Hopkinton’s post office opened in 1811, and 19% of its homes were built before 1940
More historic than 87% of U.S. towns · #20 of 38 in Rhode Island. What drives it
4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 155 buildings between them. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1889 on, and the census since 1790.
The Hopkinton post office opened in 1811, the earliest record of the town by name. Three smaller post offices, Woodville (1853), Barberville (1854) and Canonchet (1883), opened inside today’s town and later closed.
First census: 2,462 in 17902020 census: 8,398215 years
How historic is Hopkinton?
A
More historic than 87% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.
Founding year: the first Hopkinton post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Hopkinton’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hopkinton is more historic than 87% of U.S. towns, #20 of 38 in Rhode Island. 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 Hopkinton’s overall grade.
Rhode Island towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Rhode Island town has 94.7 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Hopkinton’s 192 sits above most of its state (68% of Rhode Island towns have fewer) while its 162 historic buildings outnumber those of 92% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be A−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.4 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 Hopkinton’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Hopkinton is named after Stephen Hopkins, a signer of the Declaration of Independence who was governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations when the town was partitioned from Westerly and incorporated in 1757. Hopkinton once featured a number of industrial villages, such as Locustville, Moscow, Centerville, and Wood River Iron Works, each being named after the mill which they surrounded. Today only Hope Valley, Rockville, Ashaway, and Bradford are recognized with a post office. The town hall is located in the village of Hopkinton City, which was once a stagecoach hub.
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.
The Hopkinton post office opened in 1811, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Hopkinton rank for history?
Hopkinton is more historic than 87% of U.S. towns, #20 of 38 in Rhode Island. 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 Hopkinton?
4 listings: 2 buildings and 2 historic districts, the Hopkinton City Historic District and the Hope Valley Historic District, with 155 contributing buildings. 162 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Hopkinton?
19% of Hopkinton’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.4 points), against a typical 20% for a Rhode Island town; the median home was built in 1977.
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 (8), Wikidata (4), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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) 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.
2017
2017
2014
2010
2008
2008
2004
