Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
More historic than 20% of U.S. towns · #180 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Most of South Kensington was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1957. Below: maps from 1908 on and the census since 1970.
More historic than 20% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, South Kensington is more historic than 20% of U.S. towns, #180 of 261 in Maryland. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
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 South Kensington’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.
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 →
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how South Kensington’s history is told.
Old hamlets and crossroads still carry their names on the map.
Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of South Kensington. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of South Kensington.
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of South Kensington yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
South Kensington is a census-designated place and an unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It had a population of 8,829 in 2020.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 8,462 to 8,829 (+4%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Between 7,877 and 10,289 people in every census since 1970.
6 censuses, 1970–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on South Kensington’s Wikipedia page.
Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.
South Kensington is more historic than 20% of U.S. towns, #180 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.
7% of South Kensington’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.5 points), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1957.
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (5), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia) 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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