Shepherdstown dates to 1734, and 47% of its homes were built before 1940
Among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. What drives it
10 places in town are on the National Register, among them three historic districts with 374 buildings between them. Below: 12 old photos and papers, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1850.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1792.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Shepherdstown’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Shepherdstown is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns. All 2 inputs put Shepherdstown near the top nationally; its National Register listings ranks highest.
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HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Shepherdstown’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 Shepherdstown’s 2,610 sits above most of its state (99% of West Virginia towns have fewer) while its 381 historic buildings outnumber those of 96% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1734.
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 (±18.8 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 Shepherdstown’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.
Every building
Shepherdstown, 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.
Established on December 23, 1762, by consecutive acts passed by the Virginia House of Burgesses and approved by the governor, Mecklenburg (later renamed Shepherdstown), and Romney in Hampshire County are the oldest towns in West Virginia. On a list of more than 30 approved "publick and private bills" of that date, the bill containing An Act for establishing the town of Mecklenburg, in the county of Frederick immediately follows An act for establishing the town of Romney, in the county of Hampshire, and for other purposes therein-mentioned.
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.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Shepherdstown. 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 Shepherdstown.
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.
Retake this viewCa-1861-1865-bridge-ruins-C&O-Canal-Lock-38-Potomac-Shepherdstown, 1861
Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Shepherdstown’s page.
In 1734, according to Wikidata. Shepherdstown’s post office opened in 1792, and the census of 1850 counted 1,561 people here.
How does Shepherdstown rank for history?
Shepherdstown is among the most historic 1% 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 Shepherdstown?
10 listings: 7 buildings, among them the Shepherd's Mill (listed 1971, the first), and 3 historic districts, the Shepherdstown Historic District, the Falling Spring-Morgan's Grove and the Morgan's Grove, with 374 contributing buildings. 381 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Shepherdstown?
47% of Shepherdstown’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±18.8 points), against a typical 13% for a West Virginia town; the median home was built in 1965.
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 (9), the Library of Congress (3), the National Register of Historic Places (10), 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.
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