Kensington’s post office opened in 1890, and 18% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 75% of U.S. towns · #43 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
1 place in town is on the National Register, among them a historic district with 149 buildings. Below: 8 old photos and papers, maps from 1904 on, and the census since 1900.
The Kensington post office opened in 1890, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1894. Another post office, Knowles (1873), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 477 in 19002020 census: 2,122136 years
How historic is Kensington?
A−
More historic than 75% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Kensington post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1894.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Kensington’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kensington is more historic than 75% of U.S. towns, #43 of 261 in Maryland. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Kensington’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 Kensington’s 629 sits above most of its state (91% of Maryland towns have fewer) while its 149 historic buildings outnumber those of 92% 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 (±3.0 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1894 falls in the same era, so the grade doesn’t depend on which one is used.
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 Kensington’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The area around Rock Creek where Kensington is located was primarily agricultural until 1873, when the B&O Railroad completed the Metropolitan Branch across Montgomery County. A community arose where the new railroad line intersected the old Rockville-to-Bladensburg road. This early settlement was first known as "Knowles Station".
In the early 1890s, Washington developer Brainard Warner began purchasing land parcels to build a planned Victorian community, complete with church, library, and local newspaper. Fascinated by a recent trip to London, Warner named his development "Kensington Park", the tenth and largest subdivision in the area. When the town was incorporated in 1894, Warner convinced the mayor and council to name it Kensington.
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.
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 Kensington post office opened in 1890, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1894.
How does Kensington rank for history?
Kensington is more historic than 75% of U.S. towns, #43 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 Kensington?
One place: the Kensington Historic District (listed 1980).
How old are the homes in Kensington?
18% of Kensington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.0 points), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1959.
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 (4), the Library of Congress (6), 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.
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