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DHistory
History · Wheaton

Wheaton’s post office opened in 1869

More historic than 14% of U.S. towns · #200 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it

Most of Wheaton was built recently: 1% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1960. Below: 11 old photos and papers and maps from 1908 on.

1869first post office
0on the National Register
1%homes built before 1940
11old photos & papers
4famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Wheaton’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Wheaton began

When was Wheaton founded?

1869

The Wheaton post office opened in 1869, the earliest record of the town by name. Wikidata gives 1700.

2020 census: 52,150157 years

How historic is Wheaton?

D

More historic than 14% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: the first Wheaton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Wikidata: 1700.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Wheaton’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Wheaton is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns, #200 of 261 in Maryland. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Wheaton’s overall grade.
Founding era1869, from the first post office: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19401.2% of homes (±0.6) · typical MD town 3.3% · U.S. 8.4%DNational RegisterNo listings counted · typical MD town 0.9 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 14%
NewerOlder
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 23%

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 Wheaton’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 D to C−. 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 gives 1700.

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 Wheaton’s past

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

Lost villages19 hamlets and corners are still on the map.On the map since 19086 editions of the USGS map, 1908 to 1971. Watch Wheaton change.Old housesHalf of Wheaton’s homes were built before 1960.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners and places now gone

Wheaton had its own post office from 1869 to 1906.

Wheaton
1869–1906
18601940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
ArcolaCarroll KnollsChestnut HillsChestnut RidgeConnecticut Avenue EstatesConnecticut Avenue ParkGlen HavenGlenviewGreen Wood KnollsHoliday ParkMonterrey VillageNorthbrook EstatesPlyers Mill EstatesStephen KnollsStoney Brook EstatesViers Mill VillageWheaton CrestWheaton ForestWheaton Hills
Gone or out of use
Connecticut Park Elementary SchoolschoolDennis Avenue Elementary Schoolschool

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

On the map

Wheaton on the map, 1908 to 1971

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

Wheaton on the 1908 USGS mapWheaton on the 1923 USGS mapWheaton on the 1945 USGS mapWheaton on the 1951 USGS mapWheaton on the 1965 USGS mapWheaton on the 1971 USGS map1908Rockville 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 Wheaton.

The story

How Wheaton came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Wheaton.

Read it all →

Wheaton developed from Leesborough (named in 1826), a small business district that grew near the junction of three major roads. The first of these is Brookeville Pike (also known as the Washington-Brookeville Pike and later as the Union Turnpike, now Georgia Avenue) a north–south toll thoroughfare running from Washington, D.C., to Brookeville and eventually to Baltimore.

ChaptersThree roadsMitchell's CrossroadsAfter the Civil War

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Wheaton, 1869 to 1995

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1869Post officeThe Wheaton post office opens
  3. 1878In the archiveAtlas of fifteen miles around Washington, including the County of Prince George, Maryland
  4. 20th century
  5. 1906Post officeThe Wheaton post office closes
  6. 1908On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1920In the archivePotomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS station
  8. 1950In the archiveWJSV radio transmitter in Wheaton Maryland circa 1940s Library of Congress thc1995007710
  9. 1954Born hereRobin Koontz is born here
  10. 1957Born hereBenjamin F. Kramer is born here
  11. 1987Born hereDiana Barrera is born here
  12. 1990In the archive1969-1972 full-size Chrysler - probably a Newport
  13. 1995Born hereMichael Parsons is born here
By decade

Wheaton, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1870s to the 1990s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1870s2 items
Atlas of fifteen miles around Washington, including the County of Prince George, Maryland1878Atlas of fifteen miles around Washington, including t…MapAtlas of fifteen miles around Washington, including the county of Montgomery, Maryland1879Atlas of fifteen miles around Washington, including t…Map
1920s6 items
Potomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS station1920Potomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS stationPotomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS station1920Potomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS stationPotomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS station1920Potomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS stationPotomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS station1920Potomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS stationW.J.S.V. transmitter. Broadcast booth of W.J.S.V. III1920W.J.S.V. transmitter. Broadcast booth of W.J.S.V. IIIW.J.S.V. transmitter. Broadcast booth of W.J.S.V. IV1920W.J.S.V. transmitter. Broadcast booth of W.J.S.V. IV
1950s1 item
WJSV radio transmitter in Wheaton Maryland circa 1940s Library of Congress thc19950077101950sWJSV radio transmitter in Wheaton Maryland circa 1940…
1960s–1980snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
1990s2 items
1969-1972 full-size Chrysler - probably a Newport19901969-1972 full-size Chrysler - probably a NewportMontgomery County, MD RIDE ON bus seen in Wheaton, MD in 19901990Montgomery County, MD RIDE ON bus seen in Wheaton, MD…
Today1 recent
2006 05 19 - 193@586 - EB 586 leg 120062006 05 19 - 193@586 - EB 586 leg 1
Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Potomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS station
Retake this viewPotomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneous. CBS station, 1920

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Wheaton’s page.

Retake this view · +15
Famous people

4 famous people were born in Wheaton

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

See all →
Michael ParsonsAmerican ice dancer · b. 1995
D
Diana BarreraAssociation footballer · b. 1987
Benjamin F. KramerAmerican politician · b. 1957
Robin KoontzAmerican writer and illustrator · b. 1954
Help out

Finish Wheaton’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPotomac Electric Power Co. miscellaneou…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

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

GlenmontIts storyCNorth Bethesda2 historic placesC−Kemp MillIts storyDAspen HillIts storyDNorth Kensington2 historic placesBForest GlenIts storyC−South KensingtonIts storyC−Colesville1 historic placeB−

Questions about Wheaton’s history

What year was Wheaton founded?

The Wheaton post office opened in 1869, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1700.

How does Wheaton rank for history?

Wheaton is more historic than 14% of U.S. towns, #200 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 Wheaton?

1% of Wheaton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 3.3% for a Maryland town; the median home was built in 1960.

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 (6), the Library of Congress (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.