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C−History
History · Severna Park

Severna Park’s post office opened in 1925, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

More historic than 17% of U.S. towns · #186 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it

Most of Severna Park was built recently: 4% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1979. Its Register listing is the Robinson House. Below: maps from 1894 on and the census since 2000.

1925first post office
1on the National Register
4%homes built before 1940
3famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Severna Park began

When was Severna Park founded?

1925

The Severna Park post office opened in 1925, the earliest record of the town by name. Six smaller post offices, Benfield (1885), Asbury (1887) and Robinson (1887), opened inside today’s town and later closed.

First census: 28,507 in 20002020 census: 39,933101 years

How historic is Severna Park?

C−

More historic than 17% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Severna Park post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Severna Park’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Severna Park is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #186 of 261 in Maryland. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Severna Park’s overall grade.
Founding era1925, from the first post office: founded 1900–1944, an older era than 9% of U.S. townsDHomes built before 19403.6% of homes (±0.9) · typical MD town 3.3% · U.S. 8.4%CNational Register1 listing, 0.2 per 10,000 residents · typical MD town 0.9 · U.S. 2.4B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 17%
NewerOlder
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 29%

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 Severna Park’s 0.2 sits near the middle of its state (40% of Maryland towns have fewer) while its 1 listings outnumber those of 51% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C. The pre-1940 share (±0.9 points) is firm at this size. The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.

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 Severna Park’s past

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

Lost villages6 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Severna Park, and 97 old place names are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Severna Park are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.On the map since 18945 editions of the USGS map, 1894 to 1970. Watch Severna Park change.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Severna Park’s post office has been open since 1925. Six other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Benfield
1885–1908
Asbury
1887–1902
Robinson
1887–1919
Elvaton
1889–1914
Frost
1889–1892
Earleigh Heights
1892–1928
Severna Park
1925–today
18801950today
Hamlets and corners on the map
AllenvilleArundel BeachBen OaksBendaleBenfieldBerrywoodBerrywood WestBluff PointBrightwoodBrightwood TerraceCandlewoodCape ArthurCape McKinseyCaptains CoveCarrollton ManorChartridgeChartwellChartwoodChatham HillsColchester on the SevernCool PondCrystal BeachCypress CreekDrexel Estates
Gone or out of use
Elvaton StationlocalePiney Grove Methodist ChurchchurchRobinson Post Officepost officeSelby Grove Memorial Churchchurch
1cemetery inside Severna Park
Piney Grove Methodist Church

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Severna Park’s collection

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

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the map

Severna Park on the map, 1894 to 1970

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

Severna Park on the 1894 USGS mapSeverna Park on the 1907 USGS mapSeverna Park on the 1949 USGS mapSeverna Park on the 1956 USGS mapSeverna Park on the 1970 USGS map1894Relay 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 Severna Park.

The story

How Severna Park came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Severna Park.

Read it all →

The name Severna Park is rumored to originate from a 1906 contest held by Oscar Hatton while the modern community was first becoming established. The winner would receive a portion of land but controversy arose because the winner was an African-American woman, who was instead rewarded $500. However, extensive research by local historian Nelson Molter found no corroborative evidence for this story, suggesting the naming contest is merely a local myth.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Severna Park, 1885 to 1988

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1885Post officeThe Benfield post office opens
  3. 1887Post officeThe Asbury post office opens
  4. 1887Post officeThe Robinson post office opens
  5. 1894On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 20th century
  7. 1902Post officeThe Asbury post office closes
  8. 1908Post officeThe Benfield post office closes
  9. 1919Post officeThe Robinson post office closes
  10. 1973Born hereMark Budzinski is born here
  11. 1988Born hereDrew Yates is born here
By decade

Severna Park, decade by decade

Today12 recent
2019-05-21 11 39 46 View north along Interstate 97 (Robert Crain Highway) at Exit 10 (Veterans Highway, Benfield Boulev…20192019-05-21 11 39 46 View north along Interstate 97 (R…2016-08-17 07 43 58 View south along Maryland State Route 648 (Baltimore-Annapolis Boulevard) just south of Maryland St…20162016-08-17 07 43 58 View south along Maryland State R…2016-08-15 12 15 19 View north along Maryland State Route 648 (Baltimore-Annapolis Boulevard) just north of Maryland St…20162016-08-15 12 15 19 View north along Maryland State R…2016-08-12 17 42 17 View north along Maryland State Route 10 (Arundel Expressway) just north of Maryland State Route 2 …20162016-08-12 17 42 17 View north along Maryland State R…2016-08-12 14 48 04 View north along Interstate 97 (Robert Crain Highway) just north of Exit 10 in Severna Park, Anne A…20162016-08-12 14 48 04 View north along Interstate 97 (R…Unfinished-SPHS-Aug20152015Unfinished-SPHS-Aug2015Holy Grounds at Severna Park Community Center2015Holy Grounds at Severna Park Community CenterMagothy River in2014Magothy River inSeverna Park, Maryland2008Severna Park, Maryland2007 11 24 - 228 - Pasadena - MD2 at MD1020082007 11 24 - 228 - Pasadena - MD2 at MD10Ocean Beach, Early Morning2004Ocean Beach, Early MorningMDMap-doton-SevernaPark2004MDMap-doton-SevernaPark
On the National Register

1 historic place in Severna Park

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
2009
Robinson House
Robinson House
Buildings

Architectural styles listings

Colonial1
Robinson HouseColonial

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

People over time

Severna Park, census by census

05,00010,00015,00020,00025,00030,00035,00040,00020002020Peak: 39,933

Between 28,507 and 39,933 people in every census since 2000.

3 censuses, 2000–2020.

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

Famous people

3 famous people were born in Severna Park

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
D
Drew YatesAmerican soccer player · b. 1988
Mark BudzinskiAmerican baseball player · b. 1973
R
Ray LeoneAssociation football player
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

Pasadena2 historic placesC+ArnoldIts storyC−Glen Burnie3 historic placesB−Lake ShoreIts storyC−Arden on the SevernIts storyDGambrillsIts storyDHerald HarborIts storyC−

Questions about Severna Park’s history

What year was Severna Park founded?

The Severna Park post office opened in 1925, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

How does Severna Park rank for history?

Severna Park is more historic than 17% of U.S. towns, #186 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 Severna Park?

One place: the Robinson House (listed 2009).

How old are the homes in Severna Park?

4% of Severna Park’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1979.

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).

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.