Broadway was first counted by the census in 1880, and 4 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 39% of U.S. towns · #113 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Most of Broadway was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. Below: maps from 1918 on and the census since 1880.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Broadway is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns, #113 of 253 in Virginia. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Broadway’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 Broadway’s 9.4 sits near the middle of its state (53% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 4 listings outnumber those of 68% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to C+. The pre-1940 share (±2.1 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: the first census (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 Broadway’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
The story so far
Broadway, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Broadway yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Broadway is a town in Rockingham County, Virginia, United States. As of the 2020 census, Broadway had a population of 4,170. It is included in the Harrisonburg metropolitan area.
Its first post office opened in 1880. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 3,691 to 4,170 (+13%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
From the old history books
What they wrote about Broadway in 1912
Passages that mention Broadway, cut from the printed page as they were published.
The town of Broadway, at the junction of Linville Creek with the North Shenandoah River, and at the mouth of Brock's Gap, occupies a strategic point for trade. The beginnings of settlement and industry were probably made on the point of land between the creek and the river, at or near the Winfield residence. As early as 1808 the Custers had a mill there, and they were probably at the same time operating the store that for many years was kept in the old stone
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
the direction of Harrisonburg was not destined to be opened until after the war. ' ' In 1858 the Manassas Gap road had already been surveyed past Broadway, to Harrisonburg; and another railroad had been surveyed through Brock's Gap, to connect Broadway with a proposed line of the B. & 0. on the South Branch of the Potomac. In February, 1861, an Act of Assembly was passed authorizing the county of Rockingham to issue bonds
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.
Timeline
Broadway, 1823 to 1947
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Broadway’s post office has been open since 1880. Another post office, Broadway Depot, opened and closed inside today’s town.
Broadway Depot
1857–1880
Broadway
1880–today
18501940today
US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
Questions about Broadway’s history
What year was Broadway founded?
The Broadway post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Broadway rank for history?
Broadway is more historic than 39% of U.S. towns, #113 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 Broadway?
4 listings: 3 buildings, among them the Tunker House (listed 1971, the first), and 1 structure.
How old are the homes in Broadway?
5% of Broadway’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±2.1 points), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia town; the median home was built in 1993.
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 (3), Wikidata (2), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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, Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress) 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.
2026
2011
2011
