The story
Read it all →How Leesburg came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Leesburg.
Leesburg was laid out in 1802, and named after Leesburg, Virginia.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
B+History
History · Leesburg
Leesburg’s post office opened in 1816, and 34% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 72% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Below: maps from 1917 on and the census since 1820.
1816first post office
0on the National Register
34%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Quick answers
How Leesburg began
When was Leesburg founded?
1816
The Leesburg post office opened in 1816, the earliest record of the town by name.
First census: 131 in 18202020 census: 1,273210 years
How historic is Leesburg?
B+
What drives the grade ↓More historic than 72% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Leesburg post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Leesburg’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Leesburg is more historic than 72% of U.S. towns. Its share of homes from before 1940 holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Leesburg’s overall grade.
Founding era1816, from the first post office: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194034.1% of homes (±7.6) · typical OH town 14.5% · U.S. 8.4%ANational RegisterNo listings counted · typical OH town 2.9 per 10,000 · U.S. 2.4C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 72%
NewerOlder
Ohio towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Ohio town has 2.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Leesburg’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (23% of Ohio towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±7.6 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 Leesburg’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 Leesburg’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Leesburg’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 map
Leesburg on the map, 1917 to 1974
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Leesburg. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1917Sabina sheet · 1:62,500U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Leesburg.
Timeline
Leesburg, 1816 to 1917
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Leesburg in 1902
Passages that mention Leesburg, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The County of Highland1902 · page 179Read the page →
Read the text
the home of Samuel Clark about 1815. The Pleasant Hill Methodist church, in Fairfield township, was founded through the efforts of the pioneer preacher, Isaac Pavey, and a log church was built on his land in 1832. In 1852 the place of meeting was changed to Leesburg, where a handsome building was erected in 1852. The Xew Lexington Methodist church was founded by the Woodmansees, and the first church built in 1837. It was destroyed by the great storm of 1860.
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
The County of Highland1902 · page 353Read the page →
Read the text
has been identified with Highland county from the time of its organization. Tbe oldest inhabitant cannot remember when one or more of the Johnsons were not connected with the affairs of Fairfield township. It was a Johnson who laid out the town of Leesburg, and others of the name furnished subsequent additions. A glance over the old records will show that thef Johnsons held various offices connected with the towns and township, and were among the most active of the earlier citizens in all public matters. Moorman Johnson, one
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
By decade
Leesburg, decade by decade
2012
2012
2012
2011
2008
2004People over time
Leesburg, census by census
Between 131 and 1,314 people in every census since 1820.
18 censuses, 1820–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Leesburg’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
See all →2 famous people were born in Leesburg
Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.
Questions about Leesburg’s history
What year was Leesburg founded?
The Leesburg post office opened in 1816, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Leesburg rank for history?
Leesburg is more historic than 72% of U.S. towns. 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.
How old are the homes in Leesburg?
34% of Leesburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±7.6 points), against a typical 15% for an Ohio town; the median home was built in 1971.
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 (6), 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.