63% of Naval Academy’s homes were built before 1940
More historic than 98% of U.S. towns · #5 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
2 places in town are on the National Register, among them the U.S. Naval Academy, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district with 15 buildings. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them the U.S. Naval Academy, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district with 15 buildings. Below: old-book passages.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Naval Academy is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns, #5 of 261 in Maryland. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its share of homes from before 1940 ranks highest and its National Register listings lowest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Naval Academy’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 Naval Academy’s 53.2 sits above most of its state (81% of Maryland towns have fewer) while its 16 historic buildings outnumber those of 78% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±38.9 points).
Founding year: our sources. 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 Naval Academy’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Naval Academy yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Naval Academy is a census-designated place (CDP) in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States, which covers the campus of the United States Naval Academy. The population was 4,802 at the 2010 census.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 4,802 to 485 (-90%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
On the National Register
2 listings protect 16 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Naval Academy in 1905
Passages that mention Naval Academy, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A history of Anne Arundel County in Maryland1905 · page 95Read the page →
Read the text
Academy, the battalion of midshipmen then at the Naval Academy and all the otficers of the fleet and station. 7. The cortege was commanded by liear Admiral ISigsbee and was headed by the Naval Academy band, under Prof. Charles A. Zimmerman. Next in the line were the marines of the home station, consisting of two companies, anil following came the brigade of marines from the fleet. The band from the Brooklyn led the sailors' battalion, which n'as next, the tifty French blue jackets first and then the American ; then followed the midshipmen, the officers of the fleet and of the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
No old photos in the archives yet
Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
Naval Academy is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns, #5 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 Naval Academy?
Two places: the U.S. Naval Academy (listed 1966) and the John Sands House (2021).
How old are the homes in Naval Academy?
63% of Naval Academy’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±38.9 points), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1938.
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 the National Register of Historic Places (2), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
★ Landmark
