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History · Garrett Park

Garrett Park’s post office opened in 1890, and 36% of its homes were built before 1940

1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 240 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1908 on, and the census since 1900.

1890first post office
1on the National Register
36%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Garrett Park began, and where its name came from

When was Garrett Park founded?

1890

The Garrett Park post office opened in 1890, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1898.

First census: 175 in 19002020 census: 996136 years

How did Garrett Park get its name?

Garrett Park was named for John Work Garrett, who had led the B&O for nearly three decades, including during the American Civil War.

Founding year: the first Garrett Park post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1898. Name: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.The full story ↓

What stands out about Garrett Park’s past

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

A historic districtThe Garrett Park Historic District takes in 240 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 19086 editions of the USGS map, 1908 to 1971. Watch Garrett Park change.Old housesHalf of Garrett Park’s homes were built before 1952.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

1 listing protects 240 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
240
each building in a district counts
first listed
1975
Garrett Park Historic District
Garrett Park Historic District
Districts
Garrett Park Historic DistrictDistrict

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

Help out

Start Garrett Park’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Garrett Park’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Date a photo1 archive item has no date. Guess the decade.+2Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Garrett Park on the map, 1908 to 1971

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

Garrett Park on the 1908 USGS mapGarrett Park on the 1923 USGS mapGarrett Park on the 1945 USGS mapGarrett Park on the 1951 USGS mapGarrett Park on the 1965 USGS mapGarrett Park on the 1971 USGS map1908Rockville 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 Garrett Park.

The story

How Garrett Park came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Garrett Park.

Read it all →

Garrett Park was an early planned community, originally promoted by businessman Henry W. Copp, who purchased the land in 1886. Copp wanted to build a suburban development reminiscent of an English village, and even went so far as to name the streets after locations in the novels of the English author Walter Scott, such as Kenilworth and Strathmore. Copp worked in conjunction with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, which in 1893 built a train station. Builders were given reduced rates to transport workers and materials to the town site, and new residents were given free trips to move in. The town lies along the former B&O railway corridor (now used by CSX, Amtrak, and MARC). It was named for John Work Garrett, who had led the B&O for nearly three decades, including during the American Civil War. Copp limited commercial development in the community. Today the town has a four-star restaurant…

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Garrett Park, 1890 to 1915

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1890Post officeThe Garrett Park post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1908On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  5. 1915Born hereMinnie Klavans is born here
By decade

Garrett Park, decade by decade

Date unknown1 to date
A residential-park development of charm and distinctionDate?A residential-park development of charm and distincti…Book
Today11 recent
Holy Cross school PK-8 Kensington MD 2023-04-23 09-16-372023Holy Cross school PK-8 Kensington MD 2023-04-23 09-16…Donal McLaughlin Place and Weymouth Street Signs2023Donal McLaughlin Place and Weymouth Street SignsPost Office Garrett Park MD USPS 20210425 135740 12021Post Office Garrett Park MD USPS 20210425 135740 1Covid-19 Mask Up In Garrett Park MD 20210425 135804 12021Covid-19 Mask Up In Garrett Park MD 20210425 135804 1Metropolitan Subdivision Rock Creek crossing 2020a2020Metropolitan Subdivision Rock Creek crossing 2020aKnowles Avenue Bridge 20202020Knowles Avenue Bridge 2020Garrett Park Road Bridge 20202020Garrett Park Road Bridge 2020Penn Place, Garrett Park, MD 2015-07-222015Penn Place, Garrett Park, MD 2015-07-22Garrett Park Town Hall 2015-07-222015Garrett Park Town Hall 2015-07-22Garrett Park ES 2015-07-222015Garrett Park ES 2015-07-22Garrett Park B&O station2010Garrett Park B&O station
People over time

Garrett Park, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,276

Between 159 and 1,276 people in every census since 1900.

13 censuses, 1900–2020.

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

Stories next door

History across the town line

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

North Bethesda2 historic placesC−South KensingtonIts storyC−

Questions about Garrett Park’s history

What year was Garrett Park founded?

The Garrett Park post office opened in 1890, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1898.

What is on the National Register in Garrett Park?

One place: the Garrett Park Historic District (listed 1975).

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 (12), 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) 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.