Colonial Heights was first counted by the census in 1930, and 6 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 43% of U.S. towns · #103 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
6 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 598 buildings between them. Most of Colonial Heights was built recently: 6% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1970. Below: maps from 1894 on and the census since 1930.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Colonial Heights is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #103 of 253 in Virginia. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.
C+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Colonial Heights’ 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 Colonial Heights’ 328 sits above most of its state (85% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 602 historic buildings outnumber those of 98% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B+. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 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 Colonial Heights’ past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Colonial Heights. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1894Petersburg 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 Colonial Heights.
Like much of eastern Virginia at contact, the site of Colonial Heights was governed by the Powhatan Confederacy, ruled by Chief Powhatan, when the English colonists arrived at Jamestown on May 14, 1607. Captain John Smith's early map of Virginia testifies that the present area of Colonial Heights included the principal town of the Appamattuck tribe, led by their Weroance, Coquonasum, and his sister, Oppussoquionuske. In the aftermath of the confederacy's attacks in 1622 and 1644, the Appamattuck became tributary to England and relocated to nearby Ettrick, and its opposite bank, near Fort Henry (within modern-day Petersburg, Virginia).
The Colonial Heights post office opened in 1930, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Colonial Heights rank for history?
Colonial Heights is more historic than 43% of U.S. towns, #103 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 Colonial Heights?
6 listings: 4 buildings, among them the Ellerslie (listed 1973, the first), and 2 historic districts, the Chesterfield Highlands Historic District and the Violet Bank Historic District, with 598 contributing buildings. 602 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Colonial Heights?
6% of Colonial Heights’ homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia town; the median home was built in 1970.
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 (8), 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) 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.
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