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History · Rose Hill

Rose Hill’s post office opened in 1825

Most of Rose Hill was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1972. Below: maps from 1935 on.

1825first post office
0on the National Register
5%homes built before 1940
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0
Quick answers

How Rose Hill began

When was Rose Hill founded?

1825

The Rose Hill post office opened in 1825, the earliest record of the town by name.

2020 census: 729201 years
Founding year: the first Rose Hill post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓

What stands out about Rose Hill’s past

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

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Rose Hill are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Deep rootsA post office since 1825: 201 years of Rose Hill.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Rose Hill’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Rose Hill’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
Timeline

Rose Hill, 1825 to 1935

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

  1. 19th century
  2. 1825Post officeThe Rose Hill post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1908Born hereFrank Rowlett is born here
  5. 1935Born hereJimmy Bales is born here
  6. 1935On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
The story

How Rose Hill came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Rose Hill.

Read it all →

The Rose Hill post office was established in 1825. The community was likely named for rose bushes growing in the area.

ChaptersMartin's Station

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

By decade

Rose Hill, decade by decade

Today6 recent
Rose-Hill-view-va2017Rose-Hill-view-vaRose-Hill-post-office-va2017Rose-Hill-post-office-vaRose-Hill-houses-va2017Rose-Hill-houses-vaRose-Hill-buildings-va2017Rose-Hill-buildings-vaRose-Hill-Thomas-Walker-Rd-va2017Rose-Hill-Thomas-Walker-Rd-vaMooneys-Music-Place-va2017Mooneys-Music-Place-va
On the map

Rose Hill on the map, 1935 to 1976

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

Rose Hill on the 1935 USGS mapRose Hill on the 1946 USGS mapRose Hill on the 1953 USGS mapRose Hill on the 1969 USGS mapRose Hill on the 1976 USGS map1935Rose Hill sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Rose Hill.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Rose Hill

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

See all →
Frank RowlettAmerican cryptographer · b. 1908
J
Jimmy BalesAmerican politician · b. 1935
Places that used to be

Places now gone and burying grounds

Rose Hill’s post office has been open since 1825.

Gone or out of use
Brooks Hall Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Rose Hill
McLin

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

Questions about Rose Hill’s history

What year was Rose Hill founded?

The Rose Hill post office opened in 1825, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

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). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, 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.