The story
Read it all →How Warsaw came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Warsaw.
The Warsaw Historic District and Joshua James Blanchard House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
A−History
History · Warsaw
Warsaw’s post office opened in 1839, and 2 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 77% of U.S. towns · #62 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Most of Warsaw was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1982. 2 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 55 buildings. Below: maps from 1916 on and the census since 1880.
1839first post office
2on the National Register
7%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Quick answers
How Warsaw began
When was Warsaw founded?
1839
The Warsaw post office opened in 1839, the earliest record of the town by name.
First census: 182 in 18802020 census: 2,733187 years
How historic is Warsaw?
A−
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 77% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Warsaw post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Warsaw’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Warsaw is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #62 of 290 in North Carolina. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Warsaw’s overall grade.
Founding era1839, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 19406.9% of homes (±4.8) · typical NC town 4.1% · U.S. 8.4%C+National Register2 listings, 56 historic buildings, 204 per 10,000 residents · typical NC town 12.5 · U.S. 2.4A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 77%
NewerOlder
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 79%
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 Warsaw’s 204 sits above most of its state (84% of North Carolina towns have fewer) while its 56 historic buildings outnumber those of 86% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.8 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
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 Warsaw’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Warsaw’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Warsaw’s history is told.
Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.On the National Register
2 listings protect 56 historic buildings
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
places listed
2
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
56
each building in a district counts
first listed
1996
Warsaw Historic District
BuildingsDistricts
Architectural styles listings
Greek Revival2
Commercial Style1
Queen Anne1
Classical Revival1
Bungalow1
All 2 listings
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Timeline
Warsaw, 1839 to 1946
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
- 19th century
- 1839Post officeThe Warsaw post office opens
- 20th century
- 1918Born hereKenneth Claiborne Royall, Jr. is born here
- 1946
Born hereDan K. McNeill is born here
By decade
Warsaw, decade by decade
Today12 recent
2014Warsaw, NC May 2014 CABOOSE
2014Warsaw, NC May 2014
2014Warsaw, NC May 2014 - panoramio (5)
2014Warsaw, NC May 2014 - panoramio (4)
2014Warsaw, NC May 2014 - panoramio (3)
2014Warsaw, NC May 2014 - panoramio (2)
2014Warsaw, NC May 2014 - panoramio (1)
2014Warsaw, NC May 2014 , I like how the stop sign faces …
2014Solar Farm with Sheep or Goats to keep the Grass low.…
2014Out of Service Tracks May 2014
2014Coal Unloading station, Warsaw, NC May 2014
2004NCMap-doton-WarsawEvery building
Warsaw, building by building, 1916–1921
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.
1916Sheet 1 of 3Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
People over time
Warsaw, census by census
Between 182 and 3,054 people in every census since 1880.
15 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Warsaw’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
See all →2 famous people were born in Warsaw
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Places that used to be
Places now gone and burying grounds
Warsaw’s post office has been open since 1839.
Gone or out of use
Warsaw Junior High Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Warsaw
Pine Crest
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Warsaw’s history
What year was Warsaw founded?
The Warsaw post office opened in 1839, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Warsaw rank for history?
Warsaw is more historic than 77% of U.S. towns, #62 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 Warsaw?
Two places: the Joshua James Blanchard House (listed 2012) and the Warsaw Historic District (1996).
How old are the homes in Warsaw?
7% of Warsaw’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.8 points), against a typical 4.1% for a North Carolina town; the median home was built in 1982.
Memory lane
What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.
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 (2), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.