3 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 34 buildings between them. Below: 2 old photos and papers from 1890 on.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1884.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Stuart’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Stuart is more historic than 81% of U.S. towns. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
A−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Stuart’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 Stuart’s 179 sits above most of its state (77% of Virginia towns have fewer) while its 35 historic buildings outnumber those of 83% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1792.
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 (±8.0 points).
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 Stuart’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The Town of Stuart was first incorporated as Taylorsville, Virginia, in 1792, in honor of early settler George Taylor. Stuart has been the county seat of Patrick County since 1791, when the county was organized from territory of Henry County. Captain Eliphaz Shelton of the Patrick County Revolutionary War Militia donated the land for the construction of a new courthouse and town subdivided from his plantation. The Patrick County Courthouse was built in the center of the town. What is now designated as the Stuart Uptown Historic District encompasses the historic core of the county seat. It includes government, financial, religious, and commercial buildings dating from the mid-nineteenth to the mid-twentieth centuries.
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.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Questions about Stuart’s history
What year was Stuart founded?
In 1792, according to Wikidata. Stuart’s post office opened in 1884.
How does Stuart rank for history?
Stuart is more historic than 81% 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 Stuart?
Three places: the Patrick County Courthouse (listed 1974), the Stuart Uptown Historic District (2002) and the Stuart Downtown Historic District (2021).
How old are the homes in Stuart?
12% of Stuart’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±8.0 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 (6), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, 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.
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