19% of Charles Town’s homes were built before 1940
More historic than 94% of U.S. towns · #9 of 61 in West Virginia. What drives it
20 places in town are on the National Register, among them the Jefferson County Courthouse, a National Historic Landmark, and four historic districts with 667 buildings between them. Below: 29 old photos and papers, maps from 1885 on, and the census since 1850.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Charles Town is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns, #9 of 61 in West Virginia. All 2 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Charles Town’s overall grade.
West Virginia towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical West Virginia town has 29.6 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Charles Town’s 962 sits above most of its state (93% of West Virginia towns have fewer) while its 706 historic buildings outnumber those of 98% 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 is a Census survey estimate (±4.9 points).
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 Charles Town’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
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.
"Charlestown" was established by an act of the Virginia General Assembly in January 1787. However, for about two decades, confusion arose because the same name was also used for a town established in Ohio County at the mouth of Buffalo Creek and authorized in the 1791 term of that local court. That area in 1797 became known as Brooke County, with that "Charlestown" as its county seat until a December 27, 1816 act of the Virginia General Assembly changed its name to Wellsburg, to honor a trader and his son.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Charles Town. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1914Martinsburg 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 Charles Town.
Every building
Charles Town, building by building, 1885–1922
Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.
Charles Town is more historic than 94% of U.S. towns, #9 of 61 in West 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 Charles Town?
20 listings: 15 buildings, among them the Jefferson County Courthouse (a National Historic Landmark since 2023) and the Charles Washington House (listed 1973, the first), 4 historic districts with 667 contributing buildings, 1 site, and 1 structure. 706 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Charles Town?
19% of Charles Town’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.9 points), against a typical 13% for a West Virginia town; the median home was built in 2002.
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 (29), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (21), 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), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
★ Landmark
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