Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1829.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Smithsburg’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Smithsburg is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns, #86 of 261 in Maryland. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Smithsburg’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 Smithsburg’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (20% of Maryland towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.0 points). Two sources give 1812.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Smithsburg’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Smithsburg, Maryland, was founded in 1812 by Christopher "Stuffle" Smith. He purchased a plot of land formerly known as "part of Shadrack's Lot." The community's development was directly influenced by factors such as migration paths, the arrival of the railroad, and advances in agricultural technology. By 1923, much of the existing village had been erected. Smithsburg was incorporated in 1846.
Passages that mention Smithsburg, cut from the printed page as they were published.
A history of Washington County, Maryland from the earliest settlements to the present time, including a history of Hagerstown1906 · page 177Read the page →
Read the text
secrated July 30, 1820. Addresses were made in the German and English languages. On the 27th of May, 1822, the corner stone of a Lutheran Church was laid in Smithsburg. The sermons upon this occasion also were in two languages. A few weeks later, on May 27, the corner stone of what is now known as Salem Reformed Church, at Fisher’s, three miles from Hagerstown, was
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
A history of Washington County, Maryland from the earliest settlements to the present time, including a history of Hagerstown1906 · page 538Read the page →
Read the text
Richardson, Victor Miller. The Congregation was a part of the Hagerstown charge before 1828, and from this year to 1880 it was a part of the Smithsburg charge, the Leitersburg charge being formed in the latter year. A charter for the incorporation of the church was adopted in 1864. The first trustees were Jacob E. Bell, Jonas Bell, John G. Garver, George
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.
In 1812, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Smithsburg’s post office opened in 1829, and the census of 1850 counted 366 people here.
How does Smithsburg rank for history?
Smithsburg is more historic than 51% of U.S. towns, #86 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.
How old are the homes in Smithsburg?
13% of Smithsburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.0 points), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1993.
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 (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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.
2004