La Plata’s post office opened in 1875, and 5 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 36% of U.S. towns · #120 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Most of La Plata was built recently: 0.4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1995. 5 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 13 buildings. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1892 on, and the census since 1890.
Founding year: the first La Plata post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1888.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives La Plata’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, La Plata is more historic than 36% of U.S. towns, #120 of 261 in Maryland. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of La Plata’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 La Plata’s 23.4 sits above most of its state (76% of Maryland towns have fewer) while its 25 historic buildings outnumber those of 81% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B. The pre-1940 share (±0.6 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date; Wikidata’s 1888 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 La Plata’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
According to an unconfirmed local story, the town was named by one Colonel Samuel Chapman, whose family owned 6,000 acres (24 km2) of land in Charles County. The Colonel traveled to South America with his son George, who had contracted tuberculosis, in search of a cure. In his travels, the Colonel had apparently encountered the Río de la Plata, which flows through Argentina and Uruguay, thus naming a portion of his property "La Plata".
In the 1870s, a section of the Pennsylvania Railroad had been constructed through the town of La Plata, leading to its 1888 incorporation.
The La Plata post office opened in 1875, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1888.
How does La Plata rank for history?
La Plata is more historic than 36% of U.S. towns, #120 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 La Plata?
5 listings: 4 buildings, among them the La Grange (listed 1976, the first), and 1 historic district, the Thainston, with 13 contributing buildings. 25 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in La Plata?
0.4% of La Plata’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1995.
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 (12), the National Register of Historic Places (5), 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.
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