Most of Oak Grove was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 2006. Below: 1 old photo or paper and maps from 1915 on.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Oak Grove is among the newest of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Oak Grove’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 Oak Grove’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (17% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 points) is firm at this size.
Founding year: our sources. 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 Oak Grove’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 Oak Grove. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1915Fairfax 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 Oak Grove.
The story so far
Oak Grove, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Oak Grove yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Oak Grove is a census-designated place in Loudoun County, Virginia, United States. The population as of the 2010 United States census was 1,777. Oak Grove is located in eastern Loudoun County, on the Fairfax County border, between the communities of Sterling Park and Herndon. The Washington and Old Dominion Railroad once travelled through the community, now replaced by the Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Trail.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,777 to 2,452 (+38%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Oak Grove is among the newest 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.
How old are the homes in Oak Grove?
0.0% of Oak Grove’s 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 2006.
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 (8), the Library of Congress (1) and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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