Edenton dates to 1712, and 23% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 98% of U.S. towns · #1 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
18 places in town are on the National Register, among them 3 National Historic Landmarks and four historic districts with 101 buildings between them. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1790.
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1786.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Edenton’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Edenton is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns, #1 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 Edenton’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 Edenton’s 970 sits above most of its state (98% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 436 historic buildings outnumber those of 97% 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 (±7.9 points). Two sources give 1712.
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 Edenton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. 3 are National Historic Landmarks, the highest tier. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.
In 1658, adventurers from the Jamestown area drifted through the wilderness from Virginia and found a location on the northern shore of a small natural harbor at 36.045°N 76.615°W / 36.045; -76.615, now called Edenton Bay. Edenton Colony was the first permanent European settlement in what is now the state of North Carolina.
Edenton was established in 1712 as "the Towne on Queen Anne's Creek". It was later known as "Ye Towne on Mattercommack Creek" and still later as "the Port of Roanoke". It was renamed "Edenton" and incorporated in 1722 in honor of Governor Charles Eden, who had died that year.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Edenton. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1904Edenton 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 Edenton.
Every building
Edenton, building by building, 1885–1920
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
1885Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone
Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
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 viewA society of patriotic ladies, at Edenton in North Carolina, 1775
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Edenton’s page.
In 1712, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Edenton’s post office opened in 1786, and the first U.S. census counted 1,575 people here in 1790.
How does Edenton rank for history?
Edenton is more historic than 98% of U.S. towns, #1 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 Edenton?
18 listings, 3 of them National Historic Landmarks: 14 buildings, among them the Chowan County Courthouse (a National Historic Landmark since 1970) and the James Iredell House (listed 1970, the first), and 4 historic districts with 101 contributing buildings. 436 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Edenton?
23% of Edenton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.9 points), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 1972.
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 (3), the Library of Congress (1), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (18), 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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