Cherryville dates to 1792, and 17% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 86% of U.S. towns · #28 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 53 buildings. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1909 on, and the census since 1900.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1865.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Cherryville’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Cherryville is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #28 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.
A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Cherryville’s overall grade.
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 Cherryville’s 88.3 sits above most of its state (74% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 55 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1792.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.0 points).
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 Cherryville’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
During the last half of the 18th century, German, Dutch, and Scots-Irish families from the Colony of Pennsylvania migrated south and settled in the Cherryville area. Land grants made by King George III of Great Britain date back to 1768, and as early as 1792 Governor Samuel Ashe of North Carolina made grants in and around "White Pine", as the settlement was known at the time. A village began to develop at a crossroads of the Morganton-to-Charleston road, closely followed by modern Highway 274 / Mountain Street, and the Old Post Road, a main thoroughfare between Salisbury, North Carolina, and Spartanburg, South Carolina.
In 1792, according to Wikidata. Cherryville’s post office opened in 1865, and the census of 1900 counted 1,008 people here.
How does Cherryville rank for history?
Cherryville is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #28 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 Cherryville?
Three places: the Beam's Shell Service Station and Office, (Former) (listed 1997), the Seaboard Air Line Railway Depot (2016) and the Cherryville Downtown Historic District (2016).
How old are the homes in Cherryville?
17% of Cherryville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.0 points), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 1970.
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), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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 and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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