History · Albemarle

Albemarle dates to 1826, and 21% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 89% of U.S. towns · #16 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it

9 places in town are on the National Register, among them four historic districts with 125 buildings between them. Below: 12 old photos and papers from 1915 on and the census since 1890.

1826founded

9on the National Register

21%homes built before 1940

12old photos & papers

9famous people

Add an old photo Share a memory

From Albemarle’s archive · credits on each photo

Quick answers

How Albemarle began

When was Albemarle founded?

1826

Albemarle dates its founding to 1826 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 248 in 18902020 census: 16,432200 years

How historic is Albemarle?

More historic than 89% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓

Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1826.The full story ↓

History grade

What drives Albemarle’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Albemarle is more historic than 89% of U.S. towns, #16 of 290 in North Carolina. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.

HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Albemarle’s overall grade.

Founding era1826, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA⁻Homes built before 194020.9% of homes (±3.6) · typical NC town 4.1% · U.S. 8.4%B⁺National Register9 listings, 133 historic buildings, 79.3 per 10,000 residents · typical NC town 12.5 · U.S. 2.4A⁻

All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 89%

NewerOlder

North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 95%

North Carolina towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical North Carolina town has 12.5 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Albemarle’s 79.3 sits above most of its state (72% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 133 historic buildings outnumber those of 91% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.6 points). Two sources give 1826.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Albemarle’s past

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

Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Albemarle, and 15 old place names are still on the map.A historic districtThe Pee Dee Avenue Historic District takes in 87 historic buildings.A town in old photos12 old photos, postcards and papers, 1915–1957.Landmarks on the Register9 places on the National Register.

★ What stands out · Places that used to be

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

Albemarle’s post office has been open since 1841. Another post office, Smith's Store, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Smith's Store

1826–1841

Albemarle

1841–today

18201920today

Hamlets and corners on the map

Anderson HeightsAshley HeightsBethney HeightsCedar KnollsCenturion ParkClover Fork AcresEastwood ParkForest DriveGreenwood ParkHeathwoodLoftin FarmsNorth SpringhavenSpringhavenWindsor HillsWoodcrest

Gone or out of use

Albemarle Airportairport

4cemeteries and burying grounds inside Albemarle

FairviewFairview Memorial ParkPoplin GroveStanly Gardens

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

On the National Register

9 listings protect 133 historic buildings

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

places listed

National Historic Landmarks

none yet

historic buildings protected

133

each building in a district counts

first listed

1995

Isaiah Wilson Snugs House, and Marks House

BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Colonial Revival3

Moderne2

Commercial2

Federal1

Greek Revival1

Transitional1

Isaiah Wilson Snugs House, and Marks HouseFederal · Built 1850

Opera House-Starnes Jewelers BuildingColonial Revival

Pee Dee Avenue Historic DistrictQueen Anne

Downtown Albemarle Historic DistrictCommercial

Five Points Historic DistrictCommercial

Second Street Historic DistrictCommercial Style

Thomas Marcellus Denning HouseSpanish Colonial Revival

Albemarle Graded School-Central Elementary SchoolBuilding

All 9 listings

Julius Clegg Hall House and GroundsBuilding · listed 2021

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

By decade

Albemarle, decade by decade

4 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1950s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s–1940s5 items

1915Albemarle, North Carolina (c. 1915)

1917Wiscassett Mills

1938Town of

Baldwin's Albemarle, North Carolina City Directory [1940]

1940Baldwin's Albemarle, North Carolina City Directory [1…Book

Baldwin's Albemarle, North Carolina City Directory [1947]

1947Baldwin's Albemarle, North Carolina City Directory [1…Book

1950s7 items

Welcome to Scenic Albemarle North Carolina [Albemarle, N.C.]

1950Welcome to Scenic Albemarle North Carolina [Albemarle…

Albemarle, Stanly County Centennial: The Bridge from Yesterday--Into Tomorrow

1957Albemarle, Stanly County Centennial: The Bridge from …

1960s–1990snothing 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

The story

How Albemarle came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Albemarle.

Read it all →

This place-name is derived from the English surname Albemarle. According to a 1905 publication by the United States Geologic Survey, based on research by University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill history professor Kemp P. Battle, it was named specifically for General George Monck, the first Duke of Albemarle and one of the original proprietors of the colony of Carolina, which included the town.

ChaptersEtymology Ancient and colonial Establishment of Stanly County and Albemarle Economic history Historic preservation

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Albemarle, 1826 to 1986

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

19th century
1826
FoundingAlbemarle is established
1826Post officeThe Smith's Store post office opens
1841Post officeThe Smith's Store post office closes
1841Post officeThe Albemarle post office opens
1850BuiltIsaiah Wilson Snugs House, and Marks House is built
20th century
1915In the archiveAlbemarle, North Carolina (c. 1915)
1936Born hereJune Tyson is born here
1938In the archiveTown of
1940In the archiveBaldwin's Albemarle, North Carolina City Directory [1940]
1946Born hereMonty Montgomery is born here
1948Born hereTommy Smith is born here
1950In the archiveWelcome to Scenic Albemarle North Carolina [Albemarle, N.C.]
1986Born hereKellie Pickler is born here

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.

Retake this viewAlbemarle, North Carolina (c. 1915), 1915

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

Retake this view · +15

People over time

Albemarle, census by census

Grew from 248 people in 1890 to 16,432 in 2020, more than tenfold.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

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

Famous people

9 famous people were born in Albemarle

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

See all →

Kellie PicklerAmerican country singer · b. 1986

June TysonAmerican jazz singer · b. 1936

Monty MontgomeryBaseball player · b. 1946

Tommy SmithAmerican baseball player · b. 1948

Pat CooperAmerican baseball player · b. 1917

Willie DryeAmerican journalist · b. 1949

Help out

Finish Albemarle’s story

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

Decades since 1900 with photos

00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s

4 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.

Retake an old viewAlbemarle, North Carolina (c. 1915): stand where they stood+15 Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Albemarle’s history

What year was Albemarle founded?

In 1826, according to Wikidata. Albemarle’s post office opened in 1826, and the census of 1890 counted 248 people here.

How does Albemarle rank for history?

Albemarle is more historic than 89% of U.S. towns, #16 of 290 in North Carolina. 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 Albemarle?

9 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Isaiah Wilson Snugs House, and Marks House (listed 1995, the first), and 4 historic districts with 125 contributing buildings. 133 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Albemarle?

21% of Albemarle’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.6 points), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 1966.

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 (9), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.

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