Guest, Sign inJoin

Post to Clarksville

We’ll email a one-tap link to publish your post. No password, and nothing is public until you click it.
Already a member? Sign in
AHistory
History · Clarksville

Clarksville dates to 1821, and 17% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 91% of U.S. towns. What drives it

6 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Prestwould, a National Historic Landmark, and a historic district with 171 buildings. Below: maps from 1902 on and the census since 1880.

1821founded
6on the National Register
17%homes built before 1940
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Clarksville began

When was Clarksville founded?

1821

Clarksville dates its founding to 1821 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 582 in 18802020 census: 1,300205 years

How historic is Clarksville?

A

More historic than 91% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1826.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Clarksville’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Clarksville is more historic than 91% of U.S. towns. 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 Clarksville’s overall grade.
Founding era1821, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194017.2% of homes (±6.7) · typical VA town 1.9% · U.S. 8.4%BNational Register6 listings, 192 historic buildings, 1,241 per 10,000 residents · typical VA town 3.6 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 91%
NewerOlder

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 Clarksville’s 1,241 sits above most of its state (97% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 192 historic buildings outnumber those of 93% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±6.7 points). Two sources give 1821.

Founding year: Wikidata (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 Clarksville’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A historic districtThe Clarksville Historic District takes in 171 historic buildings.A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Clarksville are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.A National Historic Landmark6 places on the National Register, including Prestwould, a National Historic Landmark.Mapped building by building4 fire insurance maps, 1902 to 1921, drew every building in Clarksville.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

6 listings protect 192 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier.

places listed
6
National Historic Landmark
1
Prestwould
historic buildings protected
192
each building in a district counts
first listed
1996
Sunnyside
SunnysideClark Royster HouseWood, Judge Henry, Jr. HouseClarksville Historic District
BuildingsDistricts★ landmark

Architectural styles listings

Federal2
Queen Anne2
Georgian1
I-House1
Greek Revival1
Gothic Revival1
★ Landmark
PrestwouldGeorgian
SunnysideI-House
Clark Royster HouseFederal
Wood, Judge Henry, Jr. HouseQueen Anne
Clarksville Historic DistrictFederal
Sydnor, Patrick Robert, Log CabinBuilding

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Help out

Start Clarksville’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Clarksville’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
The story

How Clarksville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Clarksville.

Read it all →

Located along the Roanoke River, these lands were for centuries the home to the Occaneechi Native Americans. They controlled the junction of several trading paths in the area. The Eno-Occoneechee tribe are directly descendants of the original Occoneechees and currently reside in nearby Vance County, North Carolina.

Clarksville was the first incorporated town in the county of Mecklenburg. In 1818, the town was named after its founder, Clark Royster. Settlers populated the area quickly because of the temperate climate and the fine tobacco soil.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Clarksville, 1821 to 2003

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1821
    FoundingClarksville is established
  3. 1826Post officeThe Clarksville post office opens
  4. 1864Born hereWilliam D. Blanks is born here
  5. 20th century
  6. 1909Born hereJ. Hartwell Harrison is born here
  7. 1943On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  8. 1954Born hereWillie Royster is born here
  9. 1962Born hereJerome Kersey is born here
  10. 21st century
  11. 2003LandmarkPrestwould named a National Historic Landmark
By decade

Clarksville, decade by decade

Today24 recent
Goodell Creek2010Goodell CreekEntrance to Longwood Park2010Entrance to Longwood ParkDowntown2010DowntownDock at Buggs Island2010Dock at Buggs IslandCounty Road 58 Clarksville, VA 23927 36.633937,-78.5426972010County Road 58 Clarksville, VA 23927 36.633937,-78.54…Commerce Building2010Commerce BuildingClarksville, Virginia2010Clarksville, VirginiaClarksville, Virginia - panoramio (1)2010Clarksville, Virginia - panoramio (1)Clarksville, VA 23927, USA2010Clarksville, VA 23927, USAClarksville, VA 23927, USA - panoramio (4)2010Clarksville, VA 23927, USA - panoramio (4)Clarksville, VA 23927, USA - panoramio (3)2010Clarksville, VA 23927, USA - panoramio (3)Clarksville, VA 23927, USA - panoramio (2)2010Clarksville, VA 23927, USA - panoramio (2)Clarksville, VA 23927, USA - panoramio (1)2010Clarksville, VA 23927, USA - panoramio (1)Clarksville, VA 23927 36.625792,-78.5547672010Clarksville, VA 23927 36.625792,-78.554767Clarksville Water Tower2010Clarksville Water TowerClarksville Va. Public Dock2010Clarksville Va. Public DockClarksville Presbyterian Church2010Clarksville Presbyterian ChurchChurch - panoramio (22)2010Church - panoramio (22)Behind the store2010Behind the storeArchitecture on Virginia Avenue2010Architecture on Virginia Avenue4th St and Virginia Ave20104th St and Virginia Ave1, VA, USA - panoramio (3)20101, VA, USA - panoramio (3)1, VA, USA - panoramio (2)20101, VA, USA - panoramio (2)VAMap-doton-Clarksville2005VAMap-doton-Clarksville
On the map

Clarksville on the map, 1943 to 1957

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Clarksville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Clarksville on the 1943 USGS mapClarksville on the 1957 USGS map1943Clarksville 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 Clarksville.

Every building

Clarksville, building by building, 1902–1921

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.

Clarksville fire insurance map, 1902, sheet 11902Sheet 1 of 2
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

People over time

Clarksville, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,80018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,641

Between 582 and 1,641 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Clarksville’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Clarksville

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Jerome KerseyAmerican basketball player · b. 1962
J. Hartwell HarrisonAmerican surgeon · b. 1909
W
Willie RoysterBaseball player · b. 1954
William D. BlanksPolitician · b. 1864
J
John J. IrvineRailroad worker, engineer, and politician in Ch… · b. 1852
Places that used to be

Old corners and burying grounds

Clarksville’s post office has been open since 1826.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Perfect PointPuryear Corner
1cemetery inside Clarksville
Oakhurst

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Clarksville’s history

What year was Clarksville founded?

In 1821, according to Wikidata. Clarksville’s post office opened in 1826, and the census of 1880 counted 582 people here.

How does Clarksville rank for history?

Clarksville is more historic than 91% 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.

What is on the National Register in Clarksville?

6 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Prestwould (a National Historic Landmark since 2003) and the Sunnyside (listed 1996, the first), and 1 historic district, the Clarksville Historic District, with 171 contributing buildings. 192 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Clarksville?

17% of Clarksville’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±6.7 points), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia town; the median home was built in 1965.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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 (24), the National Register of Historic Places (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 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.