More historic than 21% of U.S. towns · #176 of 285 in Washington. What drives it
Most of Edgewood was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1995. Below: maps from 1897 on and the census since 1990.
Founding year: the first Edgewood post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Edgewood’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Edgewood is more historic than 21% of U.S. towns, #176 of 285 in Washington. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
C−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Edgewood’s overall grade.
Few Washington towns list much on the Register (a typical Washington town has 0.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Edgewood’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (27% of Washington towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would still be C−. The pre-1940 share (±1.8 points) is firm at this size. 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 Edgewood’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
The history of Edgewood can be traced to the Puyallup Indian tribe that lived along the Puyallup River. Dr. William Tolmie, a Scotsman working for the Hudson's Bay Company, passed through Edgewood in 1833 soon after becoming Chief Trader at Fort Nisqually. Tolmie had arrived at Fort Vancouver by ship from Britain in May 1833. Trappers with Native American wives had moved to the area in the 1830s and settlers in the 1850s.
2. In order to distinguish the various activities mak¬ ing up Edgewood Arsenal the gas manufacturing and shell filling plants on Gunpowder Neck will be known as Edgewood Plant, Edgewood Arsenal, that at Stamford, Connecticut, as the Stamford Plant, Edgewood Arsenal; that at Bound Brook, New Jerrey, as Bound Brcok Plant, Edgewood Arsenal, that at Niagara Falls, New York, as the Niagara Falls Plant, Edgewood Arsenal; that at Charleston, West Virginia, as the
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
to look after the Government’s interests. At first, these plants were under the administration of the Trench Warfare Section but had no connection with the United States Filling Flant at Edgewood. However, under the order issued by the Acting Chief of Ordnance under date of April 2, 1918, (see Appendix, page 7) they were made a part of Edgewood Arsenal and included under the adminis¬ tration of the Commanding Officer of the Arsenal. Simi¬
Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.
Timeline
Edgewood, 1894 to 1903
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
The Edgewood post office opened in 1894, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).
How does Edgewood rank for history?
Edgewood is more historic than 21% of U.S. towns, #176 of 285 in Washington. 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 Edgewood?
5% of Edgewood’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±1.8 points), against a typical 4.3% for a Washington town; the median home was built in 1995.
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), Wikipedia, 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 old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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