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A−History
History · Edinburg

Edinburg dates to 1852, and 24% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 82% of U.S. towns. What drives it

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 292 buildings. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1908 on, and the census since 1860.

1852founded
3on the National Register
24%homes built before 1940
1old photo or paper
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Edinburg began

When was Edinburg founded?

1852

Edinburg dates its founding to 1852 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1860.

First census: 514 in 18602020 census: 1,178174 years

How historic is Edinburg?

A−

More historic than 82% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1822.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Edinburg’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Edinburg is more historic than 82% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its age pulls it down.

A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Edinburg’s overall grade.
Founding era1852, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 194023.8% of homes (±12.5) · typical VA town 1.9% · U.S. 8.4%A−National Register3 listings, 294 historic buildings, 1,759 per 10,000 residents · typical VA town 3.6 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 82%
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 Edinburg’s 1,759 sits above most of its state (99% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 294 historic buildings outnumber those of 95% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±12.5 points). Two sources give 1852.

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 Edinburg’s past

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

A historic districtThe Edinburg Historic District takes in 292 historic buildings.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 1 old photo is in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages2 post offices opened and closed inside today’s Edinburg.On the map since 19236 editions of the USGS map, 1923 to 1994. Watch Edinburg change.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

3 listings protect 294 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
294
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Edinburg Mill
Edinburg MillDr. Christian Hockman HouseEdinburg Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Mill1
Italian Villa1
Queen Anne1
Italianate1
Colonial Revival1
Bungalow1
Edinburg MillMill
Dr. Christian Hockman HouseItalian Villa
Edinburg Historic DistrictQueen Anne

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

Help out

Start Edinburg’s collection

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

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

Lost post offices and burying grounds

Edinburg’s post office has been open since 1903. Two other post offices opened and closed inside today’s town.

Stony Creek
1822–1844
Edenburg
1844–1903
Edinburg
1903–today
18201920today
1cemetery inside Edinburg
Cedarwood

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

The story

How Edinburg came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Edinburg.

Read it all →

The Bowman-Zirkle Farm, Campbell Farm, Clem-Kagey Farm, Edinburg Historic District, Edinburg Mill, Dr. Christian Hockman House, Lantz Mill, and John Miley Maphis House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Before becoming incorporated in 1852, Edinburg was also previously known by the names of Shryock and Stony Creek. The name "Shryock" was used by Prince Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach in 1825 to describe Edinburg as he passed through the Shenandoah Valley.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Edinburg, 1822 to 1984

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1822Post officeThe Stony Creek post office opens
  3. 1844Born hereHarrison H. Riddleberger is born here
  4. 1844Post officeThe Stony Creek post office closes
  5. 1844Post officeThe Edenburg post office opens
  6. 1852
    FoundingEdinburg is established
  7. 20th century
  8. 1903Post officeThe Edenburg post office closes
  9. 1903Post officeThe Edinburg post office opens
  10. 1923On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  11. 1984In the archiveTown of Edinburg, VA, Shenandoah County, flood insurance rate map
By decade

Edinburg, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1980s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1980s1 item
Town of Edinburg, VA, Shenandoah County, flood insurance rate map1984Town of Edinburg, VA, Shenandoah County, flood insura…Map
1990snothing yet
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.
Add from your album
Today16 recent
Stony Creek in2026Stony Creek inEdinburg Mill -12020Edinburg Mill -1Strawderman 0122009Strawderman 012Strawderman 0112009Strawderman 011Strawderman 0102009Strawderman 010Strawderman 0092009Strawderman 009Strawderman 0082009Strawderman 008Strawderman 0072009Strawderman 007Strawderman 0062009Strawderman 006Strawderman 0052009Strawderman 005Strawderman 0042009Strawderman 004Strawderman 0032009Strawderman 003Strawderman 0022009Strawderman 002Strawderman 0012009Strawderman 001Union Forge Methodist Church2008Union Forge Methodist ChurchEdinburgMill2008EdinburgMill
On the map

Edinburg on the map, 1923 to 1994

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

Edinburg on the 1923 USGS mapEdinburg on the 1947 USGS mapEdinburg on the 1951 USGS mapEdinburg on the 1966 USGS mapEdinburg on the 1978 USGS mapEdinburg on the 1994 USGS map1923Edinburg 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 Edinburg.

Every building

Edinburg, building by building, 1908–1915

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.

Edinburg fire insurance map, 1908, sheet 11908Sheet 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

Edinburg, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001900195020001,178

Grew from 514 people in 1860 to 1,178 in 2020.

17 censuses, 1860–2020.

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

Questions about Edinburg’s history

What year was Edinburg founded?

In 1852, according to Wikidata. Edinburg’s post office opened in 1822, and the census of 1860 counted 514 people here.

How does Edinburg rank for history?

Edinburg is more historic than 82% 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 Edinburg?

Three places: the Edinburg Mill (listed 1979), the Dr. Christian Hockman House (1984) and the Edinburg Historic District (1998).

How old are the homes in Edinburg?

24% of Edinburg’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±12.5 points), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia town; the median home was built in 1967.

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 (17), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (3), 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.