Ettrick’s post office opened in 1886, and 3 of its places are on the National Register
More historic than 42% of U.S. towns · #104 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Most of Ettrick was built recently: 7% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1978. Below: 1 old photo or paper, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1980.
Founding year: the first Ettrick post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Ettrick’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Ettrick is more historic than 42% of U.S. towns, #104 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 Ettrick’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 Ettrick’s 8.5 sits near the middle of its state (52% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 5 historic buildings outnumber those of 70% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±5.3 points). The founding year is the first post office, not a stated founding date.
Founding year: the first post office (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 Ettrick’s 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 Ettrick. 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 Ettrick.
On the National Register
3 historic places in Ettrick
The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving. One is a National Historic Landmark, the highest tier. Boundary changes and added documentation are counted with their listing.
Ettrick was named around 1765 by the foreign merchant Neil Buchanan, who dubbed the eventual village Ettrick Banks for its similarities to his native Ettrick area of Selkirk, Scotland.
Capt. Christopher Newport led expeditions in this area. Near Petersburg, which developed as an industrial city, Ettrick also developed industry. It had cotton mills, as it was on the Fall Line and could use water power.
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.
The Ettrick post office opened in 1886, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Ettrick rank for history?
Ettrick is more historic than 42% of U.S. towns, #104 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 Ettrick?
Three places: the Azurest South, the Vawter Hall and Old President's House (1980) and the South Chappell Street Car Barn (2009).
How old are the homes in Ettrick?
7% of Ettrick’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±5.3 points), against a typical 1.9% for a Virginia town; the median home was built in 1978.
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 (6), 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) 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.
★ Landmark
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