Kill Devil Hills dates to 1903, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 13% of U.S. towns · #223 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Most of Kill Devil Hills was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1985. Below: maps from 1940 on and the census since 1960.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1938.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Kill Devil Hills’ History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Kill Devil Hills is more historic than 13% of U.S. towns, #223 of 290 in North Carolina. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Kill Devil Hills’ 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 Kill Devil Hills’ 3.9 sits near the middle of its state (45% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 3 historic buildings outnumber those of 65% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1903.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to C. The pre-1940 share (±0.3 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: Wikipedia (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 Kill Devil Hills’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Kill Devil Hills is the site of the Wright Brothers National Memorial, commemorating the siblings' four powered airplane flights in the Wright Flyer on Thursday, December 17, 1903. Orville returned in 1911, and on October 25 he set a new world glider record, remaining in the air 10 minutes and 34 seconds, soaring against the wind with very little forward movement.
In addition to the Wright Brothers National Memorial, Sam's Diner in the town is on the National Register of Historic Places, listed in 1999.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Kill Devil Hills. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1940Kitty Hawk 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 Kill Devil Hills.
People over time
Kill Devil Hills, census by census
Grew from 268 people in 1960 to 7,656 in 2020, more than tenfold.
7 censuses, 1960–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Kill Devil Hills’ Wikipedia page.
Famous people
Famous people close to Kill Devil Hills
Nobody well known was born in Kill Devil Hills itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
In 1903, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Kill Devil Hills’ post office opened in 1938, and the census of 1960 counted 268 people here.
How does Kill Devil Hills rank for history?
Kill Devil Hills is more historic than 13% of U.S. towns, #223 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 Kill Devil Hills?
Two places: the Wright Brothers National Memorial (listed 1966) and the Sam's Diner (1999).
How old are the homes in Kill Devil Hills?
0.0% of Kill Devil Hills’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 1985.
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 Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (2), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.
★ Landmark
