Ellicott City dates to 1772, and 14 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 77% of U.S. towns · #40 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Most of Ellicott City was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1992. 14 places in town are on the National Register, among them 2 National Historic Landmarks and two historic districts with 194 buildings between them. Below: maps from 1887 on and the census since 1970.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1854.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Ellicott City’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ellicott City is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #40 of 261 in Maryland. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Ellicott City’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 Ellicott City’s 30.0 sits above most of its state (78% of Maryland towns have fewer) while its 226 historic buildings outnumber those of 94% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1772.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to A+. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 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 Ellicott City’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Brennan Convalescent HomehospitalEllicott City Public SchoolschoolFells Avenue Elementary SchoolschoolMount Zion African Methodist Episcopal ChurchchurchPatapsco Female InstituteschoolSaint Charles CollegeschoolSaint Lukes African Methodist Episcopal ChurchchurchSaint Pauls SchoolschoolSchool Number 9school
3cemeteries and burying grounds inside Ellicott City
CaveyGood ShepherdSaint Johns
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Prior to the establishment of Ellicott City, the main crossing of the Patapsco River connecting Baltimore with western Maryland stood about three miles north at what is now Hollifield (Old Frederick Road and Johnnycake Road). The main road continued west towards Mount Airy and Frederick along what later became Maryland Route 99. The first mill at that site on the river had been built by Christopher Gardiner in about 1716. Near this place, in 1766, James Hood used the Maryland Mill Act of 1669 to condemn 20 acres (8.1 ha) for a mill site adjacent to his river-side 157-acre (64 ha) property, where he built a gristmill. His son Benjamin rebuilt the corn grinding mill after one of the frequent Patapsco floods in 1768.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Ellicott City. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1892Ellicott 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 Ellicott City.
Every building
Ellicott City, building by building, 1887–1910
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.
In 1772, according to Wikidata. Ellicott City’s post office opened in 1854, and the census of 1970 counted 17,455 people here.
How does Ellicott City rank for history?
Ellicott City is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #40 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 Ellicott City?
14 listings, 2 of them National Historic Landmarks: 12 buildings, among them the Ellicott City Station (a National Historic Landmark since 1968), and 2 historic districts, the Daniels Mill and the Ellicott City Historic District, with 194 contributing buildings. 226 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Ellicott City?
2% of Ellicott City’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1992.
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 Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (14), 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.
★ Landmark
★ Landmark
