Blacksburg dates to 1671, and 15 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 55% of U.S. towns · #80 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Most of Blacksburg was built recently: 3% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1985. 15 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 302 buildings between them. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1915 on, and the census since 1880.
Founding year: Wikipedia. First post office: 1818.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Blacksburg’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Blacksburg is more historic than 55% of U.S. towns, #80 of 253 in Virginia. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Blacksburg’s overall grade.
Virginia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Virginia town has 3.6 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Blacksburg’s 72.4 sits above most of its state (70% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 329 historic buildings outnumber those of 96% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikipedia alone; no second source gives 1671.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±0.9 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 Blacksburg’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
In the mid-1600s, English colonists were still uncertain of what lay beyond the Allegheny Mountains, whose topography and possession by native inhabitants, Tutelo-speaking tribes, were a barrier to expanded settlement by the Colony of Virginia. Abraham Wood, who commanded Fort Henry on the frontier (now the site of Petersburg, Virginia), and operated an Indian trading post nearby, organized several expeditions to explore farther west. A passage over the ridge was finally found in 1671 when explorers Batts and Fallam, sent by Wood, reached the present-day location of Blacksburg, Virginia. Their expedition followed Stroubles Creek, through the current locations of the town and campus of Virginia Tech, to what they named Wood's River.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Blacksburg. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1932Blacksburg 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 Blacksburg.
Every building
Blacksburg, building by building, 1915–1921
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.
In 1671, according to Wikipedia’s history of the town. Blacksburg’s post office opened in 1818, and the census of 1880 counted 688 people here.
How does Blacksburg rank for history?
Blacksburg is more historic than 55% of U.S. towns, #80 of 253 in Virginia. 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 Blacksburg?
15 listings: 13 buildings, among them the Smithfield (listed 1969, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Blacksburg Historic District and the Miller-Southside Residential Historic District, with 302 contributing buildings. 329 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Blacksburg?
3% of Blacksburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia 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 the Library of Congress (11), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (15), 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 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.
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