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Harpers Ferry National Historical ParkHarpers Ferry National Historical Park · Photo: Mark Fickett · CC BY 3.0
–Not graded
History · Harpers Ferry

Harpers Ferry dates to 1751, and 60% of its homes were built before 1940

4 places in town are on the National Register, among them two historic districts with 206 buildings between them. Below: 23 old photos and papers, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1850.

1751founded
4on the National Register
60%homes built before 1940
23old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Harpers Ferry’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Harpers Ferry began

When was Harpers Ferry founded?

1751

Harpers Ferry dates its founding to 1751 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1850.

First census: 1,747 in 18502020 census: 269275 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1800.The full story ↓

What stands out about Harpers Ferry’s past

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

A historic districtThe Harpers Ferry Historic District takes in 173 historic buildings.A town in old photos23 old photos, postcards and papers, 1842–1865.Old housesHalf of Harpers Ferry’s homes were built before 1938.Mapped building by building5 fire insurance maps, 1894 to 1922, drew every building in Harpers Ferry.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

4 listings protect 210 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
4
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
210
each building in a district counts
first listed
1966
Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, built 1944St. Peter's Roman Catholic Church, built 1833Harpers Ferry Historic District
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Neo-Gothic2
Federal2
Modern1
Colonial Revival1
Queen Anne1
Bungalow1
Harpers Ferry National Historical ParkBuilt 1944
St. Peter's Roman Catholic ChurchNeo-Gothic · Built 1833
Strider FarmFederal
All 4 listings
Harpers Ferry Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1979

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

By decade

Harpers Ferry, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1840s to the 1860s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1840s–1850s9 items
Harper’s Ferry from the Blue Ridge1842Harper’s Ferry from the Blue RidgeHarper’s Ferry, from Graham’s Magazine, 18421842Harper’s Ferry, from Graham’s Magazine, 1842Meyers Universum Band 19 151857Meyers Universum Band 19 15Harper's Ferry insurrection - burying the dead insurgents1859Harper's Ferry insurrection - burying the dead insurg…Harper's Ferry, from Bolivar Heights.Alternate Title: Shenandoah Valley, (Va.) sceneryc. 1859Harper's Ferry, from Bolivar Heights.Alternate Title:…Harper's Ferry, from Bolivar Heights.Alternate Title: Shenandoah Valley, (Va.) sceneryc. 1859Harper's Ferry, from Bolivar Heights.Alternate Title:…Harpers Ferry in 18591859Harpers Ferry in 1859John Brown's scaffold1859John Brown's scaffoldRailroad map of Harpers Ferry in 18591859Railroad map of Harpers Ferry in 1859Map
1860s14 items
Harper's Ferry, W. Va. View of the town and railroad bridge LOC cwpb.037391860Harper's Ferry, W. Va. View of the town and railroad …Sheridans Army. Quarter Master Stores1860Sheridans Army. Quarter Master StoresHarpers Ferry1860Harpers FerryDestruction of the railroad bridge over the Potomac, at Harper's Ferry, by the Rebels, June 15, 18611861Destruction of the railroad bridge over the Potomac, …Harper's Ferry, photographed immediately after its evacuation by the rebels. 18611861Harper's Ferry, photographed immediately after its ev…Harper's Ferry, W. Va. Ruins of arsenal LOC cwpb.003021862Harper's Ferry, W. Va. Ruins of arsenal LOC cwpb.00302Harpers' Ferry1862Harpers' FerryHarpers' Ferry1862Harpers' FerryGenl. Stevensons Headqurters-Harpers Ferry1864Genl. Stevensons Headqurters-Harpers FerryThe war in upper Virginia - Gen. Sheridan's headquarters at Harper's Ferry - from a sketch by J.E. Taylor1864The war in upper Virginia - Gen. Sheridan's headquart…Virginius Island in 18641864Virginius Island in 1864Meeting of the Shenandoah and Potomac at Harpers Ferry - negative by J. Gardner ; positive by A. Gardner1865Meeting of the Shenandoah and Potomac at Harpers Ferr…Virginia, Harper's Ferry1865Virginia, Harper's FerryView of Harper's Ferry, Va1865View of Harper's Ferry, Va
The story

How Harpers Ferry came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Harpers Ferry.

Read it all →

In 1733, squatter Peter Stephens settled on land near the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers and established a ferry across the Potomac from Virginia (now West Virginia) to Maryland.

Chapters1700s1800s20th century21st century

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Harpers Ferry, 1751 to 1953

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

  1. 18th century
  2. 1751
    FoundingHarpers Ferry is established
  3. 19th century
  4. 1800Post officeThe Harpers Ferry post office opens
  5. 1820Born hereWillard Preble Hall is born here
  6. 1833BuiltSt. Peter's Roman Catholic Church is built
  7. 1842In the archiveHarper’s Ferry from the Blue Ridge
  8. 1844Born hereEmanuel Willis Wilson is born here
  9. 1857In the archiveMeyers Universum Band 19 15
  10. 1860In the archiveHarper's Ferry, W. Va. View of the town and railroad bridge LOC cwpb.03739
  11. 1876Born hereDrusilla Dunjee Houston is born here
  12. 20th century
  13. 1911Born hereJoseph Howard Hodges is born here
  14. 1944BuiltHarpers Ferry National Historical Park is built
  15. 1953On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
On the map

Harpers Ferry on the map, 1953 to 1996

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

Harpers Ferry on the 1953 USGS mapHarpers Ferry on the 1969 USGS mapHarpers Ferry on the 1996 USGS map1953Harpers Ferry 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 Harpers Ferry.

Every building

Harpers Ferry, building by building, 1894–1922

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.

Harpers Ferry fire insurance map, 1894, sheet 11894Sheet 1 of 4
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Harper’s Ferry from the Blue Ridge
Retake this viewHarper’s Ferry from the Blue Ridge, 1842

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Harpers Ferry’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Harpers Ferry, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001,8001850190019502000Peak: 1,747

Between 269 and 1,747 people in every census since 1850.

17 censuses, 1850–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Harpers Ferry’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Harpers Ferry

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

See all →
E
Emanuel Willis WilsonAmerican politician · b. 1844
J
Joseph Howard HodgesAmerican Roman Catholic bishop · b. 1911
Willard Preble HallAmerican politician · b. 1820
Drusilla Dunjee HoustonAmerican writer · b. 1876
Elliott DaingerfieldAmerican artist · b. 1859
Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Harpers Ferry’s post office has been open since 1800.

Hamlets and corners on the map
Lower TownVirginius
Gone or out of use
Free ChurchchurchHalls Rifle WorksbuildingHerrs DamdamHerrs MilllocaleJohn Browns FortmilitarySaint Johns Episcopal ChurchchurchSaint Peters SchoolschoolShenandoah BridgebridgeStorer CollegeschoolUnited States Armory and Arsenal at Harpers FerrymilitaryWernwags Sawmilllocale
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Harpers Ferry
Cedar HillHarper

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

Help out

Finish Harpers Ferry’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewHarper’s Ferry from the Blue Ridge: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Bolivar1 historic placenot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town

Questions about Harpers Ferry’s history

What year was Harpers Ferry founded?

In 1751, according to Wikidata. Harpers Ferry’s post office opened in 1800, and the census of 1850 counted 1,747 people here.

What is on the National Register in Harpers Ferry?

4 listings: 2 buildings and 2 historic districts, the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park and the Harpers Ferry Historic District, with 206 contributing buildings. 210 historic buildings in all.

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 (19), the Library of Congress (4), Wikidata (1), the National Register of Historic Places (4), 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.