R. ClagettAmerican politician · b. 1942
N
Nield GordonCollege basketball player (1951–1953) Furman an… · b. 1930
Help out

Finish Brunswick’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewMaryland, Berlin, Pontoon Bridge across…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

RosemontIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Brunswick’s history

What year was Brunswick founded?

In 1787, according to Wikidata. Brunswick’s post office opened in 1811, and the census of 1900 counted 2,471 people here.

How does Brunswick rank for history?

Brunswick is more historic than 95% of U.S. towns, #10 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 Brunswick?

One place: the Brunswick Historic District (listed 1979).

How old are the homes in Brunswick?

27% of Brunswick’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.7 points), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 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).

From Wikimedia Commons (8), the Library of Congress (4), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.