The story
Read it all →How Martinsburg came to be
From Wikipedia’s history of Martinsburg.
Martinsburg was founded in 1828 when the nearby rival towns of Hanover and Williamsburg merged.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo: Nyttend · Public domain–Not graded
History · Martinsburg
Martinsburg’s post office opened in 1824, and 58% of its homes were built before 1940
Its Register listing is the McKee-Pumphrey House. Below: maps from 1912 on and the census since 1880.
1824first post office
1on the National Register
58%homes built before 1940
Quick answers
How Martinsburg began
When was Martinsburg founded?
1824
The Martinsburg post office opened in 1824, the earliest record of the town by name. Another post office, Hanover (1822), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 199 in 18802020 census: 222202 years
Founding year: the first Martinsburg post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
What stands out about Martinsburg’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Martinsburg are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Martinsburg’s homes were built before 1938.On the map since 19123 editions of the USGS map, 1912 to 1961. Watch Martinsburg change.Deep rootsA post office since 1824: 202 years of Martinsburg.
★ What stands out · Help out
Start Martinsburg’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Martinsburg’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
Martinsburg on the map, 1912 to 1961
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Martinsburg. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1912Gambier 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 Martinsburg.
Timeline
Martinsburg, 1822 to 1912
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
By decade
Martinsburg, decade by decade
2025
2016
2016
2015
2004On the National Register
1 historic place in Martinsburg
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.
place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
3
each building in a district counts
first listed
1995
McKee-Pumphrey House
Buildings
Architectural styles listings
Italianate1
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
People over time
Martinsburg, census by census
Between 185 and 264 people in every census since 1880.
15 censuses, 1880–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Martinsburg’s Wikipedia page.
Famous people
See all →Famous people close to Martinsburg
Nobody well known was born in Martinsburg itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Places that used to be
Lost post offices and burying grounds
Martinsburg’s post office has been open since 1824. Another post office, Hanover, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Hanover
Martinsburg
18201920today
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Martinsburg
Martinsburg Methodist EpiscopalMartinsburg Presbyterian
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Martinsburg’s history
What year was Martinsburg founded?
The Martinsburg post office opened in 1824, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
What is on the National Register in Martinsburg?
One place: the McKee-Pumphrey House (listed 1995).
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). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (5), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), 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.